Taller than 'Statue of Liberty'
Dr. Ambedkar's 'Statue of Equality' in Mumbai is expected to be taller than the 'Statue of Liberty' in New York which stands at a massive 305 feet. The statue and memorial will be constructed on 12 acres at Indu Mill in Dadar, Mumbai. It will be a bronze statue that will be built in China as no one in India has the required expertise.
Dr. Ambedkar's Statue
The 'Statue of Equality' symbolizes the legendary Dalit icon's lifelong struggle for human emancipation. The foundation stone for the statue and memorial was laid down in October 2015 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Dr. Ambedkar's descendants were dissatisfied with the original design as they wanted it to form an impressive part of Mumbai's skyline; the blueprint has since been substantively redesigned.
'Statue of Equality'
The original height of the statue was 150 ft but now the revised height will be 350 ft. The new blueprint has a skywalk-cum-viewing deck encircling the statue and includes an auditorium, a meditation space, a museum dedicated to Dr. Ambedkar, a cyclorama theatre and a lotus-shaped floating library. The 'Statue of Equality' is estimated to be built at a cost of Rs.900 crores.
Ambedkar memorial in London
Dr. Ambedkar studied at the London School of Economics in the 1920s; the house he resided in during his stay in London was acquired by the Maharashtra Government in 2015. The house was purchased for 3.1 million pounds and is located on King Henry's road in North London. It will be converted into a Ambedkar museum-cum-memorial and will offer temporary accommodation to Indian scholars.
Conversion to Sikhism
Dr. Ambedkar once considered to Amritsar in 1936 to propose the conversion of 60 million Dalits to Sikhism. However the then Sikh leadership was reluctant towards the proposal as they feared loss of power. Dr. Ambedkar then publicly converted to Buddhism in 1956.
