Stowe is one of the most Well known house and gardens in Georgian England. Created by Viscount Cobham in the grounds of his family home from 1717, it reflected a programme of ideas based on Cobham’s hugely influential network of political connections .

(nature contre béton....)

Henri Rousseau, La Guerre, 1894 (détail)

fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Guerre_

 

Exposition "Apocalypse : Hier et demain" - Bibliothèque nationale de France - site François-Mitterrand - du 4 février au 8 juin 2025

files.offi.fr/programmation/2911322/images/600/21430e63e1...

bnf.tickeasy.com/fr-FR/produit?Famille=2436562473280400569

 

Flower ☮ Power

Росіяни, любіть не війну 💛💙

Russians, Make Love, Not War💛💙

Русские, Занимайтесь любовью, а не войной💛💙

Xujing Town - Shanghai

Les rencontres d'Arles

Ginestas, Aude, France.

Cleaning up the undercarriage and keeping low on departure from RAF Fairford's RIAT 2024 display is this Hellenic Air Force McDonnell Douglas F4E Phantom II. Fantastic to see this iconic dual seat Fighter aircraft originally flown by the USAF in 1960. Often affectionately known as "the old smokey" or "the big ugly" Hellenic Air Force ordered 58 of these beauties in 1971 under the "Peace Icarus programme" and are flown 117 Pteriga Makhis combat wing in Greece.

Put two shots together, the front & back of this original French programme of La Strada, directed by Federico Fellini.

Quand ce ne sera pas de la photo, ce sera du tricot... Tout plein de belles chaussettes colorées à réaliser.

C'est bien l'Bruno.

Participation à l'oeuvre "Batofar" ( un bateau musical amarré sur la Seine), de l'amie Lola Duval, graphiste de son état.

Taken in Moore Street electricity substation - the venue for the installation "A boy and his atom" a work by Steven Claydon - a still-working brutalist edifice and my favourite Sheffield building. Check out the exhibition here and the remarkable building here.

The Advanced Passenger Train programme was all about creating a world beating tilting train for the future, without having to spend billions on new dedicated track for high speed running. It should have followed in the steps of the HST, and put the UK in the forefront of railway innovation. It was scrapped, and the technology sold to the Italians who produced, the Pendolino! Scrapped by a government who lacked backbone and vision, and a hostile press who excelled in the maxim of not letting un truths get in the way of a good story. Nothing new there then, you may say? During its short life in scheduled service, No. 370003 speeds through Lichfield Trent Valley with a Glasgow Central to London Euston service on 19th April 1985. Copyright Photograph John Whitehouse - all rights reserved

Mirai Nagasu

Gold Medal winner, Womens

ISU Junior Grand Prix, Lake Placid, Sept. 2007

 

A full Bielman..and spinning at incredible speed to boot.

 

A future Olympian to look out for in Vancouver 2010!!!

 

Performing her long programme, Coppélia. Notes on Coppelia below. This is the same programme she performed January 26th 2008 at the US Senior Ladies championship, and won gold with. At age 14, even though Mirai is the US woman's champion, she is too young to go to the world championships.

 

Coppelia is ballet about a girl who sits still, without smiling in the window of the shop of a toymaker Coppelius. A group of young kids enter the shop, and one of them noticing that Coppelia is a mechanical doll, pretends to be her, and gradually comes to life. The original choreography for Coppelia was by Arthur Saint-Leon with music by Leo Delibes.

 

Mirai's programme tells the story of the ballet (or part of it). It is not just skating to music, but a beautifully choreographed piece. Fulls mark to her choreographer, as well as to Mirai.

 

Nagasu trains in Pasadena and represents the Pasadena Figure Skating Club. Her coaches are Charlene Wong, Sashi Kuchiki, Sondra Holmes, Bob Paul, and Jim Yorke. Her choreographer is Lori Nichol.

    

Pêcherie sur la Côte de Jade entre Port du Collet et Les Moutiers-en-Retz

After a disastrous captive breeding programme this year, I may have success with a batch of 10 Question Mark butterflies. This 40mm final instar Polygonia interragationis larva is about to pupate; the other nine caterpillars have already formed their chrysalis on the Stinging Nettle (Urtica dioica) food plant.

 

The Question Mark is a nymphalid butterfly and is the largest of the Polygonia (Comma) species from North America. It lives in wooded areas, city parks, generally in areas with a combination of trees and open space.

 

Thanks for your visit… Any comment you make on my photograph is greatly appreciated and encouraging! But please do not use this image without permission.

Panavia Tornado ECR

Italian AF MM.7020 / 6-77

TLP 2018-3 LEAB Albacete, Spain

_IFP8223_Lr

The Audi Sport Quattro S1 was a Quattro programme car developed for homologation for Group B rallying in 1984, and sold as a production car in limited numbers.[1] It featured an all aluminium alloy 2,133 cc (130.2 cu in) (2.1 L) 20v DOHC engine slightly smaller than that of the Audi Quattro (in order to qualify for the 3-litre engine class after the scale factor applied to turbo engines). In road-going form, the engine was capable of producing 225 kW (306 PS; 302 bhp),[1] with the competition cars initially producing around 331 kW (450 PS; 444 bhp).[1]

 

The vehicle also featured a body shell composed of carbon-kevlar[1] and boasting wider arches, wider wheels (nine inches as compared to the Ur-Quattro's optional 8-inch-wide (200 mm) wheel rim), the steeper windscreen rake of the Audi 80 (requested by the Audi Sport rally team drivers to reduce internal reflections from the dashboard for improved visibility) and, most noticeably, a 320 mm (12.6 in) shorter wheelbase.

 

In addition to Group B competition in rallying, the Sport Quattro won the 1985 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb with Michèle Mouton in the driving seat, setting a record time in the process.[21] 224 cars of this "short version" Sport Quattro were built, and were offered for sale for 203,850 German Marks.[1]

Another participant in the D Day revival weekend in the village of Southwick, Hampshire. This young lady was dressed in clothes from the period and selling event programmes. Nice smile!

Finali Mondiali Ferrari 2011 at Mugello Circuit

This was one of the competitors in the 50's Sports Car Race at theVintage Sports Car Club's meeting at Oulton Park in June 2006. It's the 1956 Lotus Eleven of Malcolm Ricketts, which the programme of the event says has a 1,480cc engine. The Lotus Eleven was a completely new car, unlike the previous production Lotuses, the Mk VIII, Mk IX and Mk X which were all based on the Lotus Mk VI. The Eleven had a steel tubular space-frame with stressed aluminium panels, and the aerodynamic body was designed by Frank Costin and was hinged at both ends to give complete access to the engine and other mechanical parts. The car was mainly designed to run in the 1,100cc class of racing, but other engines of up to 2½ litres were also used.

TRs 11 and 13 attack the climb from Jerusalem Creek, near Colebrook, with a freight train from Boyer to Burnie. The two locomotives are fitted with LED panels as part of Tasrail's "Christmas Train" programme; the overnight journey north offers many opportunities for locals to watch the light display.

All the parts in this image were not officially released to the public. I have obtained them through other collectors and resellers. From left to right:

• prototype SNOT plates

• a test print

• a Q-Element

• a Grangemouth test brick

• a Satin-Light blue minifigure

 

These items have been collected because of a genuine hobbyist interest in, and enthusiasm for, LEGO history, production, engineering and quality control. Finding and understanding these items, is like an ongoing treasure hunt that is shared with a community of like-minded LEGO fans.

 

The items

Prototype parts

Prototype parts, like the prototype SNOT plates in the photo, are "early models" of part designs. The parts never made it into production in this form. They are generally used to evaluate the part design (for example to evaluate the concept, visual appearance, user-experience testing, ...). The parts are usually discarded afterwards.

 

The parts that I own have been sold in LEGO's internal shop for employees or have been given away in lots that LEGO donated, for example for promotional purposes.

 

Test bricks

LEGO required that the chemical companies and manufacturers followed a strict quality control programme using test bricks. They often manufactured other plastic products also. The quality control process that was in place for their work for LEGO, was frequently also applied to their other plastic products. As a result, test bricks can be found in a wide range of materials and colours that were never used by LEGO itself.

 

Initially, old production moulds were used. These bricks have the LEGO logo on all studs. Later specific test brick moulds were made. Initially, those also had the LEGO logo on all studs. After that, bricks with the letters ABCD with varying stud size were used. Later those were replaced by bricks with the letter C on the studs. These days, several other letters are seen.

