Smart cities utilize technology and data to improve infrastructure and services for citizens. The Indian government plans to develop 100 smart cities but lacks a legal framework. Transforming cities requires integrating many infrastructure elements like transportation, utilities, and security which is complex. Experts will struggle to create new frameworks and may end up adjusting existing laws instead. A smart city will generate large amounts of data requiring privacy laws to prevent theft and misuse. Both amending existing laws around revenue generation and establishing centralized governance are needed to properly implement smart city goals.

1. What are smart cities?
Cities which have smart physical, social, institutional and economic infrastructure and generate
options for a common man to pursue his/her livelihood are smart cities.
Indian Government recently rolled out a plan involving development of 100 smart cities
around the country however there are concerns about the lack of legal framework to regulate
and manage these cities
A similar budget was allocated to the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission
(JNNURM) scheme.Launched in 2006, JNNURM was a reform-driven programme to provide
rapid but planned development in 65 cities in India.
How Rs 1 lakh crore will transform 600 cities when JNNURM couldn’t transform even 65 of
them.
Transforming a city into a smart city is a complex process which involves harmonizing a
nuber of infrastructure elements involved into one big information technology family.These
aspects inclue Sanitation,electricity,housing,health ,urban mobility ,water and security.
This is a very complex which poses nuisance for the city leaders add experts who would find
it very difficult to create a new set of frameworks for the entire smart city .Finally they will
end twisting the existing and municipal regulations .
There are a number of sectors involved in creating a smart city and it is not possible to bring
in a consolidated law.
A practical approach would involve each section amending laws according to them.
Requirement of privacy laws
A smart city would produce huge amounts of data that would need a safe storage facility (A
secure framework) to avoid theft and consequent misuse of data
Thus there is a need to place an appropriate legal framework to address such activities in the
smart ecosystem
Implementing smart city goals would require the cities to generate more revenues to cater to
the multiple stakeholders involved in the ecosystem.It would thus require amendment of
present laws including those of municipal corporations.
The smart city concept must involve both citizens and governing agencies to gain wider
acceptability and transparency. It requires a centralised metropolitan governing structure.
Technology should be used only as a tool to monitor urban services and not considered as the
only solution.