The Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Smriti Vanam (Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Memorial Park), with a 125-foot-tall statue of the leader as a special attraction, being built in Swarajya Maidan of the city is one of the major projects awaited in 2023.
The government announced that it intends to the inaugurate the memorial on the coming Ambedkar Jayanthi on April 14, which is 102 days away.
To meet the deadline, works were going on at a fast pace currently and most of the pedestal and colonnade had been raised, said NTR district Collector S. Dilli Rao when contacted.
As per the plan, the 38.02-metre-tall statue will be placed on a 24.7-metre-tall (81 foot) main pedestal building consisting of two floors. The pedestal building will be surrounded by a colonnade of width 4.5 metres. The building will be spread over an area of 8,352 square metres and will be centred in the 18.81-acre Swarajya Maidan.
As of the last week of December, construction of the circular wall was completed and the foot columns were completed up to 23.70 metres in height.
Meanwhile, the 125-foot bronze statue is being fabricated. Over 352 tonnes of bronze will be used to make the statue and so far fabrication work using 16 tonnes of the metal has been completed, according to the officials.
The statue will be placed on the pedestal building and the main structure will reach about 206 feet in height.
While the statue could be installed by the expected date, completion of the entire monument may take a month or two more.
Convention centre
The Smriti Vanam will also feature a meditation stupa, convention centre, landscaping and fountains.
The convention centre, which will be spread over 20,227 square metres with a basement and ground plus two floors, will have a seating capacity of 2,000. The meditation stupa will have a seating capacity of 100.
The cost of the project has escalated to ₹256 crore from the initial estimation of ₹100 crore. The foundation stone for the project was laid by Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy in July 2020. The project is being executed by APIIC for Social Welfare Department.