The death of a Hawker in Calcutta – Who is Responsible?
Posted by Calcutta Board in Calcutta/Kolkata Jun 23rd, 2008 | 3 CommentsHawker is not an English word! However it is a very common tern in Calcutta. In 1996, the left front government started the “Operation Sunshine” to eradicate hawkers from the Calcutta’s pavements. During the clean up even by Calcutta Municipal Corporation (CMC) about 1640 stalls were ransacked, looted, set on fire and razed to the ground. 102 hawkers were arrested.
Facts:
1. Hawkers in Kolkata numbering 275,000 generated business worth Rs. 8,772 crore (around 2 billion U.S. dollars) in 2005.
2. Almost 80 per cent of the pavements in Calcutta were encroached by hawkers and illegal settlers
Why?
Polulation is Calcutta has grown dramatically in last several decades. The extreme polpulation growth did not offer everybody a better life. Instend, like many other urban cities in India, the new population found themselves surrounded by huge poverty. The 1951 census found that only 33.2 percent of Kolkata’s inhabitants were city-born, the rest were immigrants: 12.3 percent were from elsewhere in West Bengal, 26.6 percent from other Indian states, and 26.9 percent from East Pakistan. In 1981, the Government of West Bengal estimated the total number of persons displaced from East Bengal to the state to be around 8 million or one sixth of the total population of the state. Several million refugees settled in the outskirts of Kolkata.
While the economy of Kolkata has been sliding backwards in many respects, there has been remarkable expansion in certain areas – real estate, information technology and retail trade. Big shopping centres have come up, and along with it there has been a large increase in small shops and pavement stalls. INOX like movie complexes are setting the trend in Calcutta Life. Several Night Clubs are keeping the calcuttans awake even late at night. Tata Nano is also reacing the middle class families.
Even after all of our improvents in terms of buildings and shopping complexes and fly-overs, there are still a great many people who has no job. There are too many young fellw with a bachelors degree looking for work. With more people, there exist more competetion. It is not uncommon to receive 100s of applications for only a mere 5000 rupess/month job in Calcutta. So, people are still exploring other options. When they are left with nothing, the choose Hawking as an option.
We see hawkers everywhere. They are at the streets selling cloths, books (think about College Square), food products (Futchka, Jhalmuri etc), electronics (Cameras, Watches, CDs, Movies, etc) and what not. But even being a hawker is not an easy job. There are too many hawkers selling too many products. Sometimes some of the vital sopts in the city are already booked by old hawkers too. Sometimes the Hawkers Association also have few things to say. So people have long started exploring various places apart from the city pavements in Calcutta. In local trains to Howrah or Sealdah, you will pretty much find every kind of products during your short journey including soap, tooth-paste, tooth brush, weighing machine, choths, foods, vegetables and what not.
Those hawkers hardly get any rest. They compete with other hawkers in the same compartment in the train. They sale their products cheap and does not make enough money compared to the hardship they have to take to earn their livelihood. They have also spread in buses for quite some time. Few months back, I read a news about a hawker selling some product in “Metro Rail” in Calcutta that made people mad!
They need some soft corner and some help from us. They are not stealing. They are just trying very hard to live and support their family. I am writng this long article in a very sad mood as I read about the death of a yong hawker today in one of the most read bengali newspaper. They reported that the death was not natural. The poor lad was late in catching the train. He tried to jump into a ladies compartment in hurry, but the ladies did not allow this 22 year old lad and pushed him outsite. He fell, lost his balance, cut both of his legs and finally died.
Who should we blame for the death of an innocent hawker? Lets see.
1. Hawking is illegal or you need some hawker ID from the hawker association.
2. Ladies compartments are “ladies” only.
3. Pushing a person outside the compartment is murder.
I am not sure who should we blame. If the ladies pushed him, there might have been some reason. They might have been harassed by some other hawker previously. Still, pushing somebody from a running train is simply inhumane. If you think deeper you will feel that it is also a fault of out city, we are not able to produce enjough jobs. We are failing to provide better life to millions of people. Are there are political reasons? Are there educational issues? I don’t know. But we desperately need a better city with no loss of young life. Lets pay some respect to the young hawker and learn a lesson from this incident and hope for a better future in Calcutta lifestyle.
References: I have partially used the reference for wring this article.
Calcutta Picture of The Day
Posted by Calcutta Board in Calcutta/Kolkata Jun 18th, 2008 | 1 CommentA view from atop the footbridge in VIP Road, Calcutta.