 

Nightshift Grangemouth test bricks

In the late 1970s some employees at Borg-Warner wanted to experiment with some of the excess plastic from the regular LEGO production and used the mould to produce bricks with a "granite effect", like the multicoloured brick in the photo. The bricks they produced were given to children. They did not see this as a problem, because the marbled "granite" bricks could be clearly distinguished from real LEGO products. This might have been done with permission within the factory, or they might have been produced during night shifts, but LEGO was not pleased about it. As the story was told on BrickLink, the bricks were eventually spotted by a LEGO representative and the mould was taken away.

 

It looks like soon after, the test moulds with LEGO logos were replaced with test moulds without LEGO markings. From now on, if any unofficial products that might not meet all quality standards made their way to the general public, it would be clear that these were not official LEGO products.

 

Test prints

A lot can go wrong while printing on LEGO parts. That is why LEGO has a quality control process for printing. We find both print alignment calibration parts and parts that are printed on the "wrong" base colour, like the minifigure head in the photo.

We assume that these wrong-coloured parts are usually test prints, made on whatever colour was available in the machine at the time but not on the intended colour. This way, the final print design can be evaluated while any test parts can easily be separated from the later actual production parts. That way, there can be no confusion and only the correct parts can be included into sets. Even with all that care, things can still go wrong. Technology can fail, printers can run out of ink, etc. As a result, incomplete prints or misaligned prints are also found.

 

These parts used to be very rare, but in recent year many have found their way to resellers. They have been included in charity gifts that LEGO made, and some German resellers that seem to have access to LEGO's leftovers get them.

 

Q-elements

Q-Elements are parts that are made by LEGO for use in model shops. The model shops can request certain parts in unusual colours when they need them. That is how the transparent dark blue brick in this photo was made. They are intended to be used by these model shops only, and as a result they probably do not have to meet all the strict quality requirements that the parts that are released in sets have to meet. That would explain why transparent parts are available to model shops but not in sets. Leftovers from these model shops are sometimes sold or given away.

 

Mould test runs

Moulds require maintenance. After a mould has been disassembled, maintained and reassembled, a test is needed to ensure that everything works properly. Traditionally, red and transparent material has been used for these tests because some flaws are more visible using these colours.

Few of these parts have shown up, although the number seems to be increasing. These parts used to be rare, but are not hard to find now (finding a random part is easy, finding a specific part is still nearly impossible).

 

The parts are still often sold as "rare prototypes" by resellers who wish to increase the price.

 

"Nightshift minifigures"

Before 2020, only very few transparent minifigures were known to exist. They were probably really part of initial mould testing (looking for hidden flaws in the first parts made in a new mould). These were extremely rare. Also, a red Darth Vader helmet was known. That part was probably also made during a first mould test. It sold for such a high value, that later clone brands made "replica prototype helmets" and sold those on Ebay.

 

In 2020, several transparent minifigures found their way to online sales platforms. The figures were made with genuine LEGO parts, made in unreleased colours. As far as we could tell, the parts originated in the Mexico factory. They were received with enthusiasm by several collectors who were willing to pay serious amounts of money for them. Soon, more minifigures became available. In order to increase collectability and related value, soon accessories like helmets/headgear and weapons were added to the minifigures. Minifigures related to themes like Star Wars and Batman became available in a wide range of colours. When these figures were first made, I expected LEGO to stop them soon. For some reason, LEGO has not done that or has not been able to. By 2022, the range of colours has increased to include 9 or 10 colours with glitter and 11 colours with satin have been made or announced (including the figure in this photo). Many of those colours were never released with those additions in officially released LEGO products.

 

Because the quality standards that normally apply to LEGO parts did not fully apply to these figures, deviations could occur. Several transparent parts are already known to crack. There is a good reason why LEGO does not release full-transparent minifigures. The available combination of material and design is not suitable for this application. This is an important quality consideration for LEGO products, but it does not appear to be for these unofficial released parts.

 

I would guess that these parts are made in small quantities during mould testing after maintenance. That would keep them out of the regular LEGO production lines, and possibly out of strict supervision.

 

Replicas and clones

Finally, there are replica's and clones, which are parts that were "inspired" by actual LEGO bricks. Made with "Is no fake, is copy"-ethics. For example, we have seen

• Replica stickers or replica prints on genuine (unprinted) LEGO parts, especially for expensive collectible sets

• Replica Plant Leaves 6 x 5 (part 2417) that were made "only in colours that LEGO did not make", until LEGO made some of those colours later...

• Replica train wheel rubber, to replace old parts that have deteriorated over time.

• Custom chromed parts, making it difficult to find the parts that were actually chromed by LEGO

• And finally last year there was a story that Chinese clone bricks were found that used the LEGO logo. As far as I know, this is the first time that suspected clone bricks might actually have used the LEGO logo. Usually, people just think that parts made in another mould version must be fake.

 

These fake parts often violate the intellectual property rights of LEGO (and franchises like Star Wars when those stickers/prints are copied). For collectors, they can make things very difficult. How to separate genuine or even rare valuable items from cheap knock-offs?

 

I don't have any of these in my collection, but I would probably be interested in a few of those rumoured Chinese Fake-LEGO-2x4-bricks with LEGO logo...

  

Reasons to collect

Treasure hunt and the community - It's a fun hobby

People still frequently find items that have never been seen by our community before. Finding them, sharing them online, and engaging the community bring both joy and social interaction with fellow collectors. The new items provide an opportunity to everyone to learn something new and to gain new insights or better understanding.

 

There is also fun in the chase. Figuring out what is out there and where to find it. Gotta catch 'em all!

 

And, finally.... Ohhh, Look how beautiful this new brick is!

 

Understanding history and product design

Through collecting these items, we can learn about LEGO's history. By comparing them, or thinking about why things are the way they are, we can learn about the evolution of technology and ideas. Every brick tells a story, about when and how it was made, about the challenges that had to be overcome or about the people that made and used them.

 

Conservation of knowledge and unique items

By finding, collecting and conserving items that are otherwise unobtainable and that might otherwise be scrapped and destroyed, we preserve tangible items that tell us the stories behind them in a visible way. When we find these items, we are often also finding the stories relating to these items.

 

Telling a story

Finally, when the items and their information become available, we can use those to tell a story. We can share what we have found in exhibitions or online, like on this Flickr page. Through these items and their stories, we can help people understand their rich history.

  

Ethical considerations

Collecting unreleased items?

While collecting, a collector should consider the implications of his or her actions.

 

We could consider several aspects:

1) Why the parts were made;

2) How the parts became available;

3) Who benefits from them;

4) Confidentiality and conflicts of interest.

 

Most of these parts were made as part of LEGO's design or quality control processes. They were made by LEGO or by their suppliers because they were needed.

 

Although the parts were not made to be released to the general public, most parts that do find their way out of the factories seem to do so by legitimate routes. They are, for example, included in sales or donations of leftover parts. There are stories where chemical companies have given test parts to their employees.

 

In most cases the person who made the parts did not personally benefit from them. The parts were often seen as unusable leftovers that could be donated or as interesting gifts to contacts or people who were involved in their development, or simply as toys for children of employees. Only later, often decades later when these children were grown up or when the employees died, did these parts make it to the secondary market. Resellers make some money by finding and selling these items.

 

As far as I know, confidentiality and conflicts of interest have not caused any issues yet. Considering confidentiality, we might happen to find information that could (still) be confidential. The basic principle should be that we, as fans of LEGO, do not wish to do any harm to LEGO. As a result, intellectual property and proprietary information should remain confidential. We can, however, share all publicly available information (including when it takes some effort of specialist knowledge to get it) about the items we find and our thoughts about them. Collectors might have personal friendships with people in the professional communities. We can ask for information, but we should respect their professional limits in what they can or cannot share and respect confidentiality when they ask us to remain silent about something.

 

Stimulation of illegitimate behaviour

In the case of the minifigure, a new situation seems to have occurred. It looks like someone, or probably a small group of people, is actively benefiting from an illegitimate activity. They have discovered the LEGO AFOL collectors market, and have found that serious money can be made by selling "unreleased prototypes", especially of minifigures related to collectable themes like Star Wars or Batman.

 

We cannot be certain as long as no official statements are made by LEGO, but it seems like these parts are made using LEGO moulds and LEGO materials without proper authorisation and without financial benefits for LEGO. This might be a form of theft, by the employee(s) who used the facilities and materials for personal gain. When buying these items, we might support and stimulate this kind of behaviour.

