Centre okays site for Pranab Mukherjee’s memorial
The memorial will come up in Rashtriya Smriti Sthal, which houses the memorials of many former PMs and presidents, that lies along the Yamuna near Rajghat.
New Delhi: The Union government decided to establish a memorial for former president Pranab Mukherjee, who died in August 2020.
The former president’s daughter Sharmistha Mukherjee said in a post on X that she met the Prime Minister to thank him for the “government’s decision”. The memorial will come up in Rashtriya Smriti Sthal, which houses the memorials of many former PMs and presidents, that lies along the Yamuna near Rajghat.
The Centre is, however, yet to decide on the land on which the memorial of former PM Manmohan Singh will be built. The Centre accepted the demand made by the Congress earlier after a controversy erupted over Singh’s funeral at Nigambodh Ghat, which the party called unsuitable for a leader of Singh’s stature.
Making public the decision to build a memorial for Mukherjee, his daughter who met PM Modi on Tuesday, wrote on X: “Called on Hon’ble PM @narendramodi ji to express thanks & gratitude from core of my heart for his govt’s decision to create a memorial for baba. It’s more cherished considering that we didn’t ask for it. Immensely touched by this unexpected but truly gracious gesture by PM.”
“Baba used to say that State honours shouldn’t be asked for, it should be offered. I’m so grateful that PM Modi did this to honour baba’s memory. It doesn’t affect baba where he is now -- beyond applause or criticism. But for his daughter, words are not sufficient to express my joy,” she added.
The issue of the former president’s memorial had come to the fore on December 29 when during an interview, Sharmistha said that the Congress had failed to organise a working committee meeting to condole her father’s demise.
While the decision on the land for Singh’s memorial is yet to be made, officials of the Union ministry of housing and urban affairs (MoHUA) in consultation with their counterparts in the ministry of home affairs are carrying out surveys of land adjoining the existing memorials of high-profile leaders along the Yamuna bank at Rashtriya Smiriti Sthal.
MoHUA through its Land and Development Office holds custody of the majority of land on which memorials of former PMs and Presidents have been built. Upon selection of the land based on the satisfaction of the deceased PM’s family and the government, the Central Public Works Department, another subordinate office of MoHUA will erect the memorial.
Officials said a trust will be instituted to manage the finance and administrative site while CPWD (Central Public Works Department) will carry out the construction.
The memorial for late PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee was also built by CPWD in 2018 near Rashtriya Smrithi Sthal after a trust for the same was instituted, headed by the then Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan.
