PM Modi to visit Maharashtra today, will lay foundation stone for Shivaji memorial

Mumbai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Maharashtra on Saturday, where he will lay foundation stone for the grand memorial of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.

He will also inaugurate metro rail projects in Mumbai and Pune.

At the same time, PM Modi will inaugurate the newly-built campus of the National Institute of Securities Management in MIDC Patalganga in neighbouring Raigad district.

He will then proceed to the site in the Arabian Sea off Mumbai coast, where the state government is planning to build a mega memorial for Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.

The main feature of the Shivaji memorial, slated to cost Rs 3,600 crore, will be a 192-metre-tall statue of the iconic Maratha king. The site is a rocky outcrop, roughly 1.5 km from the Raj Bhavan shore.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had recently said that the 'Shiv Smarak' would not only be the tallest memorial in the country, but in the entire world.

He had thanked PM Modi for "making it possible."

The memorial project has been facing stiff opposition from fisherfolk and environmentalists, who have alleged that it would affect marine life and ecology of the Arabian Sea.

However, CM has said that "come what may, we will ensure that world's tallest memorial of our great King, Chhatrapati will be built in the Arabian Sea."

Come what may, we will ensure that world's tallest memorial of our great King, Chhatrapati will be built in the Arabian Sea.#ShivSmarak pic.twitter.com/tCUcSbiQDi — Devendra Fadnavis (@Dev_Fadnavis) December 23, 2016

Later, the PM will address a public function at the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) ground in suburban Bandra, after laying foundation stone for two Metro rail projects, Elevated Rail Corridors Project and Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL).

Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray, whose party is an ally of ruling BJP, is expected to share the dais with Modi at the MMRDA event.

The PM will then leave for Pune, where he will lay the foundation stone of the Pune Metro Rail project.

NCP leader Sharad Pawar will share the stage with PM Modi at this event.

(With PTI inputs)