 

I consider the "nightshift minifigures" an interesting example of how LEGO employees and LEGO collectors deal with these items. Because of that, I do think that some of these parts have a place in my collection. I do however do not wish to stimulate the production of these figures much. That is why I choose to limit myself to a few parts. I will not buy any for resale or trade. That is just my approach though, every collector will have to make his or her own choices here.

This is an image of 1 of the 2 Amur Tigers at this zoo, this one is called Siberia.

 

The conservation work and breading programmes which the park does are so important to the future of many species you can see there.

The subject of this NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope Picture of the Week is NGC 1637, a spiral galaxy located 38 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Eridanus.

 

This image comes from an observing programme dedicated to studying star formation in nearby galaxies. Stars form in cold, dusty gas clouds that collapse under their own gravity. As young stars grow, they heat their nurseries through starlight, winds, and powerful outflows. Together, these factors play a role in controlling the rate at which future generations of stars form.

 

Evidence of star formation is scattered all around NGC 1637, if you know where to look. The galaxy’s spiral arms are dotted with what appear to be pink clouds, many of which are accompanied by bright blue stars. The pinkish colour comes from hydrogen atoms that have been excited by ultraviolet light from young, massive stars. This contrasts with the warm yellow glow of the galaxy’s centre, which is home to a densely packed collection of older, redder stars.

 

The stars that set their birthplaces aglow are comparatively short-lived, and many of these stars will explode as supernovae just a few million years after they’re born. In 1999, NGC 1637 played host to a supernova, pithily named SN 1999EM, that was lauded as the brightest supernova seen that year. When a massive star expires as a supernova, the explosion outshines its entire home galaxy for a short time. While a supernova marks the end of a star’s life, it can also jump start the formation of new stars by compressing nearby clouds of gas, beginning the stellar lifecycle anew.

 

[Image Description: A spiral galaxy filling the view. Its disc is filled with bright red spots where stars are forming, dark reddish threads of dust that obscure light, and bluish glowing areas where older stars are concentrated. It has a large, glowing yellow oval area at the centre, from which two spiral arms wind through the galaxy’s disc. The bottom side of the disc is rounded while the top side is somewhat squared-off.]

 

Credits: ESA/Hubble & NASA, D. Thilker; CC BY 4.0

 

Looking up Michaelgate towards the Grade I Listed Lincoln Cathedral, the seat of the Bishop of Lincoln, in Lincoln, Lincolnshire.

 

Building commenced in 1088 and continued in several phases throughout the medieval period. It was reputedly the tallest building in the world for 238 years (1311–1549) before the central spire collapsed in 1549 and was not rebuilt. It is highly regarded by architectural scholars; the eminent Victorian writer John Ruskin declared: "I have always held... that the cathedral of Lincoln is out and out the most precious piece of architecture in the British Isles and roughly speaking worth any two other cathedrals we have."

 

Remigius de Fécamp, the first bishop of Lincoln, moved the Episcopal seat there between 1072 and 1092. Up until then St. Mary's Church in Stow was considered to be the "mother church" of Lincolnshire (although it was not a cathedral, because the seat of the diocese was at Dorchester Abbey in Dorchester-on-Thames, Oxfordshire).

 

Bishop Remigius built the first Lincoln Cathedral on the present site, finishing it in 1092 and then dying on 9 May of that year, two days before it was consecrated. In 1141, the timber roofing was destroyed in a fire. Bishop Alexander rebuilt and expanded the cathedral, but it was mostly destroyed by an earthquake about forty years later, in 1185. The earthquake was one of the largest felt in the UK. The damage to the cathedral is thought to have been very extensive: The Cathedral is described as having "split from top to bottom"; in the current building, only the lower part of the west end and of its two attached towers remain of the pre-earthquake cathedral.

 

After the earthquake, a new bishop was appointed. He was Hugh de Burgundy of Avalon, France, who became known as St Hugh of Lincoln. He began a massive rebuilding and expansion programme. Rebuilding began with the choir and the eastern transepts between 1192 and 1210. The central nave was then built in the Early English Gothic style. Until 1549 the spire was reputedly the tallest medieval tower in Europe, though the exact height has been a matter of debate.

 

The two large stained glass rose windows, the matching Dean's Eye and Bishop's Eye, were added to the cathedral during the late Middle Ages. The former, the Dean's Eye in the north transept dates from the 1192 rebuild begun by St Hugh, finally being completed in 1235.

 

After the additions of the Dean's eye and other major Gothic additions it is believed some mistakes in the support of the tower occurred, for in 1237 the main tower collapsed. A new tower was soon started and in 1255 the Cathedral petitioned Henry III to allow them to take down part of the town wall to enlarge and expand the Cathedral, including the rebuilding of the central tower and spire.

 

In 1290 Eleanor of Castile died and King Edward I of England decided to honour her, his Queen Consort, with an elegant funeral procession. After her body had been embalmed, which in the 13th century involved evisceration, Eleanor's viscera were buried in Lincoln cathedral, and Edward placed a duplicate of the Westminster tomb there.

 

Berlin

Organised jointly by Arthur Howes and Brian Epstein.

Among supporting acts were Gerry and the Pacemakers, Gene Pitney, Marianne Faithfull The Kinks and Cilla Black

DSC_5204

Launch of the IAEA Marie Sklodowska-Curie Fellowship Programme held at the Agency headquarters in Vienna, Austria. 9 March 2020

 

Photo Credit: Dean Calma / IAEA

 

Moderator:

Sophie Boutaud de la Combe, Moderator and IAEA Director, Office of Public Information and Communication, Director General’s Office for Coordination

 

PANELISTS:

Ms Karen Hallberg, Principle Researcher, Bariloche Atomic Centre, National Atomic Energy Commission and Professor, Physics, Balseiro, Institute, Argentina

 

HE Mr Xavier Sticker, Resident Representative of France to the IAEA

 

HE Ms Dominika Anna Krois, Resident Representative of Poland to the IAEA

 

All beautiful things are delight to eyes but short lived.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

++++++++++ FROM WKIPEDIA +++++++++

 

Kolkata /koʊlˈkɑːtə/ ([kolkata] (About this soundlisten), also known as Calcutta /kælˈkʌtə/, the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River approximately 75 kilometres (47 mi) west of the border with Bangladesh, it is the principal commercial, cultural, and educational centre of East India, while the Port of Kolkata is India's oldest operating port and its sole major riverine port. The city is widely regarded as the "cultural capital" of India, and is also nicknamed the "City of Joy".[1][2][3].According to the 2011 Indian census, it is the seventh most populous city. the city had a population of 4.5 million, while the population of the city and its suburbs was 14.1 million, making it the third-most populous metropolitan area in India. Recent estimates of Kolkata Metropolitan Area's economy have ranged from $60 to $150 billion (GDP adjusted for purchasing power parity) making it third most-productive metropolitan area in India, after Mumbai and Delhi.[11][12][13]

 

In the late 17th century, the three villages that predated Calcutta were ruled by the Nawab of Bengal under Mughal suzerainty. After the Nawab granted the East India Company a trading licence in 1690,[15] the area was developed by the Company into an increasingly fortified trading post. Nawab Siraj ud-Daulah occupied Calcutta in 1756, and the East India Company retook it the following year. In 1793 the East India company was strong enough to abolish Nizamat (local rule), and assumed full sovereignty of the region. Under the company rule, and later under the British Raj, Calcutta served as the capital of British-held territories in India until 1911, when its perceived geographical disadvantages, combined with growing nationalism in Bengal, led to a shift of the capital to New Delhi. Calcutta was the centre for the Indian independence movement; it remains a hotbed of contemporary state politics. Following Indian independence in 1947, Kolkata, which was once the centre of modern Indian education, science, culture, and politics, suffered several decades of economic stagnation.

 

As a nucleus of the 19th- and early 20th-century Bengal Renaissance and a religiously and ethnically diverse centre of culture in Bengal and India, Kolkata has local traditions in drama, art, film, theatre, and literature. Many people from Kolkata—among them several Nobel laureates—have contributed to the arts, the sciences, and other areas. Kolkata culture features idiosyncrasies that include distinctively close-knit neighbourhoods (paras) and freestyle intellectual exchanges (adda). West Bengal's share of the Bengali film industry is based in the city, which also hosts venerable cultural institutions of national importance, such as the Academy of Fine Arts, the Victoria Memorial, the Asiatic Society, the Indian Museum and the National Library of India. Among professional scientific institutions, Kolkata hosts the Agri Horticultural Society of India, the Geological Survey of India, the Botanical Survey of India, the Calcutta Mathematical Society, the Indian Science Congress Association, the Zoological Survey of India, the Institution of Engineers, the Anthropological Survey of India and the Indian Public Health Association. Though home to major cricketing venues and franchises, Kolkata differs from other Indian cities by giving importance to association football and other sports.

