Gopi Talav to open for public in Sept

SURAT: “How do I describe the calibre of this lake called Gopi? That which resembles fine art emerged from the churning of oceans” – wrote Vinayavijaya in his Sanskrit poem ‘Indudutam’.
Come September and Surat’s ‘premier pleasure resort’ – Gopi Talav -- will be all set to sparkle in its new avatar. The state-of-the-art project will have LED lighting in its water body and theme fountains – both a first for Surat.The entire premises will be under CCTV surveillance. The cost of beautification of the historic lake is around Rs 20 crore.
Architect Vishal Shah of Urban Initiatives, who worked on this historic project since 10 years, says,” The lake is finally developed; the design dream has turned to reality. The 350 metre diameter development encircling the lake with seven zones depicting the peculiarities of Surat is ready to entertain the locals and tourists. Dotted with various entertainment zones it is bound to become the recreational destination for families. The development will also affect the micro climate of the old city of Surat with rising ground water table and a drop in the temperature due to its abundant green cover and water mass.”
A curious fact not generally known is that the Surat Burough Municipality had acquired this 16th century lake in 1960 for Rs 1.5 lakh. Its annual return then was mere Rs 450. Now, SMC will receive Rs 30 lakh per annum as royalty from the outsourced private agency that will set up the recreational zone with a 15% increase every year for the next 20 years.
“We are trying our level best to declare the lake open to the public by mid-September. The government’s irrigation department has provided water on minimum charges for this non-industrial project via a pipeline that connects the lake from the channel that is one and a half kilometres away. The operation and maintenance for this site will be outsourced for satisfactory maintenance of the extensive water body, its gardens, recreation and entertainment zones,” said Surat Municipal Corporation’s city engineer Jatin Shah.
Earlier attempt
During the year 1967, the then municipal commissioner B G Khabde had proposed a 100 feet road from Bhagal to Sagrampura via Kotsafil and Gopi Talav to solve the Navsari Bazaar bottleneck issue. As a source for good income to the corporation, he had also suggested that a supermarket, 378 shops, 153 offices and 2,040 apartments within multi-storey buildings be brought up along with an indoor auditorium at this huge space within the walled city area.