MAJOR
INITIATIVES
Infrastructure Projects and Initiatives
These projects include
1 Delhi – Mumbai Industrial Corridor and
. the Dholera Special Investment Region
2 Dahej Petrochemical & Petroleum
. Investment Region (PCPIR)
3 Metro rail system for Gandhinagar –
. Ahmedabad, other bus & rail based
urban --transportation projects
4
Gujarat Finance Tech city (GIFT) etc
.
In another unique initiative, the
Government of Gujarat has started its own
viability gap funding scheme to bridge the
viability gap in infrastructure projects.
Gujarat Infrastructure comprise of
Extensive network of :
Education Infrastructure
Access Infrastructure
Power and Energy Infrastructure
Water Infrastructure
Industrial Infrastructure
HomeMajor Initiatives
Gujarat has always believed that it is the
infrastructure which will drive growth in various
sectors of the economy as well as social well-
being. Therefore Gujarat is the first state in the
country to enact a legal framework for PPP in
infrastructure sector – the Gujarat Infrastructure
Development Board (GIDB).
GIDB was created in 1995 and was soon given the
statutory status by enacting the Gujarat
Infrastructure Development (GID) Act 1999. The
GID Act provides a puts in a fair, transparent and
dependable mechanism for selection of developers.
Developers can be selected either through
competitive bidding, Swiss challenge route or
through direct negotiation after following certain
criterion. GIDB has the mandate to shape up the
projects and co-ordinate with various agencies.
Gujarat is today the front runner State in
development and privatization of Infrastructure.
With private participation a number of ports, roads,
railways, hydro electric projects have been
developed.
Factopedia:
Gujarat can boast of the first ever big
private port project in the country
Gujarat’s 40 Minor Ports, many in the
private sector, handle around 80% of cargo
handled by all private ports in India
The only Chemical port and tow LNG
Terminals have been developed in the PPP
format.
Two air strips have been developed by the
private developers.
Several BOT/BOOT roads and railway
 Rural and Urban Development
lines are functional.
Tele communication and IT Infrastructure

Tourism Over the years the GIDB and the Government

agencies of Gujarat have acquired excellent
capacity to structure and implement the PPP
projects. There is constant effort to enhance this
capacity through training and workshop. The state
is keen and committed to transfer its expertise and
track record of PPP in physical infrastructure to the
social infrastructure sector.

While the focus on building the robust physical and industrial infrastructure continues, a number
of projects have been taken up in the PPP mode in the Social sector:
for slum rehabilitation water management
multi level parkings bus terminals
tourism projects hospital and training
educational institutions others

Another defining feature of Gujarat infrastructure has been that the State has had a long term
and integrated vision for development. The State has prepared a long term vision in the form of
Blueprint for Infrastructure in Gujarat – 2020 (BIG 2020). The department envisages an
investment of around Rs. 12.00 lakh crore by 2020 across various infrastructure sectors. The
objective is to put Gujarat in the line of the developed countries in terms of infrastructure and at
the same time to see that all the regions, activities and communities are benefited with the same.

The State has initiated projects which will re-define India’s economic history and will put the
country in the high growth trajectory.

Tourism

Tourism in Gujarat offers a Traveler’s Paradise. It offers a wide spectrum of Tourism sectors which sing in
the glory of Gujarat’s rich culture and heritage. In addition to project development initiatives, several key
tourism development initiatives have taken by the state. The ongoing Projects indicate a strong evolving
commitment in the State to attract investments in the sector and reap its socio-economic benefits.

Current Locations for Project Development (2009):

Mandvi – Kutch
Dholavira – Kutch
Sasangir and Somnath – Junagadh
Champaner – Panchmahal
Dwarka – Jamnagar
Development of convention centre at Surat and Vadodara

Development of air strips for enhancing connectivity between the tourist destinations

Integrated Tourism Development Plan for 37 destinations is in pipeline and 24 eco tourism projects have
been taken up at a cost of Rs. 21 crore. These projects include eco-trails, jungle stays, desert safaris etc.

Tele Communications and IT

Telecommunications and IT have played a key role in increasing work efficiency and enhancing public
accessibility through e-governance. Gujarat Government focuses on growth and development of new &
emerging technology areas. It has been increasingly using the ICT (Information and Communication
Technologies) to offer citizen based service as per convenient location with an initiative to improve the
reach, make services more transparent and reduce response time with reducing costs. The Government is
also pro active in its Initiatives and ranks first state in the country to have made e-Governance functional in
all its Municipalities and Municipal Corporations.

