IBM Technology to Make Vizag Resilient from Geohazards

The IBM team is known to help Vizag city to become more resilient, with aiming to develop an efficient emergency communication system to provide strategic recommendations for disaster management like the recent struck of HUDHUD. Better coordination will help the city become functional more quickly in the wake of such an event.

In the presence of M Yuvraj, District Collector, Vishakhapatnam the IBM Smarter Cities Challenge program was launched in Vizag. On this occasion, he said, “Our vision is to build a city which is disaster resilient, thus ensuring citizen safety. We are very happy to be associated with IBM, which is a global leader and committed to bring the best of their Smarter Cities Challenge capabilities, to help us address our most critical challenge.”

The IBM team will also use Watson Analytics Professional Edition to uncover trends in city data. This might include studying travel patterns, public health, or the effects of man-made and weather events. The tool can understand questions posed in natural, non-technical language, and help its users collaborate, predict and plan.

Mamtha Sharma, Head Corporate Citizenship & Corporate Affairs, IBM India said, “Vishakhapatnam is one of the 16 cities awarded an IBM Smarter Cities Challenge grant for 2015 and 2016.” “The IBM team with varied domain expertise across geographies is coming together to deliver recommendations that will help the city be better prepared for any natural disaster in the future. The project will identify and recommend best practices that would help the District Collectorate to come up with a robust emergency response system.”

By the end of 2016, IBM aims to make Smarter Cities Challenge grants to more than 130 cities worldwide chosen from more than 600 applicants, with nearly 800 of IBM top experts delivering pro bono services valued at more than USD $66 million. Each consulting engagement has a commercial value of USD $500,000.

Projects informed by IBM advice have helped to upgrade skills of city staff, procure funding, made streets safer, improved transportation, cut bureaucracy, created jobs, and protected the environment. Enabled cities win prestigious awards, and made them more competitive, thereby significantly improving the quality of life for their residents.

A video summarizing IBM Smarter Cities Challenge projects can be viewed: www.smartercitieschallenge.org