the city

BETTER CITY BETTER LIFE

2011-01-28T04:03:00.000-08:00

To make our city a good place to live in, a balance between renewal and preservation, innovation and tradition, urbanity and nature, community and individual development needs to be created. The Chinese have taken this concept to heart. One may not like the radicalism of their approach, but we'll be kidding ourselves if we think we can transform our cities by simply tinkering with them. One of the many "visionary" things Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee has promised to accomplish if her party comes to power in West Bengal is to turn our Kolkata into London. Well, as visions go that's laudable, indeed, but, as mankind moves irreversibly into a rapidly urbanising world with worsening living conditions, visions alone won't ease the urban pressure.

Of course, Mamata is being euphemistic and her reference to London stands for what a good, liveable city should be like: clean, green, orderly, commuter-friendly, aesthetic, harmonious, and well maintained, with lots of open areas, well-laid roads, and a balanced integration of spaces for business, work and leisure. In Kolkata's case, it would also mean banishing hand-pulled rickshaws and hand-pushed carts, permanent vendor occupation of sidewalks, festering slums - London doesn't have any of these - and everything else that contributes to urban chaos and unhealthy living conditions. If that's the case, her city would require massive, bold, and often unpopular reconstruction of its image. Would Mamata have the political courage to take such measures?

Kolkata's ills are true of most of India's cities. London or not, they all need massive redevelopment, and the same question must be asked of all who are charged to save our cities from degenerating into urban rat holes. It's all the more urgent since we seem blithely oblivious of the magnitude and complexities of the urban challenge while the rest of economically dynamic Asia is continuously reshaping its urban future.

Singapore we all know. Hong Kong is an amazing example of how to stay alive and thrive within narrow geographical limits. Kuala Lumpur has wonderfully preserved its picture-postcard image by developing a new and equally picture-perfect administrative centre, Putrajaya. Seoul has improved its look dramatically simply by relocating its business and government districts and turning the giant former centre-city traffic intersection into a park. Bangkok isn't a nightmare anymore.

Even Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are transforming so nicely as to earn the world's attention. Both cities have moved out thousands of people to make room for inner-city redevelopment while building new, well-connected suburban centres to balance out the distribution of populations and activities.

But it's in China, more than anywhere else, that Asia's urban history is being rewritten. Beijing is a shining example of how a whole new city can rise on its old foundations when action blends with vision in equal proportions. Based on the concept of "one street, one centre, and four parks," downtown Shanghai has thoroughly reconfigured its residential space and created a more harmonious balance between various urban functions. Seventy other major cities around China are spending scores of billions of dollars to build a brighter urban future.

Obviously, such changes can't come from patchwork and tinkering. They involve drastic demolitions, massive rebuilding, and large-scale relocation of affected people. Beijing's old quarters, for example, are being knocked down to make room for new roads, flyovers, high-rise residential complexes, and greenbelts. Of course, such drastic facelifts can't always be popular, and, in the face of frequent popular outbursts against such changes, the authorities have been obliged to frame new rules. These reflect the government’s willingness to mend its ways wherever necessary in order to reach its desired goal, not any inclination to step back from its course.

True, China’s urban programme stems from its intense craving to present to the world a dynamic, captivating, modern face. But it’s also born of a clear realization that the future city must be a place where people and their activities can exist in a healthy balance. How will cities expand without encroaching on outlying rural areas? How are we going to build wider, straighter, newer roads unless we demolish obstacles coming in the way? How will the environment improve if there’s no space to put in additional greenery? Our urban future will depend on how bold are we about answering these questions.

For Kolkata, we need not look far. Case in point being the award-wining transport system in Guangzhou, in south China's Guangdong province, which includes not only Bus Rapid Transit but wide, tree-lined bicycle lanes and a tie-in to the large city's rail network. The BRTS system transports as many as 800,000 commuters a day, making it one of the worlds largest. Perhaps more importantly, the new bus system "hooks up seamlessly" with rail as well as "idyllic" bicycle paths and bike-sharing stations, and helps to make the city "more livable."

The Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) has been working closely with Guangzhou to build out the bus and bike infrastructure and the city's recent transportation efforts make it a place that "goes against the idea of a burgeoning Chinese metropolis that's only serving the economy." Experts say that easing congestion and reducing pollution from the transportation sector in China—with its increasingly urban and car-buying population—will require coordination of land-use planning, information technology, and mass-transit development, as well as cleaner vehicles.

The three key factors to look for in a ‘sustainable’ transportation system should benefit both the city’s environment and its economy, and it should be equitable, meaning "you should be able to move about your city regardless of income level,"

An Exasperated Presidency

2009-12-09T20:02:00.001-08:00

The erstwhile Hindu College opened on Monday, January 20, 1817 with 20 'scholars'. The foundation committee of the college, which oversaw its establishment, was headed by Raja Rammohan Roy. The control of the institution was vested in a body of two Governors and four Directors. The first Governors of the college were Maharaja Tejchandra Bahadur of Burdwan and Babu Gopee Mohan Thakoor. The first Directors were Babu Gopeemohan Deb of Sobhabazar, Babu Joykissen Sinha, Babu Radha Madhab Banerjee and Babu Gunganarain Doss. Babu Buddinath Mukherjee was appointed as the first Secretary of the college. The newly established college mostly admitted Hindu students from affluent and progressive families, but also admitted non-Hindu students.

At first the classes were held in a house belonging to Gorachand Bysack of Garanhatta (later renamed 304, Chitpore Road), which was rented by the college. In January 1818 the college moved to 'Feringhi Kamal Bose's house' which was located nearby in Chitpore. From Chitpore, the college moved to Bowbazar and later to the building that now houses the Sanskrit College on College Street .

On 21 October, 1853, Dalhousie, the Governor of Bengal, suggested that

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a new general college should be established at Calcutta by the government and designated "The Presidency College" .. the College should be open to all youths of every caste, class or creed.

”

The new name, 'Presidency', referred to the Bengal Presidency, which was the local administrative unit of British India. Accordingly, the Committee of Management for Hindu College met for the last time on 11 January, 1854. The Court of Directors renamed the College as Presidency College. The College started functioning on 15 June, 1855. The 'scholars' of the College Department of Hindu College were transferred to Presidency College and 101 new students were freshly admitted.

Initially, it was felt that the Civil Engineering College and Medical College, that were located nearby, should be associated with Presidency College. But with the formation of the University of Calcutta, also located close by, the Council of Education shelved plans for allowing the expansion of the these three premier institutions into a full fledged university. The college was formally placed under the control of the University of Calcutta in 1857.

Presidency college, being the oldest educational institution in the country, boasts of a number of prestigious institutions of primary, secondary and higher learning that were started under its aegis. The Hindu School was the college's school when it was established, although it is now independent. The Hare School has been from the middle of the nineteenth century located inside the premises of the college and has been traditionally associated with the college. Its students used to complete their higher education in the college in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The Bengal Engineering and Science University, Shibpur was founded in this college and was a department of the college frm 1865 to 1879. The Indian Statistical Institute, was founded in the Statistical Laboratoty of this college in 1931.

A college which should have been an university long long ago finds itself exasperated as a section of teachers try to stifle the placement of the bill in the assembly. Why would this happen. Why should anyone object to an establishment like 'Presi' becoming an university. Nothing is strange in Bengal. A few teachers to further their own personal agenda are doing everything possible to create a chaos. Being a state government institution, the teachers automatically become government employees. Now who would like to loose this status or look for a transfer after spending years at the union room. The Telegraph editorial today clearly exposes this.

read more...

Goonda Raj!

2009-12-01T00:24:00.000-08:00

The culture of bandh once created by the leftists, which made Calcutta famous was once again in view during yesterday's bandh called by BJP. The total lack of governance and administration in Bengal was amptly demonstrated by Goondas who ran riot across the city, burning buses, breaking car windscreens, stopping trains, blocking arterial roads. There was no effort by the administration machinery to even try to protect the citizens and public property. These events showed how how little the people can expect of the administration which has been made inept by the leftists during their three decade rule.

During the recent past, across various places within the state, the governments unwillingness to uphold the writ of the law has been all too evident. The lack of political competition had meant that there was no incentive to deliver governance and human capital development. A morally degraded society fed on a diet of the typical Bengal form of protest of burning buses, stopping trains midway, stoning cars, stopping willing citizens from reaching work, deflating tyres cannot vision beyond all of these. The BJP leadership should be made to pay 40 lacs for the two buses it burnt. The money came from the taxes we pay. Calcutta has turned into a city where anyone can do anything. There cannot be a more free place anywhere else in the earth.

Buddha is the chief minister of the left party, the state seems to run on its own. It seems to be; A government by the party, for the party and of the party. Buddha dear, you are still the chief minister for the next two years. Get up from your slumber and deliver what you have been elected to do. You cannot ditch the people like this who elected you three years back with two-thirds majority. Bengal cannot be ruined further.

Murderer On The Roads

2009-08-26T06:39:00.001-07:00

How many more innocent lives are going to be lost before we can reign in these murderer's. Every day we hear of stories how lives are being lost as buses race against each other on our streets. What is more ironic is that the drivers go scot free (if they are not lynched by the crowd) without any sort of action taken on them.

