A BRIEF ON KOLKATA Kolkata, formerly known as Calcutta is the capital of West Bengal and is located on the east bank of River Hooghly. The city was a colonial city developed by the British East India Company and then by the British Empire. Kolkata was the capital of the British Indian empire until 1911 when the capital was relocated to Delhi. Known as the “Cultural Capital of India” , City of palaces , the “City of Joy”. City of Palaces comes from the numerous palatial mansions built all over the city and City of Joy comes from the lively and friendly and loving behavior of all the citizens making the city more lively and enjoyable. Kolkata has also been home to prominent people such as Sri Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa, Maa Sarada Devi, Swami Vivekananda, Rabindranath Tagore, Subhash Chandra Bose, Kazi Nazrul Islam, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Mother Teresa , Satyajit Ray, Uttam kumar etc.

PLACES OF INTEREST

Museums and Libraries:

Victoria Memorial : Lord Curzon’s brainchild as a memorial to the Queen of the United Kingdom, Queen Victoria after her death in 1902, the Victoria Memorial was commissioned in 1906.

The Indian Museum : the largest museum in Asia and the oldest in the Asia-Pacific region established in 1814

The Marble Palace : privately owned collection of eclectic sculptures, paintings and a small menagerie and aviary . Built by Raja Rajendra Mullick in 1835.

Birla Industrial & Technological Museum : inaugurated in 1959 as the first popular science museum in Asia.

Science City: A complex featuring a lot of interactive science and live bioscience exhibits.

The Jorasanko Thakur Bari : the ancestral home of the Tagore family and was converted into a museum in 1961.

National Library of India : India’s leading library, inaugurated in 1836 by the Governor General Lord Metcalfe.

M P Birla Planetarium : Came into existence in 1962 and officially opened to the public by Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru in 1963. It was first of its kind in whole of India and the mightiest in entire Asia. An asset understanding the different sorts of phenomenon that take place in the ever so mysterious space.

Compilation by Mr. Dilip Kr. Dutta1

Administrative Offices of British era :

Calcutta High Court : the oldest High Court in India. It was established on 1st July, 1862.

Raj Bhavan (Governor’s House) : built in the early 19th Century. The house was once the seat of the viceroys of India

Town Hall : built by the architect Col. John Garstin in 1813.

Writers’ Building : the secretariat building of the State Government of West Bengal . Today it houses the office of the Chief Minister of West Bengal. Writers’ Building originally served as the office for writers of the British East India Company, hence the name.

General Post Office .

South Eastern Railway Headquarters, Garden Reach.

Howrah station : situated on the west bank of river Hooghly, linked to Kolkata by the magnificent Howrah Bridge, an icon of Kolkata .

Historic Hotels:

The Great Eastern Hotel : born as Auckland Hotel in 1841.

The Grand Hotel : opened as a boarding house in 1870 , acquired by hotelier Mohan Singh Oberoi in 1938, it became the Oberoi Grand.

Parks:

Maidan

Rabindra Sarobar (Lake)

The Indian Botanical Garden : Founded in 1786 is the oldest ‘Botanics’ in India , famous for its 250-year-old, 98-foot-tall banyan tree.

Alipore Zoological Gardens : Founded in the year 1875

Statues and Memorials:

The Saheed Minar or “Tower of the Martyrs”.

Park Street Cemetery.

Compilation by Mr. Dilip Kr. Dutta2

Sports Venues:

Eden Gardens presently one of only two 100,000 seater amphitheatres for the game of cricket (other being Melbourne Cricket ground). The pavilion was built in 1871 and the first 1st. class match played in the season of 1911-12.

Yuva Bharati Krirangan also called the Salt Lake Stadium, is a 122,000 – strong amphitheatre used for soccer matches and concerts

The Netaji Indoor Stadium, adjacent to the Eden Gardens, is a 120,000 seater air-conditioned indoor stadium. Constructed in 1975 to host the World Table Tennis Championships.

Royal Calcutta Golf Club, Tollygunge Club.

Markets and Malls:

New Market : Kolkata’s historic shopping district. Opened in 1874, it was named Hogg Market after the commissioner Sir Stuart Hogg.

The Park Street, Camac Street, Shakespeare Sarani. Gariahat and Shyambazar are other shopping districts.

Forum Mall, Emami Shoppers’ City, Dakshinapan Shopping Centre.

City Centre, South City (the biggest Mall in Eastern India), Metropolis, Avani Riveside, Axis Mall.

Places of Worship:

Dakshineswar Kali Temple, Kalighat Kali Temple, Birla Temple, Belur Math, Tipu Sultan Mosque, St. Paul’s Cathedral, St. John’s Church, Greek Orthodox Church, Guruduwara, Synagogues, Japanese Buddhist Temple.

Bridges:

Rabindra Setu (Howrah Bridge): The Howrah Bridge is a suspension type balanced cantilever bridge commissioned in 1943 and is a famous symbol of Kolkata as well as West Bengal.

Vidyasagar Setu (Second Hooghly Bridge): Commissioned in 1992, it is the longest cable-stayed bridge in India and one of the longest in Asia connecting Kolkata with Howrah.

Compilation by Mr. Dilip Kr. Dutta3

Cultural Heritage:

Nandan: a government sponsored and cultural centre in Kolkata. The primary aim of the cultural hub is to encourage and facilitate cinematic awareness in society. It was inaugurated by Mr Satyajit Ray in 1985

Rabindra Sadan: one of the oldest theatre in Kolkata and its foundation stone was laid by the then Prime Minister of India Mr. Jawahar Lal Nehru in 1961.

Nazrul Manch: It is mainly noted for Dover Lane Music Conference and the open air theatre. The birth of Dover Lane Music Conference dates back to 1952.

Mahajati Sadan: This auditorium was an important part of India's freedom movement, and Rabindra Nath Tagore laid the foundation stone in 1939. Rabindranath Tagore called this auditorium "House of the Nation"

Weather Overview:

Kolkata has a subtropical climate influenced by its proximity to the Bay of Bengal. Weather in Kolkata features scorching hot and humid summers, a rainy season and a cool, dry winter. Kolkata’s three seasons are summer (March to June), monsoon season (mid-June to September) and winter (October to February). Kolkata weather sees summer temperatures of around 34 oC which can rise to 40 oC in May. During December or January temperatures drop to a very pleasant 12 oC.

……………………………….

Compilation by Mr. Dilip Kr. Dutta4