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Journalism of Courage
Got made at the expense of public money for erecting in different memorials and parks during previous BSP regime,14 white marble life-size statues,including one of former Chief Minister Mayawati,are gathering dust in the parking lot of UP Sangeet Natak Akademi (SNA),close to Bhimrao Ambedkar Samajik Parivartan Sthal in Gomti Nagar area of Lucknow from four years.
While three statues,including one of Gautam Buddha and two others of elephants are partially covered by plastic sheets,other 11 statues are placed in wooden boxes. These 11 statues are of Mayawati,Bhimrao Ambedkar,Jyotiba Phule,Sant Ravidas,Birsa Munda,Narain Guru etc.
An LDA official who had been associated with memorials projects in BSP regime,estimated the cost of these statues upto Rs 3 crore.
Such lifesize statues of these Dalit icons have already been erected inside different memorials,parks and crossings in different parts of the city. The two statues of elephants lying unused here,had been an attractive feature of Ambedkar Park which was demolished in 2007 and redesigned into Bhimrao Ambedkar Samajik Parivartan Sthal during past five years. These two statues had been erected then at entrance plaza of Ambedkar Park.
The other 11 statues in wooden boxes are surrounded by shrubs. The wooden boxes got damaged with the time and dust as well as cobweb covered these statues completely. Because of thick layers of dust,statues could not be identified easily. The SNA building belongs to Culture Department of UP government.
Department Secretary Manoj Kumar Singh,meanwhile,said,I have no idea about this matter.
An official of SNA said that these statues were dumped there by Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) about four years ago. The LDA had to erect these statues along Gomti embankment near Ambedkar memorial. But as construction was being done on the site,these statues had been placed here, he said.
He said that no official from LDA or UP Rajkiya Niram Nigam (UPRNN) went there to check the condition of these statues during past four years.
As SNA was not concerned with memorials projects,it also did not take care of the statues.
Both UPRNN and LDA had been jointly engaged to develop the memorials and parks in the city in BSP regime.
LDA vice-chairman Rajeev Agarwal could not be contacted.
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