The Monument to the People's Heroes, standing at the Tian'anmen Square of Beijing, will undergo an extensive renovation beginning this Wednesday, according to the management committee of the Tian'anmen Square Area.

The renovation project will cost 3 million yuan (370,000 U.S. dollars) and is expected to finish in three months.

The pedestal of the monument has been found weathered with rain and wind since it was erected in 1958.

"The money will mostly be used in mending the fissures in the pedestal to protect the basement against water leakage," said Liu Zhongping, the designer of the renovation scheme.

No fissures are found in the body of the monument so far and the renovation work will not cause any adverse effect on it, Liu added.

The monument, made up of 17,000 pieces of granite and white marble blocks, stands 37.94 meters high. It is considered the largest monument in the country.

During the three-month restoration, no activities of paying homage before the monument are allowed, said sources with the management committee of the Tian'anmen Square Area.

Source: Xinhua