Fifth Wikipedia Kolkata Photowalk

Wikipedia Takes Kolkata V

Fifth Wikipedia Kolkata Photowalk, 24 January 2016

Also see: Wikipedia Kolkata Photowalks

Wikipedia the world largest online encyclopedia runs entirely on voluntary effort. Each major city in the world has a a Wikipedia chapter, who apart from contributing to Wikipedia carry out different activities like workshops and photowalks.

Group Photo (not the whole group), Fifth Wikipedia Kolkata Photowalk, (Photo Courtesy: Indrajit Das, Wikimedia Commons)

The main objective of Wikipedia Photowalk, officially known a “Wikipedia Takes,” is to build a database of photos of landmarks of the city. The photos can later be used in the relevant articles.

Walkers hit the road (Photo Courtesy: Biswarup Ganguly, Wikimedia Commons)

Wikipedia Takes Kolkata V was held on 24 Jan 2016 and was held in the Kidderpore area.

The previous walks were as follows:

1. Wikipedia takes Kolkata I, 18 Dec. 2011, BBD Bag Area
2. Wikipedia takes Kolkata II, 3 March 2013, Bow Barracks, Tiretta bazar and canning Street area.
3. Wikipedia takes Kolkata III, 23 Feb 2014, Manicktala, Gouribari, Shyambazar and Belgachia area.
4. Wikipedia takes Kolkata IV, 14 Dec 2014, Tollygunge and Chetla area.

St. Stephen Cemetery, Kidderpore

This time also the walk was confined within regular wikipedia contributors from the city and was focused on the Kidderpore and Hastings area.

Wikipedians at St. Stephen Cemetery, (Photo Courtesy: Biswarup Ganguly, Wikimedia Commons)

The meeting point was Kidderpore Tram Depot and the reporting time was 7:30 am. After a brief orientation the wikipedinas soon hit the road.

The first stop was the St. Stephen Cemetery, near the Kidderpore Circular Railway station. The small cemetery is difficult to locate but it is still active.

The cemetery once served as a burial ground for sailors and sea men and is popularly known as Seamen Cemetery.

Many of the old grave epitaphs contains symbol of anchors, sextants, compass and other naval objects. Sadly many of the old seamen graves are being replaced by new ones.

Next stop was the Bhukailash Temples, housing some of the tallest shiva lingas of the country.

Bhukailash Temple Complex, Kidderpore

The temple complex contains two aat – chala temples and a huge pond lies in the centre. There are other religious structures like a giant Nandi Bull.

Thakurdalan, Bhukailash Rajbari, Kidderoore

Just opposite the Bhukailash Temple Complex is the Bhukailash Rajbari. The roof of the nat mandir has long collapsed and the thakur dalan remains the only intact structure of the once grand Bhukailash Rajbari.

After the Bhukailash temple it was back to the Karl Marx Sarani (Garden Reach Trunk Road) and we headed northwards towards the Kidderpore Bridge.

This area is known as Kabitirtha, because of the houses of three famous poets Michael Madhusudan Dutt, Rangalal Bandyopadhyay and Hemchandra Bandyopadhyay.

Madhusudan Dutt’s house is straight on the road. It houses a diagnostic clinic and a garment showroom. There are no plaques in honour of the great poet.

Kabitirtha, Kidderpore (L: Hemchandra Bandyopadhyay, M: Rangalal Bandyopadhyay and R: Michael Madhusudan Dutt)

Rangalal Bandyopadhyay’s house is just of the road and is in reasonable good condition and does contain a remembrance plaque.

Lascar Memorial

Just opposite Rangalal Bandyopadhyay’s house is fresco showing the portraits of the three poets, sadly they hardly represent the original persons.

The house of Hemchandra Bandyopadhyay is in a sorry state with chunks of masonry falling off every other day.

We made our way through the winding lanes of Kidderpore and finally crossing the Tolly Nala at Dahi Ghat and entered the Marine House area in Hastings.

The last stop was the Lascar Memorial on Napier Road. The 100 meter high Lascar Memorial was built in memory of the 896 Lascar who died fighting for the British during the World war I (WWI).

We finished the day with a wonderful late breakfast of sandwich and tea, courtesy Indian Navy.

Special Thanks:

• Special thanks to Commodore Ravi Alluwalia,  Naval Officer in Charge West Bengal for the wonderful breakfast at Lascar Memorial
• My fellow wikipedian and walk participants deserves something more than thanks

 

 

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