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Fears as Gandhi’s ashram gears up for ‘world-class’ makeover

There are concerns that Gujarat’s plan to redevelop the Sabarmati Ashram into a memorial of international standards will alter the ethos left by the Mahatma
Last Updated 17 August 2021, 08:16 IST

After decades of proposals and planning, the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad — founded by Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi on his way to becoming Mahatma Gandhi — is set for a massive change.

An ambitious redevelopment plan will alter the topography of the century-old ashram, as the Gujarat government embarks on a Rs 1,200-crore project to convert the place into a "world-class museum" and "tourist destination".

While the project will change the physical structure of the ashram and other amenities, people associated with the place fear it will also alter the ethos of the ashram. Amid concerns over increased interference by the government, old-timers fear the serene spot will be reduced into an amusement park of sorts.

Situated under a canopy of tress on the banks of Sabarmati River, the ashram is a quaint structure thronged by visitors from across the globe. It is literally a free world without any entry fee. Squirrels and birds — one may even spot a pair of owls, if lucky — chirp around Hriday Kunj, the hut where Gandhi once broke bread with 'harijans', or the scheduled caste community, as part of his experiment with community living in those highly conservative surroundings.

The plan to redevelop the ashram with facilities of international standard threatens to alter its inherent characteristic of simplicity. There is fear that a free public space, where anyone could walk in without anyone's permission, may end up being another gated tourist spot.

The plan, prepared by the city-based HCP Design and Management Pvt Ltd and headed by architect Bimal Patel, is based on a 1949 aerial photograph of the ashram, then spread on little less than 50 acres. Officials said that at present the Sabarmati Ashram has around five acres of land, which will be expanded into 55 acres for the museum or memorial, as seen in the 1949 photo. The project has identified over 40 "congruent" buildings which will be preserved while the rest of them, roughly 200, will be demolished. The plan promises facilities like cafeteria, parking lot, parks, and the revival of Chandrabhaga river stream, closure of the road that divides ashram properties to make it a silent zone, among others.

The "anxiety" over the ashram's fate officially ended earlier this week, when the Sabarmati Ashram Preservation and Memorial Trust (SAPMT), which manages the ashram, wrote to the Gujarat government agreeing to the redevelopment plan. With SAPMT's approval, the mega project is set to take off under the direct supervision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The nod came in response to a letter shot off by K Kailashnathan, principal chief secretary to Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, who asked the trust to pass a resolution in support of the project and hand over the revenue records to take the programme forward.

Rupani and Kailashnathan head the executive council constituted for the Gandhi Ashram Memorial and Precinct Development Project, which is overseeing the plan.

The trust replied to the government cautiously in both Gujarati and English, asking it to avoid associating words such as "world-class museum or memorial" and "tourist destination" with the ashram, as they don't sound in line with Gandhian ethos and rather have market-driven connotations.

"We have agreed to the plan with a condition that it should be done in the most simple manner considering what Gandhi stood for and his basic idea behind setting up this ashram. There is no point opposing the government's effort in developing infrastructure like roads and parking for visitors. We all chose this government and now we are part of it. We have stated in the letter, written in Gujarati and English for better understanding, that we will keep the sanctity of the ashram intact and not treat it like a tourist attraction," SAPMT chairperson Ela Bhatt told DH.

Besides Ela Bhatt, who is better known as the founder of the Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA), the trust's members include Sudarshan Iyengar, a Gandhian scholar and former vice-chancellor of Gujarat Vidyapith; educationist Kartikeya Sarabhai; Ashoke Chatterjee, former director of the National School of Design; and Nitin Shukla, who retired as the managing director and CEO of Hazira LNG and Hazira Port Pvt Ltd of Shell Group.

Sources in the know said the trustees met at least twice and deliberated on the content of the government's letter. After several drafts, they have officially responded to the government for the first time.

"There is no question of fighting with the government. They will take over anyway. Times have changed. Earlier, we hardly used to cover the path leading to Hriday Kunj, where Gandhi lived. But now, with the new government, it has become a norm of sorts. Red carpets are laid for visitors during all VIP movements. This may look like a trivial matter now, but it has wider ramifications in the days to come as far as Gandhian aesthetics are concerned," said two officials associated with the ashram.

"So, we are trying to find a way through which we protect the essence of the ashram. Global leaders from Nelson Mandela to Donald Trump didn't come here to see a world-class museum or red carpets. They came to see how a man started a whole movement from a cluster of huts with the bare minimum. We don't want to turn it into an amusement park of sorts," they said.

SAMPT secretary Amrut Modi, 89, agrees. "Things have changed in the past 20 years. The government's interference has increased, especially during VVIP visits. We see colourful carpets which are not required at this place," he said.

There are nearly 400 families belonging to the scheduled castes and other backward castes whose forefathers settled at the ashram following Gandhi's appeal for community living. The state has offered them Rs 60 lakh as compensation to vacate the property or choose the government's housing scheme as part of the plan. The process has already begun and over 50 families have been paid compensation. A majority are said to be opting for the housing scheme, which will be inside the larger precinct.

"There are so many memories associated with this place — of my grandparents-in-law taking care of cows at the gaushala which Gandhi had started. But our families have grown over the years and therefore, we will shift to a place where we will all live together," said Lasiben Thakor, a resident of Thakor Vaas, who opted for the compensation.

After returning from South Africa, Gandhi founded his first ashram at Kochrab in 1915 but had to shift to the present location due to the plague in 1917. The Sabarmati Central Jail was in the vicinity of the present location, which was a "special attraction" to Gandhi. "As jail-going satyagrahis, I liked this position. And I know that the sites selected for jails have generally clean surroundings," he said.

It was from this ashram — originally known as Satyagrah Ashram — that he announced support to the mill workers' strike, inaugurated the Kheda Satyagrah, established the Gujarat Vidyapith and the Majoor Mahajan Sangh (a textile union). Gandhi also started publishing 'The Story of My Experiments with Truth' in Young India, and started the landmark Salt March or Dandi March from the ashram. All these events happened here from 1915 to 1930, the formative years of Gandhi's public life in India. He left the ashram in 1930. In 1933, he disbanded it and handed it over to the Harijan Sevak Sangh.

After Gandhi's death, his close associates including Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel formed the SAPMT with the aim of preserving his intellectual works and heritage sites, and carrying forward programmes related to girl child education and sanitation.

This is how SAPMT came into existence and the place became popular as Sabarmati Ashram. Patel was one of the first trustees along with G V Mavlankar, Kasturbhai Lalbhai, among others. Along with SAPMT, Sabarmati Ashram Gaushala Trust, Harijan Ashram Trust, Harijan Sevak Sangh and Khadi Gramodyog Prayog Samiti were also formed. In the redevelopment plan, all these trusts are going to be brought together into one campus

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(Published 24 July 2021, 19:16 IST)

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