Statue of Unity – A tribute to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel played a major role in the struggle of India’s Independence. A social and political leader born on 31 October 1875 and died on 15^th December 1950. Vallabhbhai renowned as the “Iron Man of India” and often called as Sardar which means leader.

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, a successful lawyer highly influenced by the work philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi. He later arranged a group of farmers to participate in a non-violence movement in Gujrat against Britishers.  The Patel promoted Quit India Movement and handled the leadership of Indian national congress. He served as first home minister and deputy prime minister and led efforts to maintain peace and harmony in the country. He also organized relief and refugee camp at Punjab and Delhi.

Always stood for unity, he also involved in organizing the farmer community of India, as well as bringing together various people to join the struggle for freedom.

Statue of Unity – Statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel

Prime Minister Narendra Mosi will give tribute to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on 31 October 2018.  Constructing the “Statue of Unity” is a proposed plan of Mr. Modi in 2010 when serving as chief minister of Gujrat and the foundation laid down in 2013.  The statue is dedicated to Shri Vallabhbhai Patel, an Indian Independence movement leader. The statue is built on Sadhu Bet Island on the banks of Narmada River which is flowing at a distance of 200 km from Ahmedabad. With a height of 182 meters, The Statue of Unity” is the world’s largest statue. The monument is designed by Ram V. Sutra.

In the beginning, the overall estimate of the project was calculable to be concerning was ₹3,001 by the government of India. Later Larsen & Toubro won the contract in October 2014 for its lowermost bid of ₹2,989 for the planning, construction, and maintenance. The process started on 31st October 2013.

A special purpose vehicle is created by the government of Gujrat named “ Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Rashtriya Ekta Trust” for the event. Around 3400 laborers and 250 engineers worked night and day for the completion of the statue. There was a fixed criterion in each task which applied strictly by the government. The statue of unity is twice the size of the Statue of liberty in New York, built by 90,000 thousand tons of cement and 25000 tons of iron. The structure comprises of 3-star lodging facility which includes 52 rooms and ability to beer earthquake up to the velocity of 60 meters per second.

The three-story base of the structure has a 153-meter viewing gallery, which can provide accommodations for up to 200 visitors. Offer visitors a wide view of the Sardar Sarovar Dam which is located nearly 3.2 kilometers from the memorial. The ground base will also have a memorial garden and a large display hall.  Turner Construction also project manager of Burj Khalifa, Michael Graves, and Associates and Meinhardt Group,  handling the project. It will take 15 months for planning,  56 months to complete the project, 40 months for construction and two months for handing over by the organization.

SVPRET assigned 36 officers from all over India to collect the iron instruments which donated by farmers of villages in building the statue. Around 5000000 Indian farmers expected to donate their instruments. This initiative renowned as the statue of unity movement.

The iron needed for the statue and other structures collected from farmers of villages all around India in a form of the donation of their used farming instruments. SVPRET created 36 offices across India to collect these iron instruments wherein over 500,000 Indian farmers expected to donate. The campaign was titled as the ‘Statue of Unity movement’. A three-month-long national drive organized to gather iron parts from six lakh villages to build the statue.  Throughout the period, over 5000 metric tons of iron collected. However,  initially declared that the collected iron will be used for the main statue, it later decided that the collected iron will not be used in the structure of the statue and rather be used for some other part of the project.

The Statue of Unity Movement has composed a Suraaj appeal to wherein individuals expounded on their thoughts for the great administration. Around 20 million people marked the petition named Suraaj. It is the highest appeal to mark. On 15 December 2013, a marathon held for “Run for Unity” in few places of India. The marathon had a vast turnout and recruits before the occasion revealed a huge number of enrollments.

The Statue of Unity is wearing trademark articles of clothing, in a mobile position. The statue outlined as a realistic and precise portrayal of Sardar Patel.

A few features of the project

• Bronze cladding on the Statue.
• Fast lifts to diminish travel time for guests.
• The three-level base of the Statue – show floor, mezzanine, and rooftop – will contain a Memorial Garden and an extensive consistent historical center/display lobby, involving shows that emphasis on the life and commitments of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
• Access to the Statue by means of a 5 km vessel ride.
• An extensive current canopied open court, disregarding the Narmada River and the Statue, containing fancy blessing shops, retail stands, and different courtesies, that will give guests a balanced visitor encounter.

The Gujrat government raised the money for the structure built on PPP model. Union budget announced the budget on 10th of July in the year 2014-15. around 2 billion allocated for the construction. The statue is near completion.

Some Issues faced during the construction.

Most neighborhood individuals have contradicted arrive securing for tourism foundation improvement around the statue. Sadhu Bet island was the site of religious significance, initially called as Varata Bawa Tekri.

Natural activists composed a letter to the local government that this task began execution without ecological freedom from the service.

Facts and Figures about the Statue of Unity