Picture by Sanjib Mukherjee
Bhubaneswar, Feb. 4: Had things gone as planned, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi would have walked out of city airport on February 7, a huge statue of Biju Patnaik would have greeted him.
However, inordinate delay in unveiling the structure has ruled out that possibility. The 18-feet statue will be present, but under cover. The structure will be unveiled by chief minister Naveen Patnaik on his father's birth centenary on March 5.
"When the Prime Minister comes out of the airport, his attention is likely to be drawn to the giant statue which, though, will be covered. He will also get to see a number of hoardings carrying pictures of Biju babu alongside Naveen Patnaik. This will give him an idea of the Odisha's sentimental attachment to the legendary leader and bolster state's demand for Bharat Ratna to the former chief minister," said a BJD leader.
Airport director Sharad Kumar said: "The state government's culture department has installed the statue. We have provided all the support for its installation."
Sources said the airport authority and the state government had agreed to put up the statue to mark his contribution in the field of aviation. Landscaping and beautification work around the structure will be completed by March 5. A model of Dakota, the plane Biju Patnaik flew as a pilot, has already been placed at the international airport.
Though efforts to install the statue were being made for the past three years, the project was getting delayed. The move began in 2013 with the airport authorities and the state government agreeing that the structure's height should be 18 feet though the statues of famous personalities at other airports in the country are 20 feet. Still at 18 feet, this statue of Biju Patnaik coming up at a cost of Rs 19 lakh will be the tallest in the state.
Sources said one of the reasons for the project getting delayed was that earlier a six-feet high statue was thought upon, but the Airports Authority of India refused to accept it. Then the work began on the new and the taller statue.
The structure was originally planned to be installed on March 5, 2013, when former Union civil aviation minister Ajit Singh had inaugurated the new domestic terminal in the presence of chief minister Naveen Patnaik.
Later, the deadline was first extended to March 5, 2014, and then to April 1 (Utkal Divas) and then again to October 2 the same year. However, the state government missed all the dates. Last, it was decided that the statue would be unveiled on March 5, 2015, but this also did not materialise.
Finally, the government has fixed March 5 deadline for the inauguration of the statue.
Sources told The Telegraph that the firm, which had taken the contract to sculpt the bronze statue, outsourced the work to another artiste at Patapur near Chandikhol in Jajpur district.