Shaheed Smarak inauguration pushed to next year as work drags on

The grand memorial, which features 22 galleries and nearly 150 short films narrating the stories of the first revolt of 1857, was earlier scheduled to be completed by October-end. Officials had hoped to get it inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Kurukshetra visit on November 25. However, with several finishing tasks still pending, the timeline has slipped.

The Shaheed Smarak has been conceived as a tribute to the martyrs and unsung heroes of 1857. Its centrepiece is a 63-metre-tall memorial tower, which will also serve as one of the five projection screens for an advanced light and sound show designed to recreate the events of the uprising.

Cabinet Minister Anil Vij, who has been closely overseeing progress, had directed officials to speed up work in anticipation of the Prime Minister’s visit. The minister had said earlier that “all efforts are being made to complete the project before the PM’s scheduled visit to Kurukshetra on November 25 so that, if possible, the PM could make a visit and inaugurate the project.”

A senior official associated with the project confirmed that the plan for an inauguration during the PM’s visit had been under consideration. “However, since some finishing work was still pending and the PM had a very tight schedule due to the events in Kurukshetra in the evening, it was decided to get it inaugurated only after getting the project completely ready,” he said.

Dr Kuldeep Saini, Director of the Shaheed Smarak, said the interior work of the museum was complete. “Only the finishing work is underway and it is time-consuming,” he said. “The mapping work of the memorial tower for the light and sound show has been completed… Nearly 150 short films have been prepared and different advanced technologies will be used to give a real-time experience to the visitors.”

He said lighting tests were conducted when the PM crossed Ambala recently. “All efforts are being made to get the work completed at the earliest and start the trials in January. A request has been made to the Prime Minister’s Office for a visit for the inauguration,” he said.