KOLKATA: An exhibition on old Calcutta (now Kolkata) photographs, documents and arms will be held at the Town Hall soon.
The exhibition, a first-of-its-kind, will be organised by the West Bengal Administrator General and Official Trustee Office. The department is entrusted with the job of preserving old documents and photographs of Kolkata. It has arms been used by the British administration. Letters to use Town Hall have been sent to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation. A nod of the state Finance department is required as copies of old and rare photographs will be sold. The organisers believe that photographs worth Rs 5 crore will be sold at the exhibition. There are photographs of British photographers, who had come from England and clicked photos of different areas in Kolkata as part of their official assignment. There are detailed photographs showing the construction of Victoria Memorial Hall and Howrah Bridge.
Senior officials of the office of West Bengal Administrator General said there were photographs, which no one had ever seen. The office has been keeping records after the East India Company won the Battle of Plassey in 1757.
There are photographs of a huge lake, which was situated beside the present High Court Building. Kolkata was called the second City after London. There were parks, squares and water bodies to beautify the city. There are photographs of fighter planes, taking off from Red Road, which was used as a runway during World War II. There are many documents on undivided Bengal, which will be put on display. Senior officials said the exhibition will attract both common people and researchers. They expect clearance from the Finance department any time and once the same is available, the date of the exhibition will be fixed.