There is enough provisions in our existing laws to punish these drivers if the police are allowed to do their work unhindered. But the unions like CITU who control everything in West Bengal presently, do not allow the drivers to be booked under harsher penal codes.

Section 308. Attempt to commit culpable homicide

Whoever does any Act with such intention or knowledge and under such circumstances that, if he by that Act caused death, he would be guilty of culpable homicide not amount to murder, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine, or with both, and if hurt is caused to any person by such Act, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, or with fine, or with both.

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“bearing in mind the galloping trend in road accidents in India and the devastating consequences visiting the victims and their families, the quantum of sentence (for) rash or negligent driving, one of the prime considerations should be deterrence."

Thanks to police inaction, political patronage and union pressure rash drivers escape with a simple fine of Rs.500/- (under Section 279), or a minimum fine along with a few months imprisonment if booked under Section 304A (culpable homicide not amounting to murder)

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Unless the police and courts look from the victims angle they will never realize the devastating effect these accidents have on the families of the affected. The government has to abolish the commission system immediately. The root cause of the majority of the bus accidents is due to this reason. If this is possible in every city of India, why not here? Are the drivers earning any less in the other cities? Unfortunately (like in so many other issues) Buddha's government does not have the balls to go against their own members in citu. Its Govt-vs-Govt.

SOLECKSHAW - The New Age Rickshaw

2009-07-15T23:34:00.000-07:00

The humble cycle rickshaw gets a solar-powered makeover

Amidst all the transport mess in and around Calcutta, there is some good news for the thousands of rickshaw pullers of Calcutta. Facing a ban after the High Court stays KMC's notification to ban hand pulled rickshaws from the city streets, the dual-powered SOLECKSHAW is the solution for the dual problem of decent employment generation for the masses and mitigation of global warming.

Robust and ergonomically designed to take the drudgery out of the rickshaw driving, the prototype of Soleckshaw has been handed over to a rickshaw puller on 15.07.09, operating on Upen Bannerjee Road, between Jinjira Bazar & Behala Thana. Born out of the recent CSIR vision, appropriately titled, CSIR-800 aimed at empowering 800 million Indians by way of S&T intervention, the of Soleckshaw has been designed, developed and prototyped by the CSIR’s national laboratory, the Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute (CMERI) at Durgapur.

The prototype has been manufactured by a Calcutta based firm 'DEAN SYSTEMS'. The Managing Partner, Mr.D.Basu Roy says that this will go a long way in improving the health (chest pains and shortage of breath) of the rickshaw pullers and also it will dignify the job and reduce the labour of pedalling.

Technical Features;

Power source - Solar and human
Drive - Motor-assisted pedal-driven
Electric motor with regenerative capabilities
Transmission - Chain drive with differential and two ratios
Brakes - Three-wheel braking
Seating capacity - Two passengers
Payload - 200 kg (excluding driver)
Speed limit 15 kmph

The makeover will include FM radios and power points for charging mobile phones during rides. Gone are the flimsy metal and wooden frames that make them so uncomfortable. The chassis is designed for comfortable ride even for the senior citizens and physically challenged.

They have always been environment friendly, now there is even more reason why we should continue with them.

Get Ready For Chaos

2009-07-08T05:09:00.000-07:00

Action at last? Or an elaborate eyewash?

The transport department plans to do in 5 days what they have not been able to do for years. Removing 2553 buses, 573 mini buses and 6357 taxis within 5 days to meet the 31st July deadline. The transport department had a full year (July 18th, 2008 - High Court sets the deadline) to act.

The transport minister is a master tactician. He has refused to act tough with the bus, taxi and auto unions in earlier occasions. This must be a ploy to create chaos in the city and suburbs, thereby asking the court for more and more time.

Both the taxi and bus unions have already announced strikes. Taxis will go off the streets from 22nd July and bus and mini bus operators have threatened to follow suit from 23rd July. This will result in 10000 buses, 1000 mini buses and 42000 taxis going off the road.

Other tough measure lined up are;
Doing away with the commission system, wherein the driver steps on the gas to pack in as many trips per day to get about 11%-12% commission of sale.
Introducing speed limiters on all commercial vehicles.
Doing away with re-threaded tyres for public transport vehicles.

Time will tell if the ministers white hat has turned into a reformists hat or this is another hat-trick. Calcuttans sick with the governments inaction in every sphere will surely face a lot of trouble and hardship commuting those chaotic days hoping this brings in a greener future.

This might me one of the last tests by which people will be judging Buddha and his teams resolve. Lets hope this is an exception from all the other ones he has messed up.

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Action Not Taken Report

Winds Of Change

2009-05-18T05:06:00.000-07:00

Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the one's we have been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.

These words were spoken by Barack Obama during his campaign speech.

Miles away from there, how these words now seem true. We have ushered in a change. After over 30 years of seeing the color 'red', there is a new color now, 'green', and quite a refreshing color too. (for the Red’s it must be color of envy) From 1 to 26, by every means is a humongous achievement. From cities to towns and villages about 60% of the vote share has been cornered by TMC and Congress alliance. The Trinamool now will have to live up to the people’s expectations.

The Left’s arrogance did them in. Years of undisputed rule have made them absolutely arrogant and bullies. They believed they could get away with absolutely anything. And then Nandigram happened. The one piece of paper put up by Laxman Seth, the ex MP from Tamluk, made people landless overnight. When people resisted, sent in the cadres to silence them. When the cadres failed, they sent in the police. Their thinking has gone so corrupted that the government itself waged a war with its own people without realizing, that the actual power is in the hands of the citizens. The insensitive leftists started blundering one after another. Singur was the final nail. The writing became clear then.

For years West Bengal has suffered for want of an opposition party. The story was different this time around. There were so many reasons across the state to vote against the left. The marginal farmers who feared the loss of their only piece of sustainable income, the countless unemployed youth wasting their lives doing menial jobs, the old time congress loyalists, the total anti left voters, urban electorate who are fed up with the leftists and their idiosyncrasies’, it was just mathematically unequal. The blunders of Karat & Co in first withdrawing support on the nuclear issue, without realizing the people’s desires and then expelling Somnath Chatterjee, created an all India hatred for the lefts.

It’s said everything happens at the right time and place. It’s happened to Mamata now. People find in her an alternative and use this opportunity to teach the lefts a lesson they will never forget. She has already become very aware of the enormous responsibility, trust and faith people have put in her. It’s more difficult to live up to their expectations now than ever. The next years till the assembly elections will be her test. How she matures and gains the confidence of the electorate will be her litmus test till judgment day. If she can build upon her success, it will usher in a greater change in 2011.

Jai Ho!

A Walk in Calcutta

2009-05-03T21:09:00.000-07:00

By SOMINI SENGUPTA (NYT)

Published: May 3, 2009

ON a rainy day in the late 17th century, an enterprising agent of the British East India Company named Job Charnock sailed along the Hooghly River, a tributary of the Ganges that flows from high in the Himalayas into the Bay of Bengal, and pitched a tent on its swampy banks. The company bought three riverside villages. Soon they would become a port — flowing with opium, muslin and jute — and then, as the capital of British India until 1912, draw conquerors, dreamers and hungry folk from all over the world.

Calcutta, India’s first modern city, was born.

Over the years, it acquired many names: City of Palaces, Black Hole, Graveyard of the British Empire. In 2001, it was christened Kolkata — slower, rounder, ostensibly more Bengali-sounding.

To me, it has always been the city of green shutters. They are a singular fixture of old Calcutta houses. They glow in the steamy heat of the afternoon. Trees sometimes sprout from moldy ledges.

I left Calcutta when I was small and promptly forgot what I knew, such is the thick velvet curtain the immigrant child draws over memory. Every few summers, when my family returned for holidays, I would be escorted from one relative’s house to another, scolded for being too thin, and force-fed heaps of sweets. On Park Street, I would be invariably accosted by a hungry, barefoot child. The only thing more confounding than going to Calcutta was coming home to suburban Southern California; how do you explain the city of dreadful night (Rudyard Kipling’s phrase, not mine) to friends who had spent the summer listening to Olivia Newton-John?

In the last four years, over several reporting trips there, the city has revealed itself to me slowly, opening one sleepy eye at a time. Calcutta today is as parochial as it is modern. It lives in the past as much as it lets its past decay. India’s first global city, it is littered with the remains of many worlds: the rickshaws that the Chinese brought; an Armenian cemetery; dollops of jazz left by Americans in the war years.

It is as much a walker’s city as a talker’s: It has great eavesdropping potential, even if you understand only English, and it is perfectly acceptable to start up a conversation with strangers, whether about the rain or Shakespeare.

Best of all, in Calcutta, you can eat the world. The royal chefs who decamped here from the Mughal court of north India brought a cardamom-laced mutton rezala stew. The British Raj offered a canapé of cheese and pineapple. From Baghdad, David Nahoum’s Jewish forefathers brought the cheese-filled sambusa to Calcutta’s New Market.

