Ahmedabad Civic Body Facing Heat Over Direct Allocation Of Prime Navratri Plots Without Public Auction

Questions are being raised over the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation's (AMC) decision to allot prime municipal land across the city for Navratri celebrations via direct application rather than open public auctions.

Over the last month and a half, roughly five lucrative civic plots—including those in high-end corridors like Sindhu Bhavan Road—have been handed over at daily rents ranging between ₹21,000 and ₹40,000, triggering allegations of severe revenue loss to the civic body.

Under existing norms, the Standing Committee holds the authority to allocate municipal land based on direct applications. However, given the massive commercial demand for hosting large-scale Garba events in prime localities during Navratri, critics argue that initiating a public bidding process would have fetched significantly higher revenue for the municipal coffer.

Sindhu Bhavan Road And Tragad Plots Handed Out At Nominal Daily Rates

Details of the recent allocations reveal that two prime municipal plots on Bodakdev ward's Sindhu Bhavan Road were awarded to Dhiraysinh H. Rathod at daily rentals of ₹25,000 and ₹40,000.

Similarly, a plot near Ayodhya Nagari Government Housing in Tragad-Jundal was granted to Chintan Jadav for ₹21,000 per day. In the Gota ward, an SRF municipal plot was allocated to Sky Craft Ahmedabad at a daily rate of ₹30,000. Meanwhile, the Krantiveer Rajguru Vyayamshala ground in Maninagar went to the Maninagar Youth Federation for ₹25,000 per day.

Maninagar Plot Allocation Triggers Massive ₹14 Lakh Revenue Gap

The decision regarding the Maninagar Vyayamshala ground has drawn the sharpest scrutiny. According to sources, AMC earned nearly ₹16 lakh from leasing out this exact ground during Navratri last year. In contrast, the site has been handed over for just ₹2.5 lakh this year through direct allocation—marking an alarming shortfall of approximately ₹14 lakh for the exact same location.

Concerns have also been raised over service conditions attached to these leases. Standard rules typically mandate that cleanup and sanitation responsibilities rest with the party renting the site. However, in these instances, the civic body has taken on the sanitation duties itself for a nominal fee.

Furthermore, despite a circular setting the standard daily rent for plots in the North-West, South-West, and West zones at ₹22,500 per day, allocations like the Tragad plot were reportedly cleared at figures below this benchmark.

Allegations Of Political Favouritism Surface

The practice of bypassing public auctions to hand prized municipal grounds to select individuals has ignited intense political debate. Allegations have surfaced claiming that valuable civic assets are being doled out at cut-rate prices to benefit individuals connected with the ruling BJP.

While official clarification from the civic administration or the beneficiaries remains pending, the controversy raises fundamental questions over why public auctions were skipped for prime festival venues and what criteria guided these direct allotment decisions.