Volksara Techno Solutions: Pioneering Smart City Innovations in India

Since its inception in 2016, Volksara Techno Solutions has been focused on integrating technology with urban infrastructure to enhance cities across India. Through collaborations with state governments and the development of IoT solutions, Volksara has made contributions to the progress of smart cities and e-governance. The company aims to bridge the gap between government services and citizens, supporting India's goal of achieving a USD 1 trillion digital economy.

Can you briefly share the journey of Volksara since its inception? What were the key milestones and achievements?

Volksara which was initially a part of the Krystal group, came into existence when a gentleman highlighted the need for CCTVs along with the other facility management services that were being provided by Krystal back then.

Saily, (The Founder & Director of Volksara) grabbed the opportunity of filling in the blank space within the integrated facility management services, which was the integration of technology and services.

Volksara was incepted in 2016, and in the last 8 years it has extended its operation across the nation and sectors. It has worked with 7 state governments across the country, towards its smart city mission.

In 2019 Volksara got the opportunity to work for 3 smart cities PCMC, Nashik, and Namchi. In 2021 we started working big way in Odisha state with the first ever in-country project for a police station as per supreme court guidelines, and thereafter many more prestigious projects were bagged. We officially got demerged in June 2022 as a separate entity. Our turnover exceeds 150+CR.

How has Volksara's approach evolved in response to the changing landscape of smart cities and e-governance in India?

The government today is revamping its data centers to migrate towards cloud service to ensure cyber security across departments. We at Volksara have played a pivotal role in facilitating this upgrade for multiple state governments. When it comes to smart cities and e-governance, our end goal is to bridge the gap between government services and the citizens to enhance the quality of urban life.

Our IoT solutions are well designed to address the most pressing challenges in the IT landscape. Additionally, we leverage machine learning and predictive analytics, to provide real-time insights that enable proactive decision-making and risk mitigation.

Our contribution towards the city projects in Maharashtra, Odisha, Uttarakhand Goa, Madhya Pradesh Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, showcases our commitment to leveraging technology to make public spaces safer. Our solutions enhance operational efficiency while ensuring strong cybersecurity which is the need of the hour.

What challenges has Volksara faced in implementing its solutions, particularly in collaboration with government projects?

A few critical challenges faced in government projects are as below

1. Challenge in freezing Command & Control Centre/DR location and subsequent approvals for its design.

2. Supply Chain issue during the Covid Period.

3. Initial phase, No dedicated authority for approvals.

4. Dependency on other tender-related work to complete the actual scope work.

5. Obstruction from local political/ Citizen bodies.

6. Challenging in finding and freezing locations for execution approvals.

7. Lack of responsibility for system takeovers.

Can you elaborate on Volksara's involvement with the government of Odisha and the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation Smart City Project? What were the specific solutions provided and their impacts?

Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation

We have done extensive work for the Pimpri Chinchwad Smart City Limited (PCSCL). We were awarded the supply installation testing, commissioning and O&M for the ICT led PCSCL.

● Smart City Surveillance - Installation of AI-based CCTV cameras in the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation area that has helped police resolve or detect 55 crimes.

● Solid Waste Management - The vehicles are tagged with RFID tags for data collection at the time of clearance of the bins. Through ICT-enabled waste management, Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation can track vehicles, monitor bins, create schedules, and monitor the same against the staff - Bins and vehicles. Citizens can give their feedback.

● Smart Environment - The real time environment monitoring system helps study various parameters affecting the environment and take corrective measures. Further, it also does comparative analysis for different areas within Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation to understand which area requires attention.

● Smart Water & Smart Sewerage Management - The data with respect to fertilizer, slurry, and reusable water is bifurcated, this data is then used by Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation to further plan the recycling of the waste which is used as a fertilizer by farmers or for gardening purposes. 

Odisha

We have worked with the Roads, Bridges, and Buildings (R&B) Department of Odisha. We have installed a state-of-the-art CCTV and Boom Barrier System at the Multi-Level Car Parking (MLCP) facility in the renowned Nandankanan area.

Nandankanan being a tourist spot, has faced severe traffic issues over the years. The objective was to enhance the safety and monitoring capabilities of the MLCP therein, by deploying an advanced security surveillance system.

● We have installed 21 Fixed Dome Cameras for comprehensive coverage and 124 Bullet Cameras ensuring robust perimeter security.

● 3 units of an-Tilt-Zoom (PTZ) Cameras for 360-degree surveillance.

● Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) Cameras at entry and exit points for efficient vehicle tracking.

● Boom barriers for controlled access at entry and exit points.

● A fully equipped tracking room with cutting-edge surveillance equipment, including monitors, control panels, and recording devices.

What are some of the most innovative smart city solutions that Volksara has implemented or is currently working on?

We have undertaken comprehensive work for the Pimpri Chinchwad Smart City Limited.

Integrated Command and Control Center (ICCC)

Each of the 50 smart kiosk machines installed in the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation area has an Emergency Call Button (ECB) which will trigger emergency communications with the City Operation Centre (COC). It will also initiate automatic  video recording when the ECB is pressed.

Smart City Surveillance

AI-based City Surveillance System installed in Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation has captured 500+ CCTV footage across Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation. of these 55 footages have assisted the police to detect the criminals or resolve the cases.

AI-based CCTVs also effectively capture the violation of traffic rules in the city for the officers to take corrective actions.

Environmental Sensor & Smart Parking

Volksara has its own Environment Monitoring Portal where Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation on a real-time basis can monitor various factors affecting the environment i.e., CO2 level, noise pollution AQI, etc. The portal's advanced features help Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation do a comparative analysis to take corrective actions.

Under the smart city project, Volksara has installed 10 Smart parking stations, of which has been done to Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation and will be up and running by the end of July.

ICT Enabled Solid Waste Management

The vehicles are tagged with RFID tags for data collection at the time of clearance of the bins. Through ICT-enabled waste management, Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation can track vehicles, monitor bins, create schedules and monitor the same against the staff - Bins and vehicles. Citizens can give their feedback.

Smart Water & Smart Sewerage Management

Through its Smart Sewage Management, Volksara bifurcates the data for fertilizer, slurry, and reusable water, this data helps Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation to further plan the recycling of this waste that is used as a fertilizer by farmers or for gardening purposes.

What are Volksara's strategic goals for the next 5-10 years, particularly in the context of contributing to India's USD 1 trillion digital economy goal?

● We at Volksara, are optimistic about the future of India's IT and IoT solutions industry.

● Smart City development has been the key focus area for us over the past 8 years. One of the initiatives taken by us is the localization of component production to foster a self-reliant ecosystem.

● Further we have been closely working with various state governments in helping them rebuild their data centers, to migrate to a completed cloud based services, in turn hedging the system against the ever-growing cyberattacks.

● Cybersecurity continues to remain paramount in this evolving landscape. We are expanding our IoT capabilities, and ensuring robust security measures, which is crucial to safeguarding data and maintaining trust.

● Our expertise in end-to-end security services has positioned us well to take up the up-coming challenges and qualitatively contribute to India’s USD 1 trillion digital economy goal.