– L&T to undertake monumental project

The Buildings & Factories Business of L&T Construction (formerly Madras-based ECC) has won the prestigious Rs. 2,989 crore order ($487 million) for the design and construction of the Statue of Unity proposed by the Government of Gujarat. The Statue of Unity is a dream project of Prime Minister (and former Chief Minister of Gujarat) Narendra Modi.

The 182-metre (597-foot) bronze statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, first Home Minister of India, will be built on the Sadhu-Bet Island, approximately 3.5 kilometres south of Sardar Sarovar Dam at Kevadia in the Narmada District of Gujarat. Once completed, the statue will be the tallest of its kind in the world.

L&T’s assignment will include design, engineering and construction of the statue along with an exhibition centre at its base; a memorial garden; a designer bridge connecting Sadhu Island with the mainland along the Narmada River; an internal roadway 5 km long; and improvements to the existing roads/bridges/culverts connecting the area of Sadhu Island. The project also provides for an administrative and management hub, a conference centre, and a star hotel.

S.N. Subrahmanyan, Member of the Board and Senior Executive Vice-President (Infrastructure & Construction), said, “Purely from an engineering and construction perspective, the Statue of Unity poses some unique challenges, and we possess the requisite credentials to construct what will be a monument that is sure to evoke nationalistic pride in the heart of every Indian.” Turner Construction, which built the world’s tallest skyscraper, Burj Khalifa in Dubai, will act as consultant to the Gujarat project. (Courtesy: Our Building & Construction)

-Achal Narayanan