Ensure quality in works of Ambedkar Smriti Vanam: Andhra Pradesh CM to officials

VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy directed officials to ensure high quality in the works of the Dr BR Ambedkar Smriti Vanam coming up at Swaraj Maidan in Vijayawada.

At a review meeting on the project on Thursday, he said the quality of Smriti Vanam project works should be so high that it must bring special recognition to Vijayawada. The government is planning to inaugurate the Smriti Vanam project on April 14, commemorating the birth anniversary of Ambedkar.

As part of the project, a 125-ft tall bronze statue of Ambedkar will be installed on an 81-ft high pedestal at Swaraj Maidan. The statue will be made of 352 metric tonnes of steel and 112 metric tonnes of brass. A convention centre with a seating capacity of 2,000 and with ample space for parking of vehicles is also part of the project.

Reminding the officials that the convention centre is also very important, Jagan said there should be no compromise on the quality of works and on the material used in beautification of the project surroundings.

Jagan directed the special committee to closely monitor the progress of the project and ensure that the works are of good quality and completed as per schedule.

The officials informed the CM that the parts of the bronze statue of Ambedkar are ready for assembling, which will be completed step by step in 13 stages.

The civil works of the project are going on at a brisk pace. The slab work will be completed by the end of this month, they explained.

Deputy Chief Minister K Satyanarayana, Education Minister Botcha Satyanarayana, Social Welfare Minister Merugu Nagarjuna, Municipal Administration Minister A Suresh, Chief Secretary KS Jawahar Reddy, NTR District Collector S Dilli Rao, APIIC Vice-Chairperson and MD G Srijana, Vijayawada Municipal Commissioner Swapnil Dinakar Pundkar and other officials were present.