 

Etymology

 

The word Kolkata derives from the Bengali term Kôlikata (Bengali: কলিকাতা) [ˈkɔlikat̪a], the name of one of three villages that predated the arrival of the British, in the area where the city eventually was to be established; the other two villages were Sutanuti and Govindapur.[16]

 

There are several explanations about the etymology of this name:

 

The term Kolikata is thought to be a variation of Kalikkhetrô [ˈkalikʰːet̪rɔ] (Bengali: কালীক্ষেত্র), meaning "Field of [the goddess] Kali". Similarly, it can be a variation of 'Kalikshetra' (Sanskrit: कालीक्षेत्र, lit. "area of Goddess Kali").

Another theory is that the name derives from Kalighat.[17]

Alternatively, the name may have been derived from the Bengali term kilkila (Bengali: কিলকিলা), or "flat area".[18]

The name may have its origin in the words khal [ˈkʰal] (Bengali: খাল) meaning "canal", followed by kaṭa [ˈkata] (Bengali: কাটা), which may mean "dug".[19]

According to another theory, the area specialised in the production of quicklime or koli chun [ˈkɔlitɕun] (Bengali: কলি চুন) and coir or kata [ˈkat̪a] (Bengali: কাতা); hence, it was called Kolikata [ˈkɔlikat̪a] (Bengali: কলিকাতা).[18]

 

Although the city's name has always been pronounced Kolkata [ˈkolkat̪a] (Bengali: কলকাতা) or Kôlikata [ˈkɔlikat̪a] (Bengali: কলিকাতা) in Bengali, the anglicised form Calcutta was the official name until 2001, when it was changed to Kolkata in order to match Bengali pronunciation.[20] (It should be noted that "Calcutt" is an etymologically unrelated place name found at several locations in England.)

History

 

The discovery and archaeological study of Chandraketugarh, 35 kilometres (22 mi) north of Kolkata, provide evidence that the region in which the city stands has been inhabited for over two millennia.[21][22] Kolkata's recorded history began in 1690 with the arrival of the English East India Company, which was consolidating its trade business in Bengal. Job Charnock, an administrator who worked for the company, was formerly credited as the founder of the city;[23] In response to a public petition,[24] the Calcutta High Court ruled in 2003 that the city does not have a founder.[25] The area occupied by the present-day city encompassed three villages: Kalikata, Gobindapur, and Sutanuti. Kalikata was a fishing village; Sutanuti was a riverside weavers' village. They were part of an estate belonging to the Mughal emperor; the jagirdari (a land grant bestowed by a king on his noblemen) taxation rights to the villages were held by the Sabarna Roy Choudhury family of landowners, or zamindars. These rights were transferred to the East India Company in 1698.[26]:1

  

In 1712, the British completed the construction of Fort William, located on the east bank of the Hooghly River to protect their trading factory.[27] Facing frequent skirmishes with French forces, the British began to upgrade their fortifications in 1756. The Nawab of Bengal, Siraj ud-Daulah, condemned the militarisation and tax evasion by the company. His warning went unheeded, and the Nawab attacked; he captured Fort William which led to the killings of several East India company officials in the Black Hole of Calcutta.[28] A force of Company soldiers (sepoys) and British troops led by Robert Clive recaptured the city the following year.[28] Per the 1765 Treaty of Allahabad following the battle of Buxar, East India company was appointed imperial tax collector of the Mughal emperor in the province of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa, while Mughal-appointed Nawabs continued to rule the province.[29] Declared a presidency city, Calcutta became the headquarters of the East India Company by 1773.[30] In 1793, ruling power of the Nawabs were abolished and East India company took complete control of the city and the province. In the early 19th century, the marshes surrounding the city were drained; the government area was laid out along the banks of the Hooghly River. Richard Wellesley, Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William between 1797 and 1805, was largely responsible for the development of the city and its public architecture.[31] Throughout the late 18th and 19th century, the city was a centre of the East India Company's opium trade.[32]

  

By the 1850s, Calcutta had two areas: White Town, which was primarily British and centred on Chowringhee and Dalhousie Square; and Black Town, mainly Indian and centred on North Calcutta.[33] The city underwent rapid industrial growth starting in the early 1850s, especially in the textile and jute industries; this encouraged British companies to massively invest in infrastructure projects, which included telegraph connections and Howrah railway station. The coalescence of British and Indian culture resulted in the emergence of a new babu class of urbane Indians, whose members were often bureaucrats, professionals, newspaper readers, and Anglophiles; they usually belonged to upper-caste Hindu communities.[34] In the 19th century, the Bengal Renaissance brought about an increased sociocultural sophistication among city denizens. In 1883, Calcutta was host to the first national conference of the Indian National Association, the first avowed nationalist organisation in India.[35]

Bengali billboards on Harrison Street. Calcutta was the largest commercial centre in British India.

  

The partition of Bengal in 1905 along religious lines led to mass protests, making Calcutta a less hospitable place for the British.[36][37] The capital was moved to New Delhi in 1911.[38] Calcutta continued to be a centre for revolutionary organisations associated with the Indian independence movement. The city and its port were bombed several times by the Japanese between 1942 and 1944, during World War II.[39][40] Coinciding with the war, millions starved to death during the Bengal famine of 1943 due to a combination of military, administrative, and natural factors.[41] Demands for the creation of a Muslim state led in 1946 to an episode of communal violence that killed over 4,000.[42][43][44] The partition of India led to further clashes and a demographic shift—many Muslims left for East Pakistan (present day Bangladesh), while hundreds of thousands of Hindus fled into the city.[45]

 

During the 1960s and 1970s, severe power shortages, strikes, and a violent Marxist–Maoist movement by groups known as the Naxalites damaged much of the city's infrastructure, resulting in economic stagnation.[46] The Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971 led to a massive influx of thousands of refugees, many of them penniless, that strained Kolkata's infrastructure.[47] During the mid-1980s, Mumbai (then called Bombay) overtook Kolkata as India's most populous city. In 1985, prime minister Rajiv Gandhi dubbed Kolkata a "dying city" in light of its socio-political woes.[48] In the period 1977–2011, West Bengal was governed from Kolkata by the Left Front, which was dominated by the Communist Party of India (CPM). It was the world's longest-serving democratically elected communist government, during which Kolkata was a key base for Indian communism.[49][50][51] In the West Bengal Legislative Assembly election, 2011, Left Front was defeated by the Trinamool Congress. The city's economic recovery gathered momentum after the 1990s, when India began to institute pro-market reforms. Since 2000, the information technology (IT) services sector has revitalised Kolkata's stagnant economy. The city is also experiencing marked growth in its manufacturing base.[52]

 

Geography

 

Spread roughly north–south along the east bank of the Hooghly River, Kolkata sits within the lower Ganges Delta of eastern India approximately 75 km (47 mi) west of the international border with Bangladesh; the city's elevation is 1.5–9 m (5–30 ft).[53] Much of the city was originally a wetland that was reclaimed over the decades to accommodate a burgeoning population.[54] The remaining undeveloped areas, known as the East Kolkata Wetlands, were designated a "wetland of international importance" by the Ramsar Convention (1975).[55] As with most of the Indo-Gangetic Plain, the soil and water are predominantly alluvial in origin. Kolkata is located over the "Bengal basin", a pericratonic tertiary basin.[56] Bengal basin comprises three structural units: shelf or platform in the west; central hinge or shelf/slope break; and deep basinal part in the east and southeast. Kolkata is located atop the western part of the hinge zone which is about 25 km (16 mi) wide at a depth of about 45,000 m (148,000 ft) below the surface.[56] The shelf and hinge zones have many faults, among them some are active. Total thickness of sediment below Kolkata is nearly 7,500 m (24,600 ft) above the crystalline basement; of these the top 350–450 m (1,150–1,480 ft) is Quaternary, followed by 4,500–5,500 m (14,760–18,040 ft) of Tertiary sediments, 500–700 m (1,640–2,300 ft) trap wash of Cretaceous trap and 600–800 m (1,970–2,620 ft) Permian-Carboniferous Gondwana rocks.[56] The quaternary sediments consist of clay, silt, and several grades of sand and gravel. These sediments are sandwiched between two clay beds: the lower one at a depth of 250–650 m (820–2,130 ft); the upper one 10–40 m (30–130 ft) in thickness.[57] According to the Bureau of Indian Standards, on a scale ranging from I to V in order of increasing susceptibility to earthquakes, the city lies inside seismic zone III.[58]

Urban structure

Howrah Bridge from the western bank of the Ganges

 

The Kolkata metropolitan area is spread over 1,886.67 km2 (728.45 sq mi)[59]:7 and comprises 3 municipal corporations (including Kolkata Municipal Corporation), 39 local municipalities and 24 panchayat samitis, as of 2011.[59]:7 The urban agglomeration encompassed 72 cities and 527 towns and villages, as of 2006.[60] Suburban areas in the Kolkata metropolitan area incorporate parts of the following districts: North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas, Howrah, Hooghly, and Nadia.[61]:15 Kolkata, which is under the jurisdiction of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), has an area of 185 km2 (71 sq mi).[60] The east–west dimension of the city is comparatively narrow, stretching from the Hooghly River in the west to roughly the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass in the east—a span of 9–10 km (5.6–6.2 mi).[62] The north–south distance is greater, and its axis is used to section the city into North, Central, and South Kolkata. East Kolkata is also a section.

