Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde announced the formation of a joint technical committee between the Navy and the state government late Wednesday to investigate the causes behind the collapse of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj statue in Malvan. Additionally, CM Shinde instructed the Public Works Department (PWD) to form a separate committee composed of top sculptors, civil engineers, experts, and naval officers to design and erect a new, grander statue that appropriately honors Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's legacy.
The technical committee, consisting of civil engineers, experts, and Navy officers, will be tasked with determining the exact reasons for the statue's collapse at Rajkot Fort and identifying those responsible for the incident.
The committee responsible for constructing the new statue will include members from the JJ School of Arts, IIT, renowned civil engineers, prominent sculptors from Maharashtra, and technical officers from the Navy. This team will work together to design and build a statue that reflects Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's stature.
CM Shinde emphasized the unfortunate nature of the incident, noting the deep emotional impact on Shivaji devotees. He highlighted that the original statue was installed by the Navy at Rajkot during Navy Day celebrations with good intentions. Shinde stressed the importance of ensuring such accidents do not happen again and assured that sufficient funds would be allocated for the new statue to accurately represent Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
The announcement followed a high-level meeting at Varsha, where CM Shinde, Deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, Public Works Minister Ravindra Chavan, School Education Minister Deepak Kesarkar, and other senior officials, including Vice Admiral Ajay Kochhar and Rear Admiral Manish Chadha, discussed the statue's collapse.
In related developments, a Kalyan-based artist and a structural contractor from Kolhapur have been charged with attempt to murder and culpable homicide in connection with the collapse of the 35-foot statue at Rajkot Fort in Sindhudurg. However, the state government has yet to take any departmental action against PWD officials involved in the incident.