Location
BBD Bagh (Dalhousie Square) is located just south of Howrah Bridge.
About BBD Bagh (Dalhousie Square)
When Kolkata was the administrative centre for British India, BBD
Bagh was the centre of power. It is a square area built around the
old Lal Dighi tank which exists till date. It was later called the
Tank Square and then the Dalhousie Square. Now it was renamed after
Benoy, Badal, and Dinesh, three freedom fighters who were hung by
the British during the protests against the partition of Bengal in
1905. The tank in the centre, fed by natural springs, is said to
have supplied Charnock with drinking water.
BBD Bagh and its surrounding roads and areas like Netaji Subhash
Road, Biplabi Trailakya Maharaj (formerly Brabourne) Sarani, Lyons
Range, India Exchange Place, Mission Row, R.N. Mukherjee Road and
Fairlie Place form the older commercial hub of the city.
Historical Buildings Near BBD Bag
There are many historical buildings, offices, business centers and
banks which surround the square.
On the north side of the square stands the huge Writers' Building,
which dates from 1880. The East India Company's writers have now
been replaced by modern-day ones employed by the West Bengal state
government, and this is where all the quintuplicate forms, carbon
copies and red ink come from.
To the east are commercial houses and the West Bengal Government
Tourist Bureau.
On the southern side is Raj Bhavan, residence of the Governor.
Beside that are the State Legislative Assembly House and the
Calcutta High Court. St John's Cathedral, which close to Raj Bhavan
is the oldest church in Calcutta.
On the western side is the imposing white domed General Post
Office, next to which is the Reserve Bank of India building. Netaji
Subhash Road is the centre of the onetime English commercial houses
which today flourish in Indian hands. Lyon's Range stock exchange,
behind Clive Street, is worth a visit for a glimpse of the frenzied
dealing in shares, periodically erupting onto the street.
Further west of BBD Bagh, with a superb position on the Hooghly
River taking in the magnificent expanse of the Howrah Bridge, is
Millenium Park - a glorious place to enjoy a sunset, kick back and
absorb life on the river ghats.
Banks like the Allahabad Bank, UCO Bank and the UBI have their
headquarters in this area. Giant public sector undertakings like
Andrew Yule, Balmer Lawrie and Coal India also have their offices
here.
BBD Bagh and its adjoining areas are home to establishments like
the Calcutta Stock Exchange, the Eastern railway offices at Fairlie
Place, Tea Board, the Calcutta Improvement Trust and the various
chambers of commerce.
There is also a Tourists Office - West Bengal Tourist Bureau, 3/2,
BBD Bagh.
Fact File
» Nearby Attraction
Writers' Building, Raj Bhavan, St John's Cathedra, Indian Museum
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