State Govt. has adopted Innovative, constructive and result oriented progressive policies for the promotion
of e-governance in the State. Through the Nodal Agency, the Government’s Science and Technology
Department positions Gujarat, as a Key State in the Knowledge Economy sector and acts as a medium to
make Government-Citizen Interface more effective, transparent and efficient.

Gujarat is an aspiring leader with e-readiness Initiatives with the IT Policy 2006-2011. Independent agencies
have ranked Gujarat amongst the top five States in terms of e-readiness.for its Network Policy and E-
governance, Network Learning, Network Access and Network Society.

Rural and Urban Development

Rural and Urban Development is a continuous Project of the Gujarat State Government.

Gujarat is accelerating towards the process of urbanization and modernization due the fast growing economy
of the State. State Government has merged 17 newly formed Nagarpalikas with municipal corporations of
Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara and Jamnagar. The aim of this merger is to bring uniformity and
rationalization in urban development of these four cities, which ultimately generates the potentials of
development of various urban infrastructure like water supply, sewerage, roads, metro rails and other social
amenities within the city.

The Government also has sought for World Bank Aid for its Projects. The Government envisages upgrading
 infrastructure in the towns like Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Junagadh and Veraval so that these areas could attract
more industrial investments.

Government has planned two mega urban projects for the city –“Ahmedabad Bus Rapid Transit System
is planned to cater to the local transportation needs; and “Metro Rail Ahmedabad” is being planned to
meet the transportation requirements of Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar. Both these projects are to be
implemented in a phased manner in order to make them financially feasible. These projects would ease
traffic congestion.

Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) has been jointly implemented by the government, Development Board
(GIDB), Ahmadabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) and Ahmadabad Urban Development Authority
(AUDA). The total network of BRTS is 380 Km out of which 20 percent work was completed by August
2007 and it is envisaged that the project will complete by the year 2010.

For the diamond city of Surat, the Government has a dream project in order to provide better public
transport facilities for the people. “Canal based transit corridor”, which is proposed to be developed on
canal of about 30 kms in length, which connects the city form one end to another end. This will provide a
thorough and uninterrupted traffic corridor to the commuters. It consists of development of road and rail
corridor over the canal with the integrated development of surrounding areas also.

Conventional fuels such as diesel and petrol are being gradually replaced by Compressed Natural Gas
(CNG), which aims to ensure better reliability, safety and security to consumers. As a part of the
commitment of a ‘Cleaner-Greaner’ Environment, the government has initiated the process of converting all
buses and auto rickshaws into CNG vehicles. The Government, through public and private bodies, is
creating necessary CNG infrastructure for auto gas supply.

Industrial infrastructure

The Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) has set up 168 industrial estates and another 106
are being developed in different parts of the state. The State Government has Special Economic Zones at
Kandla and Surat and a software technology park at Gandhinagar. GIDC plans to set up an apparel park in
Surat. Additionally, GIDC has developed an industrial park in Dahej, which includes a petrochemical
complex with facilities like a private airstrip, effluent collection and disposal, a liquid chemical port and
railway lines.

To encourage investment in the state, Gujarat also gives autonomy and funds to industrial estates to
implement maintenance and modernization measures. It is also encouraging organizations to set up units in
these zones by giving them tax holidays and subsidies like exemption from stamp duty and registration fees.

Water
 The government is planning to cover 75 per cent population through the Water grid by 2010. The existing
method of water conservation include:

87,179 check dams (Small weir constructed across rivulet having minimum discharge of 1 cusec after
monsoon)
35,379 bori bandhs (Dams made of sand bags)
1,30,262 khet talavadi (Farm ponds) and
5,551 deepened ponds.

In regard to this, the government passed the Gujarat Water Users’ Participatory Irrigation Management Bill
in the year 2007 authorizing the farmers to constitute Water Users’ Associations (WUA) for management of
canals handed over, after rehabilitation by the Government.

Power

Power is key to industry and Gujarat has a good record of consistent power supply for commercial use. The
state has planned several initiatives to build adequate capacity in generation, transmission and distribution of
power supply. These include rationalizing the power tariff structure, encouraging power generation from
non-conventional sources, focusing on energy conservation and improving the quality of services to
consumers.

As the largest producer of natural gas in India, Gujarat intends to set up an extensive state-wide gas grid to
augment its existing power capacity. The grid will use gas supplied by the recently commissioned LNG
terminals at Dahej.

In fact, by 2010, 20 per cent of the country’s energy needs will be met by natural gas and Gujarat would play
a crucial role in fulfilling these requirements.

