Work to install Lord Krishna’s statue begins

Nitish Sharma

Tribune News Service

Kurukshetra, June 14

The excavation work to build the pedestal for the installation a 40-foot “virat swaroop” of lord Krishna has started at Jyotisar in Kurukshetra. The project will cost Rs 10 crore.

A nearly 40-foot tall statue of Lord Krishna has been designed at a workshop of Ram Vanji Sutar in Noida, who designed the Statue of Unity.

Sculpture Anil Sutar, son of Ram Vanji Sutar, told The Tribune, “The statue is ready and is made of “Ashtadhatu”. It will be brought to Kurukshetra in eight pieces and then assembled and installed at Jyotisar. The site has been handed over to us and the excavation work started on Sunday to build the pedestal. As soon as the pedestal is ready we will start the installation work of the statue. We will try to complete the project in three months.”

“”Virat Swaroop” of Lord Krishna is a big project. It required a lot of detailing and a team of around 100 people have worked on this project. We visited the site last weekend and after consulting the entire committee, its location and angle on which the statue will be installed has been finalised”, he added.

Earlier, the board wanted to get the statue installed by December last year so that it could be inaugurated during the International Gita Mahotsav but the project got delayed due to different reasons.

Madan Mohan Chhabra, honorary secretary, Kurukshetra Development Board (KDB), said, “Tourists, who visit Jyotisar Tirtha, the birthplace of the Gita, in Kurukshetra, will be able to see the ‘virat swaroop’ of Lord Krishna at Jyotisar soon. Before starting the excavation, bhoomi pujan was also performed.