The City Of Joy

Kolkata

Kolkata (spelled Calcutta before 1 January 2001) is the capital city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the second largest city in India after Mumbai. It is on the east bank of the River Hooghly. When it is called Calcutta, it includes the suburbs. This also makes it the world's 8th largest metropolitan area as defined by the United Nations. Kolkata served as the capital of India during the British Raj until 1911. Kolkata was once the center of industry and education. 

Interesting facts of KOLKATA

Whenever we claim of knowing a place perfectly, we basically rejoice in knowing only the locally known facts. None of us actually do a deep research and delve into the not-so-known aspects of the place.Well, let’s do that now, and what’s a better place than Kolkata to start with: the perfect amalgam of old world charm and modernity.

 1.  Move over Mumbai and Bangaluru; in terms of area covered, Kolkata is the second-largest city in India, after New Delhi.

    

       2. To the British rulers, Kolkata, the then Calcutta, was the most important city in India (it was       India’s capital too), and the second most important city of the whole British Empire, after London.

3. You often refer to the city as the “City of joy”, but did you know its other names—“City of palaces”, “City of processions” and the “Cultural capital of India”?

             

4. In terms of the unique trains it daily handles, the Howrah Station is the biggest and Sealdha Station is the busiest  Stations in India.

5. Many Kolkatans might just hate the Alipore Zoological Gardens for being filled with dust, but little do they know about the fact that it has the oldest zoo in the country!

6.  The Howrah Bridge seems to be the identity of the city—but did you know that it’s the one of the largest cantilever bridges in the world, and the largest (and perhaps the only) one in the country? and the Vidyasagar Setu (popularly called the Second Hooghly Bridge), the Vivekananda Setu, and the newly suspended span built Nivedita Setu. With a total length of 823 metres (2,700 ft), Vidyasagar Setu is the longest cable–stayed bridge in India.

7. In Sir Ronald Ross, C.V. Raman, Rabindranath Tagore, Amartya Sen and Mother Teresa, Kolkata has found five brilliant scholars and Nobel laureates — the most in any Asian mainland city (except Tokyo and Kyoto). Satyajit Ray was one of the first Oscar winners in the country.

8. The National Library of India, situated in Kolkata, is the largest public library in the country.

9. Calcutta might not have been the city of princes, but the Calcutta Polo Club is the oldest one in the world! (Estd. 1862)

10. The Royal Calcutta Golf Club is the first golf club ever, outside the United Kingdom.

11. If you’re a cricket buff, then you must know the fact that in terms of seating arrangement, it has Eden Gardens – the 2nd largest in the world. Eden gardens stadium also known as the most luckiest ground for many Legendary cricketers as they have played there many of the best knocks on the ground. it is the second oldest cricket club in the world after MCC: the Mecca of Cricket.)

12. Founded in 1898, the Calcutta Football League is the oldest football tournament in the country, and the second oldest in the world!

13. India might still have to wait long before competing in the Football World Cup or hosting a world cup, but the Salt Lake stadium is surely ready to host such an event, being the second largest football stadium in the world, in terms of seating capacity!

14. Kolkata is a book lover’s paradise. In fact, College Street is widely referred to as the second largest second-hand book market in the world where, if you search properly, you’ll be able to find the first edition of even the rarest of the rare books! Regarding College Street, there’s a saying that if you didn’t find a book in College Street, that book probably have never existed!

15. Calcutta is one of the fewest cities in the world, to have Trams.

16. There’s a saying that what Calcutta thinks today, India thinks tomorrow—true that! After more than 2 decades of the metro railways (or the rapid transit system), Delhi has had one, and Mumbai is thinking of having one!The Kolkata Metro conveys near five lakh travelers day by day (an extreme arrangement for travelers)! (Travelers truth be told were prepared to pay higher ticket costs to feel open inside the trains!) Trust it or not, the most reduced fare for the five kilometer separation is Rs.5, the least anyplace on the planet! Rates have been modified from the ten kilometer separation until as of late!

17. You might term this one as a pro or a con; nevertheless, it’s quite true that Kolkata is the only city in India with hand-pulled rickshaws.

18. The botanical garden of Kolkata has been the house of the world’s largest tree: An enormous banyan tree whose circumference is more than 330 meters!

19. Kolkata might be the city of temples and palaces, but little known is the fact that the Birla Planetarium in Kolkata is the largest planetarium in Asia, and the second largest in the world!

20. After the Frankfurt Book Fair and the London Book Fair, Kolkata Book fair is recognized as the world’s largest conglomeration of books! Besides, it’s one of a kind and Asia’s largest book fair—it is also the most-attended book fair in the world! and The Kolkata Book fair is the world’s largest non-trade book fair.

21. The Indian Museum is the largest and oldest museum in India and has rare collections of antiques, armour and ornaments, fossils, skeletons, mummies, and Mughal paintings. It was founded by the Asiatic Society of Bengal in Kolkata (Calcutta), India, in 1814. The founder curator was Nathaniel Wallich, a Danish botanist.

22. The Victoria Memorial is a large marble building in Kolkata , West Bengal, India, which was built between 1906 and 1921. It is dedicated to the memory of Queen Victoria (1819–1901) and is now a museum and tourist destination under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture.

History 

The discovery of the nearby Chandraketugarh,an archaeological site has proved that people have lived there for over two millennia.The history of Kolkata begins when the English East India Company arrived in 1690. Job Charnock, an administrator with the Company is traditionally known as the founder of this city. However some academics say that Charnock is not the city's founder.

At that time Kolkata, ruled by the Nawab of Bengal Siraj-Ud-Daulah, had three villages. They were Kalikata, Govindapur and Sutanuti. The British in the late 17th century wanted to build a fort near Govindapur. This was to become more powerful than Dutch, the Portuguese, and the French. In 1702, the British completed the construction of old Fort William, which was used to station its troops and as a regional base. Calcutta was declared a Presidency City, and later became the headquarters of the Bengal Presidency. When regular fights with French forces started, in 1756 the British began to upgrade their fortifications. When this was protested, the Nawab of Bengal Siraj-Ud-Daulah attacked and captured Fort William. This led to the infamous Black Hole incident. A force of Company sepoys and British troops led by Robert Clive recaptured the city the next year. Calcutta became the capital of British India in 1772,. However, the capital shifted to the hilly town of Shimla during the summer months every year, starting from the year 1864  Richard Wellesley, the Governor General between 1797–1805, helped in the growth of the city and its public architecture. This led to the description of Calcutta as "The City of Palaces". The city was a centre of the British East India Company's opium trade during the 18th and 19th century; locally produced opium was sold at auction in Kolkata, to be shipped to China.