Indira Gandhi Planetarium, Patna ( Patna Planetarium )

Indira Gandhi Planetarium, Patna ( Patna Planetarium )

Indira Gandhi Planetarium is located in Patna's Indira Gandhi Science Complex. Planetarium was constructed through Bihar Council on Science & Technology at a total cost of about Rs. 11 Crores.It was conceptualised in 1989 by Bihar Chief Minister Shree Satyendra Narain Sinha and was inaugurated by Shree Laloo Prasad, the then Chief Minister of Bihar, on March 21, 1993. The Planetarium was dedicated to the Nation and opened for the public from 1 April 1993.It is named after senior Indian National Congress leader and former Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi.
The Patna Planetarium is one of the largest planetariums in Asia. It attracts a large number of domestic as well as foreign tourists. The planetarium has regular film shows on subjects related to astronomy. It also holds exhibitions, which attracts lots of visitors. Patna Planetarium is located on Bailey Road near Income Tax Golambar in Patna within a distance of 8 km from Patna Airport, 1½ km from Patna Railway station, 2 km from Government Bus stand, and 10 km from Private Bus stand.

Museums in Bihar

Bihar is as old as civilisation itself. It is a glorious, colourful and ancient land. This is the land that has seen the mythological king Janaka of Videha, Rishi Yangyabalka of vedic period, Maharshi Valmiki of Ramayan fame and Kautilya, the author of Arthashastra, the first treatise on modern economics. This had been the land where great religious leaders like Buddha, Mahavir and Nanak were born and great kings like Chandragupta Maurya, Ashoka and Sher Sah ruled. The ancient seats of learning - Nalanda and Vikramshila flourished here. `Ahimsa' was propagated from here and Gandhiji launched his civil-disobedience movement against the mighty British.
 A glimpse of all this can be seen by visiting the museums in Bihar. The famous Patna Museum is the oldest establishment among them and it came into existence in 1917. The museum houses about 42,000 items of archeological importance including 22,000 old coins. The museum unveils a long history of the region. The sculpture of a Yakshni and Lord Buddha Relic is a special attraction for visitors.
Patna Museum, Budha Marg, Patna
Jananayak Karpoori Thakur Memorial Museum, 1-Deshratna Marg, Patna  
Chandra Dhari Museum, Darbhanga
Maharaja Lakshmishwar Singh Museum, Darbhanga
Bhagalpur Museum, Bhagalpur
Ramchandra Shahi Museum, Muzaffarpur
Sitaram Upadhayay Museum, Buxar
Chandra Shekhar Singh Museum, Jamui
Chapra Museum, Chapra
Gaya Museum, Gaya
Bihar Sharif Museum, Bihar Sharif (Nalanda)
Nardaha Museum, Nawada

Archaeological Sites in Bihar

Brief description of important archaeological sites/monuments

1. Agam Kuan, Patna

Agam Kuan, considered as Patna's most quaint monument, is famous for its two important relics – both enveloped in the mystery of legends. The first is Agam Kuan (the unfathomable well), the fabled huge well fed with the Ashokan legends. The other is the famous temple of Shitala Devi, the goddess of the smallpox, a associated with lots of miracles.

 The site is situated at a short distance south-west of Gulzarbagh Station. Agam Kuan is a huge well, circular in plan, with a diameter extending over 20'2". It is brick-encased in the upper half of its depth. As many as eight arched windows, all at regular intervals, adorn the well just above the ground and form its most distinctive future.

 The well is 105' deep, as far has been fathomed and recorded. Upto a depth of 44' from the surface, a finely worked brick-casing is envisaged. The lower half, a further depth of 61' is, however, secured by a series of wooden rings.

 The adjacent temple housing the image of Shitala Devi, and the pindas of the 'Saptamatrikas' (the seven mother forms), is widely revered and worshipped not only for containing the small-pox, but for fulfilling all sorts of desires. The site once contained several ancient and medieval sculptures. Of these, at least one was that of the Yaksha of the Mauryan art-affiliation. This is what Cunninghum reported when he visited the site in 1879-80. But we have no idea now of its whereabouts, whatsoever.