Access infrastructure

Gujarat has a 1,600 km indented coastline with I I intermediate, I major and 29 minor ports, which handle
over 80 per cent of the port traffic in the country.

Gujarat was the first state to announce a separate Port Policy, which integrates the development of ports with
Industrial Development, Power generation and Infrastructure Development. It was also the first state to
privatize the construction of ports in the country.
 Gujarat’s ports handle 20 per cent of the total cargo of the country. Kandla, India’s largest port handled 41.5
million reen of cargo in 2003-04. Other ports in the state, the Gujarat Pipavav Port at Pipavav (Saurashtra)
and the recently commissioned Gujarat Adani Port at Mundra (Kutch) were the country’s first reenfield
ports to be developed on a Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) basis. Mundra is a state-of-the-art port that
facilitates berthing of large vessels while Dahej in Gujarat is the country’s only chemical handling port. It is
estimated that by 2015, Gujarat’s ports will handle 39 per cent of the country’s total cargo.

Gujarat also has a road network spanning across 74,000 km. It is also well connected by rail with 5,310 km
of rail lines.

Though Gujarat is self sufficient in its needs for domestic and commercial water consumption, it has
initiated plans for the maximum development and utilization of water resources in the state.

The Sardar Sarovar project will provide assured irrigation to 1.8 million hectares in Gujarat with water for
domestic and industrial use in about 8,215 villages and 135 townships.

The state has undertaken extensive canal construction to supply water to the arid regions of Kutch. Also
underway is Kalpasar, a multipurpose project that aims to build a dam across the Gulf of Khambhat with a
tidal reservoir of 872 sq km.

Education infrastructure

The increasing growth of knowledge based Industries and increase in the need of technical man power, the
State focus on a strong Academic foundation.

The state leads in labour productivity in the country and the highest proportion of the state’s populace is
engaged in running owned businesses.

The state’s literacy rate stands at 69.1 per cent, which is higher than the national average of 65.38 per cent.
Gujarat is home to India’s leading business school, the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A)
and other important institutions such as National Institute of Design (NID), National Institute of Fashion
Technology (NIFT), the Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDI), among others. The state
also has 25 engineering colleges, 26 management institutions and 300 technical institutes.

The State Government plans to establish a Shipbuilding University, a first of its kind in the country in the
district of Kutch. A Children’s University ‘Bal Gokulam’ is also in the pipeline.

The Government has also charted out plans to enroll 525,000 girls in the state in Kanya Kelavani drive. It
foresees a vision 2010 that, when Gujarat celebrates its golden Jubilee, there should be a zero – ‘0’ percent
drop out rate in Gujarat (Literally No Drop Outs).

The Industrial Development in the state provides vast potential for setting up of new Educational
 Institutes in areas of :
Marine Engineering Port Management
Gems and Jewellery design Fishery and Fish processing
Urban Planning Disaster Management
Biotechnology

The state has high life expectancy levels, low birth and death rates and a low infant mortality rate. 72.3 per
cent of Gujarat’s population is below the age of 45. The state has 1,637 government hospitals and 1,070
primary health centres.

Education Projects and Initiatives

‘Smart Goals’ with a future vision 'Education for

 Let the Campaign of Girl Child All' is a major Project of the Education Department
Education spread in every home, Let with its Continuous Education and Literacy Policies
the Lamp of Educating daughters be lit geared to promote Literacy, reduce drop out rates,
up in every heart,Only then will be the Focus on Girl Education, Teachers’ Training and a
vision of Swarnim Gujarat be series of other Initiatives being implemented.
realized. 
Narendra Modi (Kanya Kelavani Girl Education, Infrastructure, Health and Sanitation
Mahotsav 2009) are the many areas in the process of continuous
Education, Literacy, Edu Awareness and on path to
Schemes Adopted to Enhance Education enhancement in quality implementation. The
Bal Pravesh | Mid Day Meal Schemes Government vision is for SEE (Socio-Economic-
Education) growth with primary education,
Nirogi Bal
secondary education, higher education, continuous
Vidhyalaxmi Bonds education, literacy education, technical education,
Vidhya Deep Yojna pharmacy education etc.
Teacher’s Training and Distance Teacher’s Training
Program The focus is on Concentration of plan and non-plan
provisions and best use of investments made in
education sector and the purpose of development. It
aims for UEE (universalisation of primary
education) for children in age group 6 to 14 years
with specific planning, target setting and power
initiative key role to 100% male and female literacy
by 2010.