Missing Calcutta? Well see some more pictures at http://calcuttaglobalchat.net/photogallery
B.B.D Bagh – Dalhausi Square – Calcutta
Posted by Calcutta Board in Calcutta/Kolkata May 28th, 2008 | No CommentsB.B.D Bag is the shot form of “Binay-Badal-Dinesh Bagh”. The plase used to be known as Dalhousie Square and still you will see people referring BBD BAG as Dalhousie. This is a central business location in the heart of Calcutta (Kolkata) and close to “Dharmatala” of course! Binay , Badal and Dinesh all were freedom fighters and known for their courage. On December 8, 1930, they shot the inspector general of prison N.S Simpson. The BBD Bag was named after Lord Dalhousie, the Governor of West Bengal from 1947 to 1956. a
Did you know?
- BBD Bag was also known as “The Green Before the Court” and ” The Tank Square“?
- BBD Bag was heart of Kalikata or white town in old time?
- BBD Bagh has been declared among the top 100 endangered sites in the world?
- St. John’s Church is the OLDEST masonry in Calcutta?
Check out the Comple BBD BAGH photo Gallery at http://calcuttans.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=5124
Find more information from BBD BAG Wiki
Map Of BBD BAG Kolkata: (
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if you need more map, go to the end of the post and download recommended google software package!)
Agri Horticulture Garden – Calcutta (Kolkata): City Guide
Posted by DhumKetu in Calcutta/Kolkata May 10th, 2008 | 4 Comments(The Agri – Horticulture Society of India)
Picture: Flower at Agri Horticulture Garden, Calcutta (Kolkata)
Address: 1 Alipore Road, Calcutta, 700 027, West Bengal, India
Phone Number: 91-33-2479-1713/0834
Fax: 91-33-2479-3580
Email: ashi@vsnl.com
Website: http://www.agrihorticultureindia.com/
Area of Garden: 21 Acres
Hours of operation: 7 am to 11 am and 1:30 pm to 5 pm. Closed on Wednesday upto 11 am, on Thursday only open from 9 am to 1:30 pm
Bus Route: No 31, 35
Picture: Flower at Agri Horticulture Garden, Calcutta (Kolkata)The Agri Horticultural Society of India was founded in 1820 by William Carey on the Alipore Road, Kolkata. The objective was to develop and promote agriculture and horticulture in India. In course of time, the Agri Horticulture Society has already made numerous unique achievements such as introduction of various new kinds of cereals, cash crops, fruits, vegetables, flowers and more. The society also received “Royal” award by King George V in 1935. The agri-horticulture society is oldest of it’s kind in Calcutta. Membership is available to all irrespective of sex, language, race and nationality. Sri BK Nahata is the current president of Agri-Horticulture Society and you may find other council members here.
The Society offers various kinds of activities such as “Cactus and Students show”, “Foliage Plants Show”, “Home Growing Competition”, “Annual Flower Show” and more. In addition to these various shows, they also have various seminars and exhibitions. They also offers diploma via 1 year educational training course which includes “home gardening”, “bonsai production”, “mushroom culture” and more.
They also have various products and services to meet your needs starting at the basic gardening level. They offer genuine plants, plant protection chemicals, manures and fertilizers, pots, flower vase, books and many more.
They have nice parks and fields with eye soothing flowers and trees. It would be great to visit Agri-Horticulture garden with children and family. Specially during the flowers show visitors from various parts of the world come to visit the society. You should visit their official website for more information. Their official website is very well organized with loads of information.
Picture: Flower at Agri Horticulture Garden, Calcutta (Kolkata)
Picture: Flower at Agri Horticulture Garden, Calcutta (Kolkata)
Academy of Indian Coins and History – Calcutta (Kolkata): City Guide
Posted by DhumKetu in Calcutta/Kolkata May 10th, 2008 | 4 CommentsAddress: 361/B, Rabindra Sarani
Admission Fee: FREE
Photography: Strictly prohibited
Visiting Hour: 11 am to 1 pm.
The Academy of Indian coins and History, as the name suggests, is a gallery of ancient Indian coins. Ancient coins have been frequently used to interpret the ancient history. The history of coins extends from ancient times to the present. Coins are still widely used for monetary and other purposes. Any history of coins is going to be very incomplete, money being a central theme in human history since its invention. A varieties of Indian coins can be found online at World Coin Gallery.
They include :
- Amman Cash (1889)
- Anna (1940)
- Pai (1887-1890)
- Paisa (1891-1893)
- Rupee (1894-1899)
- Trambiyo (1908-1910)
- Dokdo (1928,1929)
- Dokda (1928-1932)
- Dhinglo (1943-1948)
- Payalo (1943-1947)
- Adhio (1943-1946)
- Kori (1928-1936)
- Chuckram (1938-1949)
and many many more.
The study of coins is called “numismatics” and a very interesting way to interpret history. It also tells you a lot about the economy of a particular period. Modern numismatics is the study of the coins of the mid 17th to the 21st century, the period of machine struck coins. Their study serves more the need of collectors than historians and it is more often successfully pursued by amateur aficionados than by professional scholars. The focus of modern numismatics lies frequently in the research of production and use of money in historical contexts using mint or other records in order to determine the relative rarity of the coins they study. Varieties, mint-made errors, the results of progressive die wear, mintage figures and even the socio-political context of coin mintings are also matters of interest (Source).
