The enduring characteristic of Ahmedabad is a capacity of its people to take risks, calculated no doubt, but fundamentally a willingness to see opportunities across all fields. Historically, it is the sum of an extra-ordinary series of groups and communities who have, and continue to be, remarkably productive.

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This creative capacity is manifest across all skills and disciplines and enables the possibility of growth and transformation that is potentially limitless, as has been demonstrated in the extra-ordinary success of so many of the leading families, linking it to the world. The community of Mill owners’ were one such group. There are numerous historic manifestations of the vital energy as well as cutting edge contemporary expressions of what the future might become.

In 2017 under the auspices of UNESCO, the historic city of Ahmedabad was inscribed as part of the World Heritage Convention. This was the first time that a city in India received this designation. It is a way of recognising the remarkable history of the city as well as the work of the agencies who have been working tirelessly to support this rich and inspiring cultural heritage. It is also facilitating a framework of new initiatives that will optimise the use of the historic core that is the walled city.

Against this backdrop of layered history the city continues to rapidly grow and transform. Every state and region of India is now embedded in the city and there is not a country across the world that does not have a thriving Gujarati community.

The huge infrastructural changes taking place are enabling new levels of connectivity, physically and intellectually, across India and the globe, projecting the city to another stage of development.

For many however, Ahmedabad remains a cluster of villages that have merged together through an organic and largely accidental process of growth, led by developers in the more recent past whose priority has been to optimise their return on their investment rather than the Common Good. The job of “City Building”, of pulling everything together is, vested in the “Administration” who in many ways, are continually playing catch up with what is happening on the ground. Going forward, the  challenge is to understand the city as a totality where awareness of, and access to, resources is highlighted. The reflex might be to spend more money and create more infrastructure which, no doubt, is very useful but what is equally important is making connections, identifying concerns, and pulling together  (strengthening) what is there, which in time will reveal more clearly, the short  comings .

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“Urbanism is the activity of Society” – Le Corbusier.

The ambition is to facilitate the transition from Gam to Sher, to turn the city inside out, to  understand, paraphrasing Le Corbusier, how a city and its society can enable each other in a dynamic and creative way. 

Notwithstanding the massive growth of the city – the population is now in the region of 80 Lakh, and growing - there is no place or institution that can be identified as an independent platform and meeting place for discourse on the future of the city, where citizens – youth in particular - ,  administrators and policy makers come together as a civil society to understand each other and the challenges of all kinds facing the city of the future.

The Millowners’ Building, or ATMA, is an integral component of the city, designed by Le Corbusier, who came to India at Nehru’s invitation to design Chandigarh in 1951. Mayor Chinubhai Chimanbhai called Corbusier to Ahmedabad and Surottam Hutheesing, then president of Ahmedabad Textile Millowners's; Association, and commissioned him to build the new headquarters of the Association.

It was completed in 1954, reflecting  the remarkable confidence and ambition of this group of industrialists. At its peak, around the time of the establishment of the state of Gujarat in 1960, the membership of the ATMA was nearly 90 millowners, belonging to all communities in the city. 

While the number of textile mills in the city has diminished the presence of the Millowners’ Building remains as a place of assembly and an icon of modernity, sitting in a unique position on the banks of the River Sabarmati, looking in both directions, East to the old city where the Mills once followed the walls, and West towards the new city, growing in every direction and now connecting as far as the Capital, Gandhinagar. The timeless and flexible form of the building’s architecture allows for new uses and it is proposed to establish a  new Centre focusing on the  challenges and opportunities of the growing city. An open access forum. A place of possibilities.

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In order to make this happen a minimum commitment of 3 years should be envisaged with a further 5 year roll-out. Subject to meeting those currently responsible for the building this outline can be elaborated with detailed information on programme and costs. 

The main challenge is to generate a flow of people through the place. In addition, there needs to be a comprehensive programme for the repair and upgrade of the building for it to be able to function effectively. An understanding with the current owners of the building needs to be clarified as to what their roles will be, going forward.

Funding – source and amount

Management – Executive and Board

Community and institutional supporters

Membership – individual and community, corporate and institutional
 

Patrons and Donors

Team:

• Director

• Exhibition and Design Head

• Facilities Manager and admin staff

• Assistants under each head

• Ground staff

• Library and archive of the city – a virtual and physical resource

• Digital Hub

• Resource centre

• Café

• Community Radio Statio

• Exhibitions- a rolling schedule of exhibitions relating to the understanding of the city, architecture, infrastructure.

• Seminars and activities – engaging communities and stakeholders

• Performance – across a range of disciplines, music, dance, art, drama

• Annual calendar with fixed and flexible content.

The Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority (Auda) has initiated a 20-year development plan called Ahmedabad Development Plan 2041 in preparation for the bid to host the 2036 Olympics. AUDA is engaging stakeholders for insights on the bid process and is also working on a new general development control regulation.

Let this be the venue for bringing all the stakeholders together for the Olympic bid – why stop at the Olympics?

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This proposed year-long celebration will a way of consolidating the role of the “City Centre” – Ahmedabad at ATMA – drawing out the best of every community and institution. For the first time in the life of the city each community, those who have been here from the very beginning to the most recent arrivals, will be able to share their particular passion and skillset, across real and imagined boundaries.

The Utsav is an opportunity of re-imagining the city, where spaces from the heart of the pols, to the walls and gateways, to both sides of the riverfront, to the educational campuses, to housing colonies of all kinds, to factories and places of work, to the fringes of the latest areas under construction, will all become the opportunity for new ideas and activities.

In the great Indian tradition, our elders are respected and honoured however the focus of this Utsav is the potential of youthful energy across all communities and disciplines. They are the Future.

The existing series of anniversaries, festivals and bench marks that are markers of history and excellence will be incorporated into the year-long celebration of vitality and opportunity.

Such as:

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• The founding of the state,

• the birthday of the city,

• Abhivyakti,

• Vibrant Gujarat,

• The literary festivals,

• The religious gatherings,

• the seasonal celebrations,

• Uttrayan,

• the educational calendar,

• State and National level sports competitions

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As a way of enabling connectivity and to reveal the multiple layers of the city as a whole it is  proposed to develop a series of maps reflecting each  communities understanding of their place in it.

• Prashant Pandya , AMC

• Imran Mansuri, Planner

• Manali Shah, SEWA

• Sandeep Agrawal, Businessman

• Salim Pathara, Rickshaw Wallah

• Rizwan Kadri, Sunni Muslim Wakf Board member

• Haresh Vaja, property broker

• MK Patan, Chai Wallah

• Dr Dinesh Patel, Organic Farmer

• Reference Institutions – parallel structures of organizations

• IIC, Delhi

• SPUR, California

• IMAGO, D.C.

• Codex Indica

• Blind Persons Institute, Ahmedabad

• Existing civil and civic institutions in the city