South Park Street
Cemetery
This cemetery is situated at the
Park Street. It was constructed in 1767 to accommodate the large
number of the British people who died for their country. There are many heavily
inscribed head stones, pyramids, urns and obelisks. The tombs of Col Kyd , Sir
Thomas D'Oyly, the British Member of Parliament in early 18th century and
Sir Willam Jones, the founder of Botanical Garden and the great oriental
scholar can be seen here.
Victoria
Memorial
This is one of India's most beautiful monument built between 1906 and
1921 on the lines of white marble. It stands on the southern side of the
maidan (ground) near Jawaharlal Nehru Road. All monuments of this memorial were
designed in Italian Renaissance-Mughal style and build of white marble
from Rajasthan. Read more...
Howrah Bridge
It
is considered to be an engineering marvel, which took six years to
construct in the 1940s. Over 2,590 metric tonnes of high tensile
steel make up this unique cantilever bridge that joins the main Railway
Station (for Calcutta) and the industrial city of Howrah with the city of
Calcutta. Supported by two piers, each nearly 90 meters in height above
the road level, the bridge has a span of almost 500 meters (no pillars in
the middle). It was opened in 1943 and today it is one of the busiest
bridges in the world. It is the third largest bridge in the world, has
around 2 million people crossing over it daily. Visible from many places
in Calcutta, the bridge is called 'Rabindra Setu'.
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Marble Palace
Marble Palace is located on C R Avenue in north Calcutta at Muktaram Babu
Street. This
palace was constructed by Raja Rajendra Mullick Bahadur in 1835. Italian
marble was lavishly used to complete its construction. This palace
set behind a large lawn has the sculptures of Jesus Christ, the Virgin
Mary, Hindu Gods, the Buddha and Christopher Columbus. A large pool near
the small granite bungalow has ducks, peacocks and ostriches. The rooms
have hundreds of statues and oriental urns. The walls of these rooms
are covered with enormous paintings and mirrors. Gigantic chandeliers
hang on its ceilings. The lamps on the stair cases are detailed creations. Entry -
fre (you must get a pass from the West Bengal Tourist office 24 hours
in advance) Visit : on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Monday and Thursday are holidays. Opens from 1000 to 1600.
Contact
6 Muktaram Babu St
Barabazar-700007
Ph: 033-22693310
Kumartuli
It is at Chitpur Road. Many Kumars or potters
work here to create millions of clay images that serve as idols for
Calcutta's never-ending season of festivals.
BBD Bagh (Dalhousie
Square)
It is locates just south of Howrah Bridge. Dalhousie
Square which is renamed after Three Martyrs of Bengal, Binay, Badal & Dinesh
was created in the heart of the imperial capital of Calcutta. The tank in the
centre, fed by natural springs, is said to have supplied Charnock with drinking
water. There are many historical buildings, which surround the square. The
northern side is occupied by Writers' Building. To the east are commercial
houses and the West Bengal Government Tourist Bureau. On the southern side is
Raj Bhavan, residence of the Governor. Beside that are the State Legislative
Assembly House and the Calcutta High Court. St John's Cathedral, which close to
Raj Bhavan is the oldest church in Calcutta. On the western side is the imposing
white domed General Post Office, next to which is the Reserve Bank of India
building. Netaji Subhash Road is the centre of the onetime English commercial
houses which today flourish in Indian hands. Lyon's Range stock exchange, behind
Clive Street, is worth a visit for a glimpse of the frenzied dealing in shares,
periodically erupting onto the street.
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Fort William
It is situated on the east bank of the river Hooghly and was named after
King William III of England. It is
surrounded by a 50ft high moat. It was built in 1757 after Robert Clive's
victory at Plassey over Siraj ud-Daula. This fort was completed to
prevent attacks from Muslim invaders. The fort walls, barracks, stables
and the church of St. Peter are still intact. The area cleared around Fort
William became the Maidan. In the fort, there is a church, market, post
and telegraph office, cinema, swimming pool, boxing stadium, football and
firing range. The Arsenal inside is worth visiting for which a prior
permission is required from the Commanding Officer.
