Gujarat Model: Still vibrant with thoughtful execution

Having lived in Ahmedabad for three years and shuttling in and out of Gujarat for the last ten years, I have witnessed how the Gujarat model has evolved in every direction (went North, then South, etc).?

However, one thing that Gujarat has executed well is its tourism. There are not that great tourist destinations in Gujarat except for three places:

1. Rann of Kutch
2. Statue of Unity
3. Somnath/Dwarka

On a recent trip to the Statue of Unity, I came back with two thoughts about the Gujarat tourism model and how they leverage tourism to hit the right target segment's nerves.

The Statue of Unity ignites two feelings very vividly.

1. Patriotism: The place echoes our freedom struggle, and the monument has been built thoughtfully to pay tribute to the Iron man of India. He is portrayed as the literal Iron man of India everywhere in the Statue’s vicinity. The laser and sound show in the evening makes Iron man look like a mortal with such a gigantic 182 Mts tall person. All this clubbed together does ignite a couple of emotions in a normal human being:

a. We as a nation can get anything done if resources are aligned toward a common goal. For example, this is the tallest statue in the world as of now, with a record completion time of 46 months.

b. One starts appreciating that our country is indeed progressing. Hence, the feeling of contributing to nation-building gets sparked. Some wise man once said, “Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country.”

c. Iron man’s Vision: Vallabhai Patel died in 1950, and he saw a vision of making Narmada’s water reach every village in Gujarat. Fast forward ~70 years, Sardar Sarovar dam gets inaugurated, and Narmada’s water comes to Barmer in Rajasthan (obviously, entire Gujarat gets Narmada water). Learning: Vision is what unites everyone towards a common goal.

Fact: The statue faces Sardar Sarovar Dam.

2. Scrupulous/religious: Similar to what happens in sacred places on the banks of Ganga, such as Rishikesh, and Haridwar, the municipal corporation of Kevadia has started Narmada Aarti recently.

This becomes more important because Narmada is considered one of the daughters of Lord Shiva.

Before coming to the economics and business side of things for the Statue of Unity, here are some premise-setting pointers to keep in mind.

1. Income distribution is skewed toward higher age groups in India

2. Majority of higher age groups folks dont get ticked by worldly things and want to appreciate natural, spiritual, and patriotic emotions. The Statue of Unity's surroundings capture it very well, and these emotions overflow in every corner.?

With higher disposable incomes at higher age groups and ticking the right nerves in this age group, the agencies have made the place a perfect weekend getaway for people from 3 major cities (Surat, Baroda, and Ahmedabad) Gujarat, which contribute highest to the GDP of the state.

The average turnaround of the crowd hovers around 5k/day, with INR 2000 spent per person. The statute creates income worth INR 1 crore in the vicinity, translating to ~INR 28 crores a month and ~INR 310 crores a year. This is very conservative back-of-the-envelope math. Actual numbers would be significantly higher than this.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the platform or organization publishing this content. The information in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and should not be used as political advice or guidance.