Four more planetariums in Odisha soon

Swetaparna Published On : Nov 20, 2016 at 3:16 PM

Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Bhubaneswar, Nov 20:

Four more planetariums will come up across Odisha soon.

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Out of the four, construction of the one near the Veer Surendra Sai University of Technology (VSSUT) at Burla in Sambalpur is on the verge of completion.

Similarly, three more planetariums will be constructed at Gopalpur, Baripada and Rayagada in Ganjam, Mayurbhanj and Rayagada districts respectively. The state government’s Science and Technology department is expediting these projects.

The construction of the planetarium at Burla by IDCO on a nine-acre is almost complete. Arrangements have been made to establish a digital planetarium using ultra-modern technology through global tenders. While this planetarium has an auditorium with 12 mts circumference, it will have a dome of 12 mts diameter. As many as 130 persons can together watch a show in this planetarium, informed Kailash Chandra Sahoo Joint Secretary Science and Technology department and Director Pathani Samanta Planetarium, Bhubaneswar.

Two engineers from US will visit Burla between December 2 and 3 and make arrangements for fixing the dome and projection equipments in the planetarium. Equipments for the digital planetarium have been procured from the US at an expense of Rs 5 crore, Sahoo said.

“It will take four/five months to fix the dome and the equipments. Therefore, by the end of June it will be ready for screening for the public,” informed Planetarium Engineer Dr. Jaidev.

That apart the state government is also planning to construct a district level Science Centre at Burla, said an official of the department.

Apart from Burla in Sambalpur, process has started for Gopalpur with the identification of a five-acre plot and measures for construction of a boundary wall thereupon. However, the planetariums to come up at Gopalpur, Baripada and Rayagada will have seating capacities of 80-90 seats.

Since the state has a single planetarium only 1.7lakh persons are able to visit it annually, in order to increase this number steps are being taken, informed Sahoo.