Ayodhya: Noted sculptor and Padma Bhushan awardee Ram V Sutar, who built the Statue of Unity of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in Gujarat, will now build an idol of Lord Ram in Ayodhya, which would be taller than the former. Sutar is in Ayodhya with his son Anil Sutar these days where he is overlooking the construction of Lata Mangeshkar Chowk in Ayodhya, the square being built after the name of the legendary singer, who died earlier this year.
The sculptor is also working on the project for a 212-metre-tall statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj being built in Mumbai, a 137.2-metre-tall statue of Baba Saheb and a 46.6-metre-tall Lord Shiva idol in Karnataka. Sutar said that the idol of Lord Ram to be built in Ayodhya will be 251 metres high, 69 metres higher than the Statue of Unity.
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The height of Sardar Patel's Statue of Unity built in Gujarat is 182 metres. Ram V Sutar's son Anil Sutar said that the idol of Lord Ram would be made at his workshop in Sahibabad. It will take about 2,000 craftsmen to make the idol of Lord Rama, he said. The statue of Sardar Patel built in Gujarat was made by 1,000 skilled craftsmen in three-and-a-half years.
The model of the idol approved by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will gain momentum as soon as the search for land is completed. The model of the idol was presented in a competition before Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath in 2018. The permission for its construction has been given by the CM. Right now the process of identifying land for the idol was going on. After the land becomes available, the idol will be constructed in about four years. The design of the idol has been prepared by Ram Sutar and his son Anil.
