Emerging ‘Smart Cities’ to Look at in Bengaluru in 2015
The Karnataka government in 2014 proposed three new smart cities around Bengaluru that will not only develop the cities, but will also decongest the IT city. These cities are Tumakuru (Tumkur), Devanahalli and Ramanagaram. A few other cities have also been proposed by the state government for smart city tags in Karnataka.
Emerging smart cities
Bengaluru attracts immigrants across India due to the continuously growing IT sector as well as the employment opportunities available in the city. The climate in Bengaluru is also an important factor for attracting immigrants. As such, the population has continuously grown in the city in the last decade and led to severe congestion. While the city continues to grow, it is lagging behind in terms of infrastructure, unable to cater to the fast growing population.
The present union government had announced Tumakuru (formerly Tumkur) as a candidate for smart city during the budget. With the proposal of Devanahalli and Ramanagaram as two more smart cities around Bengaluru by the state government, one may expect significant decongestion of Bengaluru and at the same time, significant development of cities around the IT capital.
Tumakuru
Though Tumakuru is Bengaluru’s neighbour, it didn’t witness rapid growth unlike Bengaluru for a long time. The city however has been a hub for education and manufacturing, with several known companies and educational institutions based here. Tumakuru is situated about 70 km away from Bengaluru on NH-206. The city is home to the famous HMT (Hindustan Machine Tools) watch factory and the Siddhaganga Institute of Technology (SIT). With the announcement of smart city, the city is expected to see a rapid growth in the coming years. In terms of realty, areas on the Bengaluru-Tumakuru highway may witness rapid growth in a short duration.
Devanahalli
Devanahalli is a taluk headquarters in the Bengaluru district. The emergence of the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) changed the sleeping town into one of the most sought after real estate hotspots in Bengaluru. The town has seen major growth in the last decade since the announcement of the international airport and now it is set to become a smart city. Devanahalli is situated about 40 km north east to Bengaluru on NH-7 (Bangalore-Hyderabad Highway). The town has two major establishments: the Kempegowda International Airport and the upcoming Devanahalli Business Park have added feathers in its cap. There are also two IT parks expected to come up along with the billion dollar business park.
Devanahalli’s realty has already grown multiple folds in the last decade. With the proposal of smart city, it may be expected to grow further soon.
Ramanagaram
Ramanagaram was another small town on the Bengaluru-Mysore Highway, which went on to become a district in the last decade and now expected to become a smart city in the next decade, according to the state government’s proposal. The city lies approximately 50 km southwest of Bengaluru. The city has a growing infrastructure in the recent years. The city is known as the Silk Town and Silk City. The silk produced here form the raw material for the famous Mysore silk. Ramanagaram is the largest market for silk cocoons in entire Asia. With the development of the city as a smart city, one may expect significant growth in its economy as well as infrastructure. It will also help in significantly decongesting a part of Bengaluru.
Other proposed smart cities
Apart from these three cities, the Karnataka state government has also proposed other cities to be developed as smart cities in the state. These include Kalaburagi, Hubballi-Dharwad, Belagavi (Belgaum), Mysuru (Mysore) and Mangaluru (Mangalore). The state government is also working in association with CISCO and Electronic City Industrial Association (ELCIA) to open the first phase of Asia’s first Internet of Things (IoT) Innovation Hub in Electronic City in the year 2015. This will provide a smart city feel to the electronic and IT companies in the area.
