Completion of Ambedkar Smriti Vanam in Vijayawada likely miss deadline again

Construction of the 125-ft statue of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and other works of the memorial park under way in Vijayawada on Monday.
| Photo Credit: K.V.S. GIRI

Only 50 ft of the armature framework has been erected for the 125-ft statue so far

The construction of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Smriti Vanam (memorial park) has been going on at a brisk pace for the past few months, but it seems the deadline is going to be missed again.

The State government intends to inaugurate the memorial park, comprising a 125-ft bronze statue of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar on an 81-ft pedestal, a colonnade, a convention centre, a meditation stupa and others, on the 18.81-acre Swarajya Maidan (PWD grounds) on the upcoming Ambedkar Jayanthi on April 14, which is about 20 days away.

The park was initially scheduled to be opened on Ambedkar Jayanthi in 2022, but owing to various reasons, including the COVID-19, the deadline could not be met. Meanwhile, the project cost, too, escalated.

Work relating to the installation of a frame and bronze sculpture began on February 16 in the presence of Ministers Botcha Satyanarayana, Merugu Nagarjuna and Kottu Satyanarayana. According to official sources, as of March 27 (Monday), only about 50 ft of the 125-ft structure of the statue has been erected.

The statue requires 352 tonnes of stainless-steel armature framework and 112 tonnes of bronze for the sculpture. So far, the armature framework has been erected up to 50 ft using 160 tonnes of steel whereas the sculpture has been completed up to 22 ft (shoes) using 12 tonnes of bronze. Sources said 275 tonnes of the 352 tonnes of framework has been fabricated at the workshop.

Installation of the steel framework will be completed by the end of May and the statue will be installed fully by June 15, as per the targets set. The entire project is expected to be completed by July 15 this year.

The two-storey pedestal building on an area of 8,352 square metres will be completed by the end of April. Also, 50% of the foundation of the convention centre has been laid.

While the civil works relating to the pedestal building, granite flooring, hardscaping and boundary wall are at different stages, greenery works are yet to begin. The arena is being built by a private firm for Social Welfare Department. APIIC Limited is the nodal agency.