Skip to main content

No question of stopping import of Chinese bronze plates for Statue of Unity's "outer shine": Gujarat government

By Rajiv Shah
Efforts may have been stepped up across India to boycott Chinese goods against the backdrop of the current standoff with the giant neighbour – with Mumbai’s association of school principals calling for a boycott of Chinese goods, and the Swadeshi Jagran Manch listing out several reasons for the need for boycott, one of them being China “trying” to impose its hegemony over India.
While all of this is said to have been inspired by the Sangh Parivar, well-placed sources in the BJP government in Gujarat have told Counterview this is “not going to affect” the continuous import of bronze plates from China for “coating” the world’s tallest 182 metres high statue off Narmada dam of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
These Chinese bronze plates, each of 8 mm width, a senior official close to the Gujarat chief minister said, would be give Sardar Patel’s statue the “outer shine, underneath which are already being installed the statue’s iron structure, including the lift. The bronze plates are being molded and fixed by Larsen & Tuorbo, the contractors of the Statue of Unity.”
Insisting that the continued import of bronze plates has been “necessitated” by the pressure to complete the building of the Statue of Unity by mid-2018 – about a year from the scheduled Lok Sabha elections, which are in April-May 2019 -- the official told Counterview, “Sardar Patel’s statue has already begun being clad by bronze plates.”
Pointing out that the bronze plates, which are reaching the statue site in South Gujarat in batches from an art foundry of a factory in Nanchang, the capital of Jiangxi Province in southeastern China, the official admitted, “Similar bronze plates are also available in India, as also elsewhere.”
However, he underlined, “Once the contract has been given for the supply of the bronze plates from the Chinese factory, and 50% of it having already been arrived, it is impossible to cancel it. After all, it is necessary to keep uniformity. Besides, the quality of the bronze plates from China is very high.”
Denying reports that the entire statue is being made of Chinese steel, the official said, “The bronze plates would form just about 5% of the total iron used on the statue.” He added, “The bronze plates are of different sizes, depending on where it will be placed.”
The official claimed, “The statue, starting from the base, the statue is of 225 metres, is already completed up to 150 metres, and has become a tourist attraction off Narmada dam, which till now was attracted because of the massive overflow of waters at 121.92 metres. This overflow is no more possible as the dam’s 30 gates have been closed.”
To be built at the cost of around Rs 3,000 crore, and visualized by Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he was Gujarat chief minister, the project was announced in October 2010. A special purpose vehicle, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Rashtriya Ekta Trust (SVPRET), is overlooking the construction of the statue.
To be made of 75,000 cubic metres of concrete, 5,700 metric tonne steel structure, 18,500 tonne reinforced steel rods, 22,500 tonne bronze sheets, it will have fast elevators to reduce transit time to take the visitors to the top, and will have three-level base – exhibit floor, mezzanine and roof, which will contain a Memorial Garden and a large continuous museum/exhibition hall.

Comments

Uma said…
hypocrisy, double standards: you see this all around you all the time
Unknown said…

Keep on working, great job! aol.com mail login sign

TRENDING

Reducing emission? India among top nations whose coal as energy source going up

By NS Venkataraman*  The State of the Global Climate report by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) confirmed that the year 2023 was the warmest year on record, with the global temperature of 1.4 degree celsius above pre-industrial 1850-1900 base line.

Lockdown 'total failure' of science more than of politics: Open letter on 4th anniversary

Counterview Desk  In an open letter to fellow academicians, scientists and medical practitioners in India, marking the fourth anniversary of India's lockdown (25 March 2024), the Managing Committee* of the Universal Health Organisation (UHO) has insisted on the need to "repair two years of immense damage to science".

