Rourkela city named in Bloomberg Philanthropies 2021 Global Mayors Challenge

Rourkela: Rourkela is one of 50 champion cities selected today as finalists in the 2021 Global Mayors Challenge, a global innovation competition that identifies and accelerates the most ambitious ideas developed by cities in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

These 50 urban innovations rose to the top of a competitive pool of more than 630 applications from 99 countries, in the first-ever Global Mayors Challenge.

As a Mayors Challenge finalist, Rourkela city now advances to the four-month champion phase of the competition. From June to October, the 50 finalist cities will refine their ideas with technical assistance from Bloomberg Philanthropies and its network of leading innovation experts.

15 out of the 50 cities will ultimately win the grand prize, with each receiving $1 million and robust multi-year technical assistance to implement and scale their ideas. Grand Prize Winners will be announced in early 2022.

“These 50 finalists are showing the world that in the face of the pandemic’s enormous challenges, cities are rising to meet them with bold, innovative, and ambitious ideas,” said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies and 108th mayor of New York City.

Rourkela proposes to address the challenges faced by small vegetables and fruits vendors and farmers and proposes to establish solar cold storage solution at various city locations, managed and operated by women federations. The project has options to distribute and deliver fresh fruits and vegetables at door step of citizens through electric vehicles.

Commissioner of Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC) Dibyajyoti Parida said, “The decade 2021 to 2030 is the period for implementation of activities towards sustainable development goals 2030 of United Nations and also greatly emphasize on integrating innovative solutions for restoring urban living conditions in post COVID scenario”.