 Waddell on his exploration of the ruins of Patliputra during 1890s identified Agam Kuan with the legendary hell built by Ashoka for torturing people as cited by the Chinese travellers of the 5th and 7th centuries A.D. Another legend, still very strong, is that Ashoka threw 99 of his elder brothers in this well after killing them, in order to become king. The site also feeds the Jain legends. The most famous of them is about a Jain Monk Sudarshana who, when thrown into the well by an atrocious king Chand, was found floating over its water seated on the lotus.

 People, at large, believe the well's water to be endowed with miraculous power, and the well auspicious.

2. Durakhi Devi Temple, Patna

This is a detatched member of a carved railing of a stupa. The piece of the stone shows the semi-nude female figures on both of its faces, hence earned the name of 'Durukhi' or 'Durukhiya' (double faced) Devi. It was discovered by Waddell way back in 1890s while excavating the site Kumhrar, which eventually became famous for the unique Pillared Hall built by the Mauryas. Sometime afterwards (no authentic record is available on this count), it was brought down to its present location at Naya Tola (Kankarbagh) about a kilometer west and has been kept in a temple-like shed, where it is being also worshipped.

 This is a fine specimen of the Shunga art of the 2nd-1st Century B.C. As these female figures are shown grabbing and breaking branches of trees with one of their hands, they are considered to be representing the 'Shalabhanjikas' (the breaker of branches), the young women under a ritual associated with fertility, that was popular during the early historic period in this part of India.

A replica of this image is displayed in the Patna Museum's sculptural gallery. A comparable bifacial female figure was accidentally discovered in the recent past from Rajendra Nagar locality in Patna which is also displayed in the same gallery.

3. Choti Patandevi, Patna

This temple is situated in the chowk area of Patna City and once was considered as the main presiding deity of Patna. Over the years it has slipped to the second position of eminence as city's presiding deity, with epithet 'Choti' (smaller) to the more popular one, the Bari (bigger) Patan Devi. But Buchanan's account is very specific in stating that it was this very temple (Choti Patendevi) which held the primary position as the city's presiding deity during 18th and early 19th century.

The present temple does not seem to be of any great antiquity. The images inside the temple, if Buchanan is to be believed, were installed by Man Singh, the famous general of Mughal emperor Akbar. The temple, however, houses a host of intact and severed Brahmanical images, including, Ganesh, Vishnu and Surya. Beyond the temple, but within its precincts, lie in open fragments of door jumbs/lintels and yet other set of images, Of these, an impressive, but broken sun-image is the most conspicuous. It is very likely that some early medieval temple was built here sometime in 9th-11th Century A.D. and these fragmentary stray sculptural/structural relics are only its ruins. Probably, these were reinstalled in a new temple, built during the 16th-17th century by Man Singh. But authentic information on this count is woefully wanting.

4. Begu Hajjam's Mosque, Patna

This has the honour of being the oldest mosque in Patna, which pre-dates the reigns of Mughals. Interestingly, the mosque is named after its reinnovator and not the builder. It is situated in the Khawaja Kalan Ghat Road of Patna City.

The mosque was built by one Khan Muazzam Nazir Khan during the reign of Alauddin Shah Sultan of Gaur (Bengal) in the year 1509-10 A.D. (A.H. 916). Subsequently, in the year 1645 A.D. (A.H. 1056), it was reinnovated by one Begu Hajjam.

The distinctive features of the mosque is its glazed tiles as was popular in Gaur those days. The doorway with fine carvings is another important feature of the mosqueAn inscription affixed in the mosque records details of its construction.

Archaeological Sites:

Agam Kuan * Durakhi Devi Temple * Choti Patandevi * Begu Hajjam's Mosque

Kamaldah Jain Temple * Golghar * Nepali Mandir * Jami Masjid * Chirand * Kandaha Sun Temple

Jalalgarh Fort * Katragarh * Vishnupada Temple * Brahmayoni Hill * Pretshila Hill * Mirabigha

Arrah House * Jagdishpur Fort * Chausagarh * Tomb of Alawal Khan * Shergarh Fort * Masahi

Kheri Hill * Mahmud Shah's Tomb * Munger Fort * Daud Khan Fort * Hazarimal Dharamshala

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