Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a towering statue of independence leader Sardar Vallabbhai Patel. Over 180 meters tall, it dwarfs the world's next-tallest statue, which is located in China.
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The world's largest statues
India has unveiled the world's largest statue. But it's not expected to be the world-record holder for very long.
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India's Statue of Unity
The tallest statue in the world, which depicts Indian independence hero Sardar Vallabbhai Patel, stands at a towering 182 meters (597 feet) in India's Gujarat state. The "Statue of Unity," has sparked controversy at home, with many objecting to the project's $404 million (€356 million) price tag. Another statue being built near Mumbai is expected to exceed the Patel monument in height and cost.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/A. Solanki
USA: Statue of Liberty
It may be only half the size of the Patel statue in India, but its fame will be hard to top. The Statue of Liberty in New York City was inaugurated in 1886 and is one of the most famous US landmarks as well as a UNESCO World Heritage site. The neoclassical colossus has been replicated around the world, with reproductions in Tokyo, Alsace among other places
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Brazil's Christ the Redeemer
Visitors to Brazil's Cristo Redentor (Christ the Redeemer) can enjoy a breathtaking view of Rio de Janeiro and the Sugarloaf Mountain while visiting the 30-meter-tall statue, making it a popular tourist attraction. In 2007, the statue was named as one of the "7 New Wonders of the World," joining the likes of Macchu Pichu and the Great Wall of China.
Image: Getty Images/B. Mendes
Myanmar's golden giant
Anyone who has ever been to Southeast Asia will be familiar with the larger-than-life, gold-plated Buddha statues that adorn many temples in the region. With a height of 116 meters (129 meters if you include the pedestal), the Laykyun Sekkya statue in Myanmar is an exception. Completed in 2008, the statue is one of the tallest Buddha statues in the world.
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China's goddess in the sea
The massive size of the Guanyin of Nanshan statue, which was inaugurated in southern China in 2005, is particularly striking from the air. Guanyin, who is revered in Chinese folk religions as the goddess of compassion, is considered one of the most important figures of East Asian Buddhism. At 78 meters, the statue on the southern coast of Hainan province is the tallest Guanyin statue in the world.
Image: picture-alliance/Photoshot
China's Spring Temple Buddha
Until India's Patel statue was completed, China's Spring Temple Buddha held the title as the world's tallest statue. The 128-meter-tall statue depicts a golden Buddha standing on top of a lotus throne and is located in China's Henan province. Construction on the statue was completed in 2008.
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The world's tallest statue was unveiled in India's Gujarat state on Wednesday in a ceremony filled with pomp, circumstance and heightened security.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the statue of Sardar Vallabbhai Patel, a key Indian independence leader, dubbing it the "Statue of Unity." Patel also served as the country's first home minister after British colonial rule ended in 1947.
"To build this statue, hundreds of thousands of farmers from all over India came together to donate their tools, portions of their soil, and a mass movement developed around the statue," Modi said in his speech.
At 182 meters (587 feet), the statue is more than twice the size of the Statue of Liberty in New York City. It also dwarfs the world's next-tallest statue, the Spring Temple Buddha in China, which is 128 meters tall.
The bronze statue is made up of nearly 100,000 tons of steel and concrete. The site will also contain a museum dedicated to Patel's life and work, which will include some 40,000 documents, 2,000 photographs and a research center.
Heightened security
Air force jets and helicopters showered flower petals on the statue during the lavish ceremony, while some 5,000 police officers patrolled the area around the statue.
Modi has faced criticism for going ahead with the project, which cost some 29.9 billion rupees ($404 million; €356 million) to build.
Locals in the Narmada district of Gujarat state, where the statue is located, threatened to protest the statue's unveiling. They claim that the project has destroyed natural resources and that families that had to be relocated from the site of the statue haven't been compensated.
"I am not against Sardar, but what is the use of the statue if the people on the land have to suffer and are moved from their homes?" local legislator and community group leader Chotu Vasava said.
The government in Gujarat state has said that the 185 families that were moved to make space for the statue have been compensated.
