SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities | SDG 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
Institutions: Ministry of Defence
At the national conference MANTHAN 2025, Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh urged officers of the Indian Defence Estates Service (IDES) to transform cantonment boards into modern, smart, and sustainable urban ecosystems aligned with the βViksit Bharat by 2047β vision. Cantonment boards currently manage over 18 lakh acres of defence land and serve residents across 61 cantonments. The minister called for expanded digital services (e-Chhawani 2.0 with AI grievance redressal, multilingual interfaces, smart health), renewable energy systems, AI-driven surveillance, EV charging infrastructure, and waste-to-energy plants. He also advocated granting financial autonomy to boards and greater citizen participation in planning. He praised recent innovations like the E-Connect platform launched by DGDE to support small businesses and startups in cantonments.
This directive positions cantonment boards not merely as defense enclaves but as nodes of urban governance modernization. Prioritising digital infrastructure, environmental systems, and participatory governance within these precincts introduces new frontiers in civic-state synergy, land use, and public service delivery.
Relevant Question for Policy Stakeholders: What institutional, regulatory, and funding models are necessary to operationalize smart cantonments-balancing defence imperatives, citizen needs, sustainability, and scalability across diverse geographies?
Follow the full news here: PIB Release β Transform Cantonment Boards into Smart Ecosystems (PRID 2168167)