In this article I am going to explain about the tallest statue of the world i.e, The Statue of Unity.
Youtube video on the same : https://youtu.be/-XLW6AnFtrA
On 31st October Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the tallest statue of the world Statue of Unity dedicated to the Iron Man of India Sardar Vallabhai Patel. Lets have an overview of the giant structure;
- Budget – ₹2989 crore
- 18,500 Metric tonnes of Steel
- 70,000 Metric tonnes of Cement
- 1,700 Metric tonnes of Bronze
Sardar Vallabhai Patel was an Architect of India. During the freedom struggle he requested and also ordered when needed the all 543 presidencies of different states to accede and join India. It was due to his relentless effort that we see a united nation today. The number 182 represents the number of constituencies in Gujarat which is 182.
Foundation :
Lets go to the foundation before looking above the ground. An island named Sadhubet was selected for the project. This island is near the Sardar Sarovar Dam also dedicated to the Iron Man.
The gross weight of the Statue above the foundation is approximately 79,000 Metric tonnes. The foundation was designed accordingly so that will support the desired weight and vibrations. The volume of the base is nearly 4488 cubic metres. Special type of self compacting concrete was used which sets itself very fastly. Around 1500 labourers worked day and night for 10 days to kickstart this Megaproject.
Another very important point to mark here is the base of the statue. Unlike conventional broad single base (ex. Spring Temple Buddha, Statue of Liberty) this statue has a double base which is the feet. This makes its design more complicated and it was necessary to build double columns of Steel as the base.
Stagesof the Megaproject:
- 1st stage : 0 – 12 months, Foundation Building
- 2nd stage: 13 – 15 months, Building the central Column
- 3rd stage: 10 – 12 months, Final assembly of the outer bronze structure.
Larsen and Turbo was awarded this Megaproject through a global tender and a time limit of 42 months was given.
Padma Bhushan awarded Sculptor Ram V. Sutar who is famous for sculpting images of famous politicians was given the most important job of sculpting out the final statue of Sardar Vallabhai Patel.
National Unity Mission
This mission was launched to accumulate iron from all the parts of the country for the Iron Man. This also signified the unity of the nation.
Nearly 1,70,000 villages contributed a total of 135 Metric Tonnes iron. This was then converted into steel.
The Above Structure:
The above structure is made of bronze. Bronze is a very strong and durable metal. Though there are 1,100 foundries in India the whole structure of bronze was imported from China. A metal handicraft company in Jiangzi, China was approached for the work.
Towards the end of the Megaproject 6,659 different bronze structures were combined together like a puzzle into a single Bronze structure. Nearly 4000 people including Workers, Engineers, Welders and Sculptors worked continuously for 10 days for this Megaproject to completed.
