Context: Recently, the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs has launched a platform called ‘City Innovation Exchange (CiX)’. The platform will be a significant addition to the growing innovation ecosystem of India and focuses on fostering innovative practices in cities. CiX, through an ‘open innovation’ process, engages with innovators to design-test-deliver on solutions to pressing urban challenges.

About City Innovation Exchange

• It is a platform which engages with innovators to design-test-deliver on solutions to pressing urban challenges through an ‘open innovation’ process.
• It is designed on the philosophy of ‘everyone is an innovator’.
• The Smart Cities Mission will partner and effectively collaborate with Startup India, Atal Innovation Mission, AGNIi and other initiatives in the Indian Innovation ecosystem.
• The Platform has more than 400 start-ups, 100 smart cities, more than 150 challenges statements and over 215 solutions at the time of launch.

Significance of City Innovation Exchange

• It will be a significant addition to the growing innovation ecosystem of India and focuses on fostering innovative practices in cities.
• It is among the ongoing efforts of the Government to realise Prime Minister’s vision of New and AtmaNirbhar Bharat.
• It aims to make cities more self-reliant and enabled to meet the needs of and provide services to their citizens.
• The platform will bring together Citizen Organisations-Academia- Businesses- Government to co-create for the future of Urban India in a transparent and sustainable manner.
• It will connect cities to innovators across the national ecosystem to design innovative solutions for their pressing challenges.
• The platform will ease the discovery, design & validation of solutions through a robust, transparent and user centric process that will reduce barriers for innovators and cities to discover fitting solutions.
• The platform in due time will help our cities in adopting solutions that will enhance the quality of life for its residents and significantly improve the Ease of Doing Business.