Bhubaneswar, March 4: Former chief minister Biju Patnaik's 18-foot-high bronze statue, which was supposed to be installed near Biju Patnaik International Airport tomorrow on the leader's birth anniversary, appeared to be ready by his death anniversary that falls on April 17.

More so, the culture department, which is entrusted with the statue job, may miss that deadline as well.

"Even if I work day and night, such a project at this stage would take nearly two-and-a-half months to get over," said eminent sculptor Prafulla Maharana, adding that the department should be careful to award such works to efficient workmen in future.

In 2013, officials of the Airports Authority of India had discovered that the statue provided by the state government was only about 6-foot-high. They, therefore, wanted to replace it with a taller statue of Biju babu, a doyen in the aviation sector.

Since statues of famous personalities at other airports are 20 feet high, it was mutually agreed between the airport authorities and the state government to fashion an 18-foot-high statue of Biju Patnaik for Rs 19 lakh. This will be the tallest statue of the leader in the state.

However, since the inception of the project, the statue's installation has been getting delayed for a variety of reasons.

The statue was originally planned to be installed on March 5, 2013, when former Union civil aviation minister Ajit Singh had inaugurated the new domestic terminal at the airport in the presence of chief minister and Biju babu's son Naveen Patnaik.

The deadline for making the statue was first extended to March 5, 2014, and then to April 1 (Utkal Divas) and then again to October 2 the same year. But the department has missed all the deadlines.

The Telegraph published two reports on February 25 and September 18 last year on the issue with culture department director Sushil Das making emphatic statements about meeting the April 1 deadline first and then the October 2 one.

"It is strange that while the international airport was named after the legendary leader, his statue is yet to be put up on the pedestal constructed by the works department, before the inauguration of the domestic terminal on March 5, 2013. The state government should ask the sculptors to accelerate the work," said Chhabindra Jena, a Biju babu fan from Bhimatangi.

Airport director Sharad Kumar said: "Earlier, we had had several communications in this regard. It is now the state government's turn to see that the statue is ready and placed at the appointed site."

Sources told The Telegraph that the firm, which had taken the contract to build the bronze statue, outsourced the work to another artiste at Patapur near Chandikhol in Jajpur district. Work on the outer plaster of Paris casting is over, but the bronze casting work is left - which would take another two-and-a-half months to three months time."

The artiste said: "The experts committee consisting of the principal of Khallikote Art College, eminent personalities and senior officials of the culture department rejected the preliminary clay casting work of the artistes, employed by the firm. So, they approached me to finish it. But as they came late, I first worked on the mould for the bronze casting and spent more than Rs 1 lakh on it. Now, they will take the mould to do the bronze casting either in Bhubaneswar or at any place of their choice."

The culture director said: "The artistes, who were given the contract, are still on the job, and there is no outsourcing involved. They will finish the final work shortly, and we may go for the installation as soon as possible."