Smart Cities Mission closed 31 March 2025, no new Tamil Nadu cities allowed

The question asked the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs if there are plans to include new cities in Tamil Nadu under the Smart Cities Mission (SCM), requested status reports on fund utilization, and inquired about steps for maintenance and integration of Integrated Command and Control Centres (ICCCs).

Asked and answered by: Asked by Dr. T Sumathy Alias Thamizhachi Thangapandian; Answered by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (Minister Shri Manohar Lal).

What the government said

• The Smart Cities Mission (SCM) closed on 31st March 2025, and there is no provision to include further new cities.
• Out of a total budgetary allocation of ₹48,000 Cr, States/UTs claimed ₹47,458 Cr (99%) and utilized ₹46,377 Cr (98%) as of 31.03.2026.
• NITI Aayog’s September 2025 report states the SCM achieved a 93% project completion rate (8,063 projects) and 100% completion of ICCCs.
• MoHUA issued Advisory No. 27 dated 10th June 2025, requiring Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) to submit Utilization Certificates by March 2026 and prepare Operation & Maintenance (O&M) plans.
• The advisory directs that ICCCs be leveraged as city operating systems with operational control retained by urban development departments, and SPVs may receive service-linked revenues for managing ICC functions.

Also in the document

• The answer explicitly states that no new cities can be added because the mission has already closed.
• The annexure lists specific fund claims and utilization for Tamil Nadu cities, showing most claimed ₹490 Cr, with utilization ranging from ₹480 Cr (Tirunelveli) to ₹490 Cr (Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai, Salem).