Bihar college astronomy lab on Unesco heritage list

Tags: State News

UNESCO has included the 106-year-old astronomical observatory at Langat Singh College in Muzaffarpur, Bihar, in the list of important endangered heritage observatories of the world.

Important facts 

• The observatory was built in 1916 in the 123-year-old college, which is now affiliated to the Bhim Rao Ambedkar Bihar University.

• Probably the first planetarium in India was also established in the college in 1946.

• The observatory and planetarium were functioning satisfactorily until the early 1970s. But gradually their use started decreasing over time.

• At present, it is lying completely idle and most of the expensive machines in the observatory have either disappeared or become junk.

What is the List of World Heritage in Danger?

• The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) compiles the List of World Heritage in Danger.

• The list includes world heritage sites that are under threat from various conditions such as natural disasters, armed conflicts, wars, pollution, uncontrolled urbanization, poaching and uninterrupted tourist development.