Those entering Salt Lake from the Goutam’s entrance will now be greeted by a statue of Maharana Pratap. The statue of the Mewar king mounted on his horse has been installed in CA Island, which is the first Island encountered from that route.
The statue was inaugurated by local MP Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, who praised not just the king for his valour but also his horse, Chetak, and elephant Ram Prasad, for their loyalty, courage, and power. “While studying about Maharana Pratap in school I would note that there was no statue of the hero around. This should change that,” she said.
Also present were mayor Krishna Chakraborty, a host of councilors, and minister and MLA Sujit Bose, who was the chief guest. “Maharana Pratap fell but we remember him as he rose again and conquered his lost land back. Salt Lake has people of all communities and Rajasthan fairs are celebrated with as much gusto as Durga puja,” said Bose, adding that he had released funds in the past to erect a high mast light in this Island.
The new statue of Maharana Pratap at CA Island Brinda Sarkar
Before this statue, the Island had a fountain that had got defunct, said local councilor Rajesh Chirimar. The Island lies in the juncture of CA, DA, CB, and DB blocks.
Sculptor Arun Bhowmick said the statue has a steel framework and that the exterior is of fibre. “It stands at a height of 24ft from road level and we’ve used nitrocellulose (NC) paints on it for longevity,” he said. It has been built using Rs 10,50,000 from the MPLAD fund. The statue has this, along with basic information about the king, written at its base, in Hindi.
“Maharana Pratap is not limited to Marwar or Gujarat. He’s a national hero so we cannot segregate him on the basis of language, caste, or creed. That is not Bengal’s culture,” said Chirimar. “We chose January 19 for this event as it is the king’s 427th death anniversary. The next few days will see us commemorating Netaji and Republic Day and we are happy to have flagged off this patriotic period with this statue unveiling. Like landmarks such as Baisakhi and Swimming Pool, we hope this Island too comes to be known by Maharana Pratap’s name.”
Also present were Lalit Prahladka, founder president of Marwari Sanskriti Manch, and Sandip Garg, president of Salt Lake Lok Sanskriti, who said they were trying to open a Maharana Pratap museum in New Town.
“When Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar asked me where this statue could be installed I suggested CA Island, as it is within walking distance from our CA Block office,” said Lalit Beriwala, chairman of Salt Lake Sanskritik Sansad. “In fact, our group has decided to take responsibility for the maintenance of the statue,” he said.