The Campaign for ‘Education for All’ is

implemented with Literacy initiatives like Training
to 9000 teachers, covering all the students of
Standards 4 and 7 under student Achievement
profile, Extra coaching to girls studying in standards
2,3,4 and 5 in 12,500 schools to upgrade level by 10
to 15% in Gujarati and Arithmetic . It aims for
 increase in capability by 5 to 10% in writing,
reading and calculating by students of standard-3.

Financial Aid schemes like Viidhyalaxmi Bond Yojna and Insurance schemes like Vidhyadeep
Yojna are implemented by the Government to provide facilities to children and families to
support Education. Health of School children is a prime concern for the Government and hence,
with co-operation of WHO (World Health Organization, UNICEF, UNESCO) and World Bank
“Health Developing School-Programme” pilot project pioneer in Gujarat.

Computer Training is enhanced for Primary Level Education. The Government adopt
Technology by promoting Computer aided Learning, which is expected to benefit around
8,50,000 students of government run schools of Gujarat. It also aims for education in rural
places to set path of development with continuous power supply and broadband connectivity.

The Government has also initiated the SCOPE program to sharpen English language skills
among Gujarati learners. Desirous Schools to set up Language Laboratory are supported by
learning software for improving pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar. The software includes
self learning program for improving pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar. The students can
master the English language skills and gain confidence.

The Education Department’s ‘Sarva Shikshan Abhiyaan’ (National Program) and other
promotional schemes are managed by Gujarat Council of Elementary Education (GCEE) which
has grown from an agency implementing a project in just three districts to an organization
implementing several different projects in primary education sector in the state, viz. DPEP
(Distant Primary Education Program) II & IV.

National Project Implementation:

Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan Mission (SSAM),

Education of Girls at Elementary Level (NPEGEL)
Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV)KGBV

Gujarat Edu-Project Initiatives:

Under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan Mission (SSAM), all the 25 districts and Municipal
Corporations in Gujarat are being covered.
Under the umbrella of SSAM, it is implementing National Programme for Education of
Girls at Elementary Level (NPEGEL) in 1093 clusters of 78 rural Educationally Backward
Blocks (EBBs) and 39 clusters of 13 urban slums in 21 districts (excluding Bharuch, Dang,
Porbandar and Valsad) in the state.
The Department execute Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya (KGBV) Yojana, under which,
30 residential elementary schools with boarding facilities are being set up for girls
belonging to the disadvantaged groups of SC/ST/ OBC/ Minority and BPL in difficult areas.

Childhood in Gujarat should not be lifeless but full of vigour and enthusiasm 
Narendra Modi
Teacher’s Training and Distance Teacher’s Training Program

For the Kanya Kelavani Initiative, due care is taken by the Government to recruit qualified Teachers. The
Government sets up Teachers’ Training Centers and under Education Improvement programs, School
development Institutes gets grant and Teacher Incentives to procure enhanced teaching certificates.
Initiatives are taken by the Government for Distance Teachers’ Training Programme. Hon’ble CM
addresses the Distance Teachers' Training Programme for the Elementary school teachers through
Satellite Technology. Over 1,94,000 Teachers over 4000 receiving Centers participated in the Interactive
Training Program in June 2009. Teachers get to watch and listen to eminent scholars as well as
academicians as well as interact with them.

Gujarat Government transforms lives and follows the Gandhian Principles. Gandhiji said, “If one boy is
education, a child becomes literate but if a girl is educated, the whole family gets literacy”. The
Government believes in reforming lives and bring revolutionary change in the mindsets of people for
edu-socio-economical growth.

A glimpse to progress : 2007

8500 Schools upgraded since 1998

18053 schools equipped with power supply facilities
Primary School children gets School text books at no cost as 36 Crores Grant > > Initiated by Govt.
School Laboratories enhanced at the cost of 3.4 Crores every year
84,33,426 children gets Health Check up and 12, 27, 199 children get immediate .
health treatment by 2007

Key Factors & Achievement:

