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Shaheed Smarak Lucknow
The board next to the Smarak Sthal (dedicated to the great revolutionaries of India's freedom movement — Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev) says it all: Cost of construction: Rs 9.14 lakh; Funds available: Rs 5.14 lakh; Started: January, 2001; To be finished in: November, 2001.
This is accompanied by a precondition at the bottom: On condition of availability of funds.
No prizes for guessing why the administration has been dragging it's feet in completing the work for this monument, which is under construction near the Shaheed Smarak.
Apart from the construction of a solitary red stone structure, the administration remains callously indifferent towards the construction of the Smarak Sthal. The accompanying plaques on all four sides of the monument remain conspicuous by their absence. Also, the plans for beautification appear to have been shelved, awaiting the availability of funds.
After obtaining a no objection certificate from the ASI in November, 1999, and the allocation of the initial funds by the district administration, the provincial division of the Public Works Department (PWD) commenced work. The work hit a hurdle when the second instalment of Rs 4 lakh was delayed. PWD officials say they have asked the DM for the remaining amount, adding that if construction is not completed this year, they will include it in their expenditure statement for next year, ensuring completion of the work.
Today, the city of Lucknow is inundated with statues of Ambedkar, Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj, Uda Devi, etc.
Even as this monument dedicated to the memory of India's freedom fighters languishes due to the non-availability of funds, stupendous amounts have been spent in constructing structures dedicated to Dalit messiahs like at Parivartan Chowk and Ambedkar Park.
Divisive electoral politics and caste dynamics in a complete antithesis of the national movement, it seems, have relegated the freedom struggle and the martyrdom of India's freedom fighters to the background, and is reflective of what the prerogatives are.
This is accompanied by a precondition at the bottom: On condition of availability of funds.
No prizes for guessing why the administration has been dragging it's feet in completing the work for this monument, which is under construction near the Shaheed Smarak.
Apart from the construction of a solitary red stone structure, the administration remains callously indifferent towards the construction of the Smarak Sthal. The accompanying plaques on all four sides of the monument remain conspicuous by their absence. Also, the plans for beautification appear to have been shelved, awaiting the availability of funds.
After obtaining a no objection certificate from the ASI in November, 1999, and the allocation of the initial funds by the district administration, the provincial division of the Public Works Department (PWD) commenced work. The work hit a hurdle when the second instalment of Rs 4 lakh was delayed. PWD officials say they have asked the DM for the remaining amount, adding that if construction is not completed this year, they will include it in their expenditure statement for next year, ensuring completion of the work.
Today, the city of Lucknow is inundated with statues of Ambedkar, Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj, Uda Devi, etc.
Even as this monument dedicated to the memory of India's freedom fighters languishes due to the non-availability of funds, stupendous amounts have been spent in constructing structures dedicated to Dalit messiahs like at Parivartan Chowk and Ambedkar Park.
Divisive electoral politics and caste dynamics in a complete antithesis of the national movement, it seems, have relegated the freedom struggle and the martyrdom of India's freedom fighters to the background, and is reflective of what the prerogatives are.
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