The Statue of Unity is located in Gujarat’s Narmada district near Kevadiya town and is erected at 3.2 kilometers downstream from the Sardar Sarovar Dam.
The towering Statue of Unity, which is also the world’s highest at 182-meters, is generating revenue from the unprecedented arrival of tourists in the last three months since its inauguration on October 31, 2018. The Statue, located in Gujarat’s Narmada district near Kevadiya town is erected at 3.2 kilometer distance downstream from the Sardar Sarovar Dam. Bharatiya Janata Party Member of Parliament Varun Gandhi asked the government regarding development in “the area around the Statue to increase employment and tourism in the surrounding area.”
In his written reply, Union tourism minister KJ Alphons informed the house (Lok Sabha) that the “revenue generated from visitors to Statue of Unity from November, 2018 to January, 2019 is Rs.19.47 crore,” and “the number of tourists who visited the Statue of Unity at Kevadia in three months from November, 2018 to January, 2019 was 7,81,349 as against yearly average of 8,22,009 tourists visiting Sardar Sarovar Dam at Kevadia in the last five years” which means the number of tourist coming to the Statue of Unity in just three months is close to the average number of tourists visiting Sardar Sarovar Dam in one year.
Informing about the development work taking place around the Statue of Unity area, Alphons informed that the ministry has decided “to develop tourism related activities in the area such as Jungle Safari, Amusement Park, Adventure & Eco-tourism Park, Children’s Nutrition Park, Boating from Shreshtha Bharat Bhavan to Statue of Unity, Food Court & Mirror Maze and Cactus Garden.”
According to media reports, there are plans to start Seaplane services to the Statue of Unity from Ahmedabad. “At the moment, technical studies to start the services are underway. Once technical feasibilities are given a green light, we will go ahead with the project,” Gujarat Tourism Managing Director Jenu Devan told The Indian Express.