Work on Shivaji statue to begin before monsoon

The work on the ambitious mid-sea Chhatrapati Shivaji memorial project will begin before the onset of the monsoon, with the Maharashtra Government handing over the “Letter of Acceptance” (LoA) to the infrastructure major L & T and giving a go-ahead to the latter for the start of construction.

“Historic day it is! 15 long years’ wait is over!! We handed over the ‘Letter of Acceptance’ to L&T for the grand memorial of our Great King Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in the Arabian Sea, at Vidhan Bhavan, Mumbai,”  Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis tweeted after handing over the L&T.

“Maharashtra and our Nation have waited for 15 long years for this monument of pride for every Indian. Gave directions to start the actual work before monsoon. It is our Government that took every permission for this grand memorial in a record time,” the Chief Minister stated.

Apart from Fadnavis, Maharashtra Minister Chandrakantdada Patil, Vinod Tawde and Chairman of Memorial Committee Vinayak Mete were present at a function where the State Government handed over the LoA to L&T.  

The go-ahead for the start of work on the Chhatrapati Shivaji memorial project comes 16 months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi performed the jal-poojan and bhoomi-poojan of the grand memorial of great Maratha warrior Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in the Arabian Sea. The 309 ft tall equestrian statue of the great Maratha warrior king will come up on a rocky islet around 3.5 km from the Marine Drive in south Mumbai. The statue is expected to be taller than the 305 ft statue of Liberty in New York harbour.

The State Government also plans to develop landscaped gardens that can accommodate 3,000 people at a time.

 The memorial will – apart from the statue of Shivaji -- house an open-air theatre, a library and a museum showcasing the Maratha warrior’s life. Besides, the memorial will have a viewing gallery akin to the one at Statue of Liberty.

Last year, L&T was shortlisted for Rs.3,826-crore after the consortium of Reliance Infrastructure and Afcons quoted an estimate of Rs.4779-crore for the project.

The project was estimated to cost around around Rs.3,826 crore, but now official sources said there has been “a revision in the cost.”

The state government intends to invest Rs 2,500 crore on the first phase of the project, while it incur expenditure on the project in the second phase.