In 2009, the project titled ‘Revitalisation Plan for Gandhi Ashram Area’, with an estimated cost of Rs 400 crore, was proposed by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation. The Detailed Project Report (DPR) was prepared by CEPT University with Pritzker prize recipient architect late B V Doshi on board. Planned to be executed in two key phases, phase I proposed development of Ashram Road, new connectivity to 132 feet Ring Road, rejuvenation of the Dandi Bridge and improvement of Ashram precinct with new road connections.
The phase II , considered as a natural consequence of the phase I, included a Comprehensive Master Plan for an area of 90 hectare proposed to ‘improve the living conditions in slums by making the slum dwellers self-reliant through generating employment opportunities’.
The project was not considered viable and sustainable “from the commercial angle as it intensely looked into the social awareness and heritage conservation of the Gandhi Ashram…,” a source told The Indian Express.
In 2009, the then Gujarat Governor, Nawal Kishore Sharma, took keen interest in the masterplan presented by the then municipal commissioner IP Gautam. Sharma, during a meeting, had proposed that there should be an integration of all the monuments, including the Dandi Bridge into the Ashram Campus, as reported by this paper.
“The DPR which was prepared by B V Doshi on AMC’s request was presented to the then Governor (Nawal Kishore Sharma) as he was interested in the project apart from being on the board of Sabarmati Ashram. After the presentation, he insisted there should be some share of the Centre too as he was keen on getting some grant from the Government of India. The Governor took the initiative, sent the DPR and wrote to the central government,” said another official privy to the developments.
Officials who had worked on the project at that time revealed that it failed to take off.
Retired bureaucrat IP Gautam told The Indian Express, “The 2009 project too had a similar road closure proposal with same road diversions as that stretch was to be a no-vehicle zone, reserved for pedestrians. As per the discussions with the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi (it was proposed) that since the ashram is divided into two parts by the road in between, it should be kept open for the public with traffic restrictions, allowing only pedestrians and an open area with no construction.”
Prof Utpal Sharma, former Dean Faculty of Planning at CEPT University, who had closely worked on the DPR said that planning on it started in 2006-07 and the team had worked for almost eight years but with different governments at the Centre and Gujarat, it went into cold storage.
“This road closure and diversion of traffic was a part of the initial plan as well. A bridge across Chandrabhaga canal diverting traffic from Ashram Road to 132 feet Ring Road was proposed along with development of a pedestrian pathway to create a silent zone around Ashram Area. Also, we wanted to build low-rise buildings on the reclaimed land to maintain the Gandhian character,” Sharma told The Indian Express.
However, after the then Governor Sharma’s tenure, there was no communication from the Central Government and so, the project could not reach the tendering process.
The master plan
The DPR outlines the objective of the project as “the places of historical significance exist in vacuum as these are located in different plots, bisected by roads, compound walls and a nallah. Sprawling slums infringe and dot the entire landscape of Dandi Bridge while Ashram Road, the principal access route through this area, is overloaded with traffic.
Tracts of underutilised land lie deteriorating in the precinct rapidly advanced by pollution in the Chandrabhaga Nallah and Sabarmati River….With a large influx of visitors, the existing amenities that have been provided within the Ashram precinct are insufficient. This need to provide better services and additional infrastructure along with the need for improvements, in response to the haphazard development in the area around Ashram precinct, calls for a comprehensive development plan that would form the growth framework of this area and serve as a support structure for all visitors.”
According to the DPR, the proposed plan for the development of Ashram and its surroundings was to represent the ethos of peace in Ashram as propagated by Mahatma Gandhi. A new bridge connecting the 132-feet ring road from Subhash Circle was proposed to divert traffic from the Ashram Road. The road parallel to the Ashram Road was to be upgraded and widened to divert traffic. Developing plazas at strategic places along the Ashram precinct as well as upgrading the structural system of Dandi Bridge was also part of the project.
For the stretch of Ashram road from Subhash Circle to former’s pedestrian section, a decongested vehicular zone with reorganised parking interspersed with a crafts market was proposed.
The intention was to facilitate public movement along the bridge to the Sabarmati Riverfront, providing a connection to the then proposed Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project, and consequently, further enrich the potential of the Ashram precinct, the DPR stated.
A road section along the stretch of Ashram Road was planned to provide wide pavements that would engage and involve local residents and visitors alike through public activities, such as exhibitions and performances along with signages, street lights, public toilets, kiosk, shops and street furniture.
Also, Ashram’s entrance was designed as a ‘place of pause’ to orient visitors to the tranquillity of the interiors. The proposal also recommended restoration of buildings around Gandhi Ashram which had heritage value, including Dandi Bridge, Khadi Sadan, Ashram guest house and Abhay Ghat (memorial of former PM Morarji Desai), which, at present, are bisected by roads, open drain, and compound walls.
