India’s Iron Man: Sardhar Vallabhai Patel statue
Gujarat happens to be the birth place of Sardar Vallabhai Patel, the Iron Man of India, who was instrumental in freedom struggles and a major and only standing icon to unite and build Bhaarat (India) that we see today. Sardar championed the Somnath temple restoration cause while it was vehemently opposed by the rest of the flocks. Sardar united more than 560+ princely states and played a major role in the creation of Republic of India. Sardar Vallabhai Patel is an icon of country’s pride whose contributions weren’t given due weight and honor until recent times.
The World’s Tallest Statue
Gujarat, India has several enchanting tourist locations, unique picturesque places and spots of historic importance and several pilgrim sites that one can reminisce for a long time. One of the recent additions to Gujarat’s ever-reverberating attractions is the world’s tallest statue of Sardar Vallabhai. This statue is twice the height of statue of liberty and stands with majestically at the banks of river Narmada in Ekta Nagar.
You can find more details about this Statue of Unity including the architect, the elevation, monument, construction and more in the this link.
How to reach?
Statue of Unity is 2.5 hour drive from Surat, 2 hours from Vadodara and 4 hours from Ahmedabad. Statue of Unity is reachable through various modes of transports including Train, Flight and Bus. The nearest railway station is in Ekta Nagar, earlier known as Kevadia railway station. There are two nearby airports to reach Statue of Unity. One in Surat and other in Vadodara.
What to explore in Statue of Unity?
While the Statue of Unity stands out as the main attraction in Ekta Nagar, there are more than 22 other captivating places to explore, all situated within a distance of approximately one and a half to two kilometers from one another. These include a Jungle Safari, Butterfly Park, Cactus Park, Children’s Maze, Evening Projection Mapping Show, Cruise on the Narmada River, Shoolpaneshwar Temple, Waterfalls, and more. Ekta Nagar draws tourists throughout the year, particularly during holiday seasons. Due to the high tourist influx, driving across Ekta Nagar is limited. Parking is available at the entrance of Ekta Nagar, where visitors arriving by taxi can self-park their cars in the designated parking lot. From this point, one can easily spot the food court and children’s nutrition park.
To explore Ekta Nagar, there are two modes of transportation: the Statue of Unity bus, which is free of charge and drops tourists at designated stops, requiring a short walk to reach attractions; and battery-operated autos, which come at a cost. The battery autos offer packages for 4 hours, 8 hours, and full-day exploration. The 4-hour package costs around 500 – 800 rupees, while the 8-hour package is priced at 1500 – 2000 rupees. Notably, all the drivers of these battery-operated autos are women, reflecting a government initiative in Gujarat to empower women.
But trust me, the buses, their timings and corresponding destinations were a little difficult for us co-relate and find out that we eventually decided to hop on to a battery operated rickshaw.
Some of the note-worthy places in Statue of Unity
Food Court
This is not an attraction per say, but a necessity 🙂 Statue of Unity begins with a food court and play area for kids. You can locate the food court as you reach the parking area for Statue of Unity. The food court offers pure vegetarian dishes from different restaurant vendors. Personally, I did not find any of our orders exciting. They tasted very average and it was okay to eat if you are hungry. But who knows, may be you will like it more. Outside the food court, there is a vast play area for kids with various play attractions including swings, jungle gym to name a few. Toilets too are available, but they usually don’t appear neat.
Nutrition Park
Next to the food court, beside the parking area is the nutrition park. Children would love it as it has been setup in the form of a series of train stations. Children can board the train and get down at designated stations where they get to learn about the nutrient rich food varieties, ill-effects of junk foods, goodness in vegetables and fruits, etc. through audio visuals and digital media in a fun way. In this park, children will board and leave the train 3 or 4 times across different nutrition stations which according to me is the real fun.
Pro-tip: Remember, there are more than 22+ attractions nearby Statue of Unity and one ought to spend time in travel to reach to different places although every individual attraction is only 2 – 3 Kms from one another. Except Nutrition park and food court, all other attraction requires one to take a bus or hire the battery rickshaw.
Jungle safari
One wouldn’t want to miss this safari especially if you are already in Statue of Unity. This safari is placed amid the hills and it takes you to different elevations to spot different animal and bird species. Remember, every attraction is ticketed and you can only book the tickets online for some of the attractions. When you have reached this destination, you can either walk or take a battery car to roam around the premises. Battery car comes free of cost and they are ample in number to accommodate tourists with an average wait time of 10 minutes. The car takes you to specific destinations and drops you there. From the drop point, you are expected to visit the nearby animals and birds. We could find almost all animal species. We saw Asiatic Lions, Tigers, Cheetah, Rhinoceros, and more. The good thing about this zoo is that animals have been given ample space to roam about unlike the other zoos where animals hardly find place to turn-around.
Don’t miss the Aviary
Yes. one of the battery car drop points is a huge bird cage where you would get a visual treat of exotic birds from different continents welcoming you with their own signature sounds, shouts, localities and smells. Be ready to get transported to their world. Yes, it is a cage, but, you wouldn’t realize it due to its vastness. The aviary is so huge and is well designed to awe the tourists and more importantly ensures sufficient space for the birds to feel at home with their families. The aviary carries ponds, bushes, bridges, open spaces, marsh areas, all to ensure that the birds feel at home.
