UK train station gets Bengali signage

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday expressed her delight over the "victory of culture and heritage" with the London tube rail accepting Bengali as a language for signboards at the Whitechapel Station.

"Proud to note that the London Tube Rail has accepted Bengali as a language of signage at Whitechapel Station, signifying the increasing global importance and strength of the 1,000-year old Bengali language," Banerjee wrote on her Twitter handle

She added that the move underlined how the Bengali diaspora should work together in common cultural directions.

The name of the London underground station on Whitechapel Road and Durward Street can now be seen written in Bangla besides English signboard.

The signboards in English and Bengali outside and throughout the station have been funded by the London Borough of Tower Hamlets Council, following a council and community-led campaign to install the signs, Mayor John Biggs tweeted. "Delighted to see bilingual signs now installed at Whitechapel station — in both English and Bangla," he wrote.

The Whitechapel area of London houses a number of Bengali expatriates from Bangladesh and India.

Biggs, in a letter addressed to the Mayor of London, had highlighted the need for coming up with bilingual signboards. In his appeal, Biggs said: "Whitechapel is at the heart of the Bangladeshi community. Bilingual signs have been installed at Southall and replicating this at Whitechapel would be welcomed to mark the culture of British Bangladeshis and reflect the rich heritage and diversity."