 

North Kolkata is the oldest part of the city. Characterised by 19th-century architecture, dilapidated buildings, overpopulated slums, crowded bazaars, and narrow alleyways, it includes areas such as Shyambazar, Hatibagan, Maniktala, Kankurgachi, Rajabazar, Shobhabazar, Shyampukur, Sonagachi, Kumortuli, Bagbazar, Jorasanko, Chitpur, Pathuriaghata, Cossipore, Kestopur, Sinthee, Belgachia, Jorabagan, and Dum Dum.[63]:65–66 The northern suburban areas like Baranagar, Durganagar, Noapara, Dunlop, Dakshineswar, Nagerbazar, Belghoria, Agarpara, Sodepur, Madhyamgram, Barasat, Birati, Khardah up to Barrackpur are also within the city of Kolkata (as a metropolitan structure).

Central Kolkata

 

Central Kolkata hosts the central business district. It contains B. B. D. Bagh, formerly known as Dalhousie Square, and the Esplanade on its east; Strand Road is on its west.[64] The West Bengal Secretariat, General Post Office, Reserve Bank of India, High Court, Lalbazar Police Headquarters, and several other government and private offices are located there. Another business hub is the area south of Park Street, which comprises thoroughfares such as Chowringhee, Camac Street, Wood Street, Loudon Street, Shakespeare Sarani, and A. J. C. Bose Road.[65] The Maidan is a large open field in the heart of the city that has been called the "lungs of Kolkata"[66] and accommodates sporting events and public meetings.[67] The Victoria Memorial and Kolkata Race Course are located at the southern end of the Maidan. Other important areas of Central Kolkata are Park Circus, Burrabazar, College Street, Sealdah, Taltala, Janbazar, Bowbazar, Entally, Chandni Chowk, Lalbazar, Chowringhee, Dharmatala, Tiretta Bazar, Bow Barracks, Mullick Bazar, Park Circus, Babughat etc. Among the other parks are Central Park in Bidhannagar and Millennium Park on Strand Road, along the Hooghly River.

South Kolkata

 

South Kolkata developed after India gained independence in 1947; it includes upscale neighbourhoods such as Ballygunge, Alipore, New Alipore, Lansdowne, Bhowanipore, Kalighat, Dhakuria, Gariahat, Tollygunge, Naktala, Jodhpur Park, Lake Gardens, Golf Green, Jadavpur, Garfa, Kalikapur, Haltu, Nandi Bagan, Santoshpur, Baghajatin, Garia, Ramgarh, Raipur, Kanungo Park, Ranikuthi, Bikramgarh, Bijoygarh, Bansdroni and Kudghat.[16] Outlying areas of South Kolkata include Garden Reach, Khidirpur, Metiabruz, Taratala, Majerhat, Budge Budge, Behala, Sarsuna, Barisha, Parnasree Pally, Thakurpukur, Maheshtala and Joka. The southern suburban neighbourhoods like Mahamayatala, Pratapgarh, Kamalgazi, Narendrapur, Sonarpur, Subhashgram and Baruipur are also within the city of Kolkata (as metropolitan, urban agglomeration area). Fort William, on the western part of the city, houses the headquarters of the Eastern Command of the Indian Army;[68] its premises are under the jurisdiction of the army.

East Kolkata

 

East Kolkata is largely composed of newly developed areas and neighbourhoods of Saltlake, Rajarhat, Tangra, Topsia, Kasba, Anandapur, Mukundapur, Picnic Garden, Beleghata, Ultadanga, Phoolbagan, Kaikhali, Lake Town, etc. Two planned townships in the greater Kolkata region are Bidhannagar, also known as Salt Lake City and located north-east of the city; and Rajarhat, also called New Town and sited east of Bidhannagar.[16][69] In the 2000s, Sector V in Bidhannagar developed into a business hub for information technology and telecommunication companies.[70][71] Both Bidhannagar and New Town are situated outside the Kolkata Municipal Corporation limits, in their own municipalities.[69]

Climate

  

Kolkata is subject to a tropical wet-and-dry climate that is designated Aw under the Köppen climate classification. According to a United Nations Development Programme report, its wind and cyclone zone is "very high damage risk".[58]

Temperature

 

The annual mean temperature is 26.8 °C (80.2 °F); monthly mean temperatures are 19–30 °C (66–86 °F). Summers (March–June) are hot and humid, with temperatures in the low 30s Celsius; during dry spells, maximum temperatures often exceed 40 °C (104 °F) in May and June.[72] Winter lasts for roughly two-and-a-half months, with seasonal lows dipping to 9–11 °C (48–52 °F) in December and January. May is the hottest month, with daily temperatures ranging from 27–37 °C (81–99 °F); January, the coldest month, has temperatures varying from 12–23 °C (54–73 °F). The highest recorded temperature is 43.9 °C (111.0 °F), and the lowest is 5 °C (41 °F).[72] The winter is mild and very comfortable weather pertains over the city throughout this season. Often, in April–June, the city is struck by heavy rains or dusty squalls that are followed by thunderstorms or hailstorms, bringing cooling relief from the prevailing humidity. These thunderstorms are convective in nature, and are known locally as kal bôishakhi (কালবৈশাখী), or "Nor'westers" in English.[73]

 

Rains brought by the Bay of Bengal branch of the south-west summer monsoon[74] lash Kolkata between June and September, supplying it with most of its annual rainfall of about 1,850 mm (73 in). The highest monthly rainfall total occurs in July and August. In these months often incessant rain for days brings live to a stall for the city dwellers. The city receives 2,528 hours of sunshine per year, with maximum sunlight exposure occurring in March.[75] Kolkata has been hit by several cyclones; these include systems occurring in 1737 and 1864 that killed thousands.[76][77]

  

Environmental issues

 

Pollution is a major concern in Kolkata. As of 2008, sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide annual concentration were within the national ambient air quality standards of India, but respirable suspended particulate matter levels were high, and on an increasing trend for five consecutive years, causing smog and haze.[80][81] Severe air pollution in the city has caused a rise in pollution-related respiratory ailments, such as lung cancer.[82]

 

Economy

 

Kolkata is the main commercial and financial hub of East and North-East India[61] and home to the Calcutta Stock Exchange.[83][84] It is a major commercial and military port, and is the only city in eastern India, apart from Bhubaneswar to have an international airport. Once India's leading city, Kolkata experienced a steady economic decline in the decades following India's independence due to steep population increases and a rise in militant trade-unionism, which included frequent strikes that were backed by left-wing parties.[52] From the 1960s to the late 1990s, several factories were closed and businesses relocated.[52] The lack of capital and resources added to the depressed state of the city's economy and gave rise to an unwelcome sobriquet: the "dying city".[85] The city's fortunes improved after the Indian economy was liberalised in the 1990s and changes in economic policy were enacted by the West Bengal state government.[52]

 

