Children flocking to planetarium

The Regional Science Centre (RSC) and Planetarium, Kozhikode is having the highest ever number of visitors this financial year (April 1, 2006 to March 31, 2007).

"Already for the period from April 1, 2006 to January 15, 2007, 2,01,500 visitors visited the RSC and Planetarium. During the same period last year, 1,20,000 visitors visited the RSC. We have another two-and-a-half months to go. We expect 3.2 lakh visitors when the current financial year ends by March 31, 2007. When this mark is achieved, the RSC and Planetarium will be having the highest ever number of visitors in its history," says V.S. Ramachandran, project coordinator of the Centre.

There is reason for cheer. The school season begins from January. Generally RSC has two seasons when it witnesses heavy rush of schoolchildren. High school students visit in large numbers during October-December. Students of lower primary (LP) and upper primary (UP) sections visit the centre from January to April every year. Every year, 75 per cent of the visitors to the RSC are school students.

Mr. Ramachandran says that even Science Centres in metro cities were not crossing the two-lakh visitors mark annually. For the last four years, RSC at Kozhikode has been having more than two lakh visitors every year. Interestingly, the ongoing Malabar Shopping Festival has contributed to the rush.

`Embryo,' the ongoing two-month long medical exhibition organised by the Calicut Medical College in connection with its golden jubilee celebrations is perhaps another reason that has contributed to the increase in the number of visitors to the RSC. "Many of the tour packages include RSC as a must-see. Earlier, it was thought that other tourist or entertainment sites would offer a competition to the RSC. But our experience show that the number of visitors have only increased," says Mr. Ramachandran.

RSC would inaugurate another facility on February 3. Education Minister M.A. Baby will inaugurate the `Hall of human endurance' at the Centre at 11 a.m. on that day. The 6000 square feet gallery has been built at a cost of Rs.50 lakh. There will be 34 working models there.

P. Sathidevi, MP, had inaugurated a new 3-D film show on January 11. Due to the heavy rush the RSC is screening the 3-D and planetarium shows every 30 minutes from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily.