It is a great honour for India, as the world’s tallest statue, Statue of Unity has entered the prestigious 2019 World Architecture News Awards. It is a website that recognizes excellent architecture around the world which is inspired by innovation and rewards it to further boost the architectural practices across the globe. On its website, World Architecture News said that the statue is built to withstand the speeds of around 180km/second and also can endure an earthquake of 6.8 at the Richter scale. The Statue of Unity is a 182-metre-high monument created by Michael Graves Architecture and Design, which is four times the size of the Statue of Liberty, and was officially inaugurated in November 2018.
The Statue of Unity is nearly 50 storey tall, and together with its three-level base measures 240 meters, making it the tallest statue in the world. Designed by Indian sculptor Ram V Sutar, the statue was made from scrap metal collected from around the country and is clad in bronze. The structure, which took four years to build, required a total of 210,000 cubic meters of cement, 25,000 tonnes of steel and 1,700 tonnes of bronze and cost 29.8 billion rupees. According to the World Architecture News website, the statue will generate around 15,000 direct jobs in tourism and allied sectors for tribal people every year.
N.Subrahmanyan, the CEO and MD of L&T said, “The statue of unity is a symbol of India’s national pride and integration. It is a tribute to the country’s engineering poweress and project management skills.” The statue is dedicated to India’s first deputy Prime Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. It commemorates his dedication and his contribution to the freedom struggle of India and his meticulous planning to unite various independent regions as one Indian dominion. The statue is the symbol of unity, good governance, patriotism and inclusive growth. The website had further added that the statue of Sardar Patel depicted him in a very “naturalistic” way. The statue stands on a star-shaped platform and is surrounded by river Narmada. It was constructed by the Larsen and Toubro Limited.
There is a viewing gallery at the chest level of the statue, which gives a splendid view of the Sardar Sarovar Dam. It also gives a stunning view of the environment including Vindhya and Satpura hills and the Narmada valley. The gallery accommodates around 200 visitors at a time. It has by now recorded 1.5 million visitors in just 5 months, which marks a success story of its kind.
The attempts of the Modi government, to revive the Indian culture and establish new symbols of patriotism and nationalism have been appreciated all over the world. Along with the State of Unity, India is all set to inaugurate the majestic statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji, the great Indian warrior, in 2020 off the coast of Mumbai. It would replace the Statue of Unity as the tallest statue in the world. One should feel proud of the fact that the architectural achievements and capabilities of the country are growing day by day and also recognized on international platforms.