Flexible production has been the norm in Kolkata, which has an informal sector that employs more than 40% of the labour force.[16] One unorganised group, roadside hawkers, generated business worth ₹ 8,772 crore (US$ 2 billion) in 2005.[86] As of 2001, around 0.81% of the city's workforce was employed in the primary sector (agriculture, forestry, mining, etc.); 15.49% worked in the secondary sector (industrial and manufacturing); and 83.69% worked in the tertiary sector (service industries).[61]:19 As of 2003, the majority of households in slums were engaged in occupations belonging to the informal sector; 36.5% were involved in servicing the urban middle class (as maids, drivers, etc.), and 22.2% were casual labourers.[87]:11 About 34% of the available labour force in Kolkata slums were unemployed.[87]:11 According to one estimate, almost a quarter of the population live on less than 27 rupees (equivalent to 45 US cents) per day.[88] As of 2010, Kolkata, with an estimated gross domestic product (GDP) by purchasing power parity of 150 billion dollars, ranked third among South Asian cities, after Mumbai and Delhi.[89] Kolkata's GDP in 2014 was Rs 1.84 trillion, according to a collaborative assessment by multiple universities and climate agencies.[90] As in many other Indian cities, information technology became a high-growth sector in Kolkata starting in the late 1990s; the city's IT sector grew at 70% per annum—a rate that was twice the national average.[52] The 2000s saw a surge of investments in the real estate, infrastructure, retail, and hospitality sectors; several large shopping malls and hotels were launched.[91][92][93][94][95] Companies such as ITC Limited, CESC Limited, Exide Industries, Emami, Eveready Industries India, Lux Industries, Rupa Company, Berger Paints, Birla Corporation and Britannia Industries are headquartered in the city. Philips India, PricewaterhouseCoopers India, Tata Global Beverages, Tata Steel have their registered office and zonal headquarters in Kolkata. Kolkata hosts the headquarters of three major public-sector banks: Allahabad Bank, UCO Bank, and the United Bank of India; and a private bank Bandhan Bank. Reserve Bank of India has its eastern zonal office in Kolkata, and India Government Mint, Kolkata is one of the four mints in India.

Panoramic view of the Down town Sector V one of the major IT hubs of Kolkata as seen from the lakes surrounding Bidhannagar. Major Buildings such as Technopolis, Godrej Waterside, TCS Lords, Eden and Wanderers Park, Gobsyn Crystal, South City Pinnacle, RDB Boulevard, West Bengal Electronics Industry Development Corporation (WEBEL) Bhawan can be seen.

Demographics

See also: Ethnic communities in Kolkata

A skyline consisting of several high-rise buildings

Residential high-rise buildings in South City

A slum area of the city

 

The demonym for residents of Kolkata are Calcuttan and Kolkatan.[96][97] According to provisional results of the 2011 national census, Kolkata district, which occupies an area of 185 km2 (71 sq mi), had a population of 4,486,679;[98] its population density was 24,252/km2 (62,810/sq mi).[98] This represents a decline of 1.88% during the decade 2001–11. The sex ratio is 899 females per 1000 males—lower than the national average.[99] The ratio is depressed by the influx of working males from surrounding rural areas, from the rest of West Bengal; these men commonly leave their families behind.[100] Kolkata's literacy rate of 87.14%[99] exceeds the national average of 74%.[101] The final population totals of census 2011 stated the population of city as 4,496,694.[8] The urban agglomeration had a population of 14,112,536 in 2011.[9]

 

Bengali Hindus form the majority of Kolkata's population; Marwaris, Biharis and Muslims compose large minorities.[102] Among Kolkata's smaller communities are Chinese, Tamils, Nepalis, Odias, Telugus, Assamese, Gujaratis, Anglo-Indians, Armenians, Greeks, Tibetans, Maharashtrians, Konkanis, Malayalees, Punjabis, and Parsis.[26]:3 The number of Armenians, Greeks, Jews, and other foreign-origin groups declined during the 20th century.[103] The Jewish population of Kolkata was 5,000 during World War II, but declined after Indian independence and the establishment of Israel;[104] by 2013, there were 25 Jews in the city.[105] India's sole Chinatown is in eastern Kolkata;[103] once home to 20,000 ethnic Chinese, its population dropped to around 2,000 as of 2009[103] as a result of multiple factors including repatriation and denial of Indian citizenship following the 1962 Sino-Indian War, and immigration to foreign countries for better economic opportunities.[106] The Chinese community traditionally worked in the local tanning industry and ran Chinese restaurants.[103][107]

Kolkata urban agglomeration population growth Census Total %±

1981 9,194,000 —

1991 11,021,900 19.9%

2001 13,114,700 19.0%

2011 14,112,536 7.6%

Source: Census of India[9]

Others include Sikhism, Buddhism & Other religions (0.03%)

Religion in Kolkata[108]

Religion Percent

Hinduism

 

76.51%

Islam

 

20.60%

Christianity

 

0.88%

Jainism

 

0.47%

Others

 

1.54%

 

Bengali, the official state language, is the dominant language in Kolkata.[109] English is also used, particularly by the white-collar workforce. Hindi and Urdu are spoken by a sizeable minority.[110][111] According to the 2011 census, 76.51% of the population is Hindu, 20.60% Muslim, 0.88% Christian, and 0.47% Jain.[112] The remainder of the population includes Sikhs, Buddhists, and other religions which accounts for 0.45% of the population; 1.09% did not state a religion in the census.[112] Kolkata reported 67.6% of Special and Local Laws crimes registered in 35 large Indian cities during 2004.[113] The Kolkata police district registered 15,510 Indian Penal Code cases in 2010, the 8th-highest total in the country.[114] In 2010, the crime rate was 117.3 per 100,000, below the national rate of 187.6; it was the lowest rate among India's largest cities.[115]

 

As of 2003, about one-third of the population, or 1.5 million people, lived in 3,500 unregistered squatter-occupied and 2,011 registered slums.[87]:4[116]:92 The authorised slums (with access to basic services like water, latrines, trash removal by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation) can be broadly divided into two groups—bustees, in which slum dwellers have some long term tenancy agreement with the landowners; and udbastu colonies, settlements which had been leased to refugees from present-day Bangladesh by the Government.[116][87]:5 The unauthorised slums (devoid of basic services provided by the municipality) are occupied by squatters who started living on encroached lands—mainly along canals, railway lines and roads.[116]:92[87]:5 According to the 2005 National Family Health Survey, around 14% of the households in Kolkata were poor, while 33% lived in slums, indicating a substantial proportion of households in slum areas were better off economically than the bottom quarter of urban households in terms of wealth status.[117]:23 Mother Teresa was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for founding and working with the Missionaries of Charity in Kolkata—an organisation "whose primary task was to love and care for those persons nobody was prepared to look after".[118]

Government and public services

Civic administration

Main article: Civic administration of Kolkata

A red-and-yellow building with multiple arches and towers standing against a backdrop of blue sky and framed by trees

Calcutta High Court

 

Kolkata is administered by several government agencies. The Kolkata Municipal Corporation, or KMC, oversees and manages the civic infrastructure of the city's 15 boroughs, which together encompass 141 wards.[109] Each ward elects a councillor to the KMC. Each borough has a committee of councillors, each of whom is elected to represent a ward. By means of the borough committees, the corporation undertakes urban planning and maintains roads, government-aided schools, hospitals, and municipal markets.[119] As Kolkata's apex body, the corporation discharges its functions through the mayor-in-council, which comprises a mayor, a deputy mayor, and ten other elected members of the KMC.[120] The functions of the KMC include water supply, drainage and sewerage, sanitation, solid waste management, street lighting, and building regulation.[119]

 

The Kolkata Municipal Corporation was ranked 1st out of 21 Cities for best governance & administrative practices in India in 2014. It scored 4.0 on 10 compared to the national average of 3.3.[121]

 

The Kolkata Port Trust, an agency of the central government, manages the city's river port. As of 2012, the All India Trinamool Congress controls the KMC; the mayor is Firhad Hakim, while the deputy mayor is Atin Ghosh.[122] The city has an apolitical titular post, that of the Sheriff of Kolkata, which presides over various city-related functions and conferences.[123]

 

Kolkata's administrative agencies have areas of jurisdiction that do not coincide. Listed in ascending order by area, they are: Kolkata district; the Kolkata Police area and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation area, or "Kolkata city";[124] and the Kolkata metropolitan area, which is the city's urban agglomeration. The agency overseeing the latter, the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority, is responsible for the statutory planning and development of greater Kolkata.[125]

 

As the seat of the Government of West Bengal, Kolkata is home to not only the offices of the local governing agencies, but also the West Bengal Legislative Assembly; the state secretariat, which is housed in the Writers' Building; and the Calcutta High Court. Most government establishments and institutions are housed in the centre of the city in B. B. D. Bagh (formerly known as Dalhousie Square). The Calcutta High Court is the oldest High Court in India. It was preceded by the Supreme Court of Judicature at Fort William which was established in 1774. The Calcutta High Court has jurisdiction over the state of West Bengal and the Union Territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Kolkata has lower courts: the Court of Small Causes and the City Civil Court decide civil matters; the Sessions Court rules in criminal cases.[126][127][128] The Kolkata Police, headed by a police commissioner, is overseen by the West Bengal Ministry of Home Affairs.[129][130] The Kolkata district elects two representatives to India's lower house, the Lok Sabha, and 11 representatives to the state legislative assembly.[131]

