Surat going Singapore way!

SURAT: The Diamond City's glitter is set to get flashier. Last year, The City Mayors Foundation, an international think tank on urban affairs, ranked Surat as the fourth fastest developing cities of the world.
Now, if all goes as per plan, the city may well emerge as Singapore of India.
UK-based charity, The Ecological Sequestration Trust (TEST), has selected Surat as one of the three cities in the world, to be developed as "global cities." The other two include an island in north China and Kigali in Rwanda.
TEST delegation led by its CEO Dr Mike Cherrett had two of meetings with chief minister Narendra Modi and the state government has asked the organization to prepare an integrated development model for Surat.
Selecting Surat makes sense given the big-ticket investment projects that are planned near Suvali, a nod for skyscrapers on the Ring Road surrounding the city, several green energy projects and twin-cities development of Surat-Navsari envisaged.
Along with its local partner, TARU, a development consultancy firm, TEST will demonstrate practical ways to develop food, water and energy security for Surat, which it aims to develop as eco-city. TEST has organized a workshop of experts and stakeholders from public, private and knowledge sectors to on May 19 to take forward its plan to make Surat a global city.
"The aim is to develop an integrated model which will define and help planning of a model city that is sustainable," said GS Bhat of TARU.
Peter Head, executive chairman of TEST, has set the wheels in motion for Surat with clearly defined industrial zone and region of rapid urban development close to the existing city. Head was described by Times Magazine as one of the 30 men who can influence future course of action with regards to sustainable development in the world.
Nirav Kothary, regional head of Jones Lang and LaSalle (JLL) said, "This concept of global city will spur the realty market leading to affordability and if the mega city development plan is based on unified model it will help Surat achieve this status even earlier as it is cash-rich and majority of the earnings is invested in realty markets here."