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ATLANTA, GA  -- May 1, 2016 -- As a developing economy with a rapidly growing population, India will see the development of smart cities, but they will be different than other smart cities already taking root around the world. And, the corporate real estate profession in India will be impacted by the way the smart cities develop in India,  and how quickly they emerge, according to a new report from �־������ٷ���� Global, “Smart Cities in India, The Way Forward.��

“For India, the definition of a smart city will be different from what it might be in Europe,�� said Professor Roland Dieterle, of the University of Applied Sciences in Stuttgart and CEO of international architecture firm Spacial Solutions.  “In India, there will be more retrofitting, and development of new towns and cities…A growing population has different needs, and that will impact what these cities will look like,�� he said in the report. 

Nevertheless there are commonalities that define smart cities globally, according to the Smart Cities Council in Washington, DC:

• Livability: Cities that provide clean, healthy living conditions without pollution and congestion, with a digital infrastructure that makes city services instantly and conveniently available anytime, anywhere.
• Workability: Cities that provide the enabling infrastructure �� energy, connectivity, computing, essential services �� to compete globally for high-quality jobs.
• Sustainability: Cities that provide services without depleting the resources needed by future generations.

The government in India is actively encouraging Smart City development. However, many times things in India can move slowly, despite best intentions, and what the government promises might take quite a while to materialize or not happen to the extent talked about, said George McKay, South Asia Director, Colliers International. With the Smart Cities Mission still in very early stages, relative to the goals for it, most companies are not making concrete plans for smart cities, until it becomes clearer which cities will take the lead and complete their transformation the quickest, he said. 

In addition, corporate location decisions will be determined by a number of factors including good governance and security, infrastructure and talent.

“No matter how good the infrastructure, if the talent is not already there, or the city/town is unable to attract and keep talent there, corporate end users will not choose to locate there or stay in that location,�� said Surabhi Arora, with Colliers International.

The report concludes that CRE professionals will need to keep a vigilant eye on how smart cities develop in India.

“As all these cities start to develop and become ‘smart cities,�� one of the issues that CRE will have to keep an eye on is how this will impact their portfolio,�� said Praveen Vasudeva, RICS, MCR, Head of Real Estate, APJC & India, Cisco. “It is possible that once these cities are fully developed, companies will look to consolidate their space in a big city and move to the cheaper and yet “smarter�� satellite locations, he said.

For a copy of the full report, contact [email protected]

About �־������ٷ���� Global

�־������ٷ���� Global is the world’s leading professional association for corporate real estate (CRE) executives with strategic responsibility for the real property used by multinational corporations for their own operations. �־������ٷ���� Global’s almost 10,000 members, who include 70% of the top 100 U.S. companies and nearly half of the Global 2000, meet locally, globally and virtually to develop networks, share knowledge, learn and thrive professionally. For more information, please visit www.corenetglobal.org.

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