To honour one of its greatest sons, the state of Gujarat is gearing up to the inauguration of World’s tallest statue- ‘The Statue of Unity’, dedicated to Iron Man of India’ Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on Sadhu Bet island.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Statue of Unity, a memorial dedicated to India’s first Home Minister Sardar Patel. The statue stands tall at 182 metres from the ground and 240 metres from the Narmada river base, is touted to be the tallest statue in the world built at the cost of over Rs 3300 crore.
The Gujarat state government has planned various cultural events on the occasion of the ‘Rashtriya Ekta Diwas’ (National Unity Day) to mark the 143rd birth anniversary of India’s former Deputy Prime Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The people of Gujarat have already arrived at Sadhu Bet island to witness the historic occasion. The Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the statue by offering an ‘Abhishek’ of Narmada water and then address the gathering.
Reportedly, the BJP government has planned an event similar to the Republic Day to mark the unveiling of the Statue of Unity. The three-hour ceremony will include flypasts by the Indian Airforce, performances by ceremonial bands of the Army, Navy and the Indian Airforce. The folk artists from Punjab, Assam, Mizoram and Gujarat will also be performing at the event.
On this historic occasion, lakhs of people have also joined the ‘Run for Unity’ marathon held across the country to mark the birth anniversary of Sardar Patel. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated the ‘Run for Unity’ marathon from Major Dhyanchand Stadium in New Delhi. Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan flagged off the event in Odhisa while Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman participated a ‘Run for Unity’ marathon in Chennai.
