The icon of India, and the tallest statue in the world, with a height of 182 meters, Prime Minister Narendra Modi dreamed, in memory of the glories maker of Indian unity, Sardar Patel, to become a cultural, entertainment and tourism center, and not just a memorial.

Location

The Statue of Unity project has been erected in a unique location, as it was erected on the island of Sadhu Bit on the Narmada River, the fifth largest river in India, about 3.5 km south of Sardar Sarovar Dam in Kivadia in the northwestern Indian state of Gujarat.

The magnificent view of the Narmada River, with its scenic landscapes, represents a wildlife sanctuary, and is further enhanced by the importance of the religious, heritage and recreational sites in it.

The Statue of Unity was first proposed in 2010 and opened 8 years later (Reuters)

Date

The construction of the statue was first proposed in 2010 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was still the chief minister of Gujarat, in honor of Sardar Patel, the first home minister and first deputy prime minister of India after independence, to show his great efforts in building India.

Patel, who is considered the architect of modern India and known in India as Iron Man, contributed to the unification of the 562 Indian states, as he persuaded the feuding states to become part of the Indian state after independence from British rule in 1947.

Designed by Indian sculptor Ram Suttar, the construction began in 2014, was completed in mid-October 2018, and the opening ceremony took place on October 31, 2018, which marked the 142nd anniversary of Patel's birth.

The ceremony was presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Indian government decided to celebrate the anniversary of Patel's birth, and made it a national holiday marking the day of national unity in the country.

Statue of Unity erected on the island of Sadhu Bit on the Narmada River (Reuters)

the design

The statue, which is 182 meters high, is about twice the size of the Statue of Liberty in New York, and is 54 meters taller than the Spring Temple of Buddha in China, which was previously the tallest statue in the world.

The statue is a bronze copy of Sardar Patel, dressed in traditional Indian garb, in a walking position, with his left leg slightly forward, as if he was walking on water towards Sardar Sarovar Dam.

It stands on a triangular base. The geometrically sculpted base is located on a river island, connected to the mainland by a 320-meter-long bridge that connects Sadhu Island to the mainland, then a 3.5 km road and transit center extends to the nearby town of Kivadia.

The project is not just a memorial, but a well-deserved tourist complex, where the base of the statue includes an audio-visual exhibition hall in which the life and achievements of Sardar Patel and the history of modern India are presented.

The exhibition, which seats 200 people, offers a view of the surrounding countryside and the nearby Sardar Sarovar Dam.

The statue's base also includes a museum, an administrative complex, a 3-star hotel, and on the roof of the exhibition hall there is a memorial garden, in addition to the visitors' hall.

The Statue of Unity is 182 meters high (Shutterstock)

Building

The project was supervised by a consortium including Turner Constructions, Michael Graves Architects and Design, and the Menhardt Group. The construction was built by Larsen & Toubro, 3,400 workers and 250 engineers worked on the project, and took 33 months to build.

The statue weighs about 67,000 tons, 210,000 cubic meters of cement concrete was used in the core of the statue, 6,500 rolls of structural steel, 18,500 tons of reinforced steel, 1,850 tons of bronze cladding, and 1,700 tons of bronze plates that were cast in China. As proper facilities were not available in India, the bronze plates were transported by sea and then by road to the workshop.

The monument and its surroundings occupies more than 20,000 square meters, surrounded by an artificial lake with an area of ​​12 square kilometers.

The Unity Statue was built according to international standards to protect it from earthquake hazards and other factors of nature (Reuters)

Facing challenges

Building a statue of this size was one of India's unique projects, but it posed many challenges to engineers, government, the local community and the environment.

The wind posed a severe challenge, as the statue is located in the middle of the Narmada River, and is exposed to the impact of winds of speeds (130 km / h), which may lead to the statue being destroyed or severely damaged.

It is therefore designed to withstand wind speeds of up to 180 km/h.

In addition to the walking position of the statue, as well as the gap of 6.4 meters between the feet, which then had to be tested for wind speed.

In addition to the earthquake risks that the region is exposed to, the statue was built according to international standards to protect it from earthquake risks and other factors of nature.

The statue is also located in the middle of a remote mountainous terrain, which poses enormous difficulties in delivering materials. A rock bridge has been built over the shallow waters, as has the temporary Bailey Bridge.

Some local tribes opposed the acquisition of land to develop tourism infrastructure around the statue, forcing the government to offer compensation in cash and land, in addition to providing them with jobs.

Residents of the villages of Kivadia, Koti, Wagodia, Lymbdi, Navagam and Gora also opposed the construction of the statue, and demanded the restoration of the land rights of more than 375 hectares of land previously acquired for the dam, in addition to the new project.

Local residents organized demonstrations denouncing the project, saying that it destroyed natural resources.

The last stages when the construction of the statue was nearing its end in 2018 (Reuters)

Finance

The project, which was built at a cost of $430 million, was funded by a public-private partnership, with the Gujarat government collecting most of the funds ($85 million), and the federal government providing $36 million, in addition to contributions from the public sector and government companies. Hundreds of thousands of farmers from all over India with their equipment and parts of their land for the project.

Tourism and Economy

The project is an engineering marvel, it has already become a magnet for tourists from all over the country.

It won the award for the best project in the large category 2019 presented by the Indian company PMI.

The project has become a source of income for the local community and a source of economic well-being by encouraging tourism and creating job opportunities. The project has provided job opportunities for more than 8,000 people, including more than 2,000 local residents during the project's establishment period, and has attracted millions of tourists since its opening, which has boosted local economy.