Union Urban Development minister M. Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday announced the list of 98 cities nominated for the Smart City Mission, saying a population of 13 crore across these cities will be covered under the initiative.

"There are 13 cities from Uttar Pradesh, 12 from Tamil Nadu, 10 from Maharashtra, seven from Madhya Pradesh, three each from Bihar and Andhra Pradesh included in the list," Naidu told media persons at an interaction here.

"Smart cities need smart people. We need people's co-operation to move forward in our mission," he added.
The central government proposes to give financial support to the extent of Rs.48,000 crore to these cities over the next five years, Naidu said.

"Around 13 crore population across 98 cities will be covered under the Smart City Mission. Making them smart will make them engines of economic growth besides giving decent life to the citizens," he said.

Nine capital cities that were not nominated for the mission include Itanagar, Patna, Shimla, Bengaluru and Kolkata.
The minister said the prime motive of the initiative was to enhance urban life. "The mission is very practical and realistic," he added.

(IANS)