AHMEDABAD: Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Tuesday laid foundation stones for development works worth over Rs 600 crore at Veer Narmad South Gujarat University, where he launched multiple projects of the Surat Municipal Corporation and Surat Urban Development Authority.

Patel took an indirect swipe at corruption and said, "Congratulations to the corporation… for taking only the amount of tax that belongs to the corporation." "We will not get anything else except tax!," he added.

Looking out at the crowd, he asked sharply, "Why has everyone become quiet? Now people think this is a small village? Has Rs 600 crore become small now?"

Rewinding time, the Chief Minister reminded citizens how far governance has travelled. "There was a time when even taking up a work worth one lakh required deep thought," he said, before drawing a direct line to the present. "Today, development has reached a level where a common person, through his society, can approach a corporator and get a work worth one crore done."

Patel urged the people of Surat to "accept this grandeur of development," framing growth not as excess, but as the new normal. The visit also marked the inauguration of Gujarat’s first state-of-the-art elevated market at Surat APMC, one of the largest such projects in Asia. The project features a 100-foot-wide ramp, allowing trucks to directly access the first floor, dramatically cutting loading time and speeding up the movement of goods for farmers and traders alike.