Claiming that his government was taking forward Patel’s legacy of unifying the nation, he said, “Sabka saath, sabka vikas is our guiding principle.By Parimal Dabhi
Dedicating the Statue of Unity to the nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the statue was not only a tribute to the valour and ability of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, but also an expression of New India’s confidence. Modi also said Sardar had given every Indian the responsibility to defeat any attempt to divide the country in the name of caste and religion and stay united.
Built at a cost of `2,989 crore, the statue is 182-metre high, including the 25-metre base. Said to be tallest in the world, the statue was also built in record time.
Remembering the efforts of Patel to unify the country after Independence, Modi said, “We had been carrying on this legacy of not providing a deserving place to a massive personality.”
Claiming that his government was taking forward Patel’s legacy of unifying the nation, he said, “Sabka saath, sabka vikas is our guiding principle. Sardar brought about the political unification of the country by merger of princely states whereas our government did economic unification of the country through GST. We achieved the dream of One Nation, One Tax. We are constantly expanding Sardar’s pledge of uniting India. Whether it is the project of connecting all the agriculture produce markets of the country through e-NAM project…By introducing schemes like Bharatmala, Setu Bhartam, our government is striving to achieve Sardar’s dream of Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat.”
While inaugurating the statue, Modi pushed a lever and a presentation on how the statue took shape began on a giant screen in the background. When he pushed another lever, the curtain that hid the hid the statue from view drew up.
“This tallest statue of the world will remind the world and our future generations about the valour, ability and determination of a man who performed the pious duty of thwarting a conspiracy to divide Mother India,” Modi said, addressing the gathering of around 5,000 people.
Showering praise on Sardar Patel on his birth anniversary, Modi said, “After independence, pessimists felt that India will perish in its diversity…At that time, there was one ray of hope, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel…Sardar had the politics of Kautilya and valour of Shivaji Maharaj.”The PM also recalled the time when he conceptualised the Statue of Unity in 2010. “There was an atmosphere of doubt (over the project) then, “ Modi said, adding that initially, he wanted to have Sardar’s image “carved out from a huge rock in the region”.
However, that idea did not fructify due to technical issues and eventually, the idea of Statue of Unity was finalised.
The foundation stone of the Statue of Unity was laid by Modi on October 31, 2013, when he was the Gujarat chief minister.
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