Gujarat Completes Over 357 Smart City Projects

30 Mar 2026 CW Team

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Gujarat on 31 March to inaugurate and lay foundation stones for urban projects, according to the Chief Minister's Office. The state declared 2025 the Urban Development Year and extended a two-decade programme that started in 2005 to expand urban infrastructure and connectivity. Major works include new expressways, highways and a signature bridge connecting Dwarka with Beyt Dwarka, with approach roads and parking completed.

Urban transport has progressed with the completion of Phase two of the Ahmedabad Metro and orders for 24 trainsets for the Surat Metro to expand sustainable transit. India’s first bullet train project is advancing in the state and five Vande Bharat trains have been operating since September 2022. Aviation upgrades include a greenfield airport at Hirasar in Rajkot built at Rs 14.05 billion (bn) and the Surat International Airport built at Rs 34 billion (bn).

Under AMRUT and AMRUT 2.0 water supply projects worth Rs 6,303.9 million (mn) have reached 82,328 households while sewerage works valued at Rs 5,755.8 million (mn) have covered 24,206 households, increasing sewage treatment capacity by 67 MLD and extending sewer lines by 113.31 km. The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana has delivered 919,204 houses in urban Gujarat and a Lighthouse Project in Rajkot used monolithic concrete to build 1,144 units, with PMAY Urban 2.0 approving over 100,000 houses. The state budget for 2026-27 allocates Rs 335.04 billion (bn) to urban development, including Rs 161.16 billion (bn) for a major urban scheme and Rs 12.78 billion (bn) for sporting and transport infrastructure ahead of the 2030 Commonwealth Games, alongside metro expansion and sanitation initiatives.

The Gujarat government has completed 357 urban projects under the central Smart City Mission across six cities, delivering infrastructure and services. The six cities undertook 359 projects worth Rs 115.07 billion (bn) in total, of which projects valued at Rs 112.77 billion (bn) have been completed and two projects worth Rs 2,290 million (mn) are nearing completion. The terms billion (bn) and million (mn) are defined on first mention. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit Gujarat on 31 March to inaugurate and lay foundation stones for urban projects, according to the Chief Minister's Office. The state declared 2025 the Urban Development Year and extended a two-decade programme that started in 2005 to expand urban infrastructure and connectivity. Major works include new expressways, highways and a signature bridge connecting Dwarka with Beyt Dwarka, with approach roads and parking completed. Urban transport has progressed with the completion of Phase two of the Ahmedabad Metro and orders for 24 trainsets for the Surat Metro to expand sustainable transit. India’s first bullet train project is advancing in the state and five Vande Bharat trains have been operating since September 2022. Aviation upgrades include a greenfield airport at Hirasar in Rajkot built at Rs 14.05 billion (bn) and the Surat International Airport built at Rs 34 billion (bn). Under AMRUT and AMRUT 2.0 water supply projects worth Rs 6,303.9 million (mn) have reached 82,328 households while sewerage works valued at Rs 5,755.8 million (mn) have covered 24,206 households, increasing sewage treatment capacity by 67 MLD and extending sewer lines by 113.31 km. The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana has delivered 919,204 houses in urban Gujarat and a Lighthouse Project in Rajkot used monolithic concrete to build 1,144 units, with PMAY Urban 2.0 approving over 100,000 houses. The state budget for 2026-27 allocates Rs 335.04 billion (bn) to urban development, including Rs 161.16 billion (bn) for a major urban scheme and Rs 12.78 billion (bn) for sporting and transport infrastructure ahead of the 2030 Commonwealth Games, alongside metro expansion and sanitation initiatives.

Technology

29 Jul 2026

AI-Enabled Workflows Lift Profitability and Productivity

Organisations modernising frontline workflows with artificial intelligence, automation and real-time data are reporting stronger financial performance, higher productivity and improved employee engagement, according to a global study by Zebra Technologies and Oxford Economics.The research covered 1,000 senior leaders across retail, manufacturing, transportation and logistics in the US, Mexico, the UK, Germany, India, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.In transportation and logistics, 54 per cent of companies that improved picking and packing operations reported faster operational performance, wh..

Real Estate

29 Jul 2026

India Leads Global AI Readiness but Implementation Lags

Indian companies lead global averages across all eight artificial intelligence readiness indicators tracked by JLL, but only 19 per cent have started making changes to their workplaces, according to the JLL 2026 Future of Work Survey.The study found that 77 per cent of Indian business leaders expect AI to change their office requirements, creating a 58-percentage-point gap between awareness and implementation. The survey covered more than 2,200 CEOs, CFOs and real estate leaders across 21 countries during the first quarter of 2026.Despite concerns over automation, 58 per cent of Indian leaders..

Equipment

29 Jul 2026

Three WOLFF Cranes Build Riyadh Cable-Stayed Bridges

Three WOLFF 180 B luffing jib cranes are supporting the construction of two cable-stayed bridges alongside the existing Wadi Laban Bridge in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The project is being developed for the Royal Commission for Riyadh City and executed by the ICRC joint venture comprising IC Ictas and Al Rashid Trading & Contracting Company.The cranes are handling lifting operations including formwork, reinforcement, concrete placement, work platforms, surveying equipment and other construction materials. Each crane is fitted with a 40 m jib, reaches a hook height of 157 m and offers a maximum ..