Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, August 21: The light and sound show at Pathani Samanta Planetarium which started in 2006 has been defunct since 2013 after the entire system was completely damaged by Phailin cyclone.
The 55-minute show is based on the life story of famous King Kharavela. The script was written by Bijay Mishra and was directed by the famous director Asim Basu. Actor Kuna Tripathy did the voice over.
It was the state’s first light and sound show and recently the tourism department has started the show at Dhauli and planning to start it in Konark.
As per sources, around Rs 80 lakh has been sanctioned by the directorate of science and technology for changing the whole system and upgrading the equipment from scratch.
Speaking to Orissa POST, Planetarium engineer Jaidev Kar who is also looking after the light and sound system informed that around Rs 80 lakh has been sanctioned by the government to reinstall a new system and upgrade the show but the Planetarium is waiting for orders to start work.
“The light and show has been defunct since 2013 after Phailin damaged the equipment and other systems. We have sent several letters to the authorities in the science and technology department to look into the matter and restart the show. A committee was formed last year and after thorough discussion it was decided the old sound system would be replaced by a high quality new one,” he added.
Money has been sanctioned but the work is yet to start. The authorities believe that the upgrade process may start in November and, if that happens, visitors would get a chance to enjoy the show by mid-January. “We have already sent a letter to the science and technology department to start the work. The expression of interest has been floated and the tender process will start soon. We are waiting for the order and if we get permission we will start work in one-two weeks,” said Kar. The Planetarium which has a capacity to accommodate around 400 people at a time used to witness a footfall of around 35,000 visitors every year while the show was on.
“Initially, the show was only in Oriya. But now we have decided to dub the show in Hindi and English also. In the near future we are planning to extend the programme and start a new show based on ‘Kanchi Abhiyan’ of Samrat Purushotam Deva for visitors,” he informed.
However, despite the promise that the show would start sometime in December, 2014 the authorities have been unable to prepare the groundwork for the show. The city is looking forward to whether the Planetarium authorities keep their promise this time.