Utility services

A telecommunications tower belonging to services provider Tata Communications

 

The Kolkata Municipal Corporation supplies the city with potable water that is sourced from the Hooghly River;[132] most of it is treated and purified at the Palta pumping station located in North 24 Parganas district.[133] Roughly 95% of the 4,000 tonnes of refuse produced daily by the city is transported to the dumping grounds in Dhapa, which is east of the town.[134][135] To promote the recycling of garbage and sewer water, agriculture is encouraged on the dumping grounds.[136] Parts of the city lack proper sewerage, leading to unsanitary methods of waste disposal.[75]

 

Electricity is supplied by the privately operated Calcutta Electric Supply Corporation, or CESC, to the city proper; the West Bengal State Electricity Board supplies it in the suburbs.[137][138] Fire services are handled by the West Bengal Fire Service, a state agency.[139] As of 2012, the city had 16 fire stations.[140]

 

State-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited, or BSNL, as well as private enterprises, among them Vodafone, Bharti Airtel, Reliance, Idea Cellular, Aircel, Tata DoCoMo, Tata Teleservices, Virgin Mobile, and MTS India, are the leading telephone and cell phone service providers in the city.[141]:25–26:179 with Kolkata being the first city in India to have cell phone and 4G connectivity, the GSM and CDMA cellular coverage is extensive.[142][143] As of 2010, Kolkata has 7 percent of the total Broadband internet consumers in India; BSNL, VSNL, Tata Indicom, Sify, Airtel, and Reliance are among the main vendors.[144][145]

Military and diplomatic establishments

 

The Eastern Command of the Indian Army is based in the city. Being one of India's major city and the largest city in eastern and north-eastern India, Kolkata hosts diplomatic missions of many countries such as Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Canada, People's Republic of China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Myanmar, Nepal, Russia, Srilanka, Switzerland, Thailand, United Kingdom and United States. The U.S Consulate in Kolkata is the US Department of State's second oldest Consulate and dates from 19 November 1792.[146]

 

Transport

 

Public transport is provided by the Kolkata Suburban Railway, the Kolkata Metro, trams, rickshaws, and buses. The suburban rail network reaches the city's distant suburbs.

 

According to a 2013 survey conducted by the International Association of Public Transport, in terms of a public transport system, Kolkata ranks among the top of the six Indian cities surveyed.[147][148] The Kolkata Metro, in operation since 1984, is the oldest underground mass transit system in India.[149] It spans the north–south length of the city and covers a distance of 25.1 km (16 mi).[150] As of 2009, five Metro rail lines were under construction.[151] Kolkata has four long-distance railway stations, located at Howrah (the largest railway complex in India), Sealdah, Chitpur and Shalimar, which connect Kolkata by rail to most cities in West Bengal and to other major cities in India.[152] The city serves as the headquarters of three railway Zone out of Seventeen of the Indian Railways regional divisions—the Kolkata Metro Railways, Eastern Railway and the South-Eastern Railway.[153] Kolkata has rail and road connectivity with Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh.[154][155][156]

 

Buses, which are the most commonly used mode of transport, are run by government agencies and private operators.[157] Kolkata is the only Indian city with a tram network, which is operated by the Calcutta Tramways Company.[158] The slow-moving tram services are restricted to certain areas of the city. Water-logging, caused by heavy rains that fall during the summer monsoon, can interrupt transportation networks.[159][160] Hired public conveyances include auto rickshaws, which often ply specific routes, and yellow metered taxis. Almost all of Kolkata's taxis are antiquated Hindustan Ambassadors by make; newer air-conditioned radio taxis are in service as well.[161][162] In parts of the city, cycle rickshaws and hand-pulled rickshaws are patronised by the public for short trips.[163]

 

Due to its diverse and abundant public transportation, privately owned vehicles are not as common in Kolkata as in other major Indian cities.[164] The city has witnessed a steady increase in the number of registered vehicles; 2002 data showed an increase of 44% over a period of seven years.[165] As of 2004, after adjusting for population density, the city's "road space" was only 6% compared to 23% in Delhi and 17% in Mumbai.[166] The Kolkata Metro has somewhat eased traffic congestion, as has the addition of new roads and flyovers. Agencies operating long-distance bus services include the Calcutta State Transport Corporation, the South Bengal State Transport Corporation, the North Bengal State Transport Corporation, and various private operators. The city's main bus terminals are located at Esplanade and Babughat.[167] The Kolkata–Delhi and Kolkata–Chennai prongs of the Golden Quadrilateral, and National Highway 34 start from the city.[168]

 

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, located in Dum Dum some 16 km (9.9 mi) north-east of the city centre, operates domestic and international flights. In 2013, the airport was upgraded to handle increased air traffic.[169][170]

 

The Port of Kolkata, established in 1870, is India's oldest and the only major river port.[171] The Kolkata Port Trust manages docks in Kolkata and Haldia.[172] The port hosts passenger services to Port Blair, capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands; freighter service to ports throughout India and around the world is operated by the Shipping Corporation of India.[171][173] Ferry services connect Kolkata with its twin city of Howrah, located across the Hooghly River.[174][175]

 

The route from North Bengal to Kolkata is set to become cheaper and more efficient for people travelling by bus. Through April 2017 to March 2018, the North Bengal State Transport Corporation (NBSTC) will be introducing a fleet of rocket buses equipped with bio-toilets for the bus route.[176]

Healthcare

See also: Health care in Kolkata

A big building in cream colour with many columns and a portico

Calcutta Medical College, the second institution in Asia to teach modern medicine(after 'Ecole de Médicine de Pondichéry')

IPGMER and SSKM Hospital, Kolkata is the largest hospital in West Bengal and one of the oldest in Kolkata.

 

As of 2011, the health care system in Kolkata consists of 48 government hospitals, mostly under the Department of Health & Family Welfare, Government of West Bengal, and 366 private medical establishments;[177] these establishments provide the city with 27,687 hospital beds.[177] For every 10,000 people in the city, there are 61.7 hospital beds,[178] which is higher than the national average of 9 hospital beds per 10,000.[179] Ten medical and dental colleges are located in the Kolkata metropolitan area which act as tertiary referral hospitals in the state.[180][181] The Calcutta Medical College, founded in 1835, was the first institution in Asia to teach modern medicine.[182] However, These facilities are inadequate to meet the healthcare needs of the city.[183][184][185] More than 78% in Kolkata prefer the private medical sector over the public medical sector,[117]:109 due to the poor quality of care, the lack of a nearby facility, and excessive waiting times at government facilities.[117]:61

 

According to the Indian 2005 National Family Health Survey, only a small proportion of Kolkata households were covered under any health scheme or health insurance.[117]:41 The total fertility rate in Kolkata was 1.4, The lowest among the eight cities surveyed.[117]:45 In Kolkata, 77% of the married women used contraceptives, which was the highest among the cities surveyed, but use of modern contraceptive methods was the lowest (46%).[117]:47 The infant mortality rate in Kolkata was 41 per 1,000 live births, and the mortality rate for children under five was 49 per 1,000 live births.[117]:48

 

Among the surveyed cities, Kolkata stood second (5%) for children who had not had any vaccinations under the Universal Immunization Programme as of 2005.[117]:48 Kolkata ranked second with access to an anganwadi centre under the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) programme for 57% of the children between 0 and 71 months.[117]:51 The proportion of malnourished, anaemic and underweight children in Kolkata was less in comparison to other surveyed cities.[117]:54–55

 

About 18% of the men and 30% of the women in Kolkata are obese—the majority of them belonging to the non-poor strata of society.[117]:105 In 2005, Kolkata had the highest percentage (55%) among the surveyed cities of anaemic women, while 20% of the men in Kolkata were anaemic.[117]:56–57 Diseases like diabetes, asthma, goitre and other thyroid disorders were found in large numbers of people.[117]:57–59 Tropical diseases like malaria, dengue and chikungunya are prevalent in Kolkata, though their incidence is decreasing.[186][187] Kolkata is one of the districts in India with a high number of people with AIDS; it has been designated a district prone to high risk.[188][189]

 

As of 2014, because of higher air pollution, the life expectancy of a person born in the city is four years fewer than in the suburbs.[190]

