Swarnim Gujarat – A State of 24 Carat Gold

Almost everyone is in some or other way proud to be born where they are born and have spent the formative years of their life, and I am no exception to that rule. Born in the prosperous state of Gujarat has been a thing of pride to me, and probably the readers who come from the same state will be able to relate to what I mean. The recent event of “Swarnim Gujarat” to celebrate the completion of “50 Grand Years” of statehood is what inspired me to write on this glorious and unique part of the world. The blog post is probably a hybrid of what a beautiful state Gujarat is in terms of its heritage and probably some of the wonderful things which make me nostalgic about it.

Gujaratis - The Businessmen

Gujarat has been well renowned for its prosperity and entrepreneurship since the very ancient of times. Even the earliest of the civilizations, the Harappa and Mohan-Jo-Daro had a port named Lothal in Gujarat for carrying their trade. It is rightly said, that if you go anywhere in the world, from the biggest of stores and refineries and from the tops of the hills to the depth of the mines, if there is a business opportunity, you are likely to find a Gujarati.

Gujarat has given birth to countless business visionaries which includes the Ambani family, Karsanbhai Patel of Nirma, Gautam Adani from Adani Group and Tusli Tanti of Suzlon Industries. Gujaratis are known for their prowess and risk taking ability to do business since generations and hence thus the spirit of owning a business is almost imbibed in the genes of the people.

Gujaratis - The Leaders

Not just the business, the Gujaratis have made their mark in all aspects of Leadership. Gujarat is the only state in the entire world which gave birth to two people, who are respected as the Father-of-the-nation in their respective countries. While Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, was born in the town of Porbandar, the family of Mohammad Ali Jinnah traces back to Paneli in Gujarat where his grandparents and parents spent most of their lives. Apart from this, Gujarat also gave India, the Iron-Man Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel whose vision and dedication made the dream of a united Indian Union possible.

Gujarat - The Cultural Heritage

The gifted state with its brilliant businessmen and quality leaders has always been prosperous and hence the people not only had time, but also owing to the trade relations, Gujaratis communicated with people diverse cultures and hence this made the Gujarati heritage much more adjusting and much better.

Apart from this, historically, Gujarat is known for its beautiful temples and mosques. Dwarka and Somnath are very famous religious spots. Other than that, for Jains there is Palitana and Girnar, and of course, historically, Gujarat is the first state where the Parsis landed. Also, the Gujaratis are fond of both celebrations and food. The state also houses the world’s only Pure Veg Pizza Hut, which provides Jain Pizzas to cater to the local public.

All festivals from Uttrayan to Holi, and Diwali to Janmasthmi are celebrated with great pomp and joy in the state. However, the festival of Navratri, with Garba and Dandia Raas which are the traditional dances of Gujarat, is what truly shows the vibrant spirit of the state.

Gujarat - The Growth Story

Gujarat has always been growing rapidly. The state is also bestowed with the longest coastline in India. Once upon a time, Ahmedabad used to house the maximum textile mills in the country and was called the Manchester of India. The city is still famous for attracting a lot of pharmaceutical industries. Apart from this, the city of Surat, which is the diamond hub of the world, lies in the state. There are huge Reliance refineries in the city of Vadodara and Jamnagar, and a lot of Suzlon’s wind energy stations on the coastline.

With the stable government and able leadership of Narendra Modi, the state’s Industry friendly policies are making a mark. Last year, we saw the prestigious Tata Nano Project being moved to Sanand near Ahmedabad. The last Vibrant Gujarat Summit also saw MoU worth 12,00,000 crore being signed, which show the image of the state in the minds of the investors. While the state missed on the Information Technology race in the last decade, there is a lot of investment coming in this sector as well.

This is my personal opinion that the strong and stable Government of honorable Narendra Modi, has rekindled hopes in the hearts of Gujaratis and the very results of that are visible in very aggressive growth of the state in all directions. With the development of concepts like GIFT City and the BRTS in Ahemdabad, and with incentives like “Vanche Gujarat” and “Vibrant Gujarat” the state is on the fast track for further development.

While there are a lot of people all around the world who work hard and prosper, what makes the state of Gujarat special is the will of the people to help others around them. The unshakable faith of people towards improving their quality of life is what makes the state stand out in terms of progress. With great institutions like IIM, DAIICT, NIT, Nirma University, GNLU for Law and even a new upcoming IIT, the state is growing in education.

Gujarat has been prey to many natural calamities since ages. While were many riots in the past, the state was also bogged down by plague in the 1990s and the biggest hit was the earthquake in 2001. And yet, if you look back, you will see, the people always rose above the situation and came out as winners.

Today, the state boasts of 24-hour uninterrupted power supply, which probably no other state in the country can guarantee. The water of Narmada from Sardar Sarovar Dam and the huge number borewells and check dams which were created by Modi Government have caused the water table to go up and also allowed adequate supply of water in homes.

Final Verdict:

I am not being high-handed when I say that “I am proud to be a Gujarati”. The benefits of being born in a business oriented family, which understands finance gives you a head start in the world, and I am happy that I got that chance. As Malcomm Gladwell says in his Best-seller book “The Outliers”, success is not just dependent on the person, but also on several factors, which contribute to their success, and being a Gujarati is probably one of them.

The above song was composed by Legendary A.R. Rahman on the occasion of May 1, 2010, the 50 years of Gujarat’s foundation. While it starts slow, it gets speed midway and has a wonderful tune, which would sound much much better when heard after 2-3 times. It makes me feel utterly and yet happily nostalgic about being back home.

All in all, without trying to hurt any sentiments, I’ll quote what I read in a friend’s status message, “Some people have to work and try hard to be intelligent for most period of their life, while the lucky ones are Gujaratis by birth”.