Smart Cities Mission to upscale to support Karnataka to tackle COVID-19

The Centre's Smart Cities Mission has proposed to upscale its current projects to handle the COVID-19 situation and will help Karnataka government to contain its spread, by focusing on strengthening health infrastructure, among others, officials said.

The Smart Cities Mission, which was set up to improve the quality of life of Indian citizens through local development and technology innovations, will work closely with the Department of Health and Family Welfare of the state to enhance its efforts to control the spread of COVID-19, an official release said.

The focus will be on strengthening health infrastructure, providing medical equipment and developing information technology solutions, it said. A meeting in this regard was chaired by Commissioner, Department of Health and Family Welfare Pankaj Kumar Pandey with Charulata Somal, MD, KUIDFC & State Mission Director, Smart Cities Mission, Srinivas N, Chief Engineer, Smart Cities Mission and other department officers.

"The Mission has proposed to upscale its current projects to handle the COVID-19 situation, to upgrade infrastructure and equipment at district hospitals, and to procure ambulances and equipment. The Mission also plans to use an Integrated Command and Control Centre model along with other IT interventions to upgrade the existing e-health system, and will be involved in the hardware procurement for an e-Hospital Management System," Pandey said.

A detailed plan of action is being worked out in consultation with BBMP (Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike) Special Commissioner, Health and other senior officials from the Health Department, he said. Under the Smart Cities Mission, health projects already completed include a 30-bed hospital in Vantamuri, Belagavi.

Two parts of a trauma centre have also been constructed in Belagavi, while a 37-bedded ICU has been installed at Wenlock Hospital, Mangaluru. IT innovations include a Digital Nerve Centre in Tumakuru and a Smart Healthcare centre in Hubballi Dharwad. Two upgradation projects at Wenlock Hospital in Mangaluru, and the construction of an additional floor at Lady Goschen Hospital in Mangaluru, have also been tendered.

The construction of a Trauma Centre in Tumakuru, and a 10-bed hospital in Vadagaon, Belagavi, is ongoing, the release added.