A CANVASS OF ‘SMART’ DREAMS
This Children’s Day, kids got an opportunity to showcase their vision of what a smart city should be like through a painting competition organised at Nagar Nigam’s Jhandi Wala Park for slum children and students of nearby schools.
As it turned out the children showed that a smart city meant much more to them than just skyscrapers and smooth roads.
Some of the key themes that stood out in their paintings were those of smart traffic management, safety of citizens, and a healthy and pollution-free environment. The children also emphasised the need of easy access to various services. The event was jointly organised by the Vigyan Foundation and Action Aid.
“It is for the last few months that discussions on smart city are going on. In such a situation, we thought that seeking the opinion of children is equally important and thus organised the contest,” said Sandeep Khare of Vigyan Foundation.
Anamika Srivastava, programme executive at All India Radio and a judge at the event, said, “Often children think up what elders can’t even imagine. Their ideas are new and highlight their sensitivity on various issues.” The paintings, she added, were a proof that children too want development and various facilities to be a part of a smart city.