Statue of Unity

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Statue of Unity
एकता की प्रतिमा
File:StatueofUnity.png
An artist's impression of the planned statue
Statue of Unity is located in Gujarat
Statue of Unity
Location of construction site in Gujarat state
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Location Sadhu bet, Near Sardar Sarovar Dam, Gujarat, India
Designer Ram V Sutar
Type Statue
Material Steel framing, reinforced concrete, bronze coating[1]
Height <templatestyles src="Plainlist/styles.css"/>
  • statue: 182 metres (597 ft)
  • including base: 240 metres (790 ft)
[1]
Beginning date 31 October 2014; 9 years ago (2014-10-31)
Opening date 31 October 2018; 5 years ago (2018-10-31)
Dedicated to Sardar Patel
Website www.statueofunity.in

Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. The Statue of Unity is a statue of Indian statesman and founding father Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (1875–1950) in the Narmada district of Gujarat, India. It is the world's tallest statue, with a height of 182 metres (597 ft) or about two times as tall as the Statue of Liberty (including the pedestal).[2][3] The statue is on a river island facing the Narmada Dam (also called the Sardar Sarovar dam) near Rajpipla, 100 kilometres (62 mi) southeast of the city of Vadodara.

The monument and its surroundings occupy more than 2 hectares (4.9 acres), and are surrounded by a 12 km2 (4.6 sq mi; 3,000 acres) artificial lake. It was built by Larsen & Toubro, who received the contract for ₹2,989 crore (US$420 million) for the design, construction and maintenance in October 2014. The construction was started on 31 October 2014 and completed in mid-October 2018. It was designed by Indian sculptor Ram V. Sutar,[4][5] and was dedicated by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 31 October 2018, the 143rd anniversary of Patel's birth.[6][7][8][9]

Design and construction

Vallabhbhai Patel was one of the founding fathers of the Republic of India

Origin and outreach

File:Statue of Unity in 2018.jpg
Aerial view of the Statue of Unity, 2018.

The project was first announced on 7 October 2010.[10] The Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Rashtriya Ekta Trust (SVPRET) was established by the Gujarat government for construction of the statue.[11] A drive named the Statue of Unity Movement was started to support the construction of the statue. It helped collect the iron needed for the statue by asking Indian farmers to donate their used farming instruments.[12][13][unreliable source?][14] Ultimately 5,000 tonnes (4,900 long tons; 5,500 short tons) of iron were collected.[15][14] Although it was initially intended for the statue, it was later decided that the collected iron would instead be used for other parts of the project.[16][better source needed]

Run for Unity in December 2013

The Statue of Unity Movement organised a Suraaj ("good governance" in Hindi) petition which was signed by an estimated 20 million people, which was the world's largest petition.[13] A marathon entitled Run For Unity was held on 15 December 2013 in Surat in support of the project.[17]

Design

Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. The statue depicts Vallabhbhai Patel, one of the most prominent leaders of the Indian independence movement, the first Deputy Prime Minister of India, and responsible for the unification of hundreds of princely states to form the modern political boundary of India. The total height of the structure from its base is 240 m (790 ft), with a base of 58 m (190 ft) and statue of 182 m (597 ft).[1] It was designed by Indian sculptor Ram V. Sutar.[4][5]

Fundraising

The statue was built on a Public Private Partnership model, with most of the money raised by the Government of Gujarat. The Gujarat state government had allotted ₹6 billion (US$89 million) for the project in the budget from 2012 to 2015.[18][19] In the 2014–15 Union Budget, ₹2 billion (US$30 million) were allocated for the construction of the statue.[20][21][22]

Construction

File:The statue of unity under construction (7).jpg
The statue under construction in January 2018
Approximate heights of various notable statues:
1. Spring Temple Buddha 153 m (incl. 25 m pedestal and 20 m throne)
2. Statue of Liberty 93 m (incl. 47 m pedestal)
3. The Motherland Calls 91 m (excl. pedestal)
4. Christ the Redeemer 38 m (incl. 8 m pedestal)
5. Statue of David 5.17 m (excl. 2.5 m pedestal)

A consortium comprising Turner Construction (project manager[23] of Burj Khalifa), Michael Graves and Associates and the Meinhardt Group supervised the project. It took 56 months to complete – 15 months for planning, 40 months for construction and two months for handing over by the consortium.[24] The total cost of the project was estimated to be about ₹20.63 billion (US$310 million) by the government.[18] The tender bids for the first phase were invited in October 2013 and were closed in November 2013.[25]

