Pune: Cracks Found in 100-Foot Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj Statue Under PCMC’s Watch

Reported By Varad Bhatkhande

Moshi, 3rd September 2024: The 100-foot statue of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, being built by the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), has developed a crack in one of its parts. This was confirmed by Devanna Gattuwar, an Executive Engineer at PCMC. PCMC claims that the contractor concealed information about the crack, and both the contractor and the consultant have been issued a notice.

This news issue arises amid widespread concerns following the collapse of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue due to heavy rains and winds at Rajkot Fort in Malvan, Sindhudurg district. Protests have already erupted across Maharashtra in response. The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) had announced an audit for statues under its jurisdiction. However, in PCMC, cracks were discovered in the Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj statue, which is not yet fully constructed.

The Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) has allocated two and a half acres of land at the International Exhibition Center in Moshi for the statue. Dhaneshwar Construction Private Limited is responsible for erecting the statue, which is being constructed according to the approved structural design from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT Bombay). Currently, 80% of the statue’s components have been transported from Delhi to Moshi.

Gattuwar reported that the base of the statue was cracked during transportation from Delhi. The Mahavikas Aghadi activists inspected the site and exposed the issue, leading to the issuance of a notice to the contractor and consultant by PCMC. Gattuwar stated, “A part of the statue was cracked during transportation. There is no crack now that it is in Moshi. Information about the crack was withheld initially. Therefore, a notice has been given to the contractor and consultant.” The statue will be assembled and completed at the site, with the process supervised by experts from IIT.