West Bengal Chief minister Mamata Banerjee today unveiled a 'Bhasha Shahid' (Language Martyr) memorial in the city to mark International Mother Language Day.
The day is observed worldwide annually on February 21 to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism.
The memorial, which has been installed at Ekushe Uddyan, is a 14 ft fibre glass statue of a language martyr's body lying on a sister's lap. The statue has been made by Jogen Chowdhury, an eminent artist.
Banerjee did not make speech to prevent any possible noise pollution in view of the ongoing Higher Secondary examination.
(Reopens BES 39)
Meanwhile, fishermen today said they will stage
protests against the proposed construction of the memorial.
The 192-metre-tall statue of the Maratha king has been planned on a rocky outcrop roughly 1.5 km from the Raj Bhavan shore.
Members of the Akhil Maharashtra Machimar Kriti Samiti (AMMKS), an association of fishermen from Cuffe Parade, Machchimar Nagar, Geeta Nagar (near Navy Nagar), near Raj Bhawan and Backbay Parade, said they will fly black flags on their boats and homes as a sign of protest.
Fisherwomen will form a human chain from Nariman Point to Girgaum Chowpatty, holding black flags, when Modi arrives for the inauguration, AMMKS leader Damodar Tandel said.
"On December 24, the day PM Modi is scheduled to perform bhumipujan, three main wholesale fish markets Sassoon Dock, Bhaucha Dhakka and Crawford will be shut," the fishermen's leader said.
The livelihood of 1.5 lakh fishermen residing across five villages in south Mumbai, who have 1,500 large boats and 450 small boats currently along the stretch, will be affected by the construction of the memorial, fishermen's leader Jayesh Bhoir said.
"This project is against the environment and will destroy aquatic life in the Arabian Sea. The Prime Minister would not like to become the reason for irreparable damage to the environment," he said.