FOR the traveler with limited time, the best way to explore Calcutta is roughly to trace the route of the Hooghly, meandering on and off the main thoroughfares by foot, tram and subway, known here as the Metro. This is not a luxury destination. It is more a journey through the grimy layers of time. History is inscribed on every lane, like tattoos on an aging diva. Calcutta was once quite a diva.

You could start by boarding a tram at the Esplanade, just north of the Oberoi Grand Hotel, and head north on College Street, now renamed Bidhan Sarani. The last time I tried, the tram crawled through traffic and then stopped crawling entirely. The power had gone out. If you get out near College Street, as I did, make your way through the dense alleys of books (mostly used textbooks, but a careful hunt on Calcutta’s streets can turn up jewels, such as a Chinese Communist children’s book of manners, translated into English, which I once procured) to the Indian Coffee House. Built in the late 1800s as the Albert Hall to commemorate a visit of the prince consort, it eventually became the city’s most venerable institution of revolutionary chatter and flirt. There is still plenty of flirt.

The waiters don’t chatter. They scowl under their white caps, thick black dirt in the stiff creases. They complain that no one orders anything. A cashier told me last summer that the cafe had been posting losses for more than 25 years. I guiltily ordered the fritter-like vegetable pakoras.

Calcutta from the start has confronted some of the most acute debates of modernity. Over three centuries, the folly and ingenuity of global capitalism have left their mark on my city, and then, too, so have the Communists, who have been elected to power for an uninterrupted 31 years. Now New India pokes its finger into Calcutta’s languid belly. The old houses are making way for tall glass and steel, their Calcutta Deco details tossed away like fish-heads. Flury’s, once a classic European patisserie, serves American-style lasagna instead of the white bread cucumber sandwiches of my childhood. The hammer and sickle remains the refrain of Calcutta graffiti, interrupted now by posters for English classes, the hammer and sickle, you might say, of Indian aspiration today.

“Great cities get old and somehow renew themselves,” said Mani Sankar Mukherji, whose remarkable 1962 novel, “Chowringhee,” chronicled life inside a roaring midcentury Calcutta hotel. Calcutta, he confessed, cannot be called a great city.

Around the corner from the Coffee House on College Street stands Presidency College, founded by Indian philanthropists in 1817 as a center for the teaching of European thought. Around the College Square water tank are three buildings testifying to Calcutta’s melting pot heritage: the Baptist Mission, in the so-called Indo-Saracenic architectural style; the Mahabodi Buddhist temple, founded by a Sri Lankan monk; and the Bengal Theosophical Society, one of the world’s first esoteric East-meets-West religious movements.

A short tram ride north along College Street takes you to Bethune College, created in 1849 as the city’s first school for girls, a remarkable feat, considering that most privileged Indians secluded their women in purdah at the time. My own grandmother, a lawyer’s daughter, could study only until the age of 13.

On the south side of the college is the family-owned Girish Chandra Dey and Nakur Chandra Nandy, makers of nothing else but the celebrated Bengali shondesh. To its detractors, including me, the shondesh, made of sweetened slow-stirred cheese, resembles cement. To its fans, it is proof of divine love, eaten at any time of day, and always when there is something to celebrate.

Chitpur Road was the nerve center of Black Town. The mansions on and off this boulevard, now called Rabindra Sarani, are a whimsical mixture of West and East — introverted toward courtyards according to Indian architectural tradition and boasting fabulous Western facades with Corinthian pillars and nymphs on the pediments.

Black Town was built by those whom Krishna Dutta, in her book “Calcutta: A Literary and Cultural History,” calls the Bengali compradors, who “patronized Indian classical music and the European arts, held lavish feasts and paid court to the British.” They are lyrically skewered in Amitav Ghosh’s novel “Sea of Poppies.”

The mansions are in varying stages of ruin. The height of kitsch is the Marble Palace, open to the public with a pass from the government tourism office and stuffed with crystal chandeliers and stone lions. Geoffrey Moorhouse, in his book, “Calcutta: The City Revealed,” says it looks “as if they had been scavenged from job lots on the Portobello Road on a series of damp Saturday afternoons.”

The family home of Rabindranath Tagore is on Dwarkanath Tagore Lane. The unsung mansions sit on the smaller lanes, occupied by fragments of families. Old saris hang out to dry on the balconies and dogs snooze at the feet of faux-Venus statues.

Off Chitpur Road, a lane takes you to the potters’ colony, Kumartoli (ask directions to find your way), a unique open-air workshop where gods and goddesses are molded by hand, traditionally using dust from the thresholds of nearby brothels. The city’s powerful prostitutes union objects to this practice now. Kumartoli is busiest in fall, in the run-up to the Hindu festival season.

A variety of artisans hang on along Chitpur Road: makers of traditional perfumes, embroidered tunic sellers, purveyors of wigs, a row of musical instrument shops (at N. N. Mondal’s, Yehudi Menuhin got his violin repaired in 1952) and Chinese shoemakers.

These lanes were also where the city savaged itself in the summer of 1946, just as the British were preparing to leave and India was about to be partitioned. Hindus cut Muslim throats; Muslims cut Hindu throats; Gandhi rushed to the city and launched a hunger strike. Every family, mine included, bore witness to the carnage, or took part in it. Behind the green shutters, there are stories.

A good place to stop and ponder the past is the ground-floor bar of the Broadway Hotel, on Ganesh Chandra Avenue. The afternoon light pours in golden soft through the shutters. Across the street, above a gas station, is a hidden gem, called Eau Chew, where Joseph and Josephine Huang serve a fabulous fish in black bean sauce.

WHITE Town, or the center of British business and government, emerged around its own drinking-water tank and became known as Dalhousie Square. It has since been christened B.B.D. Bag, for the three young gunmen — Binoy, Badal and Dinesh — who stormed the British administrative office, the Writers Building, in 1930 and shot dead the British inspector of prisons. A black statue of the trio faces the Writers Building, now the headquarters of the Communist government of West Bengal state. Modernity continues to be debated. Protests erupted here against a plan to build the world’s cheapest car, the Tata Nano, in a factory on the city outskirts. Peasants revolted, and the Nano is being built elsewhere.

Calcutta has another guerrilla hero: Subhas Chandra Bose, who broke away from Gandhi’s nonviolent movement to raise an army against the British. The central narrative of his erstwhile family mansion on Elgin Road, now a museum of Bose memorabilia, is his “great escape” from house arrest. Red footsteps on the balcony mark how he tiptoed out on a January night in 1941. The gray Wanderer in which he was driven away sits in the driveway. In one gallery is an extraordinary collection of photographs, including Netaji — “respected leader” as he is known — shaking hands with Hitler in 1942; apparently, he took help where he could get it.

Every guidebook will opine on the sights of Dalhousie Square, which the World Monuments Fund lists on its 100 most endangered heritage sites. I recommend a visit to the General Post Office and the adjacent Postal Museum, for their collection of old stamps and the brass buckles of the “dak” runners, or postmen, who carried letters on foot.

Calcutta’s first foreigners often died young, sometimes before they received mail from across the ocean. The Returned Letter Office housed the letters to the dead. It stands on the southeast corner of the square. Park Street Cemetery, a short taxi ride from Dalhousie Square, offers more proof of the pestilence that hovered over the imperialists. The museum inside the Victoria Memorial is an archive of imperial ambition. Across the river is another kind of archive: the Indian Botanic Garden, said to house trees from five continents but its collection is poorly marked, the benches are broken and it seems better suited for canoodlers than botanists.

Much of White Town is in sad shape. A mysterious fire claimed a significant portion of the headquarters of MacKinnon Mackenzie, a prominent managing agent for British industry in Calcutta. Bow Barracks, a red-brick row of onetime army barracks and home now to Chinese and biracials known here as Anglo-Indians, is due to be demolished. Groups like Public are goading the city to start saving its past. St. Andrew’s Church, built by Scots in 1818, has been illuminated as a means of drawing investment and tourists to the heart of the city. “No longer is there an anxiety that we have to be anticolonial,” the city’s municipal commissioner, Alapan Bandyopadhyay, gamely said.

South Calcutta has two attractions, and they are worth exploring by Metro. The Kalighat Temple is a tableau of faith, blood and hustle. Devotees prostrate themselves before the dark goddess, goats meet their death and touts, some in holy men’s garb, home in on tourists. The poor squat on the street at lunchtime, for a bowl of rice. It is hard to imagine a worse fate than to be poor in Calcutta. Hunger still stalks the city.

The Tollygunge Club is farther south. Built as a private Raj-era mansion, it housed the family of Tipu Sultan, another deposed Indian king from southern Mysore, and then became a whites-only club in 1895, with a racecourse as its main attraction. Indians broke the color bar in 1964 but soon came to be seen as class enemies. A Maoist guerrilla shot dead the club director in 1971. He was sitting in his second-floor office at the time, the windows of the Palladian mansion facing south, to catch the breeze. Today, it is primarily a golf club. Jackals have built their dens here. They seem to like to watch golf.

Read the full article here.

Kolkata to loose Knight Rider Shah Rukh Khan

2009-04-30T03:47:00.000-07:00

The news floating around is Shah Rukh Khan plans to sell his stake in KKR soon. Disappointed in not being able to be in the forefront and winning matches, he seems to be weighing his options of exiting.

