Interpretation center for sardar sarovar dam at Kevadiya: Gujrat/

Abstract

This thesis proposes an Interpretation Center for the Sardar Sarovar Dam at Kevadiya, Gujarat, to spatially celebrate one of India’s most significant infrastructural achievements. As a narrative-driven civic project, the center is designed to educate and engage visitors with the dam’s engineering marvel, socio-environmental impact, and future relevance. The site near the dam is strategically located within a growing tourism region, allowing the project to act as both a public interface and a cultural landmark. The design focuses on light, shadow, materiality, and spatial sequencing to shape an immersive visitor experience. Key requirements include galleries, public plazas, orientation spaces, and recreational amenities integrated with sustainable and passive design strategies. Architecturally, the project adopts a brutalist vocabulary to express permanence, material honesty, and spatial drama. Through curated movement across courtyards, bridges, and vantage points, the center aims to transform a utilitarian narrative into a sensory and symbolic journey—turning infrastructure into experience and memory. Keywords: Interpretation Center, Sardar Sarovar Dam, Public Space, Civic Landmark