Special campaign to recruit 1.05 lakh Assistant Teachers for a strong and prosperous Gujarat
Kanya Kelavani Rathyatra and Pravesh Mahotsav (mid June 2009) have led to a reduction in the
drop out rate to below 2.29% and 100% enrolment in Primary schools
Efforts in Primary chools have led to 49.34 lakh students obtaining uniforms at total expenditure of
Rs.6,518 lakh
Efforts in Primary chools have led to 49.34 lakh students obtaining uniforms at total expenditure of
Rs.6,518 lakh
Facility of free bus transport for girls in rural areas
Special concentration on 6 special schemes of Kanya Kelavani for girls in 41 most backward
talukas
With increased efforts, Kanya Kelavani Fund has reached Rs. 21.83 crore, for girls Education
The next steps for Gujarat in the area of Human Development Index: Children University and Bal
Gokulam Sanstha
Reading, writing and numeracy of students in Primary Schools has improved by 80%
 Some Vision 2010
Admission rate in schools is 90.30% - to be raised to 100%
Rate of drop-outs in 48.1% - to be decreased to zero.
Literacy rate among male is 73% - to be raised to 100%
Literacy rate among female is 48.6 % - to be raised to 100%
Literacy rate among scheduled castes is 61.07% - to be raised to 100%
Literacy rate among scheduled tribes in 36.45% - to be raised to 100%

For More Information http://gujarat-education.gov.in/education/

Vidhya Deep Yojna

Vidhya Deep Yojna, the Insurance scheme is adopted children where the premium is paid by the
Government to ensure financial assistance to parents in case of untoward incident.

Vidhyalaxmi Bonds

Gujarat Government focus on role of Education in Poverty Eradication and the campaign is aimed at
ensuring maximum enrollment of boys and girls in primary schools all across the state. To encourage Girl
Child Education, Vidhyalaxmi Bonds are entrusted among areas with low literacy rates, below 35 percent
among women and this serve as an incentive to poor parents to send their daughters to schools.

Nirogi Bal

Government ensures on Nirogi Bal scheme along with Bal Pravesh as Health is a prime concern of the
child while it attends the classroom. Literacy to Health with Nirogi Bal is announced for 2008-09 with mass
movement for Safe Health with impact to Social Development of Gujarat. It ensures universal reach and
delivery of quality health services. It also make certain of quality nutrition and growth through effective
implementation of Mamta Abhiyan. One of the many goals is to guarantee Elementary Education and Life
Skills Education for all children.

Bal Pravesh | Mid Day Meal Schemes

Government schemes like Bal Pravesh and Nirogi Bal is also made a part of the
Kelavani campaign.

Government ensures ‘Literacy 100% in rural areas as it encourages Bal Pravesh (Child Admissions) by
providing Admission forms and enrolling over 525,000 girls in the state in Kanya Kelavani drive. The
Ministers, beauracrats and other Government officials motivate, encourage and inspire the parents to enroll
their children for Education as it is a prime factor to combat poverty.

To ensure co-operation and enhance better quality of food with nutrition, the officials even share the food
with children under ‘Mid Day Meal’ schemes which was started by the Government as the second state in
the country, committed to social integration and social up-liftment.

Schemes Adopted to Enhance Education

Primary Education

Vidhyalaxmi Bond Yojna

Vidhyadeep Yojna
Hon. Chief Minister’s The Girl Child Development Program
School-Health Check-up Program
Computer Training at the Primary Educational level

Secondary and Higher Secondary Department

Diploma for the teachers to improve their teaching skills ( Teacher’s Training Program )
Common Entrance Test for admission
Teleconference for the students of Std. 10th and 12th.

Technical Education

Self employment programs for the women

Kanya Kelavani
The Educated Girl Child Initiative was born out of a painful distress call as Women’s Education in Gujarat
in 2001 stood on 20th Position with Literacy rate among Female with 48.1%. Hon’ble CM joined hands with
all Government officers – IAS, IPS and other beauracrats, in a massive ‘Kanya Kelavani Rath’ and turned
into a massive movement to face the challenge in 2009.

Government charts out plans to enroll 525,000 girls in the state in Kanya Kelavani drive. It covers 1,865
routes and as a result, 100% enrollment and reduction in the drop out rate from 40% to 2.29% is achieved. It
 foresees a vision 2010 that, when Gujarat celebrates its golden Jubilee, there should be a zero - ‘0’ percent
drop out rate in Gujarat (Literally No Drop Outs).

Girl Child Education program is initiated in villages across Gujarat. It covers almost 18,000 villages esp.
where the literacy rate is below 20 percent and focus on identified suburbs of the urban areas to spread the
message of education.

The Government further envisage the Initiative to road ahead of success by making Jyoti-Gram and
Broadband connectivity available in all villages. Also, Education would be one of the major sector in the
Gram Mitra Yojna comprising of 5 Gram Mitra departments viz. Agriculture, Health, Education, Vikas
(Development) and Human Development. (Gram Mitra Yojna is aimed to provide a boost to the social and
economic structure of villages).