The whole episode to him must be like a bad movie, to which he was signed on and now realizes that the movie will not even run a full week.

ALPHABET ..............BENGALI ISTYLE

2009-04-22T10:18:00.001-07:00

A is for Awpheesh (as in Office). This is where the average Kolkakattan goes
and spends a day hard at work. And if he works for the 'West Bengal
Gawrment' he will arrive at 10, wipe his forehead till 11, have a tea break
at 12, throw around a few files at 12.30, break for lunch at 1, smoke an
unfiltered cigarette at 2, break for tea at 3, sleep sitting down at 4 and
go home at 4:30. It's a hard life!

B is for Bhision . For some reason many Bengalis don't have good bhision. In
fact in Kolkata most people are wearing spectacles all the time.

C is for Chappell (as in Greg ). Currently, this is the Bengaali word for
the Devil, for the worst form of evil. In the night mothers put their kids
to sleep saying, 'Na ghumaley Chappell eshey dhorey niye jabe.' (If you
don't sleep, Chappel will come and take you away!!)

D is for Debashish or any other name starting with Deb. By an ancient law
every fourth Bengali Child has to be named Debashish. So you have a
Debashish everywhere and trying to get creative they are also called Deb,
Debu, Deba with variations like Debanik, Deboprotim, Debojyoti, etc. thrown
in at times.

E is for Eeesh . This is a very common Bengali exclamation made famous by
Aishwarya Rai in the movie Devdas. It is estimated that on an average,
Bengali women use eeesh 10,089 times every year. 'Ei Morechhey' is a close
second to Eeesh.

F is for Feeesh . These are creatures that swim in rivers and seas and are a
favourite food of the Bengalis. Despite the fact that a fish market has such
strong smells, with one sniff a Bengali knows if a fish is all right. If not
he will say 'eeesh what feeesh is theesh !'

G is for Good name. Every Bengali boy will have a good name like Debashish
or Deboprotim and a daknaam (pet name) like Motka, Bhombol, Thobla, Poka,
Boka, etc. While every Bengali girls will have pet names like Tia, Tuktuki,
Mishti, Khuku, Imli, etc.

H is for Harmonium . This the Bengali equivalent of a rock guitar. Take four
Bengalis and a Harmonium and you have the successors to The Bheatles!

I is for lleesh. This is a feeesh with 10,000 bones which would kill any
ordinary person, but which the Bengalis eat with releeesh!

J is for Jhola . No self respecting Bengali is complete without his Jhola.
It is a shapeless cloth bag where he keeps all his belongings and he fits an
amazing number of things in. Even as you read this there are 2 million
jholas bobbling around Kolkata- and they all look exactly the same! Note
that 'Jhol' as in Maachher Jhol is a close second.

K is for Kee Kaando ! It used to be the favourite Bengali exclamation till
eeesh took over because of Aishwarya Rai (now Kee Kando's agent is trying to
hire Bipasha Basu). Kee Kelo is a close second

L is for Lungi - the dress for all occasions. People in Kolkata manage to
play football and cricket wearing it not to mention the daily trip in the
morning to the local bajaar. Now there is talk of a lungi expedition to Mt.
Everest .

M is for Minibus . These are dangerous half buses whose antics would
effortlessly frighten the living daylights out of all James Bond stuntmen as
well as Formula 1 race car drivers. M is also for Maunkey Cap and Muphler!!

N is for Nangto. This is the Bengali word for naked. It is the most
interesting naked word in any language!

O is for Oil. The Bengalis believe that a touch of mustard oil will cure
anything from cold (oil in the nose), to earache (oil in the ear), to cough
(oil on the throat) to piles (oil you know where!)

P for Phootball . This is always a phavourite phassion of the Kolkattan.
Every Bengali is born an expert in this game. The two biggest clubs there
are Mohunbagan and East Bengal and when they play the city comes to a stop.

Q is for Queen . This really has nothing to do with the Bengalis or Kolkata,
but it's the only Q word one can think of. There's also Quilt but they never
use them in Kolkata.

R is for Robi Thakur . Many many years ago Rabindranath got the Nobel Prize.
This has given the right to all Bengalis no matter where they are to frame
their acceptance speeches as if they were directly related to the great poet
and walk with their head held high. This also gives Bengalis the birthright
to look down at Delhi and Mumbai and of course 'all non-Bengawlees'! Note
that 'Rawshogolla' comes a close second!

S is for Shourav . Now that they finally produced a genuine cricketer and a
captain, Bengalis think that he should be allowed to play until he is 70
years old. Of course they will see to it that he stays in good form by doing
a little bit of 'joggo' and 'maanot'.

T is for Trams . Hundred years later there are still trams in Kolkata. Of
course if you are in a hurry it's faster to walk.

U is for Aambrela . When a Bengali baby is born he is handed one.

V is for Bhaayolence . Bengalis are the most non-violent violent people
around. When an accident happens they will fold up their sleeves, shout and
scream and curse and abuse, "Chherey De Bolchhi" but the last time someone
actually hit someone was in 1947.

W is for Water . For three months of the year the city is underwater and
every year for the last 200 years the authorities are taken by surprise by
this!

X is for X'mas . It's very big in Kolkata, with ParkStreet fully lit up and
all Bengalis agreeing that they must eat cake that day.

Y is for Yesshtaarday . Which is always better than today for a Bengali (see
R for Robi Thakur).

Z is for Jebra, Joo, Jipper and Jylophone

Trinamool Hits Below The Belt

2009-04-21T21:23:00.000-07:00

The TOI today carried a report on how the political parties have put up gory hoardings across the city showing the picture of the charred body of Tapasi Malik and mutilated bodies of Nandigram victims. CPM is no saint either. They have also put up one hoarding showing men wearing saffron chaddars threatening a man pleading for his life and another one showing a rioter holding a sword above his head in glee.Have we not seen enough of these in TV, Print, etc that we need to be reminded and in this fashion, before the polls. The CPM has also been allegedly circulating cd's showing the graphic of Tapasi's murder.

This is an extremely sorry state of affairs of our state. We were supposedly known as the 'Bhadralok's'. Where has all the essence of our culture, literature, arts gone. What will i tell my daughter, when she will ask me as to why is this hoarding put up? These people are no less worse than the Modi's, whom they keep lambasting.

But for me, i do want Calcutta of 60's and 70's back. Is there any party who can get the city back to its glory (and not gory) days. Not in the horizon.... (sic .. our destiny)

Video of Election campaign.

"Bengal the most misruled" - K. Keshava Rao (Congress General Secretary, In-charge of West Bengal)

2009-04-09T00:25:00.000-07:00

K. Keshava Rao said there were more murders during the Left Front rule than between 1952 and 1977 to drive home the “most-misruled” tag. “Nine thousand murders took place between 1952 and 1977. But 40,000 murders took place during the three decades of the Left.”

He did not clarify whether he was talking of political murders alone. Rao alleged that the Left government had failed to tackle the problems of health care, nutrition and the high dropout rate in schools. “The CPM has misruled Bengal in all fronts in the past 32 years. It has failed in primary education, health, nutrition, preventing the high dropout rates... implementation of the mid-day meal scheme and employment generation,” he said during a stopover on his way to Ranchi from Guwahati.

We who live in Calcutta and Bengal, don't need Rao to tell us this. All these are visible to us. The Left has become a party of professors and extortionists. Other than the Buddhadevs and Bimans, who else can we today say are the ideologists who wrested power with their vision during the late 70's. The majority of the members of the enterprise are busy making hay while the sun shines. They have now gone down to official extortion. The Telegraph today has carried a story as to how the CPM is extorting Rs.150/- from the villagers of one of the poorest parts of the state. who have to toil eight hours a day for three days to earn that sum.

Some of Bengal’s poorest of poor accused the pradhan of Balijuri gram panchayat in Birbhum of threatening them saying they would not be enlisted among those to get 100 days’ work under a central scheme if they did not pay. The Telegraph has got a receipt for the money issued by the party to one of the villagers. It bears the signatures of panchayat pradhan Malati Ghosh and Birbhum CPM secretary Dilip Ganguly and says “Lok Sabha poll funds 2009”. (http://www.telegraphindia.com/1090409/jsp/bengal/story_10796936.jsp)

Anywhere you look, its the same story, in a different cover. 32 years of unrivalled power have made these people absolutely monsters who the top leadership cannot control anymore. What else, the disgruntled among them have moved to the other party for better gains. Do we have a choice????? There is one - 49 O.

Schools to hike fee, parents anxious

2009-03-31T23:49:00.001-07:00

NDTV.com: Delhi schools to hike fee, parents anxious

Rising School Education Cost

2009-03-31T21:24:00.000-07:00

School fees are scaling dizzy heights and will be 40 to 100 per cent more than what they were last year thanks to the pay commission recommended salary hike for teachers. Big schools in Calcutta have already upped tuition fees by 50 per cent. The CNI schools are soon going to follow suit. Not only the tuition fees, the session fees have also been raised in almost all the schools. This is happening at a time when most in the private sector are facing cuts in their salary as well as increments and performance bonuses.

