NEW DELHI: The heart of the national capital is all set to get a makeover with an ambitious Rs 1,800 crore Smart City plan The area administered by the New Delhi Municipal Council, which is in race with 97 other cities for funding from Prime Minister Narendra Modi ’s pet Smart City Mission project, is planning 24x7 power and water supply, multilevel car parking and digitisation of schools and hospitals over the next four years.The plan, which is being given final shape by NDMC before submission to the Delhi government and the Ministry of Urban Development, envisages a smart grid, smart schools and smart hospitals. The initiative will be implemented in select areas under NDMC’s jurisdiction in and around Connaught Place. Although the Centre’s guidelines stipulate a five-year development period, NDMC’s plan is to smarten up in four years.A key element of the plan, shared exclusively with ET, is 24x7 power and water supply. According to people familiar with the developments, the plan proposes setting up solar panels on top of buildings in and around Connaught Place to generate power and divert any excess electricity generated to the grid.“Government buildings like Shastri Bhawan would be closed on Saturdays and Sundays. So when they generate solar power , they would be able to pump it to the grid so that this excess power can be used by other establishments,” a senior official involved in developing the Smart City plan told ET.Round-the-clock water supply would mean setting up of a sewage treatment plant to better utilise waste water. “At present, we are not using this properly. We need to recycle our water,” said the official.The digitisation of schools will make lessons available online. As in the private schools, NDMC students, too, will have the option to pay their fees online and access schedules, lessons and other classwork on the web. Under the smart hospital initiative, patient records will be digitized, along with laboratory operations and appointment systems.The NDMC area comprises of the territory described as Lutyens’ Delhi and includes landmark buildings such as Rashtrapati Bhawan, Parliament House, Supreme Court, North and South Blocks and also all the diplomatic missions. The central government owns about 80% of the buildings in the area, according to the NDMC website.The entire Smart City plan is based on retrofitting. Buildings and restaurants in Connaught Place and its neighbouring areas will be made disabled-friendly and universally accessible. A major component in the plan is the “Garbage to Gas” initiative. Waste generated in the NDMC areas will be treated to produce methane gas, which can be used as a cooking fuel or for street lighting.The biggest challenge for NDMC will be financing the Smart City plan. While the urban development ministry will provide Rs 500 crore, NDMC will bank on partnerships with private companies and its own revenue to smarten up New Delhi.Private companies will be roped in to develop three multilevel car parking areas on Kasturba Gandhi Marg, behind the Indian Oil building near Barakhamba Road and at Shivaji Terminal. The parking facilities will be integrated with the smart transport plan, under which last-mile connectivity will be provided with the Delhi Metro and bus services.