Gandhinagar is the capital city of the Indian state of Gujarat. Located on the west bank of the Sabarmati river, it was developed as a planned city in the 1960s following the bifurcation of Bombay State, and was named after Mahatma Gandhi, who was born in Gujarat. The city lies about 23 kilometres north of Ahmedabad, the state's largest urban centre, and the two together form a major metropolitan region in western India.
| Country | India |
|---|---|
| State | Gujarat |
| Status | State capital |
| District | Gandhinagar |
| Named after | Mahatma Gandhi |
| Location | Banks of the Sabarmati river |
| Nearest major city | Ahmedabad |
| Official language | Gujarati |
| Local body | Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation |
When the bilingual Bombay State was reorganised on linguistic lines in 1960, the Marathi-speaking areas formed Maharashtra and the Gujarati-speaking areas formed the new state of Gujarat. Ahmedabad initially served as the temporary capital. The Government of Gujarat decided to build a new, purpose-built capital so as not to overburden Ahmedabad and to create an administrative city in keeping with the planning ideals of the period.
The site chosen lay on the banks of the Sabarmati, on relatively level land. The master plan for Gandhinagar was prepared by Indian planners Prakash M. Apte and H. K. Mewada, both of whom had earlier worked on the Chandigarh project under Le Corbusier. While Chandigarh inspired aspects of the layout, Gandhinagar was conceived with an emphasis on green cover, low-rise development, and a grid of self-contained sectors.
The city is divided into numbered sectors, each designed as a residential and civic unit with its own shopping centre, schools, health facilities, and open spaces. The road network follows a rectangular grid, with major roads running broadly north–south and east–west. Sector 10 contains the principal government complex, including the Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly), Sachivalaya (Secretariat), and the Raj Bhavan.
Gandhinagar is noted for its extensive tree cover, public gardens, and a comparatively low population density relative to other Indian state capitals.
Gandhinagar houses the principal organs of the Gujarat state government: the Legislative Assembly, the Secretariat, the High Court bench locations associated with the state administration, and the official residences of the Governor and Chief Minister. The city is administered locally by the Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation and is the headquarters of Gandhinagar district. It is also a Lok Sabha parliamentary constituency, which has historically been represented by senior national political figures, including L. K. Advani and Amit Shah.
While government employment forms the backbone of the local economy, Gandhinagar is also home to several institutions of national importance: