Did collapsed Shivaji statue bypass approval from Maharashtra art directorate?

MUMBAI: Despite a rule saying that the approval of the state art directorate must be secured before building statues in public places, HT has learnt that sculptor Jaydeep Apte and his contractor who built the Chhatrapati Shivaji statue that collapsed on Monday did not do so. The 35-feet-high bronze statue was unveiled by prime minister Narendra Modi just eight months ago at Rajkot Fort in Sindhudurg.
The art directorate checks the quality of the material used for building statues as well as their aesthetics. This process was prescribed in 2017 by the state government. As per the government resolution (GR), the approval of the art directorate is important.
A person involved in the process of building the Shivaji statue told HT that they had approached the art directorate with a small model, although he could not provide any documentation for his claim. While some sources in the directorate buttressed the claim by saying that an expert in the directorate had suggested some changes in the small model, others said the directorate did not have any documentation approving the statue as either a model or its final version. What is important is that the art directorate was not approached for the approval of the final structure, an important step to be followed before unveiling any statue.
In light of this incident, locals and experts have raised several concerns and have demanded that an expert committee review the entire work and collapse. “The collapse of Chhatrapati Shiva Raya’s statue in Sindhudurg is deeply shameful and humiliating for me as an artist,” said senior sculptor Bhagwan Rampure. “When a statue exceeds a height of 15 feet, the engineering work becomes just as crucial as the sculptor’s craftsmanship.”
While talking about the standard operating system, Rampure stated that as a statue’s height increases, extra material must be used to reinforce the legs. “Also, before erecting a tall statue, a thorough land survey is conducted,” he said. “The composition of the soil, including the amount of mud and rock, is analysed. The statue’s stability in the event of an earthquake is also considered. Construction begins only after experts certify the composition of the underground rock and water.”
Rampure recently built the 108-feet Shankaracharya statue at Omkareshwar, Madhya Pradesh. Commenting on the claim that the speed of the wind felled the Shivaji statue, he said, “If winds at a speed of 45 km/h were anticipated, this should have been considered during the planning.”
Talking about the thickness of the metal used to build statues, a former faculty member of the J J School of Art pointed out that as per media reports, the sculptor used metal that was 1.5 inches thick, which is uncommon for a hollow statue. “If he wanted to use this thick material, he should have used it for the skeleton that supported the statue,” he said.
In an earlier interview with the media, sculptor Jaydeep Apte had discussed the challenges he faced while constructing the statue which, he said, was created using 3D printing. An expert in the field, however, pointed out that 3D printing could only be an intermediate step for such a large statue, and ought not to be used to make the final product.
The Akhil Bhartiya Maratha Mahasangh, Sindhudurg, has demanded that an expert committee review the complete process of the work done till the collapse happened.