Latest news with #SmartCitiesMission
Time Business News
2 days ago
- Business
- Time Business News
IAS Sanjeev Jaiswal: Driving Urban Change in Maharashtra
Mumbai, India – IAS officer Sanjeev Jaiswal, a senior bureaucrat from the 1996 Maharashtra cadre, continues to earn recognition for his transformative work in urban governance, infrastructure development, and administrative innovation. With over two decades of experience, Jaiswal has held several key positions in Maharashtra's administrative machinery and has built a reputation as a reform-oriented, technology-driven, and citizen-first leader. Sanjeev Jaiswal's career is marked by landmark achievements that span multiple sectors — from municipal administration and urban planning to housing and public health. As Municipal Commissioner of Thane, he led the city's award-winning Smart City transformation. His leadership was instrumental in deploying real-time data systems, smart mobility solutions, and urban waste management technologies, placing Thane on the national map for digital innovation and urban efficiency. Later, as Additional Municipal Commissioner in the BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation), Jaiswal was a central figure in Mumbai's COVID-19 management strategy. He supervised healthcare logistics, capacity expansion in containment zones, and the coordination of public-private partnerships for emergency services. His crisis management approach, built on transparency, rapid decision-making, and public communication, was widely acknowledged across civic bodies. IAS Sanjeev Jaiswal's tenure as CEO of MHADA (Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority) further cemented his reputation as a champion of inclusive development. Under his leadership, MHADA restructured its housing allocation systems, embraced digital platforms for application and draw processes, and accelerated key affordable housing projects that had previously been stuck in bureaucratic limbo. His initiatives contributed to boosting public confidence in government housing and brought transparency and speed to a sector often criticized for opacity and delays. Unlike many in public service, Sanjeev Jaiswal IAS is known for combining long-term planning with immediate execution. Whether it was restructuring administrative workflows, leveraging e-governance to increase citizen participation, or encouraging cross-department collaboration, his work has always aligned with the values of efficiency, accessibility, and integrity. In fact, across his roles, Jaiswal has regularly promoted projects tied to India's national missions, including Digital India, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Housing for All, and Smart Cities Mission. His understanding of both macro-level policy and grassroots impact makes him a rare asset in modern Indian bureaucracy. While many bureaucrats remain behind the scenes, Sanjeev Jaiswal's work has drawn public recognition for its clarity and impact. Citizens, local representatives, and independent policy think tanks have praised his efforts to create systems that are transparent, corruption-resistant, and future-ready. Importantly, he has maintained a clean and respected reputation, even amid periods of intense public scrutiny within the state machinery. His decision-making style is guided by rules, data, and empathy — a combination that defines good governance in the 21st century. TIME BUSINESS NEWS
The Hindu
4 days ago
- Automotive
- The Hindu
Coimbatore Corporation plans new road along Valankulam bund
Coimbatore Corporation has proposed opening a new road along the Valankulam bund to create an alternate route for vehicles travelling from Lanka Corner to Ukkadam. Originally developed as a pedestrian pathway under the Smart Cities Mission, the bund-side track is now being considered for partial conversion into a one-way road. The stretch starts opposite the two-wheeler parking lot near the Lanka Corner railway bridge, runs alongside the lake, and ends at the Vincent Road junction near the Ukkadam–Sungam bypass, covering approximately two kilometres. According to a senior Corporation official, the pathway was created during Smart Cities works and lies adjacent to a local sewage canal that feeds Valankulam. Encroachments along the canal, including 11 commercial structures, have been removed. Households along the stretch will be relocated to alternate housing, enabling the Corporation to restore the full 10-metre width of the road. Once completed, the road is planned to carry one-way traffic from Lanka Corner to Ukkadam. The proposal has been submitted to the District Road Safety Committee and the city traffic police. Once approved, the road will be paved and opened to traffic. Officials said this would help decongest Vincent Road and reduce pressure at the Town Hall junction.
