GANDHINAGARCapital Of GujaratNamed after Mahatma Gandhi

AREA

Total 177 km2

Elevation 81 m (266 ft)

POPULATION (2011)

Total 206,167

Density 1,200/km2

LANGUAGES

Gujarati, Hindi, and English

TIME ZONE

IST (UTC+5:30)

COUNTRY IndiaSTATE GujaratDISTRICT Gandhinagar

4 Sub-districts4 CD Blocks15 Town252 Villages

CONTEXT

CLIMATEGandhinagar has a tropical wet and dry climate with three main seasons: summer, monsoon and winter. The climate is generally dry and hot outside of the monsoon season.

LOCATIONGandhinagar lies on the west bank

of the Sabarmati River, about 545 km (338 miles) north

of Mumbai, the financial capital of India and 901 km (560 miles) southwest of Delhi, the political

capital.

HISTORY • In 1960, the Indian state of Bombay was split into two

states, Maharashtra and Gujarat leaving Gujarat without a capital city.

• At the time, Ahmedabad was selected to be the first capital of the newly created state.

• It was later proposed that a new capital city be constructed for the state.

• Upon completion of the new city, the administrative capital of Gujarat was shifted from Ahmedabad to Gandhinagar.

• The initial plans were to commission the renowned American architect Louis Kahn to build the city, so that it would rival Le Corbusier's work on Chandigarh in Punjab.

• However, these plans were eventually canceled, due to pressure to make the new city an Indian enterprise, consistent with the idea of the Indian independence movement which had brought the modern state into being.

• Designed in the best traditions of Gujarat's rich heritage of town planning and principles of Mahatma Gandhi who had his "Ashram" just south of the proposed site of the city on the banks of river Sabarmati.

GEOGRAPHY

• Gandhinagar has an average elevation of 81 metres (266 feet).

• The city sits on the banks of the Sabarmati River, in north-central-East Gujarat.

• The river frequently dries up in the summer, leaving only a small stream of water.

• 54% green cover on its land area

PLANNING• Planned and implemented between 1965-1970

• Determination to make Gandhinagar a purely Indian enterprise, partly because Gujarat was the birthplace of Gandhi.

• Planning was done by two Indian town planners: Prakash M Apte & H. K. Mewada, who had apprenticed with Le Corbusier in Chandigarh.

• To establish and maintain a separate identity for the new city, the surrounding area of about 39 villages was brought under a Periphery Control Act (as in Chandigarh) that permitted new development of farm houses only.

• The area later constituted a separate administrative district of Gandhinagar.

• The city was planned for a population of 150,000 but can accommodate double that population with increase in the floor space ratio from 1 to 2 in the areas reserved for private development.

• The river being the border on the east, and the industrial area to the North, the most logical future physical expansion of the city was envisaged towards the north-west

Gandhinagar is spread along the banks of the Sabarmati River, with the main city designed on the west bank of the river on approximately 42.9 km² of land. Since it follows the river's path, the site is gently sloping, from north-east to south-west. Fine landscape lies along the west bank of the river, which gives the city a majestic appearance.

Gandhinagar is the only new capital of a state in India that was designed and planned by Indian town planners in service with the State Government. Since it is relatively new, it is also considered the "greenest" town in the world. Gandhinagar comprises thirty sectors, and it is a highly structured city with a well ordered street grid comprising blocks that are divided by two types of streets, similar to U.S. avenues and streets.

Gandhinagar has "letter roads" (K, KH, G, GH, CH, CHH, and JA) and "number roads" (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7). The letter roads run parallel across the city perpendicular to the number roads, and both of the road types intersect each other to form a grid, with each block or square in the grid given a sector number. Each intersection is marked by signal names such as CH1, CH2, CH3 or JA1, JA2. This provides a high degree of organization and evenness to the various parts of the city.

As a relatively newly constructed city, there are a variety of transportation methods available both to and from Gandhinagar. For air travel, the nearest airport is located in Ahmedabad, which is about 32 kms away. The city is serviced by rail by

• The city is planned on the western bank of the river Sabarmati. Due to a constant military confrontation with Pakistan, whose borders are close from the city, a large military presence was required here. The land acquired on the eastern bank, adjacent to National Highway no.8, was therefore allotted to the Border Security force and military cantonment.

• Considering the mostly south-west to north-east wind direction, the land to the north of the city was allotted for the then biggest thermal power station and the adjacent areas were zoned for industrial use. This area was distanced from the township by a 2000 ft. wide green strip of thick vegetation.

• Planned as the administrative capital of the state, the current and future population employed in state government offices was distributed in 30 residential sectors around the State Assembly-Secretariat complex. Each residential sector could accommodate about 50% of population, and was intended to house the half of the population employed by the government.

• Plots on the periphery of each sector are meant for private and supporting population that

IMPORTANT PLACES

Akshardham Temple-Monumental 10 storey Hindu Temple

Indroda Nature Park-Nature park with a zooand exhibits

Sarita Udhyan- Grassy, riverside place with peacocks

Punit Van-Calm, astrology-themedbotanical garden

Mahatma Kutir

Karai Dam

SOURCES

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gandhinagar

• http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Gandhinagar

• https://www.slideshare.net/TanmayRoy4/gandhinagar-town-planning-literature-study

• https://www.google.co.in/maps/place/Gandhinagar,+Gujarat/@23.2408416,72.6483002,14.21z/data=!4m5!3m4!1s0x395c2b987c6d6809:0xf86f06a7873e0391!8m2!3d23.2156354!4d72.6369415

• https://www.planetizen.com/node/49410

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