Gujarat: To fulfill PM Modi’s dream of building the world’s the world’s tallest statute as a memorial to the Iron Man of India, Sardar Valllabhai Patel, Arun Jaitley, the finance minister allocated a start up amount of Rs: 200 Crore to the project in his first Union budget. Called the ‘statue of unity’, it is meant to replace the Gandhi’s as the central figures of Indian history and give Sardar Patel his rightful place in the pantheon of Indian history.

The Gujarat government, led by his successor, Chief Minister Anandiben Patel, on Monday, issued a work order amounting to Rs 2,989 crore to Larsen and Toubro, with a completion time of four years. The statue as visualized by Modi is touted to be one of the tallest in the world at a height of 182 meters.

“The construction work will be completed in four years at a cost of  Rs 2,989 crore,’’ said Patel while making a formal announcement on Monday.   She said that the project would restore the pride of the “Iron Man of India”.

“The project would involve not only have the tallest statue, but an underwater fish aquarium, agriculture development, a water management centre and a museum dedicated to Sardar Patel,’’ said Patel. The project’s ground breaking ceremony was held by the then CM, Modi prior to the general elections.

He had also announced then that the iron to be used for the construction of this statue would be collected from farmers from different parts of the country. The announcement and subsequent publicity campaign, reaped rich dividends for PM Modi and the BJP as they swept the general elections held in May this year.