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Take a trip down history at tram museum 'Swaranika'

Kolkata: Tram museum titled 'Swaranika' has created great enthusiasm amongst youngsters.

Situated at the CTC terminus at Esplanade, an old tram has been designed to house the museum.

Calcutta (now Kolkata) has a very long association with trams. They were first introduced in Calcutta, the then capital of the British empire in 1873 when they were horse-driven. But during the hot summer, the horses could not bear the heat and many of them died. Finding no other option, tram services were suspended on November 20, 1873 within a few months after its introduction. In 1880, it was restored again and two years later in 1882, trams were driven by steam engines. As some of the streets were narrow, trams used to move at a slow speed. Electric tram cars were introduced in 1902 in Kolkata and 1905 in Howrah. Calcutta and Howrah got connected with trams in 1943. It may be mentioned that after winning the Ashes in Australia in the Bodyline series in 1931-32, English cricketers made a brief stopover at Calcutta on their way back to England. The Indians boycotted trams due to the Civil Disobedience movement called by Gandhiji when Indians shun English products. Douglas Jardine was the English captain, the British put up posters with his photographs in which the skipper was seen requesting people to use trams as "Calcutta Tramway Company is the best tramway company in the world."

The exhibits include caps used by drivers, conductors and senior officials of the Calcutta Tramways Corporation and badges used by the Inspectors and Senior Inspectors. 1 anna and 2 anna coins, tram tickets and the daily schedule of tram services will be on display.

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