#sousp

The Statue of Unity is a monument dedicated to Indian independence movement leader Vallabhbhai Patel,  located in the Indian state of Gujarat. With a height of 182 metres (597 ft), located facing the Narmada Dam, 3.2 km (2.0 mi) away on the river island called Sadhu Bet near Vadodara in Gujarat. This statue will occupy over 20,000 square meters, and will be surrounded by a 12 square km artificial lake. It is the world's tallest statue. 

Project

The monument statue of Vallabhbhai Patel is constructed facing the Narmada Dam, 3.2 km away on the river island called Sadhu Bet. The total height of the statue from its base will be 240 metre consisting base level of 58 metre and statue of 182 metre. It is being constructed with steel framing, reinforced cement concrete and bronze coating.  The statue needed 75000 cubic metres of concrete, 5700 metric tonne steel structure, 18500 tonne reinforced steel rods, 22500 tonne bronze sheets for construction.In the first phase, a bridge connecting the memorial to the main land, a memorial, visitor centre buildings, a memorial garden, a hotel, a convention centre, an amusement park, research centres and institutes is being constructed.

The Statue of Unity is being designed as a naturalistic and historically accurate representation of Sardar Patel, wearing characteristic garments, in a walking stance. Some highlights of this project:

Bronze cladding on the Statue.

Fast elevators to reduce transit time for visitors.

The three-level base of the Statue - exhibit floor, mezzanine and roof - will contain a Memorial Garden and a large continuous museum/exhibition hall, comprising exhibits that focus on the life and contributions of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

The observation deck, situated at a height of around 500 ft from river bed, will accommodate up to 200 people at a time. It will provide visitors a panoramic view, enabling them to see the beautiful Satpura and Vindhyachal mountain ranges, the 212 km long Sardar Sarovar Reservoir, and the 12 km long Garudeshwar Reservoir. For the comfort of the visitors against high wind forces, a 400-ton Tuned Mass Damper system has been provided above the observation deck.

Access to the Statue via a 5 km boat ride.

A large modern canopied public plaza, overlooking the Narmada River and the Statue, comprising food stalls, ornate gift shops, retail kiosks and other amenities, that will provide visitors a well-rounded tourist experience.

Construction

A consortium of Turner Construction (project manager of Burj Khalifa), Michael Graves and Associates and Meinhardt Group, is supervising the project. It takes 56 months to complete the project; 15 months for planning, 40 months for construction and two months for handing over by the consortium. The total cost of the project was estimated to be about 2,063 crore (US$290 million) by the government. The tender bids for the first phase were invited in October 2013 and were closed in November 2013.

The then Chief Minister of Gujarat Narendra Modi, (currently the Prime Minister of India) laid the foundation stone of statue on 31 October 2013, the 138th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. He along with L. K. Advani announced to the public that after completion of the project, it will be the tallest statue of the world.

Indian infrastructure company Larsen & Toubro won the contract on 27 October 2014 for its lowest bid of 2,989 crore (US$420 million) for the design, construction and maintenance.They commenced the construction on 31 October 2014 and is complete by Oct 2018. In the first phase of 2,989 crore (US$420 million) project, 1347 crore are for the main statue, 235 crore for exhibition hall and convention centre, 83 crore for the bridge connecting the memorial to the main land and 657 crore for the maintenance of the structure for 15 years after its completion. Accenture provides digital media outreach programme.

The monument is designed by Ram V. Sutar.