Great wall of Ahmedabad

February 27, 2020 Incredible India Valli Sarvani No comments

US President Donald Trump visited India for a two-day trip. In order to show the ‘beautification’ of Ahmedabad city to him, Indian government decided to build a wall to conceal the slum area.

There are more than 500 kutcha houses at the Dev Saran or Saraniyavaas slum area along the road that connects Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport to Indira Bridge.

The 7-foot high wall is intended to hide the slum area from the attention of the US President. The wall is more than 1,300-foot-long which was built along Trump’s route from the airport to Sardar Patel Stadium.

This move of the government was criticized by the netizens on Twitter. Many people mocked the idea of ‘the great wall of Ahmedabad’.

They pointed out the decision of the government to conceal the reality behind a pretence. They suggested that rather than wasting the money to build a wall to hide the reality, it could have been spent on other beneficial purposes for the wellbeing of the people.

However, this is not the first time the government hid slum areas during major diplomatic visits.

There were many instances in the past as well. In 2017, when Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his wife Akie Abe visited Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar, the government put green cloths to shield the slums. In addition to that, fluorescent street lights, hoardings and banners had been established to welcome the Japan PM.

Similar thing was done in 2017, during the Global Summit in Gandhi Nagar, Gujarat. The government used cloth to cover the Saraniyavaas slum area.

During the hosting of the Commonwealth Games in 2010, the government undertook a beautification drive in which ‘unpleasant sights’ were covered with bamboo and other fast-growing plants.

The Delhi government initiated a controversial move to eliminate beggars from the city at that time which was criticized by many people.
Image Credit:– Photo by Patrick Tomasso on Unsplash (Free for commercial use)