Contact
47 48 R N Roychow Ghat Rd
Shibpur- 711102
Ph: 033-26605594
Ochterlony
Monument
It is at J.L. Nehru Road. This 148 ft pillar stands on the north end
of the Maidan. It commemorates the victory of Sir David Ochterlony in
Nepal. Its peculiarity is that its cupola is build in Turkish style,
the column in Syrian style and the base in Egyptian style.
Academy of Fine Arts
It is a site of visual arts and Bengali theatre, situated near Victoria
Memorial. It is established in 1933. It's permanent galleries
include medieval Bengali and Indian miniature paintings, textiles and
excellent specimens of old hand-woven Daccai and Baluchari saris. A Jamini
Roy collection and Desmond Doig's pen and ink sketches of Calcutta's
nostalgic landmark, are also on view. Local theatre and dance programs are
performed in a hall, which has a stage. The Rabindra gallery contains
paintings and manuscripts of the great man of letters. Its galleries are
open daily from 3 PM to 8 PM (except the Rabindra Gallery - 12PM to 6 PM
daily, closed on Mondays).
Contact
Academy of Fine Arts
Cathedral Rd, Park Street-700016
Ph: 022-22234302, 22232302
Nirmal
Hirday (Pure Heart)
It is the headquarters of the
Missionaries of Charity situated at 54A A. J.C.Bose Road. It was Mother
Teresa's first home for serving destitute and dying people. Now this organization has spread
world wide. This
organization is taking care of the people abandoned by society.
Contact
Mother Teressas Home
Nirmal Hriday
251 Kalighat Rd,
Kalighat-700026
Ph: 033-2464423
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Science City
Science City, which is located on Calcutta's Eastern Metropolitan By Pass,
is an area of knowledge and adventure. This 21st Century marvel of
science, communication and environment is the first and only institution
of it's kind in India and has a Space Theatre. The main attraction of the
Science City is the Space Flight, Dinosaurs Alive, Dynamotion, Life in
Water, a world of Insects and Reptiles, walkthrough Aviary, Butterfly
corner, Convention Centre, four seminar halls, Mini Auditorium, Musical
fountain etc. This convention centre complex has a 2215 person capacity
main auditorium, 40 capacity mini auditorium and 8 seminar halls. It
is open to public every day from 9AM to 9PM (Even on public holidays).
Shantiniketan
Shantiniketan was founded by Maharshi
Debendranath Tagore, the father of Rabindranath Tagore. In 1901
Rabindranath Tagore started an experimental place of learning with a 'class
room' under the trees, and a group of five pupils. This class room that he
started later became the 'Vishva Bharati University in 1921. This university attracts
pupil from all over the world and aspires to be a spiritual meeting ground in a serene
environment. It has the faculties in all major disciplines like humanities, agriculture, cottage
industries, Indian Music and Drama, performing arts, Philosophy, Sanskrit and
art. An interesting feature of this university is that the sculptures,
paintings, murals and frescoes are found around the campus. It has the
paintings of Rabindranath and Nandalal Bose and sculptures of Ramkinkar.
Birla Mandir
It is located on Asutosh Chowdhury Avenue. It is the latest addition to
the places of visit in Calcutta. It wad Build over twenty-two years of
painstaking labor; it is an all-marble structure with very high quality
rajasthani engravings. It attracts huge crowds and is splendid and
imposing structure in white.
Calcutta High Court
It is situated at old post office street, near Eden Gardens. It is the
highest seat of judiciary in West Bengal with tower of 54 metres height.
It isone of the oldest buildings in India (constructed in 1872 by Walter
Granville, the then architect to the Government of India.). It is built in
the Gothic style of architecture, a later extension retaining the same
architectural symmetry. Chief justice court, session court, bar library,
attorney Library inside the High Court.