Insider plot to kill Deendayal Upadhyay? What RSS pracharak Balraj Madhok said

By Shamsul Islam*  Balraj Madhok's died on May 2, 2016 ending an era of old guards of Hindutva politics. A senior RSS pracharak till his death was paid handsome tributes by the RSS leaders including PM Modi, himself a senior pracharak, for being a "stalwart leader of Jan Sangh. Balraj Madhok ji's ideological commitment was strong and clarity of thought immense. He was selflessly devoted to the nation and society. I had the good fortune of interacting with Balraj Madhok ji on many occasions". The RSS also issued a formal condolence message signed by the Supremo Mohan Bhagwat on behalf of all swayamsevaks, referring to his contribution of commitment to nation and society. He was a leading RSS pracharak on whom his organization relied for initiating prominent Hindutva projects. But today nobody in the RSS-BJP top hierarchy remembers/talks about Madhok as he was an insider chronicler of the immense degeneration which was spreading as an epidemic in the high echelons of th

Magnetic, stunning, Protima Bedi 'exposed' malice of sexual repression in society

By Harsh Thakor*  Protima Bedi was born to a baniya businessman and a Bengali mother as Protima Gupta in Delhi in 1949. Her father was a small-time trader, who was thrown out of his family for marrying a dark Bengali women. The theme of her early life was to rebel against traditional bondage. It was extraordinary how Protima underwent a metamorphosis from a conventional convent-educated girl into a freak. On October 12th was her 75th birthday; earlier this year, on August 18th it was her 25th death anniversary.

Savarkar 'criminally betrayed' Netaji and his INA by siding with the British rulers

By Shamsul Islam* RSS-BJP rulers of India have been trying to show off as great fans of Netaji. But Indians must know what role ideological parents of today's RSS/BJP played against Netaji and Indian National Army (INA). The Hindu Mahasabha and RSS which always had prominent lawyers on their rolls made no attempt to defend the INA accused at Red Fort trials.

'Wrong direction': Paris NGO regrets MNC ArcelorMittal still using coal-based steel

By Rajiv Shah  A new report by Paris-based non-governmental research and campaigning organization, Reclaim Finance, has blamed the MNC ArcelorMittal – formed in 2006 following the takeover and merger of the western European steel maker Arcelor (Spain, France, and Luxembourg) by Indian-owned Mittal Steel – for using use “climate destructive” metallurgical coal for its projects in India.

'Flawed' argument: Gandhi had minimal role, naval mutinies alone led to Independence

Counterview Desk Reacting to a Counterview  story , "Rewiring history? Bose, not Gandhi, was real Father of Nation: British PM Attlee 'cited'" (January 26, 2016), an avid reader has forwarded  reaction  in the form of a  link , which carries the article "Did Atlee say Gandhi had minimal role in Independence? #FactCheck", published in the site satyagrahis.in. The satyagraha.in article seeks to debunk the view, reported in the Counterview story, taken by retired army officer GD Bakshi in his book, “Bose: An Indian Samurai”, which claims that Gandhiji had a minimal role to play in India's freedom struggle, and that it was Netaji who played the crucial role. We reproduce the satyagraha.in article here. Text: Nowadays it is said by many MK Gandhi critics that Clement Atlee made a statement in which he said Gandhi has ‘minimal’ role in India's independence and gave credit to naval mutinies and with this statement, they concluded the whole freedom struggle.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah*   The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

Attack on foreign students: Gujarat varsity's reputation, ranking at stake, say academics

Counterview Desk  Expressing anguish over the attack on international students in Gujarat University hostels, a letter claimed to have been signed by 122 current and former academics has asked the Gujarat Vice Chancellor, Dr Neerja Gupta, to provide emotional support to the attacked students and to ensure their physical safety.  

As double engine takes backseat in Odisha, BJP is pitted against 'firmly rooted' BJD

By Sudhansu R Das  BJP has got 25 years to build its party base in Odisha. After 25 years, it felt helpless and insecure to fight elections on its own strength. The party was almost crazy to have an alliance with the ruling BJD in Odisha.  Looking for alliance at the time of election shows that the party has not groomed its grassroots level workers into potential leaders.  The state BJP leaders woke up and convinced the Central leaders that they are capable of going solo; the alliance was stillborn. The question is can BJP defeat BJD which is firmly rooted in Odisha after launching piles of populist programs in the state.