Finish Shaheed Smarak project by Oct-end: Chief Secy

Cabinet Minister Anil Vij and Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi today held a review meeting regarding the under-construction Shaheed Smarak in Ambala Cantonment.

The Shaheed Samarak is being built to commemorate the sacrifice of the heroes of 1857 revolt, narrate the untold stories and pay tributes to the unsung heroes. Vij instructed the officers to complete the construction as soon as possible.

The Chief Secretary said the government’s effort was to develop this project as one of Haryana’s major projects. The Smarak should gain nationwide and international recognition so that tourists from across India and abroad reached here to see it. The target was to complete the pending work within two months so that it could be inaugurated in November. The Smarak was being built at a cost of over Rs 600 crore, and a deadline of October-end had been fixed, he added.

To a query, Chief Secretary Anurag Rastogi said that there was a possibility that Prime Minister Narendra Modi might inaugurate the Smarak, however, a final confirmation would come from the PMO only.

“When the time comes, we will make a request, and if the PMO decides, then the Prime Minister will indeed inaugurate the Smarak,” he said.

Earlier, in the meeting several aspects including the historical elements to be displayed in the Smarak, audio-video presentations, engraving the names of martyrs in golden letters, completing the work of 23 galleries, projector shows in the open-air theatre, making the Smarak financially self-sufficient, and building a sky café on top of the memorial tower, related to construction were discussed in detail.

In the meeting it was decided that a four-member committee comprising of the DC of Ambala, the Engineer-in-Chief of PWD, the Director of the smarak, and a representative of the construction agency, would be formed to accelerate the construction of the Shaheed Smarak. The committee will hold review meetings every Friday at the site.