Beautification work of the river bank of Kolkata started last year.
And the first phase of the project,
covering a one-km stretch
along the river from Babughat
to the Millennium Park is now ready to be inaugurated on 24 May at 6pm
by the chief minister of West Bengal.
The original plan covers a
10 km stretch along the river's
Left Bank from Pramamik Ghat
at Baranagore in the north to
Dahi Ghat in the Garden Reach
in the city's southern fringes, it was decided at the meeting
that the initial work would be
taken up on a one kilometre
stretch from Babughat to the
Millennium Park. The project, called 'Hooghly
River Front Development,
Kolkata,' envisages setting up
of a cultural node in the
northern end and a nature
retreat, along with development of the jetties at
the Fairlie Ghat, Millennium
Ferry Ghat, Babu Ghat and
Outram Ghat. Besides, it also includes setting
up a 'Kolkata Square,' an open
air theatre and a 'Water
Shrine' along the river. The project plan
focuses on increasing the
visibility of the Hooghly and
restoring the lost heritage
around the riverbank. The famous Eden Gardens off
the riverbank has come to
mean only the stadium today,
with very little public interest
in the actual garden with its landmark wooden pagoda at
the centre. Also, people have heard of the
Bandstand, but do not know
where it actually is. The project
envisages restoring the Eden
Gardens and the nearby
Bandstand to their full glory. In the first phase of the
project, the Bankim Chatterjee
statue roundabout behind Eden
would be decongested with the
relocation of the inter-state
bus stand there and removal of the roadside eateries. Once the place
is decongested,
something called the Kolkata
Square will come up there. It
will have, as in many foreign
countries, a map of the
metropolis along with its heritage landmarks would be
etched on the road itself for
the benefit of outsiders. A
pillar would also be installed
with the names of the
luminaries from the city with their dates of birth.
In course of the project, the
jetties along the Hooghly would
be refurbished to enable upto
six yachts of berth on them at
any given time. A 'Gateway of Kolkata' would
be set up at the abandoned
KoPT cargo sheds near the
iconic Howrah bridge. To bring back the glory of north
Kolkata which was the
epicentre of what is known as
the 'Bengal Renaissance,' a
Literary Square would be set up
near 'Mayer Ghat' at Bagbazar, associated with the memory of
Sri Sarada Devi, wife of the
famous saint Sri Ramakrishna. Besides, heritage projects
would also be taken up at
Kumartoli, famous for studios
of clay sculptors and artists. Several commercial complexes,
including shopping malls and
entertainment centres, would
also be constructed along the
riverfront. The height of the station buildings of the Circular
Railway, which runs along the
river bank, would be increased
to house commercial
complexes.--
A. B.
And the first phase of the project,
covering a one-km stretch
along the river from Babughat
to the Millennium Park is now ready to be inaugurated on 24 May at 6pm
by the chief minister of West Bengal.
The original plan covers a
10 km stretch along the river's
Left Bank from Pramamik Ghat
at Baranagore in the north to
Dahi Ghat in the Garden Reach
in the city's southern fringes, it was decided at the meeting
that the initial work would be
taken up on a one kilometre
stretch from Babughat to the
Millennium Park. The project, called 'Hooghly
River Front Development,
Kolkata,' envisages setting up
of a cultural node in the
northern end and a nature
retreat, along with development of the jetties at
the Fairlie Ghat, Millennium
Ferry Ghat, Babu Ghat and
Outram Ghat. Besides, it also includes setting
up a 'Kolkata Square,' an open
air theatre and a 'Water
Shrine' along the river. The project plan
focuses on increasing the
visibility of the Hooghly and
restoring the lost heritage
around the riverbank. The famous Eden Gardens off
the riverbank has come to
mean only the stadium today,
with very little public interest
in the actual garden with its landmark wooden pagoda at
the centre. Also, people have heard of the
Bandstand, but do not know
where it actually is. The project
envisages restoring the Eden
Gardens and the nearby
Bandstand to their full glory. In the first phase of the
project, the Bankim Chatterjee
statue roundabout behind Eden
would be decongested with the
relocation of the inter-state
bus stand there and removal of the roadside eateries. Once the place
is decongested,
something called the Kolkata
Square will come up there. It
will have, as in many foreign
countries, a map of the
metropolis along with its heritage landmarks would be
etched on the road itself for
the benefit of outsiders. A
pillar would also be installed
with the names of the
luminaries from the city with their dates of birth.
In course of the project, the
jetties along the Hooghly would
be refurbished to enable upto
six yachts of berth on them at
any given time. A 'Gateway of Kolkata' would
be set up at the abandoned
KoPT cargo sheds near the
iconic Howrah bridge. To bring back the glory of north
Kolkata which was the
epicentre of what is known as
the 'Bengal Renaissance,' a
Literary Square would be set up
near 'Mayer Ghat' at Bagbazar, associated with the memory of
Sri Sarada Devi, wife of the
famous saint Sri Ramakrishna. Besides, heritage projects
would also be taken up at
Kumartoli, famous for studios
of clay sculptors and artists. Several commercial complexes,
including shopping malls and
entertainment centres, would
also be constructed along the
riverfront. The height of the station buildings of the Circular
Railway, which runs along the
river bank, would be increased
to house commercial
complexes.--
A. B.
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