With the effects of the economic slowdown hitting hard to most in the private sector, this additional burden will surely be a dampner. Few schools have sent out letters to the parents informing them about this last week. Also said in the letter is that the schools are left with no other option when the Most of the established schools are sitting on crores in bank deposits.

The S C Bansal Committee, constituted in October last year to look into the fee hike issue, submitted in its recommendations, a hike from Rs 100 to a maximum of Rs 500, depending on the current fee slab they fall under. It had also recommended to schools not to increase any other fee till March 2010. This was subsequently challenged at the Delhi High Court. ()
The government bowed down to pressure in this crucial election year. They did what was done with the salaries of the Central and State Government staff as well as the PSU staff. There is still some hope as the division bench of Delhi High Court has asked the Government to file its reply as to why the recommendations of the Bansal committee were not adhered to. The court asked the government to place on record before it the entire report of the committee on the next date of hearing.

Who cares anyway ......

2009-02-19T20:52:00.000-08:00

The city came to a standstill on Thursday afternoon with hordes of Trinamool Congress supporters choking the streets and even Howrah bridge to protest the high court’s decision to grant bail to Suhrid Datta and Debu Malik, who are accused in the Tapasi Malik murder case. Fifteen flights were delayed as passengers stuck in the road blockade frantically called up airlines.
The blockades were to last five to 10 minutes, but continued for nearly an hour at many places, triggering massive jams. In the districts the situation was worse, with roadblocks coming up before the scheduled time. Kolkata Police avoided any showdown with the Opposition party, except at Chingrighata — to ensure that the chief minister’s convoy passed smoothly. Seventy Trinamool supporters were arrested here to clear a path for the CM to attend a programme at a hotel off EM Bypass. The rest of the route till his Palm Avenue residence was also kept free of demonstrators.
“I was stopped at Chingrighata and then again at Lake Town. Had the police informed people about blockades, I would have taken the Rajarhat road,” said Amitava Chandra, who almost missed a Mumbai-bound flight.
Howrah bridge and the Moulali and Hazra crossings were the worst hit. The main gate of RG Kar Hospital saw terrible jams. Traffic was stuck bumper to bumper at Girish Park, Manicktala, Beadon Street, Amherst Street, Park Street-Mullickbazar, Park Circus seven-point crossing, Gariahat, Gol Park, Dhakuria, Prince Anwar Shah road-EM bypass connector, Exide, Beliaghata, Ultadanga, Dorina crossing and Esplanade.
At Howrah bridge, commuters were forced to walk down the entire length as protesters squatted on the road. The bridge was blocked five minutes earlier than scheduled time and continued for 45 minutes with protesters showing no concern for commuters.
“We were very scared when the rallyists rushed towards the bus. They shouted at us to get down. Police did nothing to help us,” said Manoranjan Santra, a Bagnan resident on her way to BBD Bag.
Little does Mamata understand that, she generates so much of hate towards her party by doing this. Little does she realize that people have things to do, unlike her. Sick have to be taken to hospitals, school children are waiting outside their schools for hours, wondering when their parents will reach to pick them up, college students going for interviews, the elderly sweating it out in packed busses, going to the airport or station.
But who cares anyway. Anyone can hold this City to ransom. Just hold a flag and stand in the middle of the road. She will never realise this unless she sits on the hot seat. The more i sthink, the more i believe that we all should enmass vote her and bring her to Writers building. Once she has to run the administration with her band of thugs, she will realise 'hopefully' how easy it is to create lawlessness. The only way to end her nonsense is to make her the CM and within two years she will be driven out and banished from bengal. Anyways nothing will ever happen to bengal, so what difference it makes, if Left wins of Trinamool-Congress wins. Give her a chance to get rid of her nonsense.

Kolkata Kasai

2009-01-22T23:44:00.000-08:00

Published January 5th, 2009 in Bengal, Calcutta and Creative Writing.

[This is a work of fiction. It is somewhat long. A few of the references in the later half of the story are Bengal-specific. Any resemblance to people living or dead…you know the rest. The story is inspired by the horrible year my home state of Bengal has had in terms of the cancellation of the Nano project and the continuing nightmare in 2009 where the decisions of the courts cannot be enforced as a result of "popular" ire.]
Chapter 1:
Kasai sits on the steamer as it moves down the muddy waters of Ganga towards Calcutta. He looks suspiciously at his fellow passengers all of whom are playing bridge and talking to themselves loudly.
He however is silent. He is nervous. The sweat rolls down his brow.
Somewhere up above a crow defecates on his shoulder.
He barely notices.

