Maharashtra's plan for Shivaji statue in choppy waters

Over two years after finalising two consultant firms to build the Shivaji statue in the Arabian Sea off Marine Lines, the state has failed to sign an agreement with the companies. The project is thus languishing in cold storage.

In August 2009, the state cabinet approved TeamOne, Mumbai, and Besel Design Studio, Thailand, as consultants for the project. But the government is yet to sign on the dotted line.

A revised notification, issued by the ministry of environment and forests (MoEF) this January, may create more hurdles since it lays down stricter conditions for construction in coastal areas.

The plan is to build a 309-ft-tall statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji — 3ft taller than the Statue of Liberty in New York — and an entertainment complex in the Arabian Sea, south of the financial capital. Initially pegged at Rs200 crore, the project’s cost has now escalated to Rs400 crore. The government had made a budgetary provision of Rs50 crore in 2009-10. No progress has been made since then.

Sources alleged that the consultants have heard nothing from the government after the first announcement.

“We are about to finalise the draft of the agreement to be signed with the consultants,” said Nandkumar Jantre, secretary, general administration department.

An officer from the public works department said an environmental expert will be appointed to study the project’s feasibility, once the agreement is signed.