Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, 19 February, paid tribute to Chhatrapati Shivaji on his birth anniversary, describing him as a "warrior for truth and justice.”
"I bow to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj on his Jayanti. A warrior for truth and justice, he is revered as an ideal ruler, devout patriot and is particularly respected by the poor and downtrodden. Jai Shivaji," the prime minister said in a tweet.
Shivaji, known as the creator of the Maratha empire, was born on 19 February in 1630 at Shivneri Fort in Pune.
A proposed grand memorial of Chhatrapati Shivaji will come up in the Arabian Sea on a rocky sea floor, which will be reclaimed to create an island of 130,000 sq mt, around 1.50 km off the Marine Drive in Mumbai.
Earlier in December 2016, PM Modi had performed a puja during the foundation stone laying ceremony for the Rs 3,000-crore project. The much-discussed project finally took off in December 2018.
The entire memorial complex will include several attractions like a garden, library, food court, convention centre for 10,000 people, museum, exhibition gallery, amphitheatre, a hospital, a helipad and boat jetties.
The proposed statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj off the Mumbai coast will be in the classic equestrian pose synonymous with the Maratha warrior king, a top official said in Mumbai on 6 February.
"There is no plan to change the design or pose of the statue, as speculated in some quarters. The decision has already been finalised that Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj will be shown in his famous pose mounted on a horse flourishing a sword," the head of the group appointed by the state government to implement the project had said.
Earlier, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Shiv Smarak Samiti (SSS) Chairman Vinayak Mete ruled out any suggestions that the grand sea memorial could have a statue of the 15th century founder of the Maratha Empire in a standing pose, similar to the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel statue in adjoining Gujarat.
"The equestrian statue design is already finalised by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and myself and there is no question of any change now or in future," Mete had told IANS.
He added that work on the grand memorial was expected to resume after the Supreme Court's decision in the matter on 22 February.
The project is expected to give an edge to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiv Sena combine ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly elections.
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