Shivaji statue collapse: Panels set up to probe incident, build new one

Mumbai: Maharashtra Government has set up a technical committee comprising engineers, IIT experts and Navy officials to probe reasons behind the collapse of Shivaji Maharaj statue at Malvan in coastal Konkan, an official said.

A release issued by the Chief Minister’s office after midnight said the government has also constituted a committee to build a “grand statute befitting the stature” of the warrior king.

The decision was taken by CM Eknath Shinde, who chaired a meeting with senior ministers, bureaucrats and Navy officials at his official residence Varsha in South Mumbai Wednesday night, the release said.

An FIR has been registered against the contractor of the 35-foot statue which collapsed on Monday just eight months after it was unveiled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 4.

The FIR follows a complaint by the Public Works Department, which claims the statue’s construction was of poor quality, and the nuts and bolts used in the structure were found to be rusted.