Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday launched 83 "Smart City" projects in Pune, reported ANI. Of them, 14 projects are designated for Pune alone, and 69 projects are earmarked for 19 other cities across the country.

The total project, which comes under Modi's pet project "Smart Cities Mission", will cost the government Rs 1,700 crore. The event, held at Shiv Chatrapati Sports Complex, also marked the inauguration of ‘Make Your City SMART’ contest through which the government plans to involve citizens in the process.

Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu. Maharashtra Governor C. Vidyasagar Rao and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis were present at the event, reported The Indian Express.

In January, the government made public the names of the first 20 cities that will be developed under the project. The Cabinet approved the plan in 2015, after which Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that there will be smart cities in every state. Each state will have a number of smart cities depending on its size, population and other factors, he had said.