He curses his luck. If only he had not detonated the bomb two minutes too early and almost killed the ISI colonel who was teaching them urban warfare in the LET camp, he would not have come last in class. And what a horrible punishment had that been. Just for one instant of performance anxiety. While the first three had secured bumper Jihadi contracts and a chance to die in Mumbai and a promise of the choicest of virgins in heaven, here he was alone heading towards Calcutta. The lone citizen from the "Land of the Poor". His crew consists of Bangladeshis. He has little faith in them. They had not been trained. And worse their Urdu was horrible, they spoke to each other in Bengali, several have pot bellies and he doubts how much he could depend on them when the shit hits the fan.
But he will have to make do. It is his operation. He has to make it work.
Chapter 2:
Its morning. They make ground. Kasai and his crew of five grab their equipment. Kasai tells his Bangladeshis: "You know the plan. We shoot random people on the streets. Then we go into the Grand Eastern Luxury Hotel, shoot people in the restaurants, kill the staff and hold the foreign guests hostage." One of the Bangladeshis, chewing a pan, says something like "E hala to dekhi sudhu bakphottai maira zaaye" to which the others laugh. Kasai chooses to ignore, simply because he has no clue as to what he just said. [What they said was: "This saala just keeps talking the talk"]
Chapter 3:
The group reaches their first action point. But wait something is wrong. Kasai knits his brow. There are no people in the streets. Who the hell is he supposed to shoot at? There are two charred public buses on the road. He feels afraid. Has he goofed up again? Did some other group of terrorists already come and do their job? Had he come too late? But no. That cannot be.
Presently he catches sight of a man walking on the street. He reaches inside his backpack to pull his Ak47 out but then realizes he needs to know what is going on. He walks upto the man and says "Eh you, why is there noone on the road?"
The man sneers "What kind of a man are you Dada? Don't you read the papers. Khamata Banerjee has called a 48 hour Bangla Bandh, a general strike. (Khamata means "Power" in Bengali) Noone dares comes out on road sir. See what her supporters did to these buses. This is wait let me see the 20th such bandh we have had this year. Dada, I am a daily laborer this lady will kill us all. I tell you. By the way you want to get your shoulder cleaned. A crow has shat on it. "
Kasai feels his stomach knotting up. No people on the streets ! Oh man. This operation hasn't even begun and already the first part has failed. No problem.
He thinks of shooting the man. But no killing the first person you see is bad luck. He does not need more of it.
He turns to his crew "On to the hotel."
Chapter 4:
Kasai and his group barge into the hotel with Kasai holding his AK47 in front of him. He sees a large lobby. To his right and left are two places which look like they could be restaurants. He bursts into one ready to shoot. Empty. He rushes to the other. That's empty too. The lobby is empty. He shoots one shot into the air. And shouts "Come out you dogs. Death is here."
A spectacled man, in his sixties, thin and emaciated in a white dhoti comes out and stands behind the desk in the lobby. He says in a calm voice " No need to shout. I am coming. Oh at last. You guys are from pest control right? You are like one year late."
Kasai waves the Ak47 at him and says " We are not from pest control, you dog. We are here to take revenge for Gujarat, Kashmir, Palestine and for not making Zaheer the winner of Saregama. Now where are the people in the restaurants?"
The man behind the lobby doesn't lose his cool. Adjusting his ancient glasses, one of which is held to his ear by a string, he says "Oh my. Terrorists. My friends, who sent you here?"
Kasai screams "Not your problem old man. I asked you a question."
The man says "There is a Bangla Bandh. Plus even at the best of times, noone comes to these restaurants. If you have ever tried the food here, you would have known the reason. Ever since the government took over the operations, things have been like…."
Kasai once again feels a cold sweat running down his back. Trying to control himself he says "Okay. Stand still. We will kill the guests. Eyy everyone go upstairs and start shooting."
The man says "Hold it hold it. First of all, the contractors who repaired this hotel three years ago put sand instead of cement and stole all the genuine stuff. So if you guys go on shooting arbitrarily, its you who will be dead before long as the ceiling and the walls will fall on you. Second of all, there are no guests in this hotel."
Kasai says "W-ha-tttt? A five story hotel without guests? You mean to say there are no foreigners."
The man says "Yes sir. That is exactly what I am saying. Why would anyone want to come to Calcutta? There is nothing here any longer. Foreigners? Hah ! Dear sir, we have made sure that there are no investments in this state by capitalists. We have made this city into a foreigner and capitalist-free zone. No Westerner comes here. Neither do businessmen from any corner of the world. "
A sound comes from upstairs. The unmistakable sound of footsteps.
Kasai smiles. "Very brave old man. Protecting your guests with that lie? You will now die."
The old man shakes his head. "Not very bright are you? Those "footsteps" you heard upstairs are of mice. Gigantic mice. They run all over the place. I thought you guys were here because of them…"
Kasai barks. "We will check that. So where are the cooks, waiters, the hotel employees? Bring them out now."
The man shakes his head mournfully. "That was what I was trying to tell you sir. Ever since the government took over the operations, there has been a strike as none of the five employee unions have been able to come to an agreement. In Bengal, you can fire a person by shooting him with a gun but you cannot fire him by taking away his job. Even when he does nothing. The short of it is there have been no employees here for many years. Those red flags you see of various shades all around aren't works of art. They are union flags."
Kasai's voice breaks. "Then why are you here?"
The man says "Long story. I stay here out of habit. I worked for fifty years. Grew up in this place. Now I no longer get paid. But I just stay here out of hope that maybe some day…. Plus I don't have a house…
Kasai now feels very sick. "Shut up you dog. Noone wants to hear your life-story. Oh my what am I going to do now".
Chapter 5:
Half an hour later. Kasai stands again in front of the old man.
"Seems you were right. There are no people in this blasted place. Wait. This is State government property. I can hold the building hostage."
The old man says "Oh dear lord. Government property means its noone's property. Noone cares. People don't care here if old manuscripts are stolen, if heritage buildings get destroyed by promoters."
Kasai says "We will see about that. Plus the government cannot be sure there are no people here. Once the cops and commandos come, we will have real people to shoot at. Okay let's see here is a phonebook….mmmm…Police Station…ok old man call this number. And tell them that terrorists have entered the hotel and taken people hostage."
"I am sorry sir. The phone has been out of order. Noone paid the phone repairman their Puja baksheesh. So…"
Kasai snarls "What a hellhole this is."
He brings out his satellite phone and starts dialing the number.
The phone at the other end keeps ringing.
Presently someone picks it up.
An immensely disinterested voice says "Hello"
Kasai says "Listen carefully. I am a Jihadi terrorist and along with my Jihadi brothers we have taken foreigners hostage at the Grand Eastern Luxury Hotel and will start killing them one every fifteen minutes. We have already killed…emmm….many."
The voice at other end: "Grand Eastern Luxury Hotel you say?"
Kasai says "Yes yes."
The voice says: "Not our jurisdiction. Call Park Circus thana. "
Kasai says "Listen you. Did you just hear what I said. I am going to…"
The voice becomes irritated. "Yes I heard what you said. Did you hear what I said? I will watch you on television just like everyone else. Kahan kahan se chale aate hain…"
Phone disconnects.
Kasai is seething with rage. This he did not bargain for.
Kasai looks at the old man.
"He hung upon me. Saying it's not his jurisdiction. Whattttt……….. Okay let me get Park Circus.."
Phone rings again.
It is presently picked up.
Kasai says " I am a Jihadi terrorist. And along with my Jihadi brothers we have taken foreigners hostage at the Grand Eastern Luxury Hotel and will start killing them one every fifteen minutes. "
The voice says "So what should I do?"
Kasai is stunned.
"Come here of course."
The voice replies "This is a strike day. Khamata Day. You expect us to go? You come here to the thana and file a diary."
Kasai replies.
"I am the Jihadi terrorist and you expect me to come and file a diary at the thana.?"
"Look Jihadi, Azadi, Barbadi whatever you are. If you want the police to come, you come here and file a diary. Understand? By the way, when we guys go to Grand Eastern to sell concert tickets for the Police charity, how come Grand Eastern never makes any contribution? Now these laatsahabs expect us to drive down on a strike day. Scoot."
Phone disconnects.
Chapter 6:
Kasai sits on the stairs. Thinking. What is he going to do now? He is about to put a call to Pakistan when his eyes alight on his Bangladeshi crew. They are unpacking.
"What the hell is that? I thought you guys were supposed to bring RDX".
One of the Bangladeshi men say "Look here. We are not your slaves. You were supposed to bring it. We brought coal stoves and a large cache of hilsa fish. You told us to be prepared for a long siege and so we brought a lot of food. And spices. And coal. Kalu Miyan here can make a spicy fish curry."
Kasai does not know whether to laugh or cry.
"Hilsa fish? Stove? You guys were supposed to bring dry fruits and get as much explosives as you can….."
The Bangladeshi man loses his temper "Kasai Khan. You may be a Pathan we are not. We dont eat dry fruits. Look here since you are not using your satellite phone, can I use it to call my Khatun Bibi ?
Kasai hisses.
"If I don't get anyone to kill by the next hour, as God is my witness, I will start killing you guys off….."
Chapter 7:
Presently, there is a commotion. Kasai's face lights up. There are people at the gates.
"Quick all of you lock and load."
The door of the hotel opens. Kasai takes his position.
A corpulent woman in white sari is standing there with a frown on her face, hands crossed. Behind him are a gang of people, many with long kurtas and pyjamas.
The old man behind the counter whispers—"Oh my God. It's Khamata Banerjee."
Chapter 8:
Khamata Banerjee takes no notice of the Ak47 pointed at her. She walks upto Kasai.
"I just heard that someone checked into the Grand Eastern Luxury Hotel. Look here you punk. I don't know what exploitative capitalist enterprise you want to set up here but I am sure it's not good for farmers, street hawkers and auto-drivers. We don't like your kind here. So just leave before I do to you what I have done to anyone who has ever dared to open shop or do any kind of progress in this state.
Kasai says: "Relax. I am not here to start any business. I am here to do Jihad. Yes. Terrorize. Burn. Make people afraid. Stop all life."
Khamata turns to the people and gestures in an exasperated way.
"This keeps getting better and better. So you are here to terrorize people. Hmm. Make them afraid. Stop all life. Now listen carefully you piece of shit. THAT IS MY SOLE EXCLUSIVE AREA OF BUSINESS. I HAVE THE MONOPOLY. Do you understand? How dare you try to muscle in on my turf? I will make life so much hell for you boy you will regret the day you ever said "Let's make Calcutta my destination". I have brought to his knees one of India's biggest industrialists. You are just a punk."
Chapter 9:
A soft voice comes along and steps between Kasai and Khamata who are eyeballing each other viciously.
"Please please let us not get agitated here."
Kasai waves his Ak47 threateningly.
"Who the hell are you?"
The bald and bearded man says " I am just a humble intellectual. These are all my intellectual friends. We all came here thinking you were an industrialist and a capitalist and needed to be protested against but now we realize you are also an exploited. Come let us all hold hands.
Kasai yells "Stay away. Keep your distance"
The bald and bearded man says: "Myself Bamon Chakraborty aka Babur Bamon. I compose tuneless songs, sing them badly, weep on television and think highly of myself . Sometimes I do not even know what I am protesting against but as long as I can get some attention I do it nonetheless. This here..
Another man in a jhola interjects: "Aah got it at last. The only word that rhymes with Jihad is "Paad". (Paad =Bengali for fart)
Bamon says "This here is a famous poet. Famous dissident. Against industrialization… That there is Ghyanghyan Dutta. He is a singer, a poet, a film-maker. He is known for dialing wrong numbers and composing virtually identical songs about jobless youth whose girlfriends have left them for rich men.
Kasai feels surrounded. He strengthens his grip on the trigger. There is something threatening about these slightly effete people with beards, something he cannot put a finger on.
"Oh my my my. A real Pathan. Oh by the whiskers of Abhishek Bachchan, he is sweating like Paposh Paul in a sauna. When was the last time he had a bath I wonder. Aaah I can smell the aroma of Rawalpindi…. Would you like to do a screen test for me?"
Bamon says "That dear Jihadi-bhai is the great movie director Ritubondho who stood shoulder to shoulder with us during Nandigram. We are all here to see if we can get together for something…"
Chapter 10:
It was then that Kasai has a revelation. Whether it was Ritubondho checking him out greedily or Khamata Banerjee glaring ferociously that trigerred it, Kasai knows not. But he at last understands.
The fundamental truth.
Khamata and these "Left" intellectuals are the true agents of terror. Not him. As long as they stay here, this city will always be a graveyard. A terrorist can only inflict few days of damage. These people can do the same thing but spread it over generations. Killing them would put a body count against Kasai's name. True. Maybe he will even get half a virgin in heaven.
But the larger Jihadi mission of spreading terror and stifling development in this part of the country would fail.
As a great man once said "you need to lose in order to win".
And sometimes you need to give life in order to kill.
Kasai says.
"Okay Khamata-didi. I surrender. Just let me walk out of here with my crew.
One Bangladeshi says :" You leave if you want to. We are not leaving. Khamata-didi, please give us fake ration cards. We will become part of your cadre. None of us came here with bad intentions. We just want to settle down in India."
Khamata smiles benignly.
"That can be arranged. But you have to pass the three tests of the Bishaalbhool (translation: Big Mistake) Congress before I give you your ration cards. You have to successfully block a road for twelve hours, burn one item of public property and play a part in stalling at least one development project. As for you Pakistani, I give you three hours to leave the city. "
Chapter 11:
Kasai stands outside.
Smoke is bellowing from one of the windows of the Grand Eastern Hotel. But not in the way Kasai thought it would. Kalu Miyan and his friends are cooking up a storm using their coal stove. The smell of hilsa fish permeates the air.
Once again Kasai is alone. Peeling the crow shit off the shoulder of his shirt, he looks heavenwards.
And for the first time in many hours, many days and perhaps many years, he smiles.

