Military memorial will overshoot budget target

Bangalore's pride, the 6.2-acre tribute to war heroes at the National Military Memorial, will overshoot the proposed budget by at least Rs5.4 crore, according to a source.

Even though the original budget for the memorial was Rs15 crore, the total cost will touch at least Rs20 crore.

“The increase in the budget is largely for the transportation of veeragallu (hero stone), which is being made in Devanahalli. While preparing the budget, we had estimated this will cost about Rs1.6 crore, but it will actually cost Rs5.4 crore,” the source said on condition of anonymity.

The total cost for the carving of the hero stone is much lesser. “The making of the hero stone costs only about Rs94 lakh. Most of the expenditure goes towards rotating the stone, which has to be done twice in order to carve its sides, transporting it to the memorial and for installation," he said.

The hero stone will weigh about 600 tonnes and reach a height of 87 feet.

“The transportation of the stone by itself requires a truck that has to be specially made in order to bear its weight. Talks are on with regard to this,” he added.  
 
The foundation was laid in February 2009 and the memorial should have been completed by December 16, 2010. But after a high court stay, the work was put on hold for some time.

Even though 70% of the work is complete, it will take two more months for work on the hero stone to be completed and brought to the memorial site.

The installation of the stone and the remaining work is estimated to take another two months, after which, the memorial will be thrown open to public.