Visakhapatnam: Union urban development minister M. Venkaiah Naidu said that the selection of Smart Cities was done in a transparent manner. Speaking here in Visakhapatnam on Monday, Mr Venkaiah Naidu said that by conducting the IFR on a grand scale, the brand image of Vizag city has reached greater heights. “Some political forces are spreading rumours that we systematically sidelined some cities from the list. Those are all baseless rumours. The list was finalised only after assessing the cities’ credibility and do-ability. We would include the remaining cities in the Smart Cities Mission in the next list,” said Mr Naidu.
“Union government does not involve in the development of a particular city. We only guide the cities in attaining better infrastructure, IT component and e-governance. Bills such as Goods and Services Tax (GST) and Real Estate (Regulation and Development) would be tabled and passed in the next Parliament sessions,” said Mr Naidu.
Mr Naidu also opined that Vizag in future would emerge as a world-class city. “Record number of delegates from various countries attended the grand event. Even President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi were pleased with the way IFR was conducted in Visakhapatnam. The city of destiny has a bright future ahead.”
