New Delhi

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has pitched for developing Cantonment Boards across India into smart, green and sustainable urban ecosystems.

Singh was delivering a keynote address at 'MANTHAN 2025', a two-day national conference organised by the Directorate General of Defence Estates (DGDE), on Thursday.

The defence minister called upon the Indian Defence Estates Service (IDES) to work hard to modernise the Cantonment Boards.

Singh appreciated IDES officers for successfully fulfilling the dual responsibility of managing over 18 lakh acres of defence land and ensuring the welfare of civilians residing in 61 cantonments pan-India.

He also stressed the need to develop cantonments like modern cities by continuously upgrading systems and processes.

"We must increase digital services so that people can avail transparent and timely services from home," he said.

"We must increase citizen participation so that the residents become partners in the future planning of cantonments. We must transform Cantonment Boards into modern, transparent, and accountable institutions that can deliver services that meet the demands of the times," he said.

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"It is our collective responsibility to ensure that cantonment residents have the best civic amenities and a quick grievance redressal mechanism," he added.