At the other end of the duty path is Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi today inaugurated the 28-foot statue of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose as part of the new Central Vista Avenue and the renovated Kartavya Path (Raja Path) from the President’s House to India Gate.
Speaking on the occasion, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “Today, a huge statue of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose has been installed near India Gate. During the British rule, there was a statue of a representative of the British here. By installing Netaji’s statue, we have established a new path for an empowered India.”
‘Kingsway’, a symbol of colonialism, will be a history. It has been destroyed forever. A new era has begun in the form of Kartavyapat. Narendra Modi also said, “Congratulations to all the people of the country as we come out of yet another sign of colonialism.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the revamped Central Vista Avenue, known as the ‘Duty Path’, on Thursday night. Central Vista Avenue – stretches from Rashtrapati Bhavan, the President’s residence, to India Gate. Many important events, including the Republic Day parade, take place on the route connecting these two main buildings.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a 28-feet tall statue of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose at a function on Thursday. As part of the inauguration, the Ministry of Urban Development of India has organized a four-day cultural festival at the renovated area. After the unveiling of the Netaji statue, drones will fly in the sky and light up the event.
These 10 important facts can help you to know the background information related to Central Vista Avenue, Netaji Statue Inauguration, Duty Path.
1) The 28 feet tall Netaji statue is slightly taller than the two storied buildings coming up in Central Vista. Sculptors led by Arun Yogiraj from Karnataka put in 26 thousand man hours of labor to carve the statue of Netaji. The statue is made from a single block of granite weighing 280 metric tons. For this, the granite stone for carving the statue was brought from Telangana’s Khammam district by a 100 feet long 140 wheel trailer truck.
Small in size, big in sign
2) The height of Netaji statue on Duty Path is very small compared to other monuments in India. The ‘Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Statue’ is almost 597 feet tall and was erected to proclaim the unity of the country which was inaugurated earlier in Kevadia, Gujarat.
3) For about 20 months, as various government offices were being constructed as part of the Central Vista project, movement of people was restricted through most parts of Rajapathi. In this case, duty lane, some adjoining areas and India Gate will now be open for public viewing. Visitors to India Gate and Rajapathi Lawns will now be able to enjoy these new amenities as the revamped Central Vista complex opens on September 8, almost 20 months after its closure.
4) Ice cream stalls for public use, small shops selling other food items, new parking lots for the convenience of visitors on both sides of the renewed duty road; Over 400 bench facilities; Amphitheaters for public events; 64 toilets for women, 32 toilets for men and 10 toilets with special facilities for differently abled persons; unobstructed crosswalks; 16 permanent footbridges, 16.5-km pedestrian walkways will be opened.
5) Earlier, the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) met on Wednesday evening and approved a proposal to rename Rajapathi Road as ‘Duty Path’. New Delhi MP Meenakshi Lekhi, India’s Joint Minister of External Affairs and member of NDMC, said, “We are expecting a large number of people after the inauguration of the Kardavya Path. It is a great moment.”
6) Lush meadows on both sides of the ‘Kardavya Path’, 16.5 km. There are also red granite pavements here and there. Renovated canals, repaired and polished frontages, public facilities, specialty shops are upgraded and lined up.
Buildings featured in Central Vista
image source, PMO
7) When the Central Vista project was announced in 2019, the opposition parties made various allegations regarding it, and the opposition parties said that the central government had spent even the funds that were supposed to be used for the corona pandemic for this high-cost project. Rs. Estimated at Rs 13,600 crore and later extended to Rs 20,000 crore, the Central Vista project will have a new parliament building for parliamentarians, chambers of parliamentary standing committee leaders, chambers of the Prime Minister, Union ministers and political parties in the same complex.
8) As a part of this project, the Central Secretariat complex housing the offices of various government departments will be built with 10 storied buildings. Apart from this, the National Archives Building (other than the Heritage Building), New Indira Gandhi National Art Centre, Control Rooms for Security Officers, Rest Rooms, Official Residences of the Vice President and Prime Minister of the Republic of India, Prime Minister’s Office, Cabinet Secretariat, National Security Council Secretariat, South and North block offices etc will be housed in this complex. All these projects are planned to be implemented gradually and one after the other till 2026.
9) As of now only two projects have been awarded contract. The first plan, Rs. 862 crore for new Parliament building, second project, Rs.477 crore for redevelopment of Central Vista Avenue area. These works are currently underway. The expenditure for these 2 projects till March 2021 is Rs.195 crore. Following this, in the financial statement for 2021-22, an additional ₹790 crore has been earmarked for the scheme.
10) About 80,000 square meters (usable visual area) of government premises where the existing Salut Block, North Block constructions are located will be opened for public viewing. 2.25 hectares of public and partial land currently used by the government will be converted into green spaces.
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