Cuttack, April 16: The municipal corporation has decided to renovate Saheed Bhavan, one of the oldest auditoriums in the city. It was built in 1961.

Efforts are on to build a modern auditorium on the first floor of Saheed Bhavan, which is now lying unutilised. According to the new proposal, seating arrangements for nearly 500 people will be made at the new auditorium and it will also have special galleries.

“We plan to build a new auditorium in the Saheed Bhavan complex. The proposal is likely to be finalised shortly,” said mayor Saumendra Ghose.

Executive engineer of Cuttack Municipal Corporation (cmc) Lalit Mohan Das said the initial groundwork, including design and interiors, had been prepared. The cost of building the new auditorium has been pegged at Rs 85 lakh.

A CMC official said the seating capacity of the complex will increase to 1,000 after the modern auditorium is constructed. At present, various cultural programmes are held on the ground, which seats 693 people.

“We welcome the proposal for another auditorium within the existing Saheed Bhavan,” said CMC planning committee chairman Durga Charan Sahoo.

Earlier, minor renovations were carried out by the corporation, including the installation of air-conditioners in 1985. In 2010, repairs worth Rs 1.5 crore was carried out. The complex was beautified and the stage was renovated during that time.

Nearly 150 events are held at Saheed Bhavan every year. The CMC charges around Rs 12,500 as rent for holding a programme at the venue.

Residents said the decision to build another auditorium was a good one as it would solve the shortage of venues to host cultural events to some extent. “When the hall is ready, two programmes can be held simultaneously at Saheed Bhavan and at least four events can be held in a day,” said resident Sagar Routray.

Some others feel that the shortage of parking facilities at Saheed Bhavan could create problems for visitors.

However, CMC officials said they were trying to generate more parking space at the complex.