Mysuru: The Mysuru sculptor Arun Yogiraj has received an order to carve a 30 feet statue of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose in single black rock which will be installed under the grand canopy behind the erstwhile Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate in New Delhi. Earlier, the canopy had a statue of King George V, which was removed in 1968.
Confirming this to mediapersons, Yogiraj said, “Adding artwork to the India Gate is a proud moment for us. The sculpture of Subash Chandra Bose will be carved out of single granite stone. We will be leaving for Delhi on Wednesday June 1.
A large granite stone has been selected and brought from Telangana for the statue to Delhi where the work will be done.
Sources said the design of the statue has been done by a team from the National Gallery of Modern Art under the Culture Ministry, headed by its Director-General Adwaita Gadanayak. Yogiraj will specifically carve the facial features of the statue when he arrives in the national capital on June 1 and the work is likely to be completed by August 15.
Yogiraj sculpted the 12 feet statue of Adi Shankaracharya that was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Kedarnath.
Earlier in April, Yogiraj met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi and gifted him a statue of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. The carving work of Yogiraj was admired by Narendra Modi and senior officials.
It was on April 5 that Modi received a sculpture of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose from Yogiraj.
The Prime Minister had tweeted: “Glad to have met @yogiraj_arun today. Grateful to him for sharing this exceptional sculpture of Netaji Bose.”
Sources said Modi has given approval of Yogiraj’s design of the statue when he was presented with a two-feet replica in April.
In January 2022, ahead of Bose’s 125th birth anniversary, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced that a grand statue of Bose made of granite will be installed at India Gate.
“At a time when the entire nation is marking the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, I am glad to share that his grand statue made of granite will be installed at India Gate. This would be a symbol of India’s indebtedness to him,” Modi had said.
The Prime Minister added, “Till the grand statue of Netaji Bose is completed, his hologram statue would be present at the same place. I will unveil the hologram statue on January 23, which is Netaji’s birth anniversary.”
(With Inputs from IANS)
