India becomes the first country to crowdfund a project!

"To raise funds for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream project — Statue of Unity, world’s tallest statue at 182 metres — the state government has roped in the multinational IT consultant Accenture to build an IT platform for crowdfunding to raise funds for a project through the Internet.

Accenture has been granted a tender of Rs 3 crore which was floated by the Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Limited (SSNNL), the state government agency executing the project. Official sources said that Accenture was the only bidder for the tender which submitted a bid of Rs 2.5 crore. Accenture has also paid the security deposit of 10 per cent of its bid to the SSNNL.

The state government has already granted the tender for the construction and maintenance of the statue to engineering giant Larsen & Toubro Limited (L&T). The government had floated a tender of Rs 2,063 crore for the project against which L&T emerged as the lowest bidder which offered its services at the cost of Rs 2,980 crore. Interestingly, to build and maintain the statue, the government had only two bids. The other bidder was a consortium of three companies led by JMC Projects India that had submitted bid of Rs 4,100 crore. Government sources said that L&T will be issued a Letter of Intent to build and maintain the statue shortly following which the company would carry out exercise for designing the project in the next 3-4 months and then construction work will begin.

The state government requires funds presently estimated to be more than Rs 2,063 crore for the project. Chief Minister Anandiben Patel, who heads the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Rashtriya Ekta Trust (SVPRET), the special body to execute the project, has demanded status of a national monument for the project."