How Pune’s amateur astronomy club helped create a sky map for ceiling of new Parliament building’s Constitution Hall

They have contributed to the Constitution Hall ceiling’s sky map, the flooring’s astrolabe pattern and time systems, and the development of content for the Constitution Hall railing, centred around the Foucault Pendulum installation.

According to Ahmedabad-based HCP Design, Planning and Management, the architectural company behind the project, JVP was a part of the DirectCreate team, which was engaged with HCP as a consultant. “DirectCreate collaborated with JVP to incorporate Indian astronomical systems into the art installation design of the Constitution Hall in the New Parliament Building… JVP’s expertise ensured a seamless integration of tradition and scientific accuracy in the building’s aesthetics,” says a statement from HCP Design, Planning and Management.

On the midnight of January 26, 1950, the day the Constitution came into being, the night sky over Delhi showed the planets Mars, Saturn and Uranus, arranged east to west, while Denebola, Regulus, Castor, Pollux, Aldebaran, Capella, Mirfak, Dubhe and Polaris were among the brightest stars.

Using a software called Stellarium, the JVP team created a map of the night sky that is now engraved on brass plates on the ceiling of the Constitution Room. “The Milky Way has been etched, over which the discs of planets and constellations are pasted. The architects gave us the idea and the size of the panels. We gave them a drawing, and they manufactured it. They have done very beautiful work,” says Deshpande.

Founded on August 22, 1944, JVP is the oldest institution of its kind in India. It aims to spread the knowledge of astronomy among the public and encourage a scientific temperament. Its activities include lectures, workshops, exhibitions and publications, as well as events, such as star parties on a Saturday near the new moon, which involves star gazing, telescopic viewing of moon, planets, nebulae, galaxies; slide shows and astro-games.

Star parties are held outside the city while events, such as solar and lunar eclipses, transits and oppositions of planets like Mars, Jupiter and Saturn call for free public programmes in the city.

“We were excited when we were called upon to work with the team of architects and designers on the new Parliament Building,” says Deshpande. While the mapping was not difficult because the experts had a deep knowledge of the sky, they faced the challenge of projecting the circular sky on the triangular shape of the new Parliament building.

“We found that deformations were taking place. We also had to calculate how the depiction of the sky would look when it was seen from the ground. We had to work with these factors and create modifications so that the shape of the constellations could be identified,” says Deshpande.

The project was also conducted in secrecy and drawings were not to be shared with other members of the association either. Only Joshee, the vice-president; Gokhale, the secretary; and Deshpande, another vice-president, knew what was happening. “Even now, we cannot share the drawings. The Parliament has not opened for the public,” says Deshpande.