RECONNECTING THE CITY WITH ITS RIVER · SABARMATI RIVERFRONT DEVELOPMENT PROJECT IN AHMEDABAD RECONNECTING THE CITY WITH ITS RIVER SABARMATI RIVERFRONT DEVELOPMENT PROJECT IN AHMEDABAD APARNA JOSHI 48 ISOCARP APARNA JOSHI Ahmedabad, located in western India on the banks of the Sabarmati River, is the largest city in the State of Gujarat. The river has served as Ahmedabad’s lifeline for ages and has been an integral part of the rich his- tory of the city. It has been a major source for drinking water and informal recreational activities for the city. However, with rapid and haphazard urban growth by the end of twentieth century, the river became neg- lected, inaccessible and polluted. The city had turned its back towards the river. Riverfront development was a subject of interest to various city professionals since 1960s, but it was in 1997 that comprehensive planning was undertaken to transform Ahmedabad’s riverfront. Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project is a multi-dimensional project with several objectives. It aims to reclaim the private river-edge and turn it into a public asset thereby redefine the city’s relationship with its river by creating a thriving, people-centric network of parks, waterside promenades and civic facilities in the heart of the city. The project’s political objective is to provide a highly visible and robust urban renewal project around which the entire city can constructively rally. It is a first project of its kind in India. It is ongoing but already demonstrates that such projects can positively transform the city and be implemented in a fractious democracy like India, which is also why it has been much-talked about during the recent national elec- tions. This paper describes the project’s background, objectives and its unique features. Figure 1: Night view of the completed lower promenade. Source: Dinesh Mehta for HCP Design, Planning & Management Pvt. Ltd. REVIEW 10 49 RECONNECTING THE CITY WITH ITS RIVER · SABARMATI RIVERFRONT DEVELOPMENT PROJECT IN AHMEDABAD BACKGROUND ents from the city polluted the river through storm- water outfalls and natural drains at many locations. Ahmedabad, the former capital of Gujarat, has In addition to the declining ecological health, traditionally been a major centre for industries as the river itself became inaccessible to the majority well as trade and commerce and was also called of the city’s residents. Many property owners along the ‘Manchester of India’ on account of its textile the banks built their own retaining walls to protect industry. It is the fifth largest city in India, the lar- their properties from flood erosion. As a result of gest city of Gujarat and also its commercial capital. both-private ownership of most riverside land and The history of Ahmedabad stretches as far back as the informal settlements, few public access points in the 11th century and is linked with old towns of remained. By the 1970s, the only places where Ashaval and Karnavati. In the year 1411 AD, Sultan most citizens could enjoy the expanse of the river Ahmed Shah built the citadel on the eastern bank running through the heart of the city was from the of the Sabarmati and encouraged development of view provided by the several bridges spanning the trade and commerce. In 1456 AD, an enclosing wall river. was constructed defining the city-limits. With the On account of the aforementioned develop- coming of the railway around 1860, development ments, the river no longer played a significant role began to spill over to the north-east and south-east in the life of the city residents. The urban center beyond the walled city. It was with the construction lacked focus and new developments were moving of the first bridge, that Ahmedabad began to ex- outwards from the river reinforcing the existing pand across the western bank. With the Sabarmati divide between the Western and the Eastern parts River flowing north-south, the river now bisects the of the city. The untreated sewage that flowed from city into its western and eastern halves. stormwater outfalls, natural drains and slum pock- The river has always been significant for the ets on both banks of the river posed a public health city. First and foremost as the city’s prime source threat because Ahmedabad continued to depend of water. Mahatma Gandhi founded his ashram on French wells dug into the riverbed for a signifi- on the riverbank which came to be known as the cant portion of its municipal water supply. Sabarmati Ashram. Gandhi began his Salt March from here in 1930, thus making the river a historic THE FIRST STEPS backdrop to India’s freedom struggle. Since the river is seasonal, during the drier months, the river- Responding to the plight of Sabarmati River and bed offered space for farming and a place for oc- seeing an opportunity to create usable, attract- casional gathering and recreation. ive public space for Ahmedabad’s