The Statue of Unity is a colossal statue of Indian statesman and independence activist Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (1875–1950), who was the first Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister of independent India and the chief adherent of Mahatma Gandhi during the non-violent Indian Independence movement.
It is located in the state of Gujarat, India. It is the world’s tallest statue with a height of (597 ft) 182 metres. It is located on a river-facing the Sardar Sarovar Dam on river Narmada in Kevadiya colony.
The project was first announced in 2010 and the construction of the statue started in October 2013 by Larsen & Toubro, with a total construction cost of Rs 2,989 crores.[4] It was designed by Indian sculptor Ram V. Sutar and was inaugurated by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 31 October 2018, the 143rd birth anniversary of Patel.
Narendra Modi first announced the project to commemorate Vallabhbhai Patel on 7 October 2013 at a press conference to mark the beginning of his 10th year as The Chief Minister of Gujarat. At the time, the project was dubbed, “Gujarat’s tribute to the nation”.
The statue depicts Vallabhbhai Patel, one of the most prominent leaders of the Indian independence movement, the first home minister as well as the first Deputy Prime Minister of Independent India, and responsible for the integration of hundreds of princely states into the modern Republic of India.
Over 128,000 tourists visited it in 11 days after it was opened to the public on 1 November 2018. The daily average tourist footfall at Statue of Unity during November 2019 reached 15,036, outpacing Statue of Liberty. It has been included in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s ‘8 Wonders of SCO’ list.
The Statue of Unity was built by Public-Private Partnership model, with most of the money raised by the Government of Gujarat.
The Statue of Unity is the world’s tallest statue and has attracted several lakh tourists since it was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in October 2018
Government Property on Sale in OLX
The OLX marketplace is a platform for buying and selling services and goods such as electronics, fashion items, furniture, household goods, cars and bikes. How about the news that someone has put a Government property on sale in OLX?
“Some unknown person placed an advertisement on OLX on Saturday stating he needs to sell the Statue of Unity for ₹30,000 crore to meet the requirement of money to buy hospitals and healthcare equipment,” a Kevadiya police station official said quoting the FIR.
#Gujarat: Local admn has filed a Police complaint in Kevadia of Narmada dist after a man posted an ad on OLX, offering ‘Statue of Unity’ for sale at Rs 30,000 Cr. Deputy Commissioner Nilesh Dubey says, “OLX published the ad without verification. We have filed a police complaint.” pic.twitter.com/uqf68SKB8M
— tv9gujarati (@tv9gujarati) April 6, 2020
The memorial to Sardar Patel, at 182 metres, is the world’s tallest such structure and has attracted several lakh people since it was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2018.
The description of the advertisement read
‘Emergency! Selling Statue of Unity because of urgent money required for the hospitals and healthcare equipment.’ Over 29 lakh tourists visited the Statue of Unity, located near the Sardar Sarovar Dam, since it was inaugurated and this generated a revenue of Rs 82.51 crore, the government had told the Assembly in December last year. 
An FIR has been filed against an unknown person in Gujarat who had placed an online advertisement to sell the Statue of Unity in Kevadiya in Narmada district for Rs 30,000 crore.
According to the ad, the money generated would have been used to help the government meet its expenses for hospital equipment and medical infrastructure amidst the coronavirus pandemic.
A case was registered against an unknown person in Gujarat for placing an online advertisement to “sell” the Statue of Unity in Kevadiya in Narmada district for ₹30,000 crore to meet the government’s expenses for hospitals and medical infrastructure to fight the coronavirus outbreak.
According to police officer PT Chaudhary, the Statue of Unity authorities came to know about the online ad after a local newspaper ran an article about it. “Cheating and forgery case was filed under the IPC (Indian Penal Code), Epidemic Diseases Act, and Information Technology Act.”
Soon after it was posted, the advertisement was taken off the website.
“Despite him not being authorised to sell government property, this unidentified person posted the advertisement on OLX to defame the government and mislead people,” stated a release from the chief administrator of the Statue of Unity.
Such an advertisement hurts the sentiments of the several crore people who idolise Sardar Patel, it added.
‘A cheating and forgery case has been registered’
Man puts up Gujarat’s Statue of Unity for sale on OLX for Rs 30,000 crore, FIR filed #StatueOfUnity #Coronavirus #COVID19 https://t.co/gJZVwjKSjw
— News Nation (@NewsNationTV) April 6, 2020
On March 17, the Gujarat government banned the entry of tourists at the Statue of Unity in Narmada district, further directed hotels and restaurants to avoid hosting large functions in view of the coronavirus threat. A total of 4,067 cases of coronavirus have been reported in India so far. The death toll has jumped to 109 in the country. So far, 291 people have been cured of the disease.
Social Media Reacts to this News
Ever since the news that an unknown person has put up an online advertisement for the sale of the Statue of Unity in Kevadiya in Narmada district and the case has been registered against an unknown person in Gujarat, the social media has gone out all with funny reactions. The advertisement was placed on OLX for Rs 30,000 crores, with the intention of meeting the government’s expenses for hospitals and medical infrastructure in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak.
Let’s Check out some funny reactions on Twitter
Twitter Calls Person Behind Statue of Unity OLX Ad ‘Natwarlal 2.0’
Some even said, “Not all Heroes wear Caps, some give Ideas online”.
The online advertisement might have pushed some for what they actually want in their nightmares, as to, someone posted that he wants to sell Tajmahal too.
Some genius has put the Statue of Unity for sale on OLX to raise money for medical equipment 😂👏#StatueOfUnity pic.twitter.com/mF4VMB3bya
— 🇮🇳SDsumer 😷👻 (@SumerDaryapurk1) April 6, 2020
This is not an irony.
Some Genius has put the Statue of Unity for sale on OLX to raise money for medical equipment.1 Statue of Unity = 60k Ventilators
1 Bullet Train = 2 Million VentilatorsThis is irony. #stupidity pic.twitter.com/GtMkwB2yai
— Y O G E S H B U R D A K (@BurdakSarkar) April 6, 2020
A Gujju actually tried selling Statue of Unity amidst the crisis!! Ha ha ha ha ha ha pic.twitter.com/WEBTACXaqJ
— Akilesh Srikantaiah (@akileshsri) April 5, 2020
Some EPIC Personalities have also come with their suggestions
Selling of Government-owned Property by a citizen of India or otherwise is not permissible at any cost. If someone is found doing so, it is a criminal offence according to the Indian Penal Code. However, its punishment depends upon the intention of the seller as to how intently he was trying to sell the property.
Is ₹3,000Cr spent on building Statue of Unity helping people in this difficult phase of COVID-19 ? @narendramodi @BJP4India
— Ankit Sood (@Ankitsood100) March 30, 2020
Idiots this is a secret plan,
1. Lighting candles will kill the virus is air.
2. 9 pm is a astronomical timing proven by NASA.
3. As its night Pakistan won't be able to detect radar.
4. India will win the Worldcup.
5. That's why Statue of Unity is imp.#ModiVideoMessage #Sarcasm— Animesh Sapate (@fortunaletysonu) April 3, 2020
