NEW DELHI/AHMEDABAD: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has unveiled the Statue of Unity, built as a tribute to freedom movement icon Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on his 143rd birth anniversary today. Air Force planes showered flowers on the statue in a grand inaugural event on the banks of the Narmada river in Gujarat as PM Modi dedicated it to the nation. Built at a cost of Rs. 2,989 crore, the statue depicts Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India's first Home Minister, wearing a traditional dhoti and shawl, towering over the Narmada River. Iron was collected from all over the country for the statue of Sardar Patel, also known as the Iron Man of India. At 182-metre, the statue is touted as the world's tallest - it is 177 feet higher than China's Spring Temple Buddha, currently the world's tallest statue.

The statue has been designed by Padma Bhushan-winning sculptor Ram V Sutar and has been built by Larsen and Toubro and the state-run Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Ltd. It took about 250 engineers and 3,400 labourers to construct the statue in 33 months.

The statue will have a viewing gallery at the height of 193 metres from the sea level which can accommodate 200 visitors at a time. This gallery, at 153 metres height, will offer a view of the Sardar Sarovar Dam, its reservoir, and the Satpura and Vindhya mountain ranges

Here are 10 facts on Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Statue of Unity:

1) At the launch ceremony, PM Modi will pour soil and Narmada water into a 'kalash' or urn, a statement from the Prime Minister's Office said. PM Modi opened the project five years ago on October 31, 2013, when he was the chief minister of Gujarat.

2)The statue depicts Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India's first Home Minister, wearing a traditional dhoti and shawl, towering over river Narmada. Iron was collected from all over the country for the statue of Sardar Patel, also known as the Iron Man of India.

3)The statue has been designed by Padma Bhushan-winning sculptor Ram V Sutar and has been built by Larsen and Toubro and the state-run Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Ltd. It took about 250 engineers and 3,400 labourers to construct the statue in 33 months.

4)The Statue of Unity will stand 177 feet higher than the current world's tallest, China's Spring Temple Buddha in the central Henan province.

5)Local tribal leaders have announced a boycott of the inaugural function citing destruction of natural resources due to the memorial. The Gujarat government said the 185 families moved to make way for the statue had been compensated and given 1,200 acres of new land.

6)The core of the statue is made up of reinforced concrete, but its surface that gives it a distinct design, has been created using 553 bronze panels - each panel has 10 to 15 micro panels. The panels were cast at a foundry in China and imported, which led to Congress chief Rahul Gandhi repeatedly targeting the government, claiming that the statue which will have a 'Made in China' tag.

7)The panels were cast in a foundry in China after an international bidding process since there was no such facility in India that could make panels of that size, officials said.

8)The statue will have a viewing gallery at a height of 193 metres, which can accommodate 200 visitors at a time. This gallery at 153 metres height, will offer a view of the Sardar Sarovar Dam, its reservoir, and the Satpura and Vindhya mountain ranges.

9)The structure will have a museum dedicated to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel at the base, and two high speed lifts will take people to the viewers' gallery, from where they can see beyond the Narmada Dam.
Once the statue is open to the public, officials expect around 15,000 visitors each day.

10)The museum will have 40,000 documents, 2,000 photographs and a research centre dedicated to Sardar Patel's life.