28
M. Fatewar and Vaishali
cities are worst affected by the pandemic. The same trend is visible at the district
level. The districts with more number of smart cities have registered more number
of COVID-19 cases as compared to the remaining districts of the respective state of
India. However, the regions with less number of smart cities have performed better
such as the Himalayas region, NE regions, and some UTs. Majorly, all the compact
cities including smart cities, which are developed on the concept of high population
density, good connectivity, and city functionality, have failed to sustain during the
pandemic situation due to less awareness among the people, immoral behaviour of
individuals, inappropriate healthcare infrastructure facilities, and non-availability of
updated demographic data.
To resolve all such issues, a rearticulated model for assimilation and dissemination
of data is required. The digital model uses two sets of data, i.e. personal data and nonpersonal data. It is important to maintain the privacy of an individual while using the
personal and non-personal data set for analysis. Additionally, an appropriate government will collect the demographic details by using a smartphone as the smallest unit
of data collection under DCP through the internet and locate the people’s location
spatially through GPS. The integration of the collected information through digital
technology on GIS will allow real-time spatial-statistical analysis. The digital model
will be extended to cover other infrastructure facilities in all smart cities of the nation
and can be replicated under the same and different geographical locations. Therefore, the smart sustainable cities will integrate the digital technology (to make the
cities smart), infrastructure (including sustainable environment), and people (through
DCP) under one umbrella. The aforesaid digital model of smart cities will allow to
control the spread of the virus at the initial stage and reduce the impact of a pandemic
by analysing the real-time data, which can further be extended to smart regions.
Acknowledgements The authors are grateful to Mrs. Priya Bhardwaj (Architect and Regional
Planner) for her detailed comments and suggestions on the first draft of the chapter. The authors
are also thankful to Ar. Suraj Panwar and Ar. Sandeep Kumar for providing help in data collection.
References
1. Aijaz R, Hoelscher K (2015) India’s smart cities mission: an assessment. Obs Res Found
124:1–12
2. Bhatt GK, Jani OK (2019) Smart development of Ahmedabad-Gandhinagar twin city
metropolitan region, Gujarat, India. In: Kumar TTV (ed) Smart metropolitan regional
development: economic and spatial design strategies. Springer, Singapore, pp 313–356
3. Bouzguenda I, Alalouch C, Fava N (2019) Towards smart sustainable cities: a review of the
role digital citizen participation could play in advancing social sustainability. Sustain Cities
Soc 50:1–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2019.101627
4. Capolongo S, Rebecchi A, Buffoli M, Appolloni L, Signorelli C, Fara GM, D’Alessandro
D (2020) COVID-19 and cities: from urban health strategies to the pandemic challenge. A
decalogue of public health opportunities. Mattioli 1885 91(2):12–22 (2020)
M. Fatewar and Vaishali
cities are worst affected by the pandemic. The same trend is visible at the district
level. The districts with more number of smart cities have registered more number
of COVID-19 cases as compared to the remaining districts of the respective state of
India. However, the regions with less number of smart cities have performed better
such as the Himalayas region, NE regions, and some UTs. Majorly, all the compact
cities including smart cities, which are developed on the concept of high population
density, good connectivity, and city functionality, have failed to sustain during the
pandemic situation due to less awareness among the people, immoral behaviour of
individuals, inappropriate healthcare infrastructure facilities, and non-availability of
updated demographic data.
To resolve all such issues, a rearticulated model for assimilation and dissemination
of data is required. The digital model uses two sets of data, i.e. personal data and nonpersonal data. It is important to maintain the privacy of an individual while using the
personal and non-personal data set for analysis. Additionally, an appropriate government will collect the demographic details by using a smartphone as the smallest unit
of data collection under DCP through the internet and locate the people’s location
spatially through GPS. The integration of the collected information through digital
technology on GIS will allow real-time spatial-statistical analysis. The digital model
will be extended to cover other infrastructure facilities in all smart cities of the nation
and can be replicated under the same and different geographical locations. Therefore, the smart sustainable cities will integrate the digital technology (to make the
cities smart), infrastructure (including sustainable environment), and people (through
DCP) under one umbrella. The aforesaid digital model of smart cities will allow to
control the spread of the virus at the initial stage and reduce the impact of a pandemic
by analysing the real-time data, which can further be extended to smart regions.
Acknowledgements The authors are grateful to Mrs. Priya Bhardwaj (Architect and Regional
Planner) for her detailed comments and suggestions on the first draft of the chapter. The authors
are also thankful to Ar. Suraj Panwar and Ar. Sandeep Kumar for providing help in data collection.
References
1. Aijaz R, Hoelscher K (2015) India’s smart cities mission: an assessment. Obs Res Found
124:1–12
2. Bhatt GK, Jani OK (2019) Smart development of Ahmedabad-Gandhinagar twin city
metropolitan region, Gujarat, India. In: Kumar TTV (ed) Smart metropolitan regional
development: economic and spatial design strategies. Springer, Singapore, pp 313–356
3. Bouzguenda I, Alalouch C, Fava N (2019) Towards smart sustainable cities: a review of the
role digital citizen participation could play in advancing social sustainability. Sustain Cities
Soc 50:1–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scs.2019.101627
4. Capolongo S, Rebecchi A, Buffoli M, Appolloni L, Signorelli C, Fara GM, D’Alessandro
D (2020) COVID-19 and cities: from urban health strategies to the pandemic challenge. A
decalogue of public health opportunities. Mattioli 1885 91(2):12–22 (2020)