The legacy set by the Sabarmati riverfront has gained accolades and following from a variety of institutions. Despite the huge cost of over ₹1100 Cr. and a considerable delay in completion, the project set itself as a pioneer in slum-rehabilitation and urban-beautification. The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation re-habited thousands of families and realised the commercial potential of the hotspot in the Gujarati metropolis, the total estimated cost, which is roughly around ₹1200 Cr. is due to get extracted from selling premium commercial and residential spaces along with the redefined luxuries.

India has often been portrayed as a land of crippled lifestyle, which was the case until a few years back. With the growing per capita income, the nouveau riche is seeking much more than just shelter. A rampant growth in population and unstoppable urbanisation has led Indian cities to look cramped, without a set aestheticism. Developing riverfronts is not foreign to India, the elaborated ghats along the banks of Ganga, the Yamuna and other major rivers and their intricate details of heritage are the living legends justifying this purpose.

This trend is however seen as a reminiscent of the European colonial architecture as the elongated bricked canals and waterways of Northern Europe or the romanticised embankments of Seine and the Danube propagate it till date. They paved the way for the neo-classical American urban setup, which got replicated by growing municipalities around the world. China is one great example in revitalising its riverfronts and beautifying the city-centres. Putting such a practice in the Indian precinct, it got challenged until now due to lack of space, planning, funds or the willingness of the current-dwellers.

The Yamuna Riverfront Development Plan in Delhi is one of the highly awaited projects, estimated to cost around ₹200 Cr. for a five-kilometre stretch. The Yamuna in Delhi is known to bear an extremely high count of pollutants which, for years, have created a distaste in the minds of Delhiites. The government plans to beautify the riverfront with a multi-objective planning including a biodiversity park, sports complex, residences amongst other construction, but the plan is just a plan since 2015. Due to an obsolete legality pertaining to rehabilitation, projects such as this get derailed leading to a mounting opportunity cost.

There has been a keen and an ever-increasing criticism of such mega-projects around the country. Critics claim that the usual cost of completion is beyond the justified boundaries and such development is primarily catering to the elite, whilst it involves taxpayers' money. Where this might be true in some cases, several other riverfronts are being eyed upon to make satellite cities with the principalities of affordable housing with a better lifestyle. The Trans Ganga City, a proposed satellite township of in Kanpur district, is designed after amalgamating the affordability and luxury elements. The Ganga riverfront offers it a pristine location, and a distance from Kanpur downtown should pull the price down. Such models are innovating a newer lifestyle model by reinventing the potential our riverfront hold.