Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao will officially unveil a 125-feet-tall statue of Dr BR Ambedkar in Hyderabad on Friday, April 14, to commemorate the birth anniversary of the architect of the Indian Constitution. The statue is located at the NTR Gardens, adjacent to the new Telangana Secretariat complex and beside the Telangana Martyrs’ memorial on the banks of Hussain Sagar Lake.
The unveiling ceremony, which is scheduled to commence at 2 pm and end at 5 pm on Friday, is expected to be attended by over 35,000 people from across 119 constituencies in Telangana. Prakash Ambedkar, BR Ambedkar’s grandson, has been invited as a chief guest for the unveiling ceremony, which will be held as per Buddhist tradition in the presence of Buddhist monks. Arrangements have been made for a massive crane to be used to unveil the statue. A special helicopter will shower flower petals when the statue is unveiled. The statue will be decorated with a giant garland made of roses and white chrysanthemums. On the occasion, the architect of the statue, Ram Vanji Sutar from Maharashtra, will be felicitated on behalf of the state government.
As per the official announcement, at least 300 people from each constituency are expected to attend the event. The government will be operating 750 state-run Road Transport Corporation (RTC) buses for the convenience of the general public.
As large crowds are anticipated, the entire area around the statue will be used for the event and tents will be erected to protect people from the sweltering summer heat. Food and water has been arranged for all those attending the ceremony. Traffic diversions have already been announced by the traffic police in view of the event. Adequate security arrangements have been made in and around the new Secretariat.
The government had first announced its intention to install the Ambedkar statue in Hyderabad back in 2016, on the occasion of the 125th birth anniversary of the revolutionary leader. Though discussions about technical, manufacturing, and design selections had been underway since then, the work on building began only in June 2021.
> The height of the statue is 125 feet, while the diameter of the pedestal on the ground is 172 ft. The huge pedestal structure is about 26,258 square feet, which is more than half an acre.
> Up to 114 mt of bronze has been used in casting of the statue, while 360 mt of stainless steel has been used in the armature structure.
> The state government has spent Rs 146.50 crore for the construction of the structure.
> The statue was sculpted by Padma Bhushan Ram Vanji Sutar and his son.
> The structure houses a museum and gallery that highlights significant moments in Ambedkar's life. The monument building is spread across 11.7 acres and also has a 2.9-acre landscape garden.
> The building has two elevators with a passenger capacity of 15 people, and a parking lot that can accommodate 450 vehicles at once.