The main attraction: Statue of Unity
The center stage of Ekta Nagar is visible almost from all other attractions. From the entrance, it takes a 10 minute walk to reach the basement of statue of unity. At the entrance, there is a security frisking area; followed by this, it is a roofed corridor on either side of the walk way that leads us to the statue basement. Please note that the tickets have to be bought prior to the visit, possibly at least a day before visiting the location and only through online mode. The details have been given in the below links.
Depending on the ticket, one can explore different places within the premises; only the basement, top of the statue and another express ticket that defies all waiting time and gives priority elevator access to visitors. The basement of the statue has a museum with interactive media and digital channels that covers the Iron Man’s life story, contributions to nation building and other details covering the freedom struggle.
Just above the museum, through a series of stairs or escalator, one can also reach the foot area of the statue. The foot is so huge as you can see from the picture attached. An exciting location to take selfies and pictures.
Those with relevant tickets can access the elevator area from the basement and reach the chest region of the statue which is around 180 meters from the sea level. The view is breathe-taking and one can see the Narmada river, the valley, Sarovar dam and almost several attractions in Ekta Nagar from such heights.
The entire duration of the visit to the statue takes around 2 hours.
Evening projection mapping show
Everyday evening sharp at 7 PM, there is a projection mapping show where guided laser lights are used to project several different images and videos on the tall statue which takes us through the history, struggle and contributions of Sardar Patel to the nation. This is a real delight and a treat for the viewers and one of the attractions no one wants to miss. There is a dedicated open space, about a few hundred meters away from the statue, installed with benches for the visitors to sit and get a spectacular view of the show. The show gets over by sharp 7.30 PM. But, hold on, the day is not yet over.
Shoolpaaneshwar temple – Narmada River Aarthi
Well, the day actually comes to an end with a grand aarthi to River Narmada every evening sharp at 7.45 PM. Shoolpaaneshwar temple is a hillock and it is around 10 minute drive from projection mapping show area. A set of pandits take the majestic and divine aarthi for River Narmada which is accompanied by music, shlokas and percussions. The hillock of Shoolpaaneshwar temple is decorated with lights till the banks of the river where the aarthi takes place. The banks of the river is generally occupied by the visiting crowd to watch this devotional offering. This gives a grand and divine ending for the day with a fulfilment.
Cactus Garden
The Cactus garden is located on the other side of Narmada river. This means, one has to cross the river through the bridge to visit this location. It takes approximately 20 minutes through electric rikshaw to reach this garden from the actual statue which is the major attraction. It is hot everywhere and Cactus Garden is no exception. You will sweat. So make sure to take an umbrella.
Cactus Garden houses some of the rarest varieties of cactus that are grown across the world. If you taking kids along with, please make sure that they don’t touch the cactus as some of them are quite sharp and pointy. This garden is well maintained and a must visit for all to generally know more about the variety of cactuses that exist. In fact, I for the first time learnt about cactus tree that s full of thorns. This place is mostly educational for the kids and also for the grown ups who are curious to learn more about Cactus.
It is a closed enclosure within which the garden is located and it extends behind to make it a children’s play area and walking tracks for the genera public. While it is quite impractical to get back to the food court for lunch and other snack items, the local administration has skillfully placed mini-cafe and juice centers aross the 22 km landscape of Ekta Nagar. There is one such mini-cafe right in front of the cactus garden that makes sandwiches, tea, coffee and also juices. Basically, this shop should suffice to satisfy our hunger for the time-being. You are not left to dry. However, do carry water bottles. It will come handy as one is bound to feel thirsty across this 22 Km strip.
More attractions
As highlighted above, there are more than 22 attractions in Ekta Nagar. River cruise in the evening time across river Narmada overseeing the Statue for 30 minutes is also a relaxing ride for tourists to explore. The cruise, apart from offering an in-house cafe, offers entertains the guests with Gujarati folk dance and music. Similarly, around 17 Kms from Statue of Unity, above the hill, there is a water fall which is generally open all day, including Monday which is a holiday for all the rest of the attractions.
How much time is sufficient?
Apart from the attractions mentioned above, Ekta Nagar which houses the Statue Of Unity has several other attractions surrounding the Statue, overseeing the banks of river Narmada, to entice and engage children and adults for several hours. One may require two days to do justice to exploring this place to the fullest, however, a minimum of one day is a given.
Statue of Unity – Things to know before you go
1. Tickets: Almost all attractions require tickets and all of them have to be booked online. While entry tickets to Statue of Unity has to be bought at least a day before (just to be on the safer side) , the tickets to other attractions can be bought online (based on crowd and seasons).
2. Be hydrated: While you do find small cafes selling water bottles, samosas and some chats, it is ideal to carry your own bottles, considering the sunny atmosphere and travel and hike throughout the day.
3. Ensure battery full: Ensure that your mobile phones are sufficiently charged as you would need them for taking pictures, buying tickets, etc.
4. Monday holiday: Please remember, every Monday is a holiday for all the attractions in Ekta Nagar (except water falls). Monday is off for maintenance.
Important links for reference
If you are on a shoe string budget and would like to explore across the length and breadth of Gujarat, do read the Ultimate guide to Gujarat.
If Ekta Nagar is in your list of places to visit and explore and if you are planning to book your tickets, for any of the Ekta Nagar attractions, here is the link.
To learn more about the Iron man and get to know about the architecture and construction details of Statue of Unity, do visit this link.