The Maritime Museum in Cuttack. Telegraph picture

Cuttack, Sept. 10: In a bid to attract more visitors, a three-dimensional (3D) theatre will come up shortly at Odisha State Maritime Museum in Jobra.

The decision to have the facility was taken at a high-level meeting of the governing body held last week, museum director Basudev Mohapatra said. The state government, too, has given its nod.

The blueprint of the 16-seater 3D theatre will soon be prepared and it is likely to be completed within a year.

“There is a proposal for a 3D theatre at the maritime museum and the work is expected to start shortly,” said Mohapatra.

The state government has decided to sanction Rs 8 crore to the existing corpus fund for the overall development of the maritime museum.

A Calcutta-based company has already visited the museum and proposals of other private players would be considered while inviting tenders for the theatre, official sources said. “There is a 3D theatre in Bhubaneswar and it will be for the first time that a similar facility will be available in Cuttack. This will attract more visitors to the city,” said Amit Jha, a resident of Jhola Sahi.

Over a lakh visitors have already visited the museum inaugurated by chief minister Naveen Patnaik in 2013.

It has 10 galleries, showcasing the rich maritime history of the state.

Besides, an aquarium has recently been added to the unit. Over 60 aquatic species have been kept in the aquarium that was inaugurated on August 21.

Various tools, machines, boats, which were earlier used, have been kept at the workshop, maritime history and boat building galleries.

Besides, there is a dedicated section on the ancient maritime rituals that were performed by sadhabas (sailors) before they went on a voyage to Bali, Java and Sumatra.

The Jobra Maritime Museum, which was a navigational workshop set up by the Britishers, was converted into a museum after the foundation stone was laid in 2007.

Most of the navigational tools exhibited at the museum have been collected from various places of the country and world by Indian National Trust for Art and Culture (Intach).