ABSTRACT
This chapter examines how the essential features of old historic cities are being worked into the smart city narrative with the cases of Lucknow and Varanasi. These are two of the ten cities (Allahabad, Aligarh, Kanpur, Jhansi, Agra, Bareilly, Moradabad and Saharanpur) selected in the Smart City Mission (SCM) in UP. The cases of Lucknow and Varanasi are chosen as case studies as both are important cities in the state of Uttar Pradesh, have rich histories, are places of cultural and religious significance, are part of many policies on heritage, culture and tourism since 2014. Under the smart city mission (SCM) both cities have been making desperate attempts to carve out their unique identity and city branding initiatives capitalising on their place-based culture while offering interesting contrasts, key challenges and gaps critically examined in this chapter.