70 reasons to stay in Calcutta......

2008-12-16T01:05:00.000-08:00

1.. Phulkopir Shingara: samosas don't stand a chance against these.
2.. Phuchka: gol-gappas aren't a patch on phuchkas. Try Bengal Lamp/Dakshinapan.
Karaishutir Kochuri: a seasonal favourite, have it with "alur dam".
3.. Luchi: puri and phulkas - no comparison.
4.. Alurdom: the world's best. Try the offering at Vivekananda Park.
5.. Jhalmuri: a unique concoction, with nothing to equal it.
6.. Telebhaaja: these and jhalmuri are like 'made for each other'.
7.. Chanachur: many have tried unsuccessfully to steal the formula, MNCs included!
8.. Alukabli: where will you get something like this?
9.. Ghugni: again, chana is not the same at all.
10.. Radhaballavi: try it with alurdom or cholar daal.
11.. Chanmp: even Pakistani cricketers have sampled these, in Chitpur.
12.. Rezala: out of this world, just out of this world!
13.. Paradiser Sharbat: there is one which is green, and another, pink. No college student from Presidency or the University has failed to sample these!
14.. Lere Biscut: needed to make the batter for chop-katlet.
15.. Chicken Kabiraji: an unbelievable variation on the chicken cutlet.
16.. Moton Afghani: an equally innovative presentation of the mutton cutlet.
17.. Dimer Kalia: again, where do you get something like this?
18.. Kasha mangsho: it has become an institution now.
19.. Roll: the ubiquitous mutton, chicken or egg roll. Unquestionably
superior to any variants (Frankies 4 that matter) in any other city of the world. And also....
20.. Coffee houser coffee ar adda: try the float with ice cream.
21.. Bharer chaa: on the Maidan, from shining brass vessels on a rainy
day. And not to be missed in all this,
22.. Pan: unmatched, even in Benaras or Lucknow. Honestly!

The sweeter side

23.. Roshomalai: a creamy, mouth-watering delight!
24.. Jilipi: smaller than the jalebis and tastes quite different.
25.. Lal doi: is an experience by itself!
26.. Sada Doi: have it @ the shop, "Mithai"
27.. Kamala bhog: a pale yellow orb, delicately sweetened.
28.. Notun gurer sondesh: a winter speciality available in no other city.
29.. Rosogolla: simply needs no introduction.
30.. Natun gurer Rosogolla: the latest innovation. There are many, many more traditional favourites.

and also...

31.. Shitabhog: pure white, sweetened to just the right extent.
32.. Mihi Dana: golden yellow, saffron scented.
33.. Maalpoa: rich brown pancakes, dripping in sugar syrup.
34.. Ranga alur pithey: another traditional favourite in winter.

Up fashion street

35.. Fashions keep changing. But the dhuti-panjabi and tangail look never becomes out-dated.
36.. Dhuti with extra broad borders: the finest and most elegant available here.
37.. Dhutis in red or black: The latest sensation in Calcutta.
38.. Giley kara Panjabi: those with the improbably crinkled sleeves.
39.. Tangail Sari: the best in these all-time favourites can be found here.

and the other marks of distinction are...

40.. Bidyasagari choti: you still get them here.
41.. Kabuli Chappal: another old favourite.
42.. Garader Sari: ideal with pujo bari, shankher awaaj.

Sights and sounds

One wakes up in the morning and hears their voices drifting through the air. So typically do they say their bit...that it is difficult to forget ....and even more so ...to imitate...

43.. Shil katowala: they chip the stone slabs which grind masalas.
44.. Chhuri Kanchhi Shaanwala: sharpens knives, scissors and anything with an edge.
45.. Lep Shelaiwala: they make those cotton quilts which warm you up in winter.

And early in the morning, before Durga Pujo, who can forget the strains of

46.. Mahalayar mahishashuromardini:

Other things, quaint and very special

48.. Chinese Food in China Town: an early morning breakfast here is an experience.
49.. Metro Rail: spick and span, and the trains are dot on time.
50.. Maidan: the ideal place to be on a sleepy, winter morning.
51.. College Streeter Boipara: bookworms buzz around this place morning, noon and night.
52.. All Night Music Conference: you won't find a minute to yawn.
53.. Circular Rail: see the river all along as you travel on the train.
54.. Ganga te nouko bihar: either in a country boat or a steamer or on hover craft!
55.. Dolphins in the Ganga: if it's your lucky day, you might catch a glimpse of a frolicking shoal.
56.. Morning tram to the Maidan: see how green and fresh the city looks.
57.. East Calcutta Wetlands: our very own eco-system regulator - just on the outskirts.

Travel in style

58.. Rickshaw: still the preferred form of transportation for some, especially children and the elderly.
59.. School van: it's to be seen to be believed.
60.. Tram: if you have time on hand, you can see the city glide by.

Calcutta's passion

61.. Roker adda: Calcuttans are an adda baaj lot.Mohan Bagan & East Bengal: prices of ilish or chingri go up, depending on who wins the day.
62.. Jatra: who says it is all melodrama?
63.. Durga pujo: the pomp and pageantry, reserved each year for the 'mother of all festivals'.
64.. Little magazine: you still find devotees of this publishing wonder.
65.. Book Fair: when the fair is on, you are there - whether you love books or not.
66.. Cricket match at the Eden: cricketers and cricket lovers the world over treasure the experience.

City's own

67..Hydrant: there's a move by the CMC to revive the practice of splashing the streets with Ganga water from the hydrants
68..Italian Saloon: road side barber joints, where you sit on a piece of brick (it).
69..Chinese dry cleaners: do a very clean job, indeed.
70..Darjees of Metiabruz: are a cut above the rest. Even if they cut corners at times!

Now, Tell Me Is There Any Other Place Better Than Kolkata On Earth?
............:-)

Shakespearean take on Singur

2008-12-16T00:01:00.000-08:00

Buddho Antony mounts the steps of bloodied capital, showing 'red eyes' not from threats, but from genuine weeping. He begins:

'Friends, NRIs, countrymen. Don't lend me your investments.
I come to bury Nano, not to praise it.
The evil that men do lives after them;
The good is oft interred with their machinery;
So let it be with the Tatas. The noble Mamata
Hath told you that i, Buddho was too ambitious:
If it were so, it was a grievous fault,
And grievously hath i and Bengal answer'd it.
Here, under leave of Mamata, Governor Gandhi, and the rest...
Come i to speak at Nano's funeral.

Roton was my friend, faithful and just to our state,
But Mamata says we were too ambitious;
And Mamata is an honourable woe-man.
I had brought many venture capitalists back to Kolkata,
Whose investments did the coffers fill...
I speak not to reverse what Mamata screwed,
But here i am to speak what i do know.
You all did love this Tata once, not without cause:
What cause withholds you then, to mourn for Nano?
O development, thou art fled to brutish protestors,
And the state has lost its jobs and capital. Bear with me;
My heart is in the debris there with Nano,
And i must pause till it come back to me...
But yesterday the Nano might
Have rolled out before Durga Pujo. Now lies it abandoned.
O cadres, if i were disposed to stir
Your hearts and minds to rational rage,
I should do Trinamool wrong, and my own CPM diehards wrong,
Who, you all know, are honourable woe-men and men:

If you had hopes, prepare to shed them now. You all do know this MOU. I remember The first time ever Salem Group signed it.
Through this the well-beloved Mamata stabb'd;
And as she pluck'd our Tata Motors away,
Mark how the blood of Bengal follow'd it,
As rushing out of doors, to be resolved
If Mamata so unkindly knock'd, or no;
For Mamata, as you know, is the people's angel:
This was the unkindest cut of all;
For when the noble Tata saw her stab,
Ingratitude, more strong than traitors' arms,
Quite angered him. Then burst forth his mighty Plan B, and, in his mantle gathering up his machinery,
Great Roton withdrew.
O, what a fall was there, my West Bengal.
Then I, and you, and Harsh Neotia's malls fell down,
Whilst bloody backwardness swept over us again.'