The academy of Indian Coins and History would be specially exciting for you if you are a student of history or simply love history a lot. A lot of coin collectors visit the gallery too.
There are numerous public transport available to get to the Academy of Coins and History at Calcutta (Kolkata) such as local bus, mini bus, taxi and so on. If you are traveling on metro rail, your nearest metro station is Rabindra Sadan.
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Academy of Fine Arts – Calcutta (Kolkata): City Guide
Posted by DhumKetu in Calcutta/Kolkata May 7th, 2008 | 2 CommentsPhone No: 2223- 4302
Calcutta (Kolkata) had always been very proud of the “Academy of Fine Arts” for it’s heritage, culture, fame, recognition and what not! The Academy of Fine Arts is one of the oldest and finest art society in the country and known to the world. The Academy of Fine Arts is also proud of having biggest gallery space in India. There are eight galleries on the ground floor. The first floor contain a large museum with displaying collection of various types of art works. The second floor was added in 1980 as an extension to the museum to display various ever growing exhibits. The Academy of Fine Arts display exhibitions by artists from various parts of India and abroad.
The gallery of Contemporary Art contain various paintings and sculptures of India from early nineteen hundred to the present by various renowned artists like:
- Acharya Abanindranath Tagore
- Gaganedra Nath Tagore
- Nandalal Bose
- Asit Kumar Haldar
- Kshitin Mazumdar
- Samar Gupta
- Benod Behari Mukherjee
- Sarada Ukil
- Sudhir Khastagir
- Ram Kinkar Beij and many more.
The Gallery of Old Textiles is also very famous for it’s classic collection of rare pieces of old textiles from various parts of India.
The Gallery of Miniature Painting is known for an unique collection of miniature paintings with the “Ram-Sita” theme and another “Raag Mala” Series of paintings containing 33 art-work!
The Carpet Gallery is probably the only gallery displaying carpets from various parts of India and donated by various people over time.
Picture: Statue outside Academy of Fine Arts in Calcutta
There are also Gallery of Engravings, Gallery of contemporary Graphics and Line Drawings too. There is an air conditioned auditorium and they also arrange lectures, and Symposia, publish bulletins, booklets , catalogues and literature on art matters.
For more information about the Academy of Fine Arts in Calcutta (Kolkata) West Bengal along with various rare pictures and history, please visit the site.
Picture: Gallery at the Academy of Fine Arts in Calcutta
Picture: Statue outside of the Academy of Fine Arts in Calcutta
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Aquatica – Water Theme Park – Calcutta (Kolkata): City Guide
Posted by DhumKetu in Calcutta/Kolkata May 7th, 2008 | 48 CommentsPicture: Aquatica – Water Theme Park in Calcutta
Aquatica is the craziest and busiest place specially during this hot days we are experience in the city. Aquatica water theme park is located at Kochpukur, near Rajarhat, 8 kms from Kestopur on V I P Road. Aquatica is crafted in line with Mumbai’s famous “Water Kingdom”. Aquatica water theme park in Kolkata is only 6 km away from the famous Nicco Park or Nalban and contain about 8 acre area. The park was inaugurated on 22nd July, 2000. Previous to aquatica only Nicco Park had some water sports like “water slide”, “water chute” etc other than boating. Aquatica offers a great fun place to be anytime and specially a great chilling place during hot days. Since it’s inauguration in 2000, the Aquatica has been a nice hang out place for the young generation in Calcutta. The Aquatica is entirely colorful in it’s decorationand there are three attractive towers with multicolor flags. The water is not too deep to ensure safety, so even if you don’t know swimming, you can still be there. The also have safety people on guard. They have a thrilling “rafting” ride through artificial mountain river which is one of the most famous entertainment at the park. There are many rides such as ” To n Fro” , “Surf Racer”, “Drought Shout” and “Mississippi ride“. Aqua wave pool is another popular place over there. The waves in the pool periodically change from turbulent flow to calm. The also have a beautiful wet dance floor “aqua floor” which provide rain dance with non stop music. If you are a game person, they have a nice big “pool” table for you. “Steam and Shower” is another famous spot at Aquatica. The park is open till late in the evening. Entry fees are not too bad considering the amount of fun you get out of the water theme park. This is a great place to go with kids and family and spend a day without any headache!
Picture: Aquatica Water Falls- Water Theme Park in Calcutta
Entry fee: Rs. 100/- for Adult and Rs. 70/ for Kid.
Timing:- 9 a.m. till 6.30 p.m.
Picture: Aquatica Water Falls – Water Theme Park in Calcutta
Picture: Aquatica Water Slide- Water Theme Park in Calcutta
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