A 41 feet statue of Lord Bahubali will be installed atop a hill in Songadh in Gujarat’s Bhavnagar district.

The statue is presently on its way from Bidadi in Bangalore Rural district to Gujarat.

The search for the right stone and sculptor began two years ago and it was decided that they have to be sourced out of Karnataka alone, as similar stone and style of sculpture akin to the highest Bahubali’s statue in Shravanabelagola in Hassan district, were unavailable elsewhere, a release said.

The statue, which is 14 feet wide and of 6.5 feet depth, has been sculpted out of a single block of 400 tonne granite from a place called Koira near Devanahalli here, it said.

The sculptor is Ashok Gudigar, a national award winner from Karnataka.

It will be transported on a specially made heavy vehicle with 140 wheels. The duration of journey was approximately 45 days from Sunday.

About 90 per cent of work on the statue was completed and the rest would be completed at Songadh, before the actual installation, the release said.

Songadh, where the idol is being installed is the place where the Digambar Jain saint Kanji Swamiji had preached the principles of Jainism over a period of 45 years. Songadh, also known as “Swarnapuri”, is an important pilgrimage place for the Digambar Jain Community.

The statue, which is going to cost over Rs one crore, is being funded by Shri Kund Kund Kahan Digambar Jain Swadhyay Mandir Trust, founded by the disciples of Kanji Swamiji.