Statue of Unity Gujarat The world’s tallest statue in Gujarat , India, was completed. The Statue of Unity stands nearly 600 feet tall and portrays Indian freedom fighter and politician Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, one of the Indian independence movement’s most famous figures, as well as India’s first deputy premier. Produced in partnership by Michael Graves & Associates The memorial took around 4 years with Turner Construction and Meinhardt Group to design and construct.
With the unveiling of the Statue of Unity, dedicated to India’s ‘Iron Man,’ Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India has just joined the club of the world’s highest statues.
Dedicated to one of India’s founding fathers and the country’s first Deputy Prime Minister, the Statue of Unity, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, stands tall atop Sadhu Bet Island on the Narmada, facing downstream Sardar Sarovar Dam in Kevadiya Colony, about 100 kilometers southeast of Vadodara.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled what is said to be the highest statue in the world at 182 metres, leaving China’s Spring Temple Buddha at a distance of 153 metres. On 31 October 2014, the project was handed over to Larsen & Tubro at a whopping 2,989 crore, which began construction. The plan was to inaugurate the Sardar Patel statue on October 31 , 2018, on his 143rd birthday. And as planned, the project was wrapped up in a period of 42 months without power, labor, and material escalation. Nevertheless, the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was first revealed on 7 October 2010 at a press conference by Narendra Modi in commemoration of his 10th year as chief minister of Gujarat.
As part of a project support outreach program, the state had asked Indian farmers to donate their used farming equipment to amass the iron needed for Sardar Patel statue. Eventually it was thought that about 5000 tons of iron were collected, but it was not used for the statue as previously intended and used instead in other works related to the construction of the structure
Reason for building the Statue of Unity
Sardar Patel ‘s dedication to unifying the princely states to create a united Indian republic, and his tireless relief efforts for the refugees fleeing Delhi and Punjab and absorbing the British colonial provinces allocated to India, gained him the title of “Unifier of India.” And it was in his memory, that the design of the Statue of Unity came to life as a result of his commitment to a country filled with diversities.
Design and Construction
An Indian sculptor, Ram Vanji Suthar, a Padma Bhushan and Padma Shri awarded for his contribution in the field of arts, designed the massive bronze Vallabhbhai statue created at a foundry in China. He has created over 50 monumental sculptures in his 40 years working life. Having spoken of the Patel statue, his friend, also a sculptor, Anil Suthar, identified the pose-head up, A shawl hanging from his back and holding hands on his side as if he were preparing to walk-depicts the person’s true nature, his working appearance, and his unmistakable, iron will. After four years of work the structure’s dimensions stand at; base height is 240 meters, base height is 58 meters, statue height is 182 meters.
Viewing Gallery and Museum
Only three of the five zones that separate the statue are open to public viewing. The first stage includes the foundation extending all the way to the shins of the statue, consisting of a museum cataloging contributions from Sardar’s Patel and a garden of memorials. Area 2 ascends to the thighs of the figure at 149 metres. The gallery overlooking the Narmada and the adjacent Satpura And the ranges of Vindhyachal, form the third level. The highest levels are zones 4 and 5, which act as the maintenance area.
How to Reach Statue of Unity
Statue of Unity address: Sardar Sarovar Dam, Kevadiya Village Narmada, Gujarat.
Statue of Unity Location
Sardar Patel ‘s statue is more than just a monument, it’s all set to become Gujarat, and perhaps even a big tourist attraction for the region. Approximately 100 kilometers from Vadodara, 200 kilometers from the capital Ahmedabad, and about 420 kilometers from Mumbai, the different ways to get to the site are by driving on State Highways 11 and 63. You will arrive in Gujarat’s nearest town In the district of Narmada, and the statue is just 3.5 kilometers away. Work is under way to connect the statue site to a highway. You need to take a bridge from the mainland to get to the statue; another reasonable route is a ferry trip to the island of Sadhu Bet, where the statue is located.
The former includes Valley of Flower-the stretch leading to the Patel Statue with over 100 varieties of flowers, memorial, museum, audio-visual gallery, location of the Statue of Unity (SOU) and Sardar Sarovar Dam. The adult price is INR 120 + INR 30 (bus charges), and INR 60 + INR 30 (bus charges) for children aged 3 to 15 years.
The later provides a view of the observation deck, Flower Valley, shrine, museum, visual audio gallery, SOU site, and Sardar Sarovar Dam. The adult price is INR 350 + INR 30 (bus charges), and the tickets are pmegged at INR 200 + INR 30 (bus charges) for children aged 3 to 15 years.
Interesting facts about the Statue of Unity
- The height of the tallest statue at Gujarat Legislative Assembly is 182 meters to match the number of seats, 182.
- The exterior construction uses 1700 tons of bronze panels, 1850 tons of bronze panels consisting of 565 macro panels and 6000 micro panels.
- The Unity Statue is designed to withstand Richter-scale winds of 130 kilometers per hour, and earthquake magnitude 6.5.
- The concrete towers that form the legs of the statue have two elevators each that can take 26 people in all 30 seconds to the viewing gallery at once.
- The 153-meter viewing gallery can accommodate up to 200 people in one go and offers great sweeping views of the dam and surrounding area.
- The complex has separate selfie area for social media lovers.
- Approximately 5700 metric tons of structural steel and 18500 metric ton reinforcing bars were used to build the Statue of Unity.
- The Unity Statue is billed to generate more than 15,000 direct jobs annually for local tribal folks.
- Larsen & Tubro has a 25-year contract to deal with the day-to-day operations and structural repairs.
- Now if you wonder about the cost of construction of the Statue of Unity, here’s an estimate. The Sardar Patel statue, financed in part by the State and the Central Government through the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Rashtriya Ekta Trust, cost a staggering INR 2,989 crore ( US$ 407 million).
