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Gopi Talav -An Attempt to Gentrification

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Zeel Parmar Jinal Bhavsar

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 Gopi Talav – An Attempt to Gentrification
Zeel Parmar, Jinal Bhavsar

Introduction
The thought of Surat conjures up a mental image of textile mills,
and diamond polishing factories, but a deeper dive through the
busy streets unveil the city’s rich history, culture, and
architecture. Having been in existence since 300BC, Surat is
situated on the banks of river Tapi and is one of the fastest-
growing cities in the region. From being the ‘gateway to Mecca’
to being the ‘Diamond Capital’ of the world, the city has
changed many hands. Situated at the mouth of the river Tapi,
floods have been a recurring event for the city. The coping Figure 1 Surat City Location
mechanism can be seen in the building morphology. A massive
fire that broke out in the 18th century devastated the entire region. As a result, the oldest buildings that are seen today
are not more than 125-130 years old. The fire marked a new beginning in the Residential area. Surat Municipal Corporation
(SMC) is responsible for administration of Surat city which is spread over 326.51 sq km area. This paper comprehends on
the past and present condition and development undertook for the restoration and redevelopment of Gopi Talav.
However, this paper not only include the details regarding the project but also its impact on surrounding as well as to the
city center in terms of economy and cultural aspects on the life of people.

Study Area
Gopi Talav is a lake in the core area in the city of Surat in Gujarat state of India. The project is described as “An important
urban recreational space with religious significance”. It was a water reservoir built in 1510 CE by Malik Gopi, who was an
affluent merchant and governor of Surat during that time. It was constructed after the Chalukya style of architecture which
flourished during the Solanki period. Gopi talav was a source of water supply for the population till 1673 A.D. It had a
device known as “Nagadhara” and three culverts to collect fresh water during monsoon months. However, the lake started
decaying due to rapid development in the surrounding which hampered the natural catchments. Hence, it was planned to
develop gopi talav in Wall City Area through Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode. Project started in 2012 and completed
and opened to public in 2015. Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) redeveloped this historical heritage property in three
different phases and developed as a “Lake Garden” with theme-based zones for the citizens of Surat.

Figure 4 Location of Central Area in Surat City Figure 3 Location of Gopi Talav in Central Area Figure 2 Gopi Talav

pg. 1
The total project area is 38.5 hectare which was divided into different zones
catering proposals for developing lake as a recreation place and developing
surrounding as a commercial development, slum rehabilitation, graveyard
development and informal and formal market redevelopment with parking. The
circular lake area measures about 1 lakh sq.m, that includes water body of 35,300
sq.m and surrounding recreational area of 64,700 sq.m. The lake can hold
120,000,000 litres of water. The renovated area includes amphitheater and
fountain plaza. The area has been divided into seven zones: the diamond zone, food
zone, environment zone, history zone, communal harmony zone, textile zone and
Surat nu Jaman(Food of Surat zone).
The main historical/architectural peculiarities. Figure 5 Acquire Land for Project Proposal
Gopi talav Lake is situated in the Area name
Gopipura. This area was considered as the heart of the Surat city because it was the
first developed part of the city. The development of Gopipura started almost 125 years
back. Since 1970, Gopipura saw migration of people from north part of the state, the
diamond businessmen who came to Surat, firstly settled in Gopipura. So, after 1970,
the area saw a lot of development and many multi storey buildings started coming up.
Earlier people who used to stay in single storey homes, started living in flat system and
the culture of spending time outdoors, communicating with eachother on otla
(external plinth) started to diminish because the muti storey system of houses took
place.
Figure 6 Iconology of Houses The tradition of housing is more developed in this
area compared to the other cities of the state.
Gopipura is the major centre where majority of the merchants established their houses.
The houses in this area have been elaborately designed. Since people who lived in
gopipura were majority of traders and merchants, so they knew the global language of
the building facades. The façade characters and the iconography of the houses can be
described in 4 catagories: Neo Classical style, Indus Arsenic style, Baruchian style and
Arabic style. The interesting fact about these houses in Gopipura Area is that these
styles were not accepted by the religious communities in the city but rather by the
merchants’ communities who migrated from other cities. People in the old city area
like the way they live in the colonial style and hence there are no such major changes
happened in core of the city. Figure 7 Mosque

