Participation Free of Charge
36th JK AYA Registration Open till April 30th, 2026
Ar. Bharat Seth, Surat, India
He is from Surat town of Gujarat State of India. Ar. Seth did his M. Arch from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign USA. He is a practicing architect and member of various associations related to architecture as well as other social institutions. He is a winner of various awards .
Ar Snehal P. Shah, Surat
Ar. Snehal Shah, an alumni of CEPT Ahmedabad, is an Urban Designer with an Architecture background having experience in the fields of micro-level design issues, energy efficient design, space optimization, green buildings, mass housing & project implementation strategies. Based in Surat but has worked on projects at Delhi, Mumbai, Sangli, Ahmedabad, Surat, Baroda, Jamnagar, Rajkot, Bahraich, Bardoli and Pune. His acaaemic career is dotted with number of Gold Medals at Graduate and Post Graduate levels. His firms EssTeam, Urban Initiatives and EssAct, have successfully completed over 350 projects in the last fifteen years. for segments: Residential, Commercial, Industrial, Hospitality and Institutional . He has been writing articles for public awareness about urban issues, published in Gujarati Daily ‘Gujarat Mitra’ and ‘Samvad — Newsletter of Indian Institute of Architects— Surat Centre’.
Craft has a significant influence on society because it introduces a sense of community, fosters creativity, stimulates economic growth, and shapes cultural values and social harmony. The value and conservation of traditional crafts become more significant as time goes on. Traditional crafts are not relics of the past; they are living traditions with rich stories and craftsmanship.
“Innovation in Tradition” aims to strengthen community resilience and revitalise architectural interfaces that bridge the gap between artisans and urban society through a participatory design approach in the context of Indian state Rajasthan. A new cohesive identity and unity among diverse craftsmen has been established by the resurgence of native arts, languages, construction technologies, and ceremonies.
The project explores native handicraft communities and the significance of craft in their daily lives. It challenges the structure of current craft networks and their interdependence and looks at planning techniques that use conventional wisdom to create environments in a socio-ecological way in an effort to rethink rural infrastructure. It utilises local expertise to turn architecture into a tool for bringing traditional knowledge into the present.
SALIENT FEATURES OF THE PROJECT
Name and location : REVIVAL OF THE LOST LAKE OF GOPITALAV
Cost of Project : (INR) 20.91 Cr.
Built-up area := 6171.80 SQ.M
Description of project : The project of Redevelopment of Gopi Talao as lake is an academic initiative transformed into a real life project. Initially the Talao was a part of the traditional water management system and was linked to the moats of the city wall. However, the Talao started decaying and became a neglected large open space in the middle of the dense walled city area. The project took a mammoth effort and long time to get realized in the prevalent system, but alas the dream of giving a large urban open space back to the people of Surat was realized with striking environmental and economic benefits to the city of Surat. The project is a major leap in bringing back the glory of the historically and environmentally important public place by improving the living conditions of the people in the immediate surroundings and also the greater city of Surat with a population of 5 million people. The environmental impact of this project are far reaching, in the form of bringing down the temperature and improving the microclimate of the place, acting as a flood cushion as well as recharging the ground water table. The project is making the old area more and more desirable for the people to reside; and has given back the people of Surat its historic urban ‘place’.
Materials of Construction Details :
The major structural challenge was creation of the waterbody in a back filled land. To prevent contamination of the water to be stored in the reservoir it was important to create an impervious side. For this purpose a 7 Metre high retaining wall was constructed bearing a base with toe. The other structures that were mainly done in RCC constituted of the Ghats, Submersible platforms and the viewing deck.
Ground Textures_Green and Natural Stone: The idea was to provide robust nature of texture which is easy to maintain and easy to clean. A fine balance of Green and Hardscapes leads to a varied experience for the people and allowing flexibility to use the space. Granite Stone Flooring, Kota Stone Flooring and lush green landscape set up a platform for a pleasant rejuvenation. The rubber flooring in Children’s play adds to the safety as well as to the vibrancy of the place, giving a state of the art playing environment to children.
Special Features :
1. Contributing to the betterment of the microclimate of the place by the addition of vegetation areas that are of prime importance in the city core.
2. Environmental benefits by means of
a. Ground water recharging for the entire old city area of Surat and recharging of the aquifers.
b. Storm water sink and hence enhancing the resilience of the area from frequent water logging due to incessant rains and flood.
c. As open space in the public realm for recreation
d. As an environmental asset in the form of natural area harbouring important aquatic ecosystem and as a heaven for migratory birds.
3. The project is a boon to the residents to have a beautiful urban open space instead of a Solid waste dumping ground, which is in turn is largely benefiting the health and hygiene, biodiversity, air quality and ecosystem.
4.It has beautified the area and made it more and more desirable for people to reside in the vicinity, thus bringing in economic sustainability to the decaying economy of the area.
5. This project has discouraged outward migraon in the newer areas of Surat thus retaining the essence of the old city of Surat.
