Bhubaneswar: A public auditorium has been inaugurated at the Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra Odissi Research Centre here.

The 200-seat auditorium has green rooms, a VIP lounge, a guest room, a generator and an open-air cafeteria.

"The auditorium will attract more people to the attend the centre's cultural programmes. The ambience of the auditorium is very soothing. Special care has been taken to build the stage," said head of the institution Sangita Gosain.

The lighting system - including dramatic and spot lights - and the digital sound system have been installed by a leading brand.

"It is located on the main road at Jayadev Vihar. So, it would be very easy for the audience to locate the auditorium. Since this is the only public auditorium in the area, it will attract a lot of local people," she added.

There are facilities for two and four-wheeler parking. All the events of the centre will be hosted at the auditorium.

Lack of public auditoriums has been a problem for culture enthusiasts since a very long time.

"We have been facing a lot of difficulties while organising events, especially during the festive season, because of the lack of auditoriums. Most of the halls are booked by big organisations. This new auditorium will be a big help for us," said Odissi dancer Anuja Satpathy.

At present, there are three major auditoriums in the city - Jaydev Bhavan, Rabindra Mandap and Bhanja Kala Mandap - where events are hosted regularly.

This apart, there is also a 100-seater auditorium on the premises of Utkal Sangeet Mahavidyalay.