OREANDA-NEWS. January 30, 2013. Four cities in Anhui province were listed among 90 Chinese cities starting a pilot smart city program.

The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development unveiled the first batch of pilot destinations for smart city construction on Tuesday, including the province's Wuhu, Tongling, Bengbu and Huainan.

Smart cities will be designed to cope with various demands in a rapid, flexible and appropriate way by using information technology to monitor and integrate urban resources. This model is key to creating green and harmonious environment and providing efficient and convenient services for the public, according to the Commission of Economy and Information Technology of Anhui Province.

Hefei, capital of Anhui province known as "smart city", was surprisingly absent from the list. "The absence doesn't mean a failure but lies in not bidding for the program," said an official with the Department of Housing and Urban-Rural Development of Anhui Province, which issued a statement in December, 2012 requiring cities throughout the province to apply for "going smart".