Shivaji statue collapse: Navy claims maintenance lapses by Maharashtra govt; Joint Committee formed for probe
Maharashtra government and Indian Navy trade charges over the collapse of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj's statue in Sindhudurg on August 26, defence sources told ET that a detailed maintenance schedule was shared with state authorities for its general upkeep.
According to the sources, the Navy handed over the statue to the Maharashtra government in April, but it suspects that periodic checks were not carried out by the authorities.
«As per initial assessment, rusting happened at the joints near nuts and bolts. Had the maintenance schedule shared by the Navy been followed by local authorities, rusting could have been fixed and the statue might not have collapsed,» a source told ET.
Just six days before the collapse, Malvan PWD wrote to the Navy and appraised it about the statue's «deteriorating condition», urging it to resolve the issue. The letter said sculptor Jaideep Apte carried out repair work in June. But nuts and bolts «have rusted due to rain and sea conditions».
The sources said the nearly 28 ft statue was built in eight tiers, with 637 pieces affixed by wielding nuts and bolts. The material used was silicon-bronze. The sculptor had given a guarantee that the statue would stand for at least 200 years and would withstand wind speed of 140 km/per hour (equivalent to category III cyclone). «But it failed to withstand gusty winds of less than 60 km/per hour,» said one of the sources.
A joint technical committee headed by Navy officials has been formed to probe the collapse, sources said. State government
