Even though Jharkhand officials are confident about inaugurating the State’s first planetarium by July 31, the staff working at the construction site said that the deadline might not be met due to pending technical works.
The structure of the property, situated near Science City in Ranchi’s Chiraundi area, is almost ready, but the installation of the cutting edge technology required for running such an infrastructure will take time, officials actively involved in the construction works said.
“We are hoping to inaugurate the planetarium by the month of August. With the approaching elections in the month of November, October is the latest by which this planetarium can be inaugurated,” said a Science City official not authorized to talk to the media.
The building includes an elaborate dome and the planetarium has a total seating capacity of 160. Another staff at Science City said that several time-consuming works at the planetarium were still incomplete. “The inaugural date of the planetarium has been fixed on 31 July. But we are not very positive about the inauguration next month as there are several tasks pending,” said an official at the information desk of Science City.
However, senior officials rubbished the claims of the staff at the site and said that the work will positively be complete within the set deadline.
“The construction work of the planetarium is going on in full pace. We have planned to complete the construction and make the planetarium ready for use within the deadline. We will hold the inauguration ceremony on 31 July,” said GSP Gupta, Executive Director of Jharkhand Science, Technology and Innovation Council (JSTIC).
The planetarium will be showcasing shows on planetary bodies comprising of planets, moon and the entire solar system. The main objective of setting up this planetarium is to educate the city folks about the solar system and attract tourists.
“We had a demo show on planets and other celestial bodies at Science City last week to screen through the content and make necessary changes,” said Subodh Kumar, In-Charge of Science City.