Obama’s visit to India as the chief guest for our Republic Day parade hogged most of the headlines during the month. The two countries signed several pacts, and of most importance to the security industry is the development of the smart cities of Allahabad, Ajmer and Vishakhapatnam which will be done with the help of the United States Trade and Development Agency. There are other countries that are eyeing the ‘smart city’ pie and notable among them is the ongoing discussion between Spain and India for developing Delhi into a smart city. Many argue that achieving the goal of developing 100 smart cities in India will require a lot more than just the right technologies. Indian cities lack the basic governance and physical infrastructure, and until these are in place, it would merely be a smart city in name and not in effect.