Education is power and the government is all set to transform the villages to illuminate with knowledge –
information and awareness to bring a change in socio-economic drawbacks.
Agriculture Projects and Initiatives

Leading as Second in ‘Green Revolution’ – Gujarat

has achieved Agricultural Growth table at 9.6% and
Agro Business Destination have carved a niche in the field of Agricultural
Sardar Sarovar Project on Narmada
Development in India. As of 2009, Gujarat’s
agriculture growth rate has been three times more
Krushi Mahotsav
than the national growth rate.
Soil Health Card
Horticulture The department is confident to change the lives of
farmers with its Agriculture Policies and the unique
Water Harvesting
Initiative of the ‘Krushi Mahotsav’ in the State. In
Drip Irrigation 2001, the State was on verge of less water resources
Water Shed Development but today, it stand as World’s biggest water resource
Narmada Canal. Where the dust took to wind storm,
Animal husbandry
there are green fields and where the farmers tilled
Village Pond, Check Dam, Boribandh dams (sand
bag dams)
the land with 1-2 crops, they have sort for 3-4 crops.
Continuous hard work of seven years and planned
Guidance by APMC (Agricultural Product
Marketing Committee) efforts of the Government have resulted in Green
Awakening the farmers
Revolution taking shape in Gujarat.
Agri Equipment Demonstration Gujarat Agro vision 2010 envisages improving the
Environmental Awareness quality of life of the rural population, including
An Agri Factopedia those who are resource poor, by widening their
employment opportunities and increasing their
income. 63% of the population of Gujarat lives in
rural areas and depends for its livelihood on
agriculture and the rural non-farm sector that is
interlinked with agriculture. The Government is
sensitive to the role of Agriculture in Economic
 development with a vision.

Greater wealth creation for farmers and

farm labourers
Offer a sustainable increase in productivity
Ensures Food Security
Offer higher value addition to agricultural
produce and exports
Conservation of Water resources through
micro irrigation

The vision seeks to accelerate demand driven

agricultural and agro industrial growth in the new
globalized agricultural environment. The goal for
Gujarat agriculture is to become a world-class
producer and supplier in the crops where it enjoys
competitive advantage.
The government envisages Agriculture promotion through focused agricultural research, and
application of biotechnology, information technology and ecotechnology. Conservation of soil,
water and biodiversity is the prime concerns to be environmentally sustainable. As a result, a
separate Department for ‘Climate Change’ is set up as a major challenge to Humanity.

Gujarat Agro Industries Corporation (GAIC), which promotes agricultural activities at the
ground level and fosters the development of agro industries in the state, is a manifest example of
the forward-looking policies of the state.

Click Here

Agriculture is locomotive of our economy and a prosperous rural economy based on

agriculture will ultimately make the nation prosperous 
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

An Agri Factopedia

Connecting 7 Districts on 8 Mbps and 18 Districts on 4 Mbps to State Center at Gandhinagar using
leased circuits provided by BSNL, Reliance and Tata Tele Services.
WTO Cell is being established to increase export-related competency of major agricultural
commodities.
Credit, Insurance and Financial support is being extended to farmers.
Cattle breeding have been encouraged and efforts are being made to produce good quality wool
from sheep.
 Agriculture Knowledge Universities
Agriculture university
Anand Agriculture university,
Navsari Agriculture university,
Dantivada agriculture university
Junagadh Agriculture university

In Gujarat, more than half its total area consist of soil.

The high lands of Saurashtra, Narmada and Low lying area of Tapi, Black soil region between
Vadodara and Bharuch (Kanam Pradesh), Olpad, Choryasi, Bardoli and Valsad are known as
‘Black Cotton soil’ as the color of the soil is black.
In the region of scanty rainfall as Banaskantha, parts of Mehsana, parts of Sabarkantha and major
parts of Kutch have sandy soil.
The regions around Dholka (Bhal Pradesh), Ged Pradesh, Bhavnagar, Ahmedabad, Kheda,
Mehsana, Banaskantha and many regions of the coastal areas as have alluvial soil.
In the mountainous forest regions, red soil is found.

For More Information Click

A Glimpse

Dairy Development
12 District Milk Producers’ Union
10,725 Milk Cooperative Societies
150 lakh liter/day Milk Production
20.84 lakh Members of Milk Cooperative

Fisheries
With a Coastal belt of 1600 kms, Gujarat occupies First position in production of marine fish (6.71 lakh
m.t./year) with a share of 24 % in total quantity. Export is worth Rs. 390 crore.

