Washington: A single big idea — its monumental new airport — has
propelled Mumbai into the A-list of National Geographic's "smart cities"
across the world, a catalog that includes familiar metropolises such as
New York and London, newbies such as Dubai and Seoul, and outposts such
as Halifax, Nova Scotia (Canada) and Tallinn, Estonia.
NG's "smart city" list isn't necessarily a chronicle of technologically accomplished cities. In fact, Mumbai makes the cut on account of its artsy airport. "Travelers might spot the peacock feather motif throughout terminal 2 of Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji airport. This and other lofty designs were unveiled earlier this year at the Jaye He Museum, now India's largest public art programme. Some 7,000 works pack the four-storey museum," the magazine says, noting that with that 40 million people passing through the airport each year, the exhibit rivals the Louvre in number of visitors.
But no other Indian city features in the 50-city list, in which San Francisco comes out on top simply on account of its reputation as the "global epicentre of big 'unrealistic' dreamers," that has produced an endless stream of innovations. In fact, the characteristics that form the basis of other cities making the list suggests that "smart cities" does not necessarily mean wired cities, as some Indian planners and the current Indian government are suggesting.
Read news in full 28/08/14 Chidanand Rajghatta/Times of India
NG's "smart city" list isn't necessarily a chronicle of technologically accomplished cities. In fact, Mumbai makes the cut on account of its artsy airport. "Travelers might spot the peacock feather motif throughout terminal 2 of Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji airport. This and other lofty designs were unveiled earlier this year at the Jaye He Museum, now India's largest public art programme. Some 7,000 works pack the four-storey museum," the magazine says, noting that with that 40 million people passing through the airport each year, the exhibit rivals the Louvre in number of visitors.
But no other Indian city features in the 50-city list, in which San Francisco comes out on top simply on account of its reputation as the "global epicentre of big 'unrealistic' dreamers," that has produced an endless stream of innovations. In fact, the characteristics that form the basis of other cities making the list suggests that "smart cities" does not necessarily mean wired cities, as some Indian planners and the current Indian government are suggesting.
Read news in full 28/08/14 Chidanand Rajghatta/Times of India
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