Politics continues over the collapse of the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Sindhudurg district of Maharashtra. Prime Minister Modi, Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar have apologized for this incident. Meanwhile, ‘Aaj Tak’ has tried to find out who approved the material used in making the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and the height of the statue.
Some reports say that initially permission was given for a 6 feet tall statue, but later the statue was made 35 feet tall. Some reports also say that the statue was to be made of clay, but later it was made of stainless steel and other materials. ‘Aaj Tak’ is giving you complete information about the permission to make such a statue.
There is such a rule for making idol
The opposition has alleged a big scam in this case and has demanded the resignation of the Maharashtra government. Information received by Aaj Tak shows that whenever a statue of a famous and historical personality has to be made, approval has to be taken from the Maharashtra Art Directorate headed by Professor Rajiv Mishra.
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The tender was given to artist Jaideep Apte by the Naval Dockyard on the occasion of Indian Navy Day. Now accused sculptor Jaideep Apte made a clay statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and approached the Maharashtra Directorate of Art for approval. According to top sources in the department, the role of the department is only to approve the facial expressions, physical proportions, artistic features and likeness. For example, the statue of Shivaji Maharaj should not look like Sambhaji Maharaj or others, it should only look like Shivaji Maharaj.
According to sources in the department, any agency that wants to build a statue in Maharashtra has to apply to the Maharashtra Directorate of Art for approval. The department has a committee that consists of experts from various fields and mainly historians. The role of the committee is to look at the facial features, gestures, physical proportions and its resemblance with the person whose statue is to be made.
The statue was 6 feet tall
According to sources, Jaideep Apte had made a 6 feet tall clay idol and after the committee gave a green signal in the similarity test, Maharashtra Directorate of Art had approved it. The department had given the approval to the Indian Navy. Most importantly, the department has no authority to decide the height and the material to be used. There is no rule to inform the department (Maharashtra Directorate of Art) about the height and material used to make the idol.
The department cannot even supervise the work of the statue. This is the work of an agency through which the contract is given and in this case it was the Indian Navy. The Indian Navy can make a statue of any height and use any material with the approval of a structural consultant who gives a stability certificate. Chetan Patil, the arrested accused in this case, was to give the stability certificate for the statue through his company.
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The Navy declined to answer.
It is worth noting that the base of any statue is very important and permission has to be taken from the PWD for this. The source said that in this case, structure consultant Chetan Patil had taken permission from the PWD for the base. The construction and monitoring of the construction work was to be done by the Indian Navy. The Indian Navy refused to answer any questions, they said that an investigation is going on in the matter and the facts will come out after the investigation is completed.
The order for the construction of the statue was given by the Navy. The Naval Dockyard, Mumbai gave the work order to Jaideep Apte on the occasion of Indian Navy Day. Chetan Patil was appointed as the structural consultant for the statue and the base. The construction was to be monitored by the Indian Navy. However, the Indian Navy said that it was the responsibility of the state government agencies to take care of repairs and maintenance after the inauguration.
Source (PTI) (NDTV) (HINDUSTANTIMES)