Environmental Awareness
 A separate Department for ‘Climate Change’ is set up as a major challenge to Humanity. Drip Irrigation
has been introduced and inter linking of 21 rivers of the State for conservation of water. Over a 3 lac
water harvesting structures are constructed in last 5 years which has increased the ground water level
throughout the state and increased the agriculture income by four times. Social forestry in Gujarat has
achieved a benchmark of 14 trees per hectare. The farmers are well informed about the climate conditions
and awareness on Environmental issues.

A 3.5 km tunnel ‘Panam High Level Irrigation Canal’ is set to provide Irrigation Facilities to 18000
hectares land under cultivation of Shahera, Lunavada, and Santrampur villages will be a boon for the
Panchmahal farmers. Under the Sujalam Sufalam scheme to make best use of water flowing in the sea,
the Rs. 64 crore tunnel is first of its kind in the country as a Green Project in Global warming. The canal
water would also feed water to 59 village ponds, and the canal water would also flow in to the 3 rivers
also. The Sujalam Sufalam project provides irrigation facilities to the villages, which were not covered
under the Narmada waters.

Three main sources of growth in Gujarat's agriculture are:

cotton output soared from 3.05 million bales (of 170 kg each) in 2002/03 to 11.2 million bales in
2007/08, primarily driven by Bt cotton since 2002
The rapid growth of the high value segment, ie, livestock, fruits & vegetables.

While Gujarat's dairy success is well known, which is growing at 6-7% per annum on sustainable
basis, the recent phenomenon of high growth comes from fruits and vegetables (dominated by
banana, mango, potato and onions) that has grown at almost 12.8% during 2000/01 to 2007/08
the third main source of growth comes from wheat—after a low of 0.6 million tonnes in 2000/01,
production jumped to 3.8 million tonnes in 2007/08- an average annual growth rate of 28%!

As per IFPRI (International Food Policy Research Institute)

Agri Equipment Demonstration

A separate Department for ‘Climate Change’ is set up as a major challenge to Humanity. Drip Irrigation has
been introduced and inter linking of 21 rivers of the State for conservation of water. Over a 3 lac water
harvesting structures are constructed in last 5 years which has increased the ground water level throughout
the state and increased the agriculture income by four times. Social forestry in Gujarat has achieved a
benchmark of 14 trees per hectare. The farmers are well informed about the climate conditions and
awareness on Environmental issues.

Awakening the farmers

Every year, during Krushi Mahotsav, the ‘Krushi Raths’ cover the entire state and visit each village in
Gujarat. A multi-disciplinary team of scientists, horticulturists and agriculturists are present on each rath.
The raths are a major vehicle for directly promoting scientific farming and improved agricultural practices to
the individual farmers within their own villages. A mobile exhibition equipped with posters and pamphlets
along with Region-specific panels on farming, a drip irrigation system, audio-video system to play dayras.
The local folk-based evenings are organized where songs on the theme of farmers and agriculture are sung
by the people and traditional artists. The dayros also served as a prelude to the arrival of the raths, to inform
the communities about the event.

Guidance by APMC (Agricultural Product Marketing Committee)

Information and guidance on topics such as soil health; crop rotation; organic farming; use of fertilizers and
pesticides; irrigation; and marketing is imparted to the farmers. As many as 6.5 lakh farmers in the state
receive individual counseling by agricultural scientists and government personnel at the Krushi Mahotsav.

Village Pond, Check Dam, Boribandh dams (sand bag dams)

The success key point in Agriculture is increased access to water. Gujarat has created history in water
conservation, by launching a drive for blue revolution, constructing number of check-dams. Gujarat is a
drought-prone state, with an irrigation cover of just 36% of gross cropped area. Increased water supply from
Sardar Sarovar project, higher investments in check-dams and watersheds (as of June 2007, a total of 2,
97,527 check dams, boribunds and Khet Talavadi (farm ponds) had been constructed by the state in
cooperation with NGOs and the private sector). Good rainfall for the past few years has helped propel
growth.

Animal husbandry

Major share of motive power of agriculture comes from livestock. Livestock keeping- an integral part of
farming system as land, labors and water can be efficiently utilized. An intensive animal vaccination
program was launched in all the villages at the Krushi Mahotsav held since four years, so as to focus on
disease management and the rearing of healthy livestock In addition to vaccinating the livestock, animal
health camps were also held.
Water Shed Development

It aims at increasing soil and moisture conservation and productivity of the degraded land, and thereby
increase the income of people. The programs seek to promote the overall development of the project area
while maintaining a special focus on the weaker sections. With the implementation of the watershed
programs, several outcomes have been expected with increase in healthy living lifestyles with better income,
education and resources.

