IoT-based smart cities: the case of Lahore

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The first Safe City project had been established in Lahore with the cooperation and assistance of Huawei, honing technical skills of local police in curbing crimes. Against this backdrop, it is crucial to deeply understand geographical, cultural and institutional dynamics of the urban life in Lahore. The three parameters have been termed as 'deep determinants of economic growth' in the literature.

A literature review on the subject shows that the glistening concept of smart cities is directly linked with the internet-of-things (IoT) based smart governance. However, every city in the world has its own peculiar urban strengths and weaknesses, and Lahore is no exception. Geographically, Lahore can be divided into two broad areas: Northern Lahore and Southern Lahore. The Mall Road Lahore, sans stricto sensu, could be treated as a rough demarcation line between the two parts of the city. Following any urban living standards, Northern Lahore is comparatively backward showcasing the city's traditional semi-organic living. Southern Lahore, however, is home to state-of-the-art housing societies exhibiting winsome living standards. Culturally, a similar division exists between the two parts of the city. Northern Lahore is rich in traditional values, informal practices, local cuisine, dialectical diversity and cultural sports. Conversely, Southern Lahore is increasingly tilting towards tantalising modernism and a Western lifestyle. Institutionally, Northern Lahore faces typical procedural procrastinations and bureaucratic hurdles in the sell and purchase of properties. In contrast, the residents of Southern Lahore can sell and purchase their properties through fast-track procedures offered by big housing societies such as Bahria Town and DHA. The division of Lahore on geographical, cultural and institutional lines is reflective of unequal power relations between the rich and the poor. Most residents in Northern Lahore wish to have a spacious house in Southern Lahore indicating the urban status struggle between the powerful and the powerless.

A critical comparative analysis of the key areas of smart cities as presented in the 2018 and 2024 McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) reports shows several new emerging areas such as 'community engagement' and 'healthcare'. While healthcare directly relates to human capital development of the city, community engagement aims to normalise unbalanced power relations within smart cities. As Lahore is experiencing various urban divisions mentioned supra, it is strategically crucial to bridge the gap between the powerful and the powerless residents of the city. Based on the MGI reports, Radoslaw Wolniak and Kinga Stecu?a outlined some key areas of smart cities. The same have been used below in analysing the case of Lahore:

IoT-based automations in the city, as a parameter of smart governance, must adopt a balanced approach towards Northern and Southern parts of Lahore with a view to optimising public services and improving government efficiency. Citizens' maximum participation in the government decision-making processes must be the central theme if Lahore is to be transformed into Pakistan's first smart city. Digital civic participation, e-government platforms and data-driven policymaking are some of the tools of smart governance.

Smart taxation remains a fundamental tool of smart economies. The diverging business trends of the Northern and Southern parts of Lahore must be programmed in a way in which fair revenue collection rates and business strategies must be followed. The practice of granting tax exemptions to the privileged and powerful class must be done away with. Digital payment systems and smart transactions strategy can be devised accordingly. Establishment of innovation hubs, technology parks and data-driven economic development strategies are some basic interventions in a smart economy.

The role of mobility in economic growth remains crucial for cities. So far, the urban planning of Lahore favours car owners, further widening the trust gulf between the rich and the poor. IoT-based efficient and intelligent transport solutions must retrofit technology with varying travel demands of citizens from the Northern and Southern parts of the city. Intelligent traffic management systems, electric vehicles and integrated public transportation systems remain some rudimentary tools of mobility in smart cities.

Smog is a big problem in Lahore. Pursuing the objective of 'smart environment' in Lahore must focus on sustainable and eco-friendly urban spaces. The lifestyle in Northern Lahore is more organic as compared with the South. Therefore, IoT-based interventions must focus on Northern Lahore for smart waste management, energy efficient street-lighting and technology driven air quality monitoring.

The theme of 'smart living' must focus on integrating technologies intelligently for creating smart human capital through digital interventions in the areas of health, education and security. IoT devices can create smart houses in the city virtually bridging the status difference between the residents of Northern and Southern parts of Lahore. Technology can further be integrated to promote telehealth and smart education programs.

Ultimate objective of the entire IoT-based interventions and automation must be the creation of 'smart people' in Lahore. Smart people can only be created by engaging and empowering citizens by promoting inclusivity, education and continuing technological integration. The trust gulf between the powerful and powerless citizens of Lahore could be minimised by pursuing such initiatives as citizen engagement platforms, digital literacy programs and community inclusivity programmes.

All IoT-based interventions and technological integrations basically provide the 'hardware' part of smart cities. However, unless the hardware part is strategically integrated with the 'software' part of a city, it can't act as a smart city. In the case of Lahore, the software part revolves around minimising economic inequality between the citizens of Northern and Southern parts of the city. Transforming Lahore into Pakistan's first smart city requires lots of homework before introducing IoT-based interventions. As a pilot project, the entire plan requires continuing research and hypothetical urban iterations to ensure that it transforms the city into a smart engine of economic growth not only for the Punjab province but also for the entire country. It must be a well-informed scholarly initiative so that it could successfully be replicated in other cities of Pakistan in future.