Andhra CM Jagan Reddy unveils 125ft tall Ambedkar statue

Hyderabad: If New York in the United States of America is renowned for its Statue of Liberty, the city of Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh will be hereafter known as the place for the ‘Statue of Social Justice’, said Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy as he unveiled a 125-foot tall statue of Dr B R Ambedkar at Swaraj Maidan in Vijayawada on Friday evening.

Addressing the Samajika Samatha Sankalpa Sabha (meeting to take a resolve to achieve social justice) before unveiling the statue, Reddy said the statue reflected the spirit of Dalits and other downtrodden sections of the society, including minorities and women in the country.

The statue, which stands atop an 81-foot pedestal at the Smriti Vanam, takes the total height of the monument to 206 ft, the tallest Dr Ambedkar structure ever built in the world, he said.

“The statue is the pillar of the struggle against untouchability. We still struggle with untouchability in other forms today,” he said. Ambedkar inspired the Dalits and other marginalised sections of the society to fight against their discrimination, he added.

Stating that Ambedkar had heralded a revolution of education among the oppressed classes who were not able to get an education, the chief minister said that the state was making all-out efforts to provide quality higher education to the Dalits and other marginalised sections so that they could fight against the discrimination by empowering them economically.

Stating how the state is supporting these sections of people, Reddy claimed that his government had ensured that nearly 50-60% of nominated posts were given to the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes and minorities.

“Right from day one, we have been implementing the Ambedkar vision in all aspects in letter and spirit,” the chief minister said.

Vijayawada municipal commissioner Swapnil Dinakar Pundakar told reporters that the project, which cost ₹400 crore, spans 18.18 acres and is an entirely indigenous endeavour from inception to completion.

“The sculptors, designers, architects, material suppliers and workers are all from India,” he said.

The project was started on December 21, 2021, and the statue was completed in February last year. “The entire installation was completed in a record time of 11 months,” Pundakar said.

The pedestal building, Kalachakra Maha Mandal, comprises an experience centre, a museum depicting the life history of Ambedkar with a dynamic context wall, multi-layered graphics and projection mapping.

The colonnade of the pedestal has mural artwork of life sections of Ambedkar. It also has a convention centre with a seating capacity of 2,000 members.