Eight years after it was first proposed by the Cong-NCP government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Saturday perform the Jal Poojan for a 192 mt tall statue of Maratha warrior king Shivaji. This memorial, on a rocky outcrop in the Arabian sea, will be built at a whopping cost of Rs 3600 crores.
Here are some of the reactions to the making of this statute:
Alyque Padamsee, Ad filmmaker
I strongly believe that any memorial should not be a statue. A memorial should either be a hospital or a school to commemorate the person who is being honored. Statues benefit nobody in my opinion.
Shobhaa De, Columnist, Author
Who pays for the statue? The citizen of course. Who gains? Thats a million dollar question. As for those citing the statue of liberty as an example to justify the expenditure of the Shivaji Memorial. The Statue of Liberty is a symbol. It is not named after a historical figure.
Shailesh Gandhi, former central information commissioner, RTI activist
My views on this matter are mixed. My first reaction was that spending Rs 3600 crore is excessive. But after giving it some thought, I believe that the other argument is also valid. That we are a poor country is an argument that is a constant. By that measure, even an expenditure of Rs 3 crore would be deemed excessive. Should we then even have the 26th January parade? The fact also is that this memorial is expected to be a tourist attraction. Quite like the Statue of Liberty, that draws tourists in large numbers.
Bharat Dhabolkar, Ad filmmaker, theatre personality
We have enough Shivaji statues. I think building another statue is pointless. If they want to do something to honour Shivaji, they must try and ensure the upkeep of the forts that are in pathetic condition. These forts are of historical significance and many of them are decrepit. Instead of a statue in the middle of the sea, they can make these forts a tourist attraction by having some audio-visual on the warrior kings life. This mid-sea memorial will also affect marine life, ideally, the money should be spent on building hospitals and schools.
Vishal Dadlani, music composer
Frankly, it shows a complete lack of concern for the people of Maharashtra. The money could be used to write-off loans of small farmers who are languishing and committing suicide every day. It could be used for education, infrastructure, police/coast-guard reform, or even to refurbish Shivaji's existing forts, which are a part of our history. IT could go towards starting 7200 scholarships named after Shivaji, and perhaps that would be a far more appropriate legacy. This whole statue plan is a crying shame!
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