Drip Irrigation

Many villages in Gujarat have adopted 100% drip and sprinkler irrigation systems to water crops. In June
2009, more than 93,000 farmers in Gujarat have adopted drip irrigation for their total 1.51 lakh hectare land..
Drip Irrigation system and inter-linking of 21 rivers of the state for conservation of water has made it
possible for record Sugarcane cultivation in the state.

GGRC is aimed to promote Micro Irrigation System (MIS) to the farmers of Gujarat as an implementing
agency on behalf of Government of Gujarat (GoG) and Government of India (GoI) to bring 2nd Green
Revolution in consonance with the Agriculture policy of Gujarat Vision 2010 so as to save water and
energy, besides multiple benefits to improve Agricultural productivity and farmer’s prosperity at large.

The GAIC and APMC adopts various programs and schemes for the Agriculture and Horticulture
segment for investments and other processing subsidies in the Food Processing Sector. Agri implement
service help is provided by the government for open pipelines and purchase of Tractors, etc. Bio gas
subsidies are offered with loan application.

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Water Harvesting

3 Lac ground water harvesting structures have been constructed in the state in last 5 years which has
increased the ground water level throughout the state and increased the Agriculture income by four times.
There are Complete medium, small and planned irrigation projects. Narmada water distribution system is
planned for water harvesting. There is increase area under irrigation based on land ownership. More small
Check Dams are constructed for water conservation. Spread and extension of drip and sprinkler irrigation
system is implemented.
Horticulture

Gujarat State Horticulture Mission (GSHM) a registered society has been set up for implementation of NHM
in the state. The State has strong cooperative credit & marketing structure, alongwith 213 cold storages
having 9.50 lakh mt. storage capacity About 42 fruit & vegetable co-operative marketing societies and 197
Agriculture Produce Market Committees ( APMCs) dealing with selling & buying of horticulture produce in
the State. The area & production of horticulture crop was 5.89 lakh ha ( 5 % of total cropped area) & 59.49
lakh tons in 1998-1999 which increased up to 12.46 lakh ha. (9.70 % of total cropped area) & 144.74 lakh
tons respectively in 2007-08.
Agriculture Export Zone for dehydrated onion & zone for fruits - vegetables has been established, which
will be the back bone to boost horticultural development in the state. There is ample potential to export
various horticultural produce to other countries. The mangoes among the many fruits, many vegetables and
spices are exported. Gujarat is one the major banana growing states and ranks 2nd in Exports of Bananas in
India with Exports of 1430 Tonnes to Middle East in April-June 2009.

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Soil Health Card

Soil Health Cards have been provided to 12 lakh 70 thousands farmers of the state till now. It has been
envisaged to provide more 5.55 lakh soil health cards to the farmers during the current year. The information
of nature of soil will be available to the farmers from computer installed in Gram Panchayats under E-gram
project.

Krushi Mahotsav

The Taluka oriented Krushi Mahotsav see a new light in the direction of Agriculture which is organized in
225 talukas for farmers. The concept evolves the India’s first Home Minister, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s
pledge in Bardoli to bring prosperity to farmers.
 The Krushi Mahotsav campaign which is being held since 2006, covered 18,600 villages in June 2009, with
230 ‘Krushi Raths’ (vans) reaching to farmers with Researchers, Scientists, experts, Agriculture officers and
Ministers, interacting and providing information and counselling on soil health, organic farming, technology
and inputs, irrigation, etc., besides infusing a new spirit of change and mass mobilisation. The Government
has set up four agro-climate zones and starting institutes for research and education in the field of agro
technology. An innovative concept of ‘Animal Hostel’ is proposed on experimental basis through public
participation.

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Sardar Sarovar Project on Narmada

World's Largest Irrigation Network made possible by the Sardar Sarovar Project on Narmada with the Dam
height raised from 90 meters to 121.9 meters is the biggest project. The project has immense contribution
towards irrigation, hydropower and drinking water supply.

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Agro Business Destination

The State government has a comprehensive Agri-Business Policy to facilitate projects of value addition in
center value chain from farm to market, develop Agri Infrastructure, encourage research and development,
promote food safety management system at the farm level and processing units. As Gujarat is an upcoming
Agro business destination, there are several investment opportunities in fisheries, fruit and vegetables,
animal husbandry, infrastructure and innovative technologies sectors. The ‘Food and Agri Business’ Sector
at the Vibrant Gujarat Summit 2009 saw 190 MoUs with Investment upto Rs.35, 456 Crores and Job
Opportunities leading to 3,88,761.