Ahmedabad : Torrent Group’s philanthropic arm, UNM Foundation on Tuesday set a new milestone under its PRATITI initiative with a commitment to maintain 69 Lakes covering an area of over 2 million square meters in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar districts.
The Foundation signed MoUs with six civic authorities – Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC), Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation (GMC), Ahmedabad Jilla Panchayat, Gandhinagar Jilla Panchayat, Kalol Nagar Palika and Mansa Nagar Palika for maintenance of these lakes covering approx. area of 20,29,036 square meters in these cities and towns.
Shri Jinal Mehta, Director, Torrent Group exchanged the MoU with Smt Pratibhaben Jain, Hon’ble Mayor, Ahmedabad City in the esteemed presence of the Shri Amitbhai Shah, Hon’ble Member of Parliament, Gandhinagar Lok Sabha, Hon’ble Union Home Minister and Minister for Cooperation during the Startup Conclave 2025 at Mahatma Mandir, Gandhinagar.
Other dignitaries present were Shri Bhupendrabhai Patel, Hon’ble Chief Minister, Gujarat; Shri Rushikeshbhai Patel, Hon’ble Minister of Health & Family Welfare and Medical Education, Higher & Technical Education, Law & Justice, Government of Gujarat; Shri Balvantsinh Rajput, Hon’ble Minister for Industries, Micro, Small and Medium Industries, Cottage, Khadi and Rural Industries, Civil Aviation, Labour and Employment; Shri Jagdishbhai Viswhakarma, Hon’ble Minister for Co operation, Micro, Small and Medium Industries, Cottage, Khadi and Rural Industries, Civil Aviation and Shri Prafulbhai Pansheriya, Hon’ble Minister of State Primary, Secondary and Adult Education, Higher Education among others.
The MoUs outline a commitment from UNM Foundation to maintain these vital water bodies— reviving the natural ecosystems, enhancing urban surroundings, and fostering community pride. The initiative brings together civic vision and corporate responsibility, with the UNM Foundation extending its strategic support to ecological renewal in the urban neighbourhood.
Commenting on this development, Ms Sapna Mehta, Vice-Chairperson, UNM Foundation, said, “This is an important moment in our collective journey towards ecological renewal and a significant milestone under our PRATITI initiative of advancing large-scale ecological stewardship. It reaffirms our enduring commitment to restoring, maintaining, and celebrating the natural assets that sustain our communities.”
“At UNM Foundation, we believe that restoring and maintaining our green and blue spaces, is a civic responsibility,” Ms Mehta added.
UNM Foundation expresses gratitude to the Government of Gujarat and the civic authorities of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC), Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation (GMC), Ahmedabad Jilla Panchayat, Gandhinagar Jilla Panchayat, Kalol Nagar Palika and Mansa Nagar Palika for supporting the Foundation’s ongoing efforts to enhance urban green spaces for the citizens.
The UNM Foundation’s PRATITI initiative is the largest private initiative in India to develop and maintain environmentally sustainable public parks and lakes. So far, about 50 hectares (approx. 5 lakh square meters) of world class green spaces in 13 public gardens and 2 lakes has been developed and is being maintained across the cities of Ahmedabad, Gandhinagar, Surat and Daman. These public spaces witness annual footfall of approx. 60 lakh people. With the addition of the commitment to maintain 69 more lakes and other public gardens currently under development; UNM Foundation will develop and maintain a total area of 28.44 million square meters of public parks and lakes for citizens.
Plans are afoot to further expand the footprint of Pratiti initiative, including extending it to Maharashtra.