In the three zones of Surat viz., old city, inner periphery and outer periphery, the spatial distribution of population has
over the time been changing. Proportionately, unlike in the earlier decades, the old city now houses a much lower
population. This has mainly been due to (i) increasing growth of residential areas in the inner periphery (ii) bulk of the
migrants entering the slums (iii) residential mobility of a section of high and middle income groups towards specific
localities in its periphery, and (iv) changes in the actual area of the Corporation limits. The original residents of Surat got
engaged in traditional handloom weaving industries at small scale during twentieth century and latter shifted to power
looms. With technological advancement more heavy and bulky machineries were required to carry out the business, hence
more space is required to establish industries. So, the establishment of industrial estates on the city’s periphery started
to take place as it provided the necessary infrastructural facilities to small entrepreneurs. Thus, people left the old city
area and shifted to peripheries which ultimately left the city centre to decay and no restoration activity took place to
renovate the houses.

As the area surrounding gopi talav is the point from where the city was born, it was the oldest part of the City Centre and
the first to lose its importance in the city. As the lake lost its catchment due to developments in the surrounding, people
started acquiring the land to construct their houses and hence, they didn’t have to pay a single penny to anyone. More

pg. 2
and more slum household with poor sanitation started to emerge leading the area into more poorest and unmanageable
conditions, increase in criminal activities and loss of heritage value.

Supply Side Drivers

Before, when the city started to form, employment used to be in the old city
area of Surat and even people preferred to live near their work which result
in purchasing property in the central area and building new houses. As more
people wanted to live in the central area, over the period, the inner city was
ruined by inadequate infrastructure, poor living condition and traffic
congestion. The fact that these old structures have significant characters
which are rare and impossible to replicate give them the character of a
monument which needs to be conserved and maintained. Similarly, much of
the infrastructure in the Gopipura area is over eighty years old and badly in
need of up-gradation or replacement. The poor level of services and traffic
and parking problems made the neighbourhood undesirable place to stay. The
Figure 8 Urban Peripheries
housing stock is facing serious problems of dilapidation. Restoration efforts
made by Surat Municipal
Corporation have focused predominantly on monuments as these were
believed to have historical and architectural importance. As a result,
properties not fitting these criteria of importance had a lack of maintenance
and investment, thus increasing their vulnerability. The narrow streets have
become congested with the increase in population and need of privately
owned transport facilities. In the absence of a clear
policy for on street parking the streets are choked
with parked vehicles.
Figure 9 Houses in Bad Condition This resulted into the shift of major Population from
the old city area to inner periphery of the city. During this time period there was a high rate of
immigration in Surat due to better employment opportunities in established sectors of diamond
and textile. These migrated people firstly settled in the outer periphery of the city which was under
the process of development. Soon as the area started to take the form and more facilities were
inserted, the land value as well as the housing started to rise since more people chose to live in
the peripheries of the city.

As a result of which, the city center began to fall, housing value decreased, housing stock became Figure 10 Narrow
Street in Core Area
old and less desirable as the focus of municipal corporation shifted on developing the fringe areas
with larger homes and single-family dwellings, the old housing structures in the central areas were neglected, as a result
of which it started to decay. Hence, the migrated population who could not afford to stay in the outer periphery anymore,
started to shift in the old city area where they could easily get houses at cheaper rates, and as a result of which the land
value in the area started to decline. Rich people of the city did not prefer to live around the migrants which generally
belong to the low-income groups. There was also an increase in the slum settlement in the area which mainly consisted
of migrated population. While majority of these slum pockets were developed mainly in the area surrounding Gopi Talav
due to availability of huge amount of open land as the project was yet not into the eyes of Municipal Corporation. Before
the project was initiated the area was encroached illegally by slum dwellers which mainly consisted of migrated population
and the surrounding concrete houses were occupied mainly by low-income groups and economically weaker sections of
the city which were also in dilapidated conditions as nobody would want to invest their finances in such a low status area.
Later when the potential of gopi talav was identified, Surat Municipal Corporation decided to renovate the cultural
heritage with public private partnership model (PPP). The lake was developed as a recreational space with concept that
represents Surat city. The design was followed by dividing the area into different zones like: History zone, Environment
zone, Diamond zone, food zone (Surat nu Jaman), Textile zone and Cultural zone. Each of these zones depicts a reflection
of the city with different furniture representing names of each zones.