Time of India
4 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Food streets on backburner as even Trichy's wider roads choke
Trichy: Two years after the Trichy Corporation proposed creating food streets to benefit both residents and mobile food vendors by regulating their business locations without disrupting vehicular movement, the plan remains a non-starter. Meanwhile, the rapid increase in street food outlets, especially on the city's few remaining wider roads, has led to growing complaints about traffic congestion, prompting the city police to seek solutions to manage mobile eateries. Post Covid-19, food trucks have sprung up in each of Trichy's five zones, with about 5 to 10 food joints per zone. Over time, the number of trucks has proliferated to more than 100 across the city. Since narrow streets are unsuitable for these mobile eateries, vendors have targeted wider, spacious roads such as West Boulevard Road, Major Saravanan Road, Williams Road, Thillai Nagar Main Road, Sastri Road, and SBI Road. However, many of these roads are important city bus routes. Trichy city police note that visitor parking on these stretches significantly reduces the usable road space, leaving at least 30% of the carriageways unmotorable. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 5 Books Warren Buffett Wants You to Read In 2025 Blinkist: Warren Buffett's Reading List Undo "We have instructed mobile eateries to move towards less busy roads, away from main roads used for public transport. But lack of enforcement has resulted in persistent congestion, especially at night," a traffic police officer told TOI. Violations around informal food outlets include encroachment of pavements and riding against traffic to access stalls. Residents have voiced concerns about the permanent occupation of on-street parking by eateries, particularly on West Boulevard Road near Ibrahim Park. "Trichy Corporation should identify trouble-free areas to relocate these eateries," said Pushpak Jain, a resident of Jaffershah Street. Pavements constructed under the Smart Cities Mission on West Boulevard Road are frequently encroached upon by gas stoves and makeshift stalls. Though the local body has removed encroachments by mobile eateries twice in the past nine months in Cantonment and West Boulevard Road areas, enforcement has not been sustained. Meanwhile, the two-year-old proposal to develop dedicated food streets remains unimplemented. "Suitable roads or vacant spaces should be identified to support both entrepreneurs and customers," said Subash Chandran, member of Trichy Intra-City Development Endeavours (TIDES). Corporation officials cited a fund shortage as a key reason for the delay in developing food streets. "Many educated youths operate mobile eateries to earn a livelihood. We have identified locations to develop food streets and will soon seek appropriate schemes to build the required infrastructure," Mayor Mu Anbalagan told TOI.
The Hindu
18-06-2025
- Automotive
- The Hindu
Coimbatore Corporation initiates study to ease congestion at R.S. Puram junction
The Coimbatore Corporation has initiated a study to ease growing traffic congestion at the R.S. Puram junction. Corporation Commissioner M. Sivaguru Prabakaran said a team from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras will carry out a month-long study, which will include traffic volume counts, turning movement analysis, conflict point identification, and a reassessment of the available space at the junction. Necessary improvements will be taken up based on the report, he said. Once regulated by traffic signals, the intersection of DB Road and TV Samy Road now operates without them, as the area had been developed earlier under the Smart Cities Mission. 'The existing roundabout is not the best option for handling the traffic. It is often managed by a traffic police personnel, but still ends up getting choked,' said S. Ambika, a resident of R.S. Puram. G. Manuneethi, Divisional Engineer of the State Highways Department (Road Safety), said the junction earlier had a diameter of about 25 metres, which could accommodate a 14-metre roundabout and provide nine metres of motorable space. The existing roundabout is only about six metres in diameter, which is not ideal for turning radius,' he said.
Time of India
17-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
CII's Madurai vision document outlines reimagining city in 2035
Madurai: Confederation of Indian Industry's (CII) Pudhu vision document for Madurai has outlined a 2035 roadmap for reimagining the city as a dual hub of heritage and modernity. Tamil Nadu IT and digital services minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan launched the document on Tuesday. Lauding the document as "comprehensive and thought-provoking," PTR said it effectively articulates the socio-economic aspirations of southern Tamil Nadu and offers practical suggestions for aligning govt action with regional needs. "This document combines both grand ambition and granular detail. It tackles everything from heritage and tourism to IT and industrial corridors," he said. PTR candidly reflected on Madurai's historic stature and its relatively slow growth in recent decades. "In Roman times, the Pandya kingdom was a trade surplus with Europe. But today, cities like Coimbatore and Erode have outpaced Madurai," he said. The reason, he noted, was not a lack of potential but a more modest approach to projecting achievements. Citing examples from his own constituency, PTR criticised past planning failures under the Smart Cities Mission, especially the granite paving around the Meenakshi temple. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Flexible Phone Plans for Small Biz Undo "It's uneven, it overheats, and blocks drainage," he said, stressing the need for informed urban design rooted in local context. He also spoke about long-delayed govt projects. "The plan to shift Madurai Central Prison took four years just to identify land. Execution timelines are glacial," he said, underlining the urgency for reforms in administrative efficiency. Pudhu the CII vision document, proposes a dual-city model — preserving the historic urban core while building a new growth hub 30-60km away. It envisions walkable townships, climate-smart industrial corridors, and citizen-centric governance. The aim is to create a city where tradition and technology coexist. Calling for collaboration, PTR said, "Documents like this, when driven by industry and civil society, are far more valuable than bureaucratic plans. The govt must work with associations like CII to make them a reality."