The Agreement Between WBIDC, TATA MOTORS & W.B.Govt

2008-09-24T23:59:00.000-07:00

http://www.wbidc.com/images/pdf/Agreement between TML, WBIDC and Government of West Bengal.pdf

Find the agreement confusing, the summary of the agreement goes like this;

Nano will cost Bengal hundreds of crores a year

Sources in the West Bengal government’s finance department said the state had made budgetary provisions that would run into several hundred crores every year for 20 to 30 years to attract Tata Motors’ Nano project to Singur. This payout was to begin from the scheduled start of the production in 2008. The project is now facing problems owing to protests by land-losers unwilling to compensation from the government. Responding to questions raised on the basis of the contract signed between the state government, Tata Motors and West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC), the source said the state would also match any
additional benefits accruing to factories in hill states like Uttarakhand, were these states to receive any further incentive packages in the future.
At the end of 2006, the state government had disbursed the first part of its support to Tata Motors in the form of a soft loan of Rs 200 crore at an interest of 1 per cent per year repayable in five equal annual instalments from the 21st year from disbursement of the loan, entailing a lock-up of the capital and loss of interest income on the amount for the entire tenure.
At a simple rate of 12 per cent a year, the interest subsidy would cost the state about Rs 25 crore a year.
The state had committed to extend a loan of around Rs 400 crore a year at 0.1 per cent interest, payable monthly, for 30 years, as a matching amount for the value added tax (VAT) received by the state at the rate of 12 per cent on every car sold. The 12 per cent VAT on the Rs 1 lakh base model would go up if more of the upper-end versions of Nano were sold, so the amount of the loan to be extended to TML could surge.
The state would also extend a loan to match the central sales tax collected on the vehicle, payable on each car sold outside the state, or aggregates of such cars sent to other factories, and this commitment was expected to cost the state at least Rs 50 crore a year, given the installed capacity of the Singur plant to make 350,000 cars and generate components and aggregates for up to 500,000 cars.
The state government had also promised Tata Motors subsidised power at the rate of Rs 3 per kilo watt hour (kwh), or at around half the price of power charged to high-tension industrial consumers in the state at present, in perpetuity.
This in turn would mean extending support to the tune of up to Rs 70 crore a year for the 997-acre factory zone comprising the mother plant, the ancillary and component facilities and all related infrastructure under the current power tariff structure.
Incidentally, land for the factory had also been provided at a subsidised rate with 645 acres being provided to Tata Motors at Rs 1 crore a year against market rate of Rs 19.3 crore a year in that area, and with 290 acres being provided for the vendor and related facilities units at Rs 23 lakh a year against a market rate of Rs 8.7 crore a year. This excluded the cost of acquisition of the land pegged at around Rs 120 crore.

Pradeep Gooptu / Kolkata October 01, 2008, 22:36 IST

What Now? Move to Kharagpur

2008-09-23T02:17:00.000-07:00

So what happens now? Mamata defiant, Buddha flummoxed, Tata's looking confused. The story unfolds to yet another episode. A wrong is wrong and two wrongs don't make one right. In a few days we will see which side is the more sensible one. To take Tata's case first, they are very craftily making this a vanilla law & order issue which the state governmenr should fully resolve, before work can start there. Mamata ji, as usual does not know where to stop or how to take this forward. Buddha is the CM of a state where the political party weilds more (absolute) power and not the (puppet) government.

Today the CM and CPI(M) are caught in the quagmire for acquiring multi crop land. India is a country whose population is growing at an alarming rate. The basic necessity of food is increasing every day. We have been blessed by fertile plains for cultivating all kinds of crops and foodgrains. The land mass under cultivation has not increased dramatically in centuries. We have been able to use better technology and fertilisers to increase yield. The returns from agriculture has been diminishing with time. In this senario it is criminal to even think of acquiring multi crop land for industry. Industry can sucessfully set up in any land, not so for agriculture. No government or private player should be allowed to turn fertile land into wasteland. The implications of this in the long term would be disastrous.

So what happens to industry? There is plenty of land in our country which is not used for agriculture. Government can create infrastructure there like roads, power, transport, etc to attract industry. Industry is essential as is agriculture. Both have to go hand in hand and not one at the cost of another.

Buddha, dont be scared of Tata's. Flex your authority. You have given them free 1000 acres of land. Power at Rs.3/- /kw, tax holidays. They better stay in Bengal. If they are ready to move to another state, then we can surely make them to move to Kharagpur, where you can provide the required land and logistically is better if not simillar to singed..Singur.

What to do with Mamata? She alone knows whose advise she is listening to now. Some say it's the extremist left. Forget the 400 acres. The land is not cultivable any more. Instead work out a better compensation package for all the land loosers. More money, assured jobs, housing, healthcare and education for their children. They will be better off in present circumstances. Later on, get a bill passed in Parliament, which forbids acquisation of fertile agricultural land. You will do a lot good to everyone.

Singur, Nano, Mamata & Tata's

2008-08-07T04:40:00.000-07:00

What does an administration do and what does the opposition party do and what do the Tata's do and what do the common man in the streets do....

Well there aren't any easy, simple solutions in the horizon. Each is playing the old game of "who blinks first". The first round goes to Buddha. Why..? He for a change went on the offensive and publicly announced that the Tata's are here to stay. By this one move all the pressure being applied by the crafty Ravi Kant was released. Now he has to deal with Mamata. Well he made a opening by calling the people of Bengal, the jobless to rally against her and defeat her intentions. Never did he once publicly talk about force being used, etc. He and his party have learnt from Nandigram. The ball is in her court for the moment. She has been holding onto it for now.

Mamata is flush from her recent gains in the panchayat elections. Good show. Those gains came in the backdrop of Nandigram, the ration problems. Does she feel that she now has the peoples mandate. Well she should do some soul seraching. Her advisers see a silver lining. She had got her act horrible wrong the last time. She should thank Buddha for messing up Nandigram and showing her some candle-light at the end of the tunnel. The truth of the matter is nor the left nor mamata have any place in modern India. They both are so out of sync with the sentiments, desires, expectations of the emerging youth.

Tata's were keen to have the plant located as close to Jamshedpur as possible with road, rail and port within easy reach. Bengal fitted perfectly well in the gameplan. Not that there were not other locations but Singur offered them the best of everthing. Common sense says, do what Tamil Nadu has done. Lay out the red carpet. Get them the land, power, permits in a jiffy. Buddha did most. Then comes Mamata. Experts can say what they want. The basic mathematics of land acquisition should take into account the current value of the land, the expected earning of the land holder from agriculture for the next 40/50 years, and cost of relocation.

Now what has Mamata done for the landowners who have not given their land voluntarily. Agitaion, bandh, unrest.....what else? Has she tried to relocate them. Has she tried to create alternate employment for them? See that their families are taken care of. Got a few NGO's to work with their women. Provide education facilities for the children. For God's and everyone's sake stop agitating and do something constructive. You are a leader. Thousands look upto you. Show a new way. Bengal is in the thores of a significant change after 30/35 years. Let us not miss this opportunity with ndustrialisation. Bengalees all across the world are looking up. Many want to return home. Parents here dont want to send their grown up's to other states for employment.

Let there be change.......

KOLKATA COPS

2008-06-17T01:12:00.000-07:00

It is shocking, the attitude of the upholders of the law and the protectors of the citizens seems to be from a barbaric society. Today, 17 June 2008, The Times of India carried a front page report (http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Client.asp?Daily=TOIKM&login=default&Enter=true&Skin=TOI&GZ=T&AW=1213690369765) titled "Callous Cops" highlighting the cry of help from a 8 year old child asking the gathered cops to save his father trapped under the overturned car. my blood boils after reading the article. i am left speechless and dumb with shock as to how the gathered cops could just leave the person dying and not try to do anything. should they be charged with manslaughter. they have committed no less crime.

A few days back The Telegraph, 15 June 2008 carried a story "Girl Dies as Cops Skirt Hospital", which again showed the demon we have as our protectors. Life was taken out of a budding 20year old girl in front of her father and relatives who kept begging, that the girl be shifted to a hospital where she could be attended to from the state run NRS Hospital.

These incidents are not in isolation. They are but a few which get highlighted. There are numerous other incidents happening across our city everyday. Why is this happening? What's wrong with the cops? Why are they behaving this way?

Leadership is the main factor which is lacking within the forces. There is an urgent need for a leader within them to change the attitude of the whole lot. An army needs just one general to win a war. But no one seems to be concerned about this. Politics should never be mixed with administration. The communists have systematically destroyed the discipline within the police. Once this same force used to be compared with Scotland yard and were second to none.

Bring back the "PRIDE" within you. You all take a vow and oath when you join. Just follow that to the words. Let the citizens trust you again. Let the Frankenstein not be created. Stem the rot here and now.

India's Most Polluted City

2008-05-29T23:13:00.000-07:00

A six year study conducted by the Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute (CNCI), Kolkata, has concluded that 18 out of every 100,000 persons in Kolkata fall victim to lung cancer annually. A staggering 7 out of 10 people in this megapolis are afflicted with some form of respiratory ailment. There is a definite link between the rising incidence of respiratory and other ailments in the city and the deterioration in the quality of air. School going children are developing asthma while older people are developing cancer. It is given that the urgent need to introduce cleaner fuels like CNG and LPG along with immediate phasing out of public (commercial) transport vehicles over 15 years.

That Kolkata has overtaken Delhi as India's most polluted city is a clear indication of the all around failure of the Government and administration to foresee and plan for a better future for its residents. Newly emerging cities can learn from the mismanagement of Kolkata and take preventive steps with a clear blueprint for maintaining the quality of air. What is more appalling is the attitude of the concerned ministries (and ministers) who have excuses for everything and are masters in passing on the buck. These few people are destroying our children's future for small political gains. While Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai have all taken important steps to at least control the vehicular emmission and reduce pollution levels gradually, there has been complete inaction in Kolkata.

The present growth in pollution levels will make the air almost unbreathable by 2010. The worst sufferers will be the traffic policemen, street hawkers, and anyone who has to breathe this toxic air for half an hour daily.