Gandhinagar: It’s the biggest festival of Gujarati people today, the Gujarati New Year, popularly known as Bestu Varsh, as per the Gujarati Hindu Vikram Samvat calendar.

While the Vikram Samvat calendar is also followed in several North Indian states and is the national calendar of neighboring Nepal, the Gujarati Vikram Samvat has its own unique timeline. The Gujarati New Year is celebrated a day after Diwali, though this year, it falls on the second day after Diwali.

Temples across Gujarat witness nearly tenfold increases in footfall on Bestu Varsh. People clean their homes and decorate entrances with rangoli to welcome guests.

Relatives and friends dress in new clothes and visit one another to convey greetings such as “Happy New Year,” “Saal Mubarak,” or “Nutan Varsh Abhinandan.”

While Diwali celebrations in many other states last only a day, in Gujarat the festivities continue for at least five days — from Dhanteras to Bhai Beej (Bhai Dooj).

Markets remain closed during this festive period and reopen on Labh Pancham, the fifth day of the Gujarati New Year, which is considered an auspicious muhurat for restarting business after the Diwali break. Gujarati tourists can also be found traveling to major destinations across the world during this time.

Every Gujarati household prepares and serves Diwali special sweets and snacks to guests. Homes are adorned with Asopalav torans (garlands made of Asopalav leaves) and marigold flowers. Popular festive delicacies include Mathiya, Ghughra, Chevdo, and Suvali, among others.

The new Gujarati Vikram Samvat year 2082 is expected to bring significant developments to the state. The year will likely see major progress on the Surat Metro Rail Project, slated for completion late next year. Meanwhile, the Ahmedabad–Gandhinagar Metro route will become fully operational, as GMRC has already conducted trials from Secretariat to Mahatma Mandir — the final station of Phase 2 of the Ahmedabad Metro Rail Project. Additionally, the proposal to extend the Metro to Ahmedabad Airport is likely to receive approval from the Centre, as the state government has already cleared the DPR. The proposed Metro extension to inner GIFT City may also get simultaneous approval.

Under road infrastructure, work on the expansion of the Sardar Patel Ring Road, kicked off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month, will gain momentum. The project includes 11 new overbridges, 4 underpasses, 2 river bridges, 5 foot overbridges, and dedicated footpaths.

Work on the new elevated flyover between YMCA Club and Karnavati Club in Ahmedabad is progressing rapidly and may be completed this year.

Additionally, construction of the nine “Garvi Gujarat” High-Speed Corridors covering 809 km will begin this year, following the Chief Minister’s recent approval. These corridors include:

• Bagodara–Dhandhuka–Barwala–Botad

• Botad–Dhasa–Chavand–Amreli–Bagasara–Bilkha–Mendarada

• Mendarada–Keshod–Mangrol

• Unjha–Patan–Shihori–Deodar–Bhabhar

• Karjan–Dabhoi–Bodeli

• Dehgam–Bayad–Lunawada–Santrampur–Zalod

• Ahmedabad–Harsol–Gambhoi–Vijayanagar

• Santrampur–Morwa Hadaf–Santroad

• Santroad–Devgadh Baria–Chhota Udepur

NextGen Semiconductors, which is setting up a chip manufacturing facility in Gujarat, plans to raise ₹1,000–1,500 crore through equity and other instruments this year.

CG Semi Pvt. Ltd., which launched India’s first OSAT facility in Sanand in August last year, will begin commercial production in this Gujarati New Year.

Micron Technology’s semiconductor assembly and test facility in Sanand is also nearing completion and is expected to start operations soon. Reliance Industries is expected to operationalize Phase 1 of its Giga Factory at Jamnagar, as the company reports that “work on the Dhirubhai Ambani Giga Energy Complex is progressing at record pace.”

In a major boost to railway infrastructure, the country’s first Multi-Modal Transport Hub (MMTH) at Surat will be nearly ready this year, ahead of the launch of the first bullet train between Surat and Billimora in 2027.

The Statue of Unity site will see new tourist attractions, including a foundation stone laying for the Museum of Princely States, and hydrogen-powered buses are expected to begin operations soon.

The Khavda (Kutch) solar–wind hybrid power park will further boost Gujarat’s green energy generation capacity.

Phase 1-A of the National Maritime Heritage Complex (NMHC) at Lothal is likely to be completed this year, with six museum galleries becoming fully operational.

The much-anticipated Dumas Sea Face, expected to be a major tourist attraction in Surat, is also slated to open this year. Furthermore, Surat’s Gandhi Smriti Project is expected to be completed by mid-year, while the Tapi Riverfront Project is set to gain momentum. The city may also move closer to implementing the Water Metro Project, for which a feasibility study has already been conducted.

Work on Sabarmati Riverfront Phase 2, extending another 5.5 km from the thermal power station to Indira Bridge, is progressing steadily. Similarly, work on the GIFT City Riverfront (Phase 6) is advancing rapidly — both projects are expected to see major progress this year.

Two expressway projects are also nearly ready to open for public use. The first is the Ahmedabad–Dholera Expressway, which is almost complete and set to open soon. Additionally, the Vadodara–Surat section of the Delhi–Mumbai Expressway, already operational in some parts, will be formally inaugurated in the coming months after final touches are completed.

The Rajkot International Airport is also expected to begin international connectivity with direct flight operations from its new permanent terminal this year.

Like the year gone by, more stations and bridges on the Ahmedabad–Mumbai High-Speed Rail (Bullet Train) project will be completed this year. DeshGujarat