Now, Centre considers an extension of the Smart Cities Mission

02 Jul 2024 CW Team

The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry, with days to go till the Mission deadline of 30 June, is considering extending the Smart Cities Mission to allow the cities to complete the ongoing projects, which account for around 10 percent of the total projects.

Launched in 2015, the Smart Cities Mission covers 100 cities that were selected through various rounds of competitions held from January 2016 to June 2018. The selected cities had five years from their selection to complete the proposed projects, meaning the original deadlines were from 2021 to 2023.

After the pandemic broke out, the deadline for all 100 cities was fixed to June 2023 in 2021. In May last year, the Ministry again extended the deadline this time to 30 June 2024.

Recently, around 10 percent of the projects worth around Rs.150 billion were pending. An extension for those cities that still need to complete their projects beyond June 30 was being considered.

The Ministry’s Smart Cities Mission dashboard showed that out of a total of 7,996 projects worth Rs.1.64 trillion, 7,118 projects worth Rs.1.43 trillion had been completed as on June 7 while 878 projects worth Rs.211.89 billion were still ongoing as of June 7.

It could take the cities around six months more to complete the ongoing works. Earlier this year, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Housing and Urban Affairs’ report said that the ministry has said before the committee that in case of project noncompletion within the extended time frame, the concerned state governments will have to complete the projects at their own cost

Infrastructure Transport

06 Feb 2026

Second Mountain Tunnel Breakthrough in Palghar Advances High Speed Rail

The Mumbai-Ahmedabad high speed rail (MAHSR) project reached a milestone with the breakthrough of a mountain tunnel in Palghar, Maharashtra. Mountain tunnel MT-six measures 454 metres long and 14.4 metres wide and will accommodate up and down tracks. The breakthrough follows MT-five near Saphale on second January 2026 and the MT-six excavation was completed from both ends using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method. The ministry reported that the tunnelling was completed within 12 months. The New Austrian Tunnelling Method is favoured for its flexibility in complex geology and irregular tunnel s..

Modi Government Pushes Atmanirbhar Container Drive With BCSL MoU

The Union Government advanced a plan to create an integrated, domestically anchored container ecosystem with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding to establish the Bharat Container Shipping Line (BCSL). The MoU was signed by key agencies including the Shipping Corporation of India and Container Corporation of India alongside major port authorities and Sagarmala Finance Corporation Limited under the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, in the presence of senior ministers. The initiative aligns with the Container Manufacturing Assistance Scheme announced in the Union Budget 2026–2..

Ministry Reports Gains In Mobility For Marginalised Communities

The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is implementing skill development, education and rehabilitation schemes to promote socio-economic mobility and sustainable livelihoods for marginalised and disadvantaged communities across the country. Programmes target Scheduled Castes, Other Backward Classes, Economically Weaker Sections, De-notified Tribes and Safai Karamcharis through specialised implementing corporations and empanelled training institutes. Pradhan Mantri Dakshata Aur Kushalta Sampann Hitgrahi Yojana, or PM-DAKSH, provided skill training and placement support through the Nati..