The Gujarat government today issued work order of Rs 2,979 crore to one of India's largest engineering firm Larsen & Toubro (L&T) for constructing world's tallest statue -- The Statue of Unity-- one of the pet projects of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The 182 meter statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel is being built as a tribute to the 'Iron Man' of India and to popularise his thoughts and ideology. The project was floated by Modi on October 31, 2013, the birth anniversary of Sardar Patel.
The statue that will be double the size of 'Statue of Liberty' in US and four times that of 'Christ the Redeemer' in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, will be built on the Sadhu island, approximately 3.5 km south of Sardar Sarovar Dam at Kevadia in the Narmada district of Gujarat. The construction of the statue along with exhibition hall, man-made lake and bridge connecting the Sadhu island with the mainland, hotel and convention centre, is likely to be completed in the next 42 months.