PONTIAN: Pengerang, a town in the Kota Tinggi district was today formally upgraded to a municipal council and recognised as a smart city, said Housing and Local Government Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin.

She said the status upgrade was given after Pengerang local authority (PBT) managed to collect over RM20 million in annual tax revenue as required, and the total population within the area came close to 200,000.