PM Modi to lay foundation stone of Shivaji Memorial

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will today lay the foundation stone for the grand memorial of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj ont an island in the Arabian Sea off Mumbai.

The memorial will be as high as 210 metres of which 60 percent would be the height of the statue alone. The total cost of the project is Rs. 3,600 crores of which first phase would cost Rs. 2,500 crore.

The memorial project has been facing stiff opposition from fisher folk and environmentalists, who have alleged that it would affect marine life and ecology of the Arabian Sea.

During his one-day visit to the state, Prime Minister Modi would also lay the foundation stone for the metro rail project in Pune.

He will inaugurate the newly-built campus of the National Institute of Securities Management at the MIDC Patalganga in neighbouring Raigad district.

Later, Modi will address a public function at the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) ground in suburban Bandra, after laying the foundation stone for two Metro rail projects, Elevated Rail Corridors Project and Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL).