India will have an online database of all cities by 2024.

By Abhay Shah, Realty Quarter

India will have, among others, an online database of all cities on infrastructure, education, and health facilities by 2024, as it aims to create a “data culture” to address the country’s urban challenges, an official said on September 9.

There will be an ‘Open Database’ which everyone can access free of charge and an ‘Exchange of Database’ under which organizations could charge for the commercial use of information as per a proposal by the Ministry of Union Housing and Urban Affairs (HUA) Ministry.

The database will be carried out on one platform, which will include information on infrastructure, traffic, education, medical care, sanitation and safety and the population, the ministry said. A database for 100 cities will be created in the first phase under the flagship ‘Smart City Mission’ of the Center by March 2020, while 500 cities will be brought to the project by 2022 in the second phase.

HUA Joint Secretary and Smart City Mission Director Kunal Kumar said that 100 “data agents” are being trained and they will be accountable for greater coordination among government agencies and supplying information on the single platform.

“We’re going to have a database of over 4,000 towns by 2024. We’re constructing a database of these towns. In one location, data storage will be accessible,” he said.

For example, an individual searching for a house in a specific area can use the online data to see what civic facilities are accessible in the neighbourhood.

People can use the information to match their requirements on the ‘Open Database’ platform, Kumar said. Streets that are susceptible to crime can also be recognized through the platform, as per authorities.

The government has scheduled to set up an online platform ‘Swachh Kashi’ for the Varanasi people under the project. People can publish pictures of nasty and tidy areas on this platform, which the software will automatically score.