The National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) under the CITIIS program is organising a photography exhibition, titled “Cities of Tomorrow” with the purpose of depicting the positive impacts of sustainable and innovation-driven urban development in India as seen through the lens of the common citizen. The exhibition is the culmination of the “Cities of Tomorrow” photography competition, which was conducted in the 12 Smart Cities where the CITIIS projects are located.

CITIIS (Cities Investment to Innovate, Integrate & Sustain) is a joint program of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), the French Development Agency (AFD), the European Union (EU), and National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA). The program is assisting 12 cities across India – selected through a competitive process – to develop and implement innovative and sustainable urban infrastructure projects. Entries for the competition had been invited from these cities, namely, Agartala, Amaravati, Amritsar, Bhubaneswar, Chennai, Dehradun, Hubballi-Dharwad, Kochi, Puducherry, Surat, Ujjain, and Visakhapatnam.

Participants of the “Cities of Tomorrow” competition were required to interpret and take photographs based on themes corresponding to the focus areas of CITIIS, i.e., Sustainable Mobility, Public Open Spaces, E-Governance and ICT, and Social and Organisational Innovation in Low-Income Settlements. Over 400 entries were received and the winners were selected by a jury comprising renowned photographers Mr Raghu Rai, Ms Ketaki Sheth, and Mr Sounak Banerjee.

The exhibition opening on 3^rd October will be graced by H.E. Mr Ugo Astuto, Ambassador of the EU to India and Bhutan, Mr Damien Syed, Deputy Chief of Mission at the French Embassy in India, Mr Bruno Bosle, Country Director for AFD in India, Mr Kunal Kumar, Joint Secretary & Mission Director (Smart Cities Mission), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Mr Hitesh Vaidya, Director, NIUA, and Mr Raghu Rai, esteemed photographer and chairperson of the competition jury. The winners of the competition will also be felicitated at the event, followed by an exhibition walkthrough.

The winning photographs, as well as a curated selection of other outstanding entries will be on display at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi from 3^rd October to 6^th October, 2022.

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RKJ/M