Greater co-operation among BRICS Cities needed: Fadnavis

Mumbai, April 17, 2016: Maharashtra Chief Minister Shri Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday said BRICS Cities Conclave will ensure greater co-operation between cities and people of the emerging countries bloc.
“BRICS will change the city to city and people to people cooperation,” Shri Fadnavis said at the valedictory function of the two-day BRICS Cities Conclave here. He said Maharashtra Government was inspired from St Petersburg to make the Mithi River clean and navigable. He stressed on the need for inclusive development where the under- privileged had a lot to contribute towards development by citizens involvement.
The Chief Minister termed the conclave hosted by Mumbai First, a city based think tank, in association with the Maharashtra Government and the Central Government, huge success and said, “After the deliberations it is the time to act now.”
After India took the presidency of the BRICS countries since February 2016 for one full year, BRICS Cities Conclave is the first major activity by India providing a platform for the participating nations to exchange knowledge and information on urban development.
Shishir Joshi, Chief Executive Officer, Mumbai First summarized the deliberations of all the nations. During the occasion he also announced that the proceeds from the book ‘The Making of Vibrant Cities’ that was launched on the inauguration day of the conclave will be donated towards the drought relief fund of Maharashtra.
Narinder Nayar said that conferences like this would help in capacity building of the cities. The two day session included deliberations on various topics related to growth of cities in the BRICS nations comprising Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. More than 75 delegates representing different BRICS countries exchanged their experiences, plans and programs on topics related to Urban governance, safety of cities, infrastructure development, urban planning and many other related topics. The conclave also included cultural performances of all the nations where each country presented their unique culture in an impressive manner.