pg. 3
In the case of gopi talav, the need to earn profit by government was the reason behind gentrification rather than consumer
preferences. It is stimulated more by economy than cultural aspects. The property value will depend on its rate of
depreciation through use and its rate of appreciation through the addition of more value. The area of Gopi Talav went
into depreciation due to various factors such as landlordism, redlining and abandonment. Gentrifications occur due to
Rent Gap. It is the difference between potential ground rent and capitalized ground rent. Gentrification happens when
the rent gap is wide enough to ensure the developers to purchase the property, bear the expenses (mortgages, taxes,
upgrading of the property etc.) and then to sell at price high enough to get returns (with profit). Gopi talav was recognized
by professional developers and landlord developers as it was on a public private partnership between government body,
private developers and citizens from whom the fee was levied in order to visit the place. Gentrification is basically a process
of movement of capital rather than people. Here the project of Gopi Talav was an initiative by government to invest and
improve the social and economic situation of the surrounding land.
Table 1 Rate of Land in 2006

Rate of Developed Land per Sq. Mt Rate of Land + Construction in (Rs. Per Sq. Mt)

Residential Office Shop

13000 18000 23400 27000

Surat Municipal Corporation carried out the redevelopment process in 3 phases:

Table 2 Project Development Cost (2015)

Phase 1 6,00,00,000 INR

Phase 2 3,40,00,000 INR
Phase 3 10,00,00,000 INR

Demand Side Drivers

Gopipura area is one of the areas of the city where migrating
population have established their temporary residences while
arriving in the city. The rise in the real estate market has increased
the land value in areas outside the core resulting in housing that
are unaffordable for low-income groups. Some of the developers
are buying land in this area surrounding gopi talav, demolishing
buildings and replacing them with modern housing with higher
density to provide housing at lesser rate compared to the outer
periphery of the city. Furthermore, the attractiveness of
contemporary ways of living are leading to many people leaving
traditional houses and the historic parts of Surat because of
unsuitability. Some of old houses, as designed according to the
Indian tradition, lack adequate infrastructure such as toilets, Figure 11 new building replacing the old ones
sewage systems, and water pipes and hence remain vacant which
later fall to decay.

pg. 4
 The gopipura area is the oldest part of the city and hence it is housed with many
historical structures. Development projects for new infrastructure and commercial
developments are often based on standardized solutions that are intended to generate
immediate revenues. However, they are usually insensitive to the authenticity and
integrity of cultural significance. Some of the major issues that were identified in the
area were, (1) Rapid urbanization boosts the property market to produce more housing,
hence old buildings are replaced with new buildings with higher densities and (2) the
replacement of newcomers weaken the affection that local communities still have for
local heritage, since newcomers are often not aware about the historic value and local
identity. Urbanization in this area was necessary yet it is a threat because young
Figure 12 Mix Development generation left the historic city and new owners replaced traditional owners and found
old housing unsuitable to accommodate contemporary lifestyle. (Surat Municipal
Corporation Museum experts, Expert Interviewee).

Slowly, the area started to convert into mix development from completely residential where ground floors are converted
into shops and business activities while in some cases the entire residential houses were converted into offices and shops.
This led to decrease in number of permanent gentrifiers and increase in number of temporary gentrifiers as majority of
people used to enter the vicinity only for daytime activities.

The potential gentry represent middle and lower middle class of consumer whose requirement are just their basic
necessities and generally go for shopping only to buy those things. These are educated consumers who understand the
need to engage in financial planning, whether it be through voluntary savings or investment. These are the people who
have business or working in the services sector.

Gopi Talav is one of the important heritages in Surat with its own history. It is a place surrounded with historical housing
while some these are equipped with spacious layout and these types of housing are generally seen on the roadside. After
renovation of these housing in the mix development, which was really helpfully the newcomer to establish their business
in this spacious layout. Other services like restaurant, cinema, snow park, play zone and sport activities were introduced
in the area with the development of Gopi Talav. Other than middle and lower middle class gentrifiers, Surat Municipal
Corporation (Government body) is also a potential gentrifiers who played an important role in the development of Gopi
Talav.