Narendra Modi, then serving as Chief Minister of Gujarat, laid the statue's foundation stone on 31 October 2013, the 138th anniversary Patel's birth.[10][26][27][28]

Indian infrastructure company Larsen & Toubro won the contract on 27 October 2014 for its lowest bid of ₹29.89 billion (US$440 million) for the design, construction and maintenance.[29][30] They commenced the construction on 31 October 2014. In the first phase of the project, ₹13.47 billion were for the main statue, ₹2.35 billion for the exhibition hall and convention centre, ₹830 million for the bridge connecting the memorial to the mainland and ₹6.57 billion for the maintenance of the structure for 15 years after its completion.[29][30]

L&T employed over 3000 workers and 250 engineers in the statue's construction. The core of the status utilised 210,000 cubic metres (7,400,000 cu ft) of cement concrete, 6500 tonnes of structural steel, and 18500 tonnes of reinforced steel. The outer façade is made up of 1700 tonnes of bronze plates and 1850 tonnes of bronze cladding which in turn comprise 565 macro and 6000 micro panels. The bronze panels were cast in China as suitable facilities were unavailable in India.[31][32]

Construction of the monument was completed in mid-October 2018; and the inaugural ceremony was held on 31 October 2018, presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.[33][34] The statue has been described as a tribute to Indian engineering skills.[35]

Features

File:Narendra Modi visiting the Museum, Exhibition and the Viewers’ Gallery, during the dedication of the ‘Statue of Unity’ to the Nation, on the occasion of the Rashtriya Ekta Diwas, at Kevadiya, in Narmada District of Gujarat (3).JPG
Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the museum within the base

Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. The monument is constructed on an island named Sadhu Bet, 3.2 km (2.0 mi) away from and facing the Narmada Dam downstream.[1] The statue and its surroundings occupy more than 2 hectares (4.9 acres), and are surrounded by a 12 km2 (4.6 sq mi; 3,000 acres) artificial lake formed by Garudeshwar dam on the Narmada river downstream.[citation needed]

The statue is built to withstand winds of up to 130 kilometres per hour (81 mph) and earthquakes measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale. This is aided by the use of two 250-tonne tuned mass dampers which ensure maximum stability.[31]

The concrete towers which form the statue's legs contain two elevators each. Each lift can carry 26 people at a time to a viewing gallery in just over 30 seconds. The gallery is located at a height of 153 metres (502 ft) and can hold up to 200 people.[36] Additionally, a museum beneath the statue is also open to visitors.[37]

Criticism

Local tribals belonging to the Tadvi tribe opposed land acquisition for the development of tourism infrastructure around the statue.[38] They have been offered cash and land compensation, and have been provided jobs. Activists like Medha Patkar and Gladson Dungdung have also opposed the project.[39][40] They also claimed that Sadhu Bet was originally called Varata Bawa Tekri, named after a local deity, and so it was a site of religious importance.[26]

Environmental activists wrote a letter to the central government contending that project implementation started without clearance from the Environment Ministry.[41] People of Kevadia, Kothi, Waghodia, Limbdi, Navagam, and Gora villages opposed the construction of the statue and demanded the restitution of the land rights over 375 hectares (927 acres) of land acquired earlier for the dam as well as the formation of new Garudeshwar subdistrict. They also opposed the formation of Kevadia Area Development Authority (KADA) and the construction of Garudeshwar weir-cum-causeway project. The government of Gujarat accepted their demands.[42]

When ₹200 crore (US$30 million) was allocated for the statue in the 2014–15 Union budget, several people and political parties criticised the expenditure on the statue over other priorities, such as women's safety, education and agricultural schemes.[43][44][45][46] L&T contracted with TQ Art Foundry – a subsidiary of the Jiangxi Toqine Company based in Nanchang, China – for the bronze cladding of the statue, which was criticised by the Indian National Congress, the opposition party in the Gujarat Legislative Assembly.[47] L&T later clarified that 9% of the total value of the project was sourced from China.[48]

See also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  30. ↑ 30.0 30.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  31. ↑ 31.0 31.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  32. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  33. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  34. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  35. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  36. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  37. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  38. ↑ Indian farmers fume at $430m cost of Gujarat statue, BBC 28 October 2018
  39. ↑ Statue of Unity: An open letter to Sardar Patel by activist Medha Patkar, October 31, 2018
  40. ↑ आदिवासियों के विनाश का साक्षी है ‘स्टैच्यू ऑफ यूनिटी’, Galdson Dungdung, Oct 24, 2018
  41. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  42. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  43. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  44. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  45. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  46. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  47. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  48. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

Template:Statues in India

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