Hyderabad all set to host the Metropolis World Congress

Hyderabad, Oct 4 (INN): The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) on Saturday shared details on delegate participation, prominent speakers, key sessions at the XI Metropolis World Congress October 6th - 10th 2014 which is being jointly organized by the Government of Telangana, GHMC and the Metropolis.

Present at the curtain raiser event were Chief Secretary Dr. Rajiv Sharma, Advisor to Telangana Government Papa Rao, GHMC Commissioner Somesh Kumar and Special Commissioner Ahmed Babu.

At the event, the dignitaries also launched a Conference Mobile App which is a first of its kind initiative by the Government of Telangana and GHMC to ensure easy information access and enhanced interaction between the participants. The app has already seen more than 500 downloads.

XI Metropolis World Congress will have close to 400 International delegates from over 50 countries including Mayors of several member cities like Johannesburg, Barcelona, Berlin, Tehran among others, technocrats, administrators and experts will be part of the discussions at the XI Metropolis World Congress. With the participation of the national delegates the total attendance for the event is expected to be more than 2,000 members.

This five-day mega event will see several renowned personalities addressing the audience and participating in the dialogue. Former President Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, would be delivering the keynote address on 'Of the People By the People For the People' at the plenary session to be moderated by Dr. V.K. Saraswath, former chief of Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO). President of India Dr. Pranab Mukherjee has confirmed his presence at the Congress to address the valedictory of the event.

Nobel award winner Dr. Rajendra Pachauri will be speaking on the topic of The Politics of Climate Change & Global Cities at the event. Other key speakers include Jean-Paul Huchon, President of Metropolis and President of Ile-de-France Region, Alain Le Saux, Metropolis Secretary General, Paul James, Director, UN Global Compact - Cities Programme and Prof. Om Mathur, Urban Economist.

Speaking at the curtain raiser, Rajiv Sharma said, 'This edition of the Metropolis World Congress is a prestigious opportunity for the city of Hyderabad and we are confident that the event will see meaningful discussions amongst all the participants and stakeholders.'

Somesh Kumar, who is also the Director of XI Metropolis World Congress said, 'We are enthusiastic about the response received for the congress and look forward to welcoming all the national and international delegates and speakers. We are hopeful that delegates from around the world will have a great experience with initiatives like the Conference Mobile App being designed for their convenience.'

Ahmed Babu, during the launch of the Metropolis World Congress 2014 Mobile App, mentioned, 'With the mobile app we aim to bring a seamless experience to the participating members. The enriched content and the functionalities of the mobile app would streamline processes, eliminate disruption while encourage interaction amongst parties.'

The theme of the Congress, Cities for All, represents the functioning of democracy for all its stakeholders and extends the living city experiences to delegates on four broad sub themes - Urban Equity, Governance, Finance and Urban India. Different subjects pertaining to the metropolis cities would come up for discussion during the meet.

They include 100 Smart Cities, India Way Forward - Cooperation for Indian Smartcities, Healthy People-Health Cities by World Health Organization, Green Building towards Sustainable Cities, Driving Youth Engagement in Cities, Housing for All, Satellite Cities, city management services related to waste, water, roads and sanitation and so on.

Nine Technical Visits are also being organized for delegates to cover Hyderabad Metro Rail, Hussainsagar Lake reclamation, Women Self Help Groups, Indian Green Building Council, IT Corridor/Cyberabad, GVK EMRI ' Emergency Services, Heritage Conservation, Rs.5 Food Scheme and Outer Ring Road.

4G services will be made available around the Metropolis World Congress venue at HICC in Madhapur.

The Metropolis World Congress is supported by Oracle and Institutions like Indian School of Business, National Institute of Urban Affairs, UNHabitat, World Health Organisation, Administrative Staff College of India, Cities Alliance, Government of India, AMB (Barcelona), iledeFrance among others.