Just returned this morning from Gandhinagar, Gujarat… it’s the State capital and located on the banks of the river Sabarmati
….this was my second trip this month to this township… and this time I got to see some of it pretty well….. was visibly impressed…. can imagine how Gujarat has managed to attract top Industrialists to set up their ventures there….. quick decision making, providing land and infrastructure and tax sops…… Gandhinagar is around 25 kms from Ahmedabad and is the Seat of Power where the State Government functions from…. one is not allowed to own private property here…. though I did spot a few privately owned walled off from public eye farmhouses… the layout and landscaping is pleasing… township has been organised as a grid with 30 sectors…each with Streets and Roads which are identified by Alphabets(run parallel) or Number(run perpendicular to the Alphabet Lettered Roads)…. no crowded roads or junctions…. there is abundant Greenery and superb fairly well lit roads…. though nights can be a bit lonely as roads stretch out for kms…… Government Offices and Residences are rather appealing to look at…. a host of well constructed Buildings and a row of lovely houses dot the sectors….. There are additional Buses deployed in the morning and evening to ferry the Staff to and fro from Ahmedabad
….The State Secretariat, the Governor’s abode Raj Bhavan, CM’s abode, the world wonder Akshardham Temple, an impressive Jain ‘Derasar’ just across the road from Akshardham, and a huge Cooling Tower of a Power Plant that towers at one end of a Road caught my eye as we drove around…. Security is tight and quite impressive… one may recall the Terrorist attack on Akshardham a few years ago… the gate from which the terrorists entered is now closed… GIDC, Info City and several Educational Institutes, including IIT, are located in Gandhinagar… there is a cluster of Restaurants and Retail Shops, some part of reputed Chains, near Info City where most people meet for a break
It’s a Peaceful and Quiet Town….. befitting our Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi on who the town has been named…… I was told that now with strict Policing without any fear or favour, there is no fear of any Criminal Activity… even Women can travel alone and feel safe even late at night… many Roads had active Police barricades set up… I was told that group meeting of five or more people at night are not encouraged… there is a chance of being rounded up by the night patrols and put away for the night, regardless of who you are !
….Though I sense Our Younger Generation may just find Gandhinagar a trifle boring !