Physical Impact
The core area of Surat city is usually characterized by the intense wholesale and retail commercial activities concentrated
in the area. This core is the cultural, administrative and economic heart of the city. Over the past few decades, there has
been a shift in the focus of development, to the surrounding of the old city. Various factors have been encouraging this
trend. As a result of which Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) tried to enhance the importance of the area by rejuvenating
a precious heritage site “Gopi Talav” in order to restore the heritage value and economy of the surrounding area. The
main aim of the project was to provide modern infrastructure to the existing occupants in terms of residential, commercial,
health, education and social infrastructure and to provide better quality of life to the occupants. However, the physical

Figure 13 Inside of Gopi Talav

pg. 5
impact to the surrounding areas is more destructive and hence the attempt to improve the overall value of the area with
the rejuvenation project has failed. We would like to explain these factors in two parts: Inside and Outside. The project
inside of its boundary wall is beautifully and very well developed with different areas dedicated for recreational activities
along with a special area dedicated to café and restaurants. While the outer part that is the adjoining areas are surrounded
by poor level of services and traffic and parking problems which made the neighbourhood undesirable place to stay, the
narrow streets city has become congested with the increase in traffic volume, the streets are choked with parked vehicles
despite paid parking facilities, street hawkers have encroached the road since the movement of people has increased after
the project.

Figure 14 Outside of Gopi Talav

Certainly, the project attracted people from the city to visit and admire the beauty within the walls. On a positive note,
the project provided a recreational space to the people living in the area as well as to the people of the city. The heritage
was restored and gained importance once again reminding people the importance of culture and history. However, the
project failed and created a more negative impact to its surrounding. Since the area is densely populated the very first
need was to provide adequate road infrastructure for the smooth flow of traffic as well as adequate parking facilities to
avoid on street parking. This led to more and more traffic congestion, noise pollution, illegal encroachments, etc. The area
turned more into an informal market place where street vendors were benefitted as they sell snacks at cheaper rates
while the restaurants inside were a bit expensive. Even though the project provided a recreational space to the area, the
citizens does not have a free access to it.

Social Impact
A slum area which had been illegally occupied by a large number of people for a long
time was demolished and the residents were shifted to a new place by the higher
authorities of the state. These illegal settlements had come into existence over the last
35 years. They were nurtured and expanded under the patronage of political parties
that used the residents as vote banks. Excluding Gopitalav, the major portion of the
proposed redevelopment area includes private owned Residential plots, and parcels of Figure 15 Location of Demolition of
land owned by private trusts, burial grounds and Government. For Surat Municipal Shops and Houses

Corporation (SMC) it was a major exercise to demolish approx. 1400 pucca houses that
were basically slums and 120 shops. It was not any ordinary demolition of houses but
demolition of dreams, culture and footprints of the generations that grew up there to
leave everything behind to get shifted to a totally new place. Apart from opposition
shown by a few people, the drive remained peaceful as all homeowners have been
allotted flats at Bhestan.
Figure 16 Demolished Houses and
Shops

pg. 6
The area is predominantly composed of communities organized according to
their religion. Therefore, the residential areas are built around religious structure

Figure 17 Distribution of Communities Figure 19 Demolition of Dreams Figure 18 Location of Shifted Population

of historical and architectural eminence. Similarly, the area around gopi talav is mainly occupied by Muslim communities
which can be clearly seen in the map. Hence, one of the reasons of failure of the project is due to the year’s old conflicts
between the Hindu and Muslims in the Indian scenario. Majority of people belonging to the religion other than Muslim
does not prefer to visit the place or choose to reside in the area surrounding to it. Apart from that, there are large number
of slum household right adjacent to the walls of the project area.

Conclusion
Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) has undertaken the comprehensive efforts to develop Gopi Talav for recreational
purpose in the Wall City Area of Surat. As a part of development, there was a strong need to develop the adjoining areas
of Gopi talav. Since the area is the first developed part of the city, today it is in the most dilapidated condition, losing its
historic as well as cultural value. Basically, the project of Gopi Talav was expected to trigger the rejuvenation of the
surrounding & subsequently the entire old town as well as to provide a recreational space to the residents. But eventually
the project failed and created a more negative impact to its surrounding, as a result of which there was more chaos.
Factors such as religious conflicts of Hindu and Muslims, dilapidated houses and infrastructure, surrounding slums, lack of
cleanliness, traffic congestion and much more, left the area with scarier place to visit where people from other parts of
the city do not wish to come due to safety reasons.

The Indian market is characterized by predominance of informal employment and hence the informal sectors usually plays
an important role in the lives of the citizens. The project of Gopi Talav did not cater much to the surrounding areas but
only worsen the situation for the residents. One of the positive impacts we can say that the project contributed was to
these informal sectors of the city. Many street hawkers encroached the outer part and, in some case, the entire street in
order to sell their goods. However, this entirely cannot be a great point since it leaves the city into more dilapidated
condition.

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