residents, the The city began to industrialise and grow during French architect Bernard Kohn, who was then the early twentieth century, and by mid-century it residing in Ahmedabad, (in collaboration with Ka- was considered the hub of the textile industry in mal Mangaldas, a city-based architect, Anil Bakeri, the East. With the rapid growth and as land in the an engineer, and a few others) was the first to pro- city came under more intense uses, the city’s trad- pose the development of a portion of the Sabar- itional Sunday flea market was moved to the river- mati riverbank in the 1960s. bank. The wide, oft-dry riverbed and riverbanks In addition, the Sabarmati River underwent a were used to launder clothes and to dye textiles. number of post-independence projects to improve Many of the city’s poor and migrant population, the irrigation network, power generation and flood unable to afford formal housing elsewhere, began control within the state. First, a flood control dam to live in informal hutments along the riverbanks. was built in 1976 at Dharoi (approximately 200km However, these settlements had no tenure and upstream of Ahmedabad) so that the ‘floods’ that lacked even the basic municipal services, thus re- Ahmedabad sees now are discharges from Dharoi sulting in unhygienic living conditions and pollu- Dam- announced twelve hours in advance of the tion of the river. During the monsoon period, these released water arriving in Ahmedabad. Second was settlements were vulnerable and disastrously flood the construction of a barrage, also built in 1976 at prone. All these uses and abuses took their toll on Vasna which is just downstream of Ahmedabad, the river. Untreated domestic and industrial efflu- which serves to retain water in the Sabarmati. This 50 ISOCARP APARNA JOSHI Figure 2 (top): Untreated sewage flowed into the river from informal settlements and adjoining areas through stormwater outfalls. Source: HCPDPM Figure 3 (bottom) : The river had become inaccessible. Source: HCPDPM REVIEW 10 51 RECONNECTING THE CITY WITH ITS RIVER · SABARMATI RIVERFRONT DEVELOPMENT PROJECT IN AHMEDABAD retained water is diverted by the Fatehwadi Canal there was a major shift in the state’s policy as it for irrigation in areas south-west of Ahmedabad. redirected its traditional focus on rural areas to- Finally, the Narmada canal just upstream of Ah- wards urban centres. medabad was completed. Together these independent projects had a PROJECT INCEPTION profound effect on Ahmedabad. The risk of major floods was greatly reduced. The Vasna Barrage en- In May 1997, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corpora- abled water retention in the entire length of the tion (AMC) established a wholly owned Special river within the city. The Narmada Canal, which Purpose Vehicle - the Sabarmati River Front De- crosses the river a few kilometres upstream from velopment Corporation Ltd (SRFDCL)3 to explore the city, makes it possible to replenish the barrage- the project. AMC commissioned The Environ- retained water that is used up for irrigation or is mental Planning Collaborative (EPC) to prepare lost to evaporation and seepage. These projects, al- a comprehensive feasibility study to develop a though unrelated, make it possible for Ahmedabad 9-km stretch of the city’s riverfront. EPC provided to have a perennial lake in the middle of the city. a schematic proposal incorporating all different In 1976, a group of local professionals1 came aspects of the project and development manage- together as the River Front Development Group ment services to SRFDCL until 2002. During this (RFDG) to propose an incremental approach to period, its mandate was to direct and monitor all creating a public riverfront along the riverbanks the preparatory work until the project took off in (RFDG 1976). However, these proposals never February 2004. In 2004, the land comprising of the moved past the conceptual stage2. riverbed (162.80 ha) was transferred by the State The city then went through a period of sig- government to AMC for implementation of the nificant decline from the mid-1970s until the project. SRFDCL’s role was on a “Build, Maintain, mid-1990s, due to the collapse of its once-robust Operate and Transfer” (BMOT) basis. SRFDCL then textile industry. With the beginnings of India’s appointed HCP Design Planning and Manage- economic liberalization during the 1990s, the city ment Pvt. Ltd. (HCPDPM) to lead the urban design, significantly improved its financial situation by re- architectural and structural aspects of the project. vamping the taxation and collection system. Also, Sabarmati Riverfront Development Project 52 ISOCARP APARNA JOSHI showcases how an effective partnership among ate 11.25 kilometers of public riverfront on both politicians, bureaucrats and private-sector rep- the banks. The total land reclamation is around resentatives can achieve results. The project was 200 hectare.