The city would get its maiden digital planetarium by 2015. The construction work for developing the facility at Sri Krishna Science Centre has started.

The structure of the digital planetarium would be ready in 21 months. Rs 3.26 crore would be spent on its construction.

Pradipta Mukhopadhyay, the project co-ordinator of Sri Krishna Science Centre, told The Telegraph: “Our parent body — National Council of Science Museums (NCSM) — has given us 21 months’ time for completing the civil work of the digital planetarium project. Funds to the tune of Rs 3.26 crore have been allotted for its construction. The first instalment of Rs 78 lakh, to be utilised by the end of the ongoing financial year (March 31, 2012), has been released. If things go according to the plan, the construction work would be over in two years. The installation of equipment would take another year.”

The district administration approved the digital planetarium project in October. Patna Municipal Corporation and Bihar Fire Services have also cleared it.

The planetarium is being constructed on the north- eastern side of Sri Krishna Science Centre, on the site of the recently demolished Sri Krishna Gyan Mandir. The project area has been barricaded and earth- works are being done at present.

“Apart from the usual planetarium shows, the facility would act as an astronomy centre, where various aspects of astronomy would be explained to the visitors,” said Mukhopadhyay.

Explaining the structure of the proposed planetarium block, he said: “The first and the second floors of the building would have two exhibition galleries spread over 6,000sqft. The digital planetarium would be on the top floor. Its roof would be dome-shaped. The fully air-conditioned planetarium would have around 200 seats.”