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Metro Railway
The
Metro system or the Under ground Railway Network in Calcutta started about 20
years ago. It is very clean and run efficiently. It starts from Tollygunge to Dum
Dum. It is the only under ground railway in India.
Dhakuria Lake
It is an artificial lake in Ballygunge, which is in South Calcutta on
Southern Avenue. It comprises a rowing club, safari garden children's park
and play center (lily pool) an open air theatre Mukta Manch, swimming pool
training Centres, etc.
Eden Gardens Stadium
Alongside the Eden Gardens is the world famous Eden Gardens Cricket
Stadium. The stadium is supposed to be the largest in Asia with a seating
capacity of more than lakh spectators. It was one of the first cricket
stadiums in India where floodlights were installed and Day & Night
cricket was played. The gigantic electronic scoreboard is also one of its
kinds in the country. The stadium has had the privilege of hosting the
most important of matches like World Cup Finals 1987, World Cup Semi
Finals 1996, Hero Cup and many other tournaments.
Nalban Boating Complex
It is located at the heart of Salt Lake City, just 12 Km away from the
Central Calcutta. It is a beautiful picnic spot for families, who would
like to spend few hours in the quiet greenery, tucked away from the hustle
and bustle of city life. It's unpolluted environment offers a soothing
effect to the visitors. The Main attraction of this place is the four
hundred acre picturesque lake with various kinds of boating facilities
like paddle boats, shikaras etc.
Raj Bhawan
It is now the residence of the Governor was once the residence of the
Governor-General of India. Based on an idea of the then Governor-General,
Marquis of Wellesley, the building was modeled to resemble Lord Curzon's
ancestral home - Kedleston Hall. It is situated in a fine enclosure of 6
acres standing back of the Maidan. The throne of Tipu Sultan is inside the
building and the room where it is placed is called the "Throne
room". The splendid ballroom whose floor is of polished teak is also
worth seeing.
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Saheed Minar
This 165 ft high monument similar to Qutab Minar of Delhi was erected
by public subscription in 1828, to honour Sir David Ochter Lony, a one-
time resident of Malwa & Rajputana. More recently, it has now been
renamed 'Shaheed Minar' to honour the martyrs of the freedom struggle. An
important landmark in Calcutta. It is located at the Northern end of the
Maidan.
Salt Lake Stadium
Salt Lake Stadium also known as Yuba Bharati Krirangan, is situated
approximately 10 km. from the city centre.It has a seating capacity of
1,25,000 Persons and is elliptical in shape. The roof is made of strong
flow-coat tubes and aluminium sheets. There are two electronic score
boards and control rooms. The lighting is uniformly distributed to enable
sports by night. There are special arrangements for TV board casting.
Vidyasagar Setu
Vidyasagar Setu is a modern day engineering marvel and is the largest
cable stayed bridge in Asia. Near the Race Course, It is the imposing and
ultra-modern Second Hoogly Bridge. The bridge connects the twin cities
of Calcutta and Howrah. It was inaugurated in the year 1992. It was built
at a cost of Rs. 388 crores. It is capable of handling around, 85,000
vehicles daily on 9 lanes. A beautiful bridge that spans the Hooghly, it
has been built to ease the load off existing Howrah Bridge. It affords a
panoramic view of the Calcutta skyline.
Writers' Building
This was, till the mid - 19th century, the place of residence for the
junior servants (who were called writers of the East India Company). The
original building was constructed in 1770 on the same site as the present
one, but it was plain stuccoes and with no pretensions to architectural
beauty. The present Gothic structure built during the tenure of Lt.
Governor Ashley Eden (1877) is much more imposing than the original ever
was. Situated at the northern end of Dalhousie Square, it now houses the
Secretariat of West Bengal Government.
Contact:
Secretary Sunil Mitra
Writers' Building
Ph: 011-22145601