 

Education

  

Kolkata's schools are run by the state government or private organisations, many of which are religious. Bengali and English are the primary languages of instruction; Urdu and Hindi are also used, particularly in central Kolkata.[191][192] Schools in Kolkata follow the "10+2+3" plan. After completing their secondary education, students typically enroll in schools that have a higher secondary facility and are affiliated with the West Bengal Council of Higher Secondary Education, the ICSE, or the CBSE.[191] They usually choose a focus on liberal arts, business, or science. Vocational programs are also available.[191] Some Kolkata schools, for example La Martiniere Calcutta, Calcutta Boys' School, St. James' School (Kolkata), St. Xavier's Collegiate School, and Loreto House, have been ranked amongst the best schools in the country.[193]

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade

 

As of 2010, the Kolkata urban agglomeration is home to 14 universities run by the state government.[194] The colleges are each affiliated with a university or institution based either in Kolkata or elsewhere in India. Aliah University which was founded in 1780 as Mohammedan College of Calcutta is the oldest post-secondary educational institution of the city.[195] The University of Calcutta, founded in 1857, is the first modern university in South Asia.[196] Presidency College, Kolkata (formerly Hindu College between 1817 and 1855), founded in 1855, was one of the oldest and most eminent colleges in India. It was affiliated with the University of Calcutta until 2010 when it was converted to Presidency University, Kolkata in 2010. Bengal Engineering and Science University (BESU) is the second oldest engineering institution of the country located in Howrah.[197] An Institute of National Importance, BESU was converted to India's first IIEST. Jadavpur University is known for its arts, science, and engineering faculties.[198] The Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, which was the first of the Indian Institutes of Management, was established in 1961 at Joka, a locality in the south-western suburbs. Kolkata also houses the prestigious Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, which was started here in the year 2006.[199] The West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences is one of India's autonomous law schools,[200][201] and the Indian Statistical Institute is a public research institute and university. State owned Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of Technology, West Bengal (MAKAUT, WB), formerly West Bengal University of Technology (WBUT) is the largest Technological University in terms of student enrollment and number of Institutions affiliated by it. Private institutions include the Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Educational and Research Institute and University of Engineering & Management (UEM).

 

Notable scholars who were born, worked or studied in Kolkata include physicists Satyendra Nath Bose, Meghnad Saha,[202] and Jagadish Chandra Bose;[203] chemist Prafulla Chandra Roy;[202] statisticians Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis and Anil Kumar Gain;[202] physician Upendranath Brahmachari;[202] educator Ashutosh Mukherjee;[204] and Nobel laureates Rabindranath Tagore,[205] C. V. Raman,[203] and Amartya Sen.[206]

 

Kolkata houses many premier research institutes like Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Indian Institute of Chemical Biology (IICB), Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER), Bose Institute, Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics (SINP), All India Institute of Hygiene and Public Health, Central Glass and Ceramic Research Institute (CGCRI), S.N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences (SNBNCBS), Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management (IISWBM), National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Kolkata, Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre (VECC) and Indian Centre for Space Physics. Nobel laureate Sir C. V. Raman did his groundbreaking work in Raman effect in IACS.

 

Culture

  

Kolkata is known for its literary, artistic, and revolutionary heritage; as the former capital of India, it was the birthplace of modern Indian literary and artistic thought.[207] Kolkata has been called the "City of Furious, Creative Energy"[208] as well as the "cultural [or literary] capital of India".[209][210] The presence of paras, which are neighbourhoods that possess a strong sense of community, is characteristic of the city.[211] Typically, each para has its own community club and, on occasion, a playing field.[211] Residents engage in addas, or leisurely chats, that often take the form of freestyle intellectual conversation.[212][213] The city has a tradition of political graffiti depicting everything from outrageous slander to witty banter and limericks, caricatures, and propaganda.[214][215]

 

Kolkata has many buildings adorned with Indo-Islamic and Indo-Saracenic architectural motifs. Several well-maintained major buildings from the colonial period have been declared "heritage structures";[216] others are in various stages of decay.[217][218] Established in 1814 as the nation's oldest museum, the Indian Museum houses large collections that showcase Indian natural history and Indian art.[219] Marble Palace is a classic example of a European mansion that was built in the city. The Victoria Memorial, a place of interest in Kolkata, has a museum documenting the city's history. The National Library of India is the leading public library in the country while Science City is the largest science centre in the Indian subcontinent.[220]

 

The popularity of commercial theatres in the city has declined since the 1980s.[221]:99[222] Group theatres of Kolkata, a cultural movement that started in the 1940s contrasting with the then-popular commercial theatres, are theatres that are not professional or commercial, and are centres of various experiments in theme, content, and production;[223] group theatres use the proscenium stage to highlight socially relevant messages.[221]:99[224] Chitpur locality of the city houses multiple production companies of jatra, a tradition of folk drama popular in rural Bengal.[225][226] Kolkata is the home of the Bengali cinema industry, dubbed "Tollywood" for Tollygunj, where most of the state's film studios are located.[227] Its long tradition of art films includes globally acclaimed film directors such as Academy Award-winning director Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak, Mrinal Sen, Tapan Sinha, and contemporary directors such as Aparna Sen, Buddhadeb Dasgupta, Goutam Ghose and Rituparno Ghosh.[228]

 

During the 19th and 20th centuries, Bengali literature was modernised through the works of authors such as Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Michael Madhusudan Dutt, Rabindranath Tagore, Kazi Nazrul Islam, and Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay.[229] Coupled with social reforms led by Ram Mohan Roy, Swami Vivekananda, and others, this constituted a major part of the Bengal Renaissance.[230] The middle and latter parts of the 20th century witnessed the arrival of post-modernism, as well as literary movements such as those espoused by the Kallol movement, hungryalists and the little magazines.[231] Large majority of publishers of the city is concentrated in and around College Street, "... a half-mile of bookshops and bookstalls spilling over onto the pavement", selling new and used books.[232]

 

Kalighat painting originated in 19th century Kolkata as a local style that reflected a variety of themes including mythology and quotidian life.[233] The Government College of Art and Craft, founded in 1864, has been the cradle as well as workplace of eminent artists including Abanindranath Tagore, Jamini Roy, and Nandalal Bose.[234] The art college was the birthplace of the Bengal school of art that arose as an avant garde and nationalist movement reacting against the prevalent academic art styles in the early 20th century.[235][236] The Academy of Fine Arts and other art galleries hold regular art exhibitions. The city is recognised for its appreciation of Rabindra sangeet (songs written by Rabindranath Tagore) and Indian classical music, with important concerts and recitals, such as Dover Lane Music Conference, being held throughout the year; Bengali popular music, including baul folk ballads, kirtans, and Gajan festival music; and modern music, including Bengali-language adhunik songs.[237][238] Since the early 1990s, new genres have emerged, including one comprising alternative folk–rock Bengali bands.[237] Another new style, jibonmukhi gaan ("songs about life"), is based on realism.[221]:105 Key elements of Kolkata's cuisine include rice and a fish curry known as machher jhol,[239] which can be accompanied by desserts such as roshogolla, sandesh, and a sweet yoghurt known as mishti dohi. Bengal's large repertoire of seafood dishes includes various preparations of ilish, a fish that is a favourite among Calcuttans. Street foods such as beguni (fried battered eggplant slices), kati roll (flatbread roll with vegetable or chicken, mutton, or egg stuffing), phuchka (a deep-fried crêpe with tamarind sauce) and Indian Chinese cuisine from Chinatown are popular.[240][241][242][243]

 

Though Bengali women traditionally wear the sari, the shalwar kameez and Western attire is gaining acceptance among younger women.[244] Western-style dress has greater acceptance among men, although the traditional dhoti and kurta are seen during festivals. Durga Puja, held in September–October, is Kolkata's most important and largest festival; it is an occasion for glamorous celebrations and artistic decorations.[245][246] The Bengali New Year, known as Poila Boishak, as well as the harvest festival of Poush Parbon are among the city's other festivals; also celebrated are Kali Puja, Diwali, Holi, Jagaddhatri Puja, Saraswati Puja, Rathayatra, Janmashtami, Maha Shivratri, Vishwakarma Puja, Lakshmi Puja, Ganesh Chathurthi, Makar Sankranti, Gajan, Kalpataru Day, Bhai Phonta, Maghotsab, Eid, Muharram, Christmas, Buddha Purnima and Mahavir Jayanti. Cultural events include the Rabindra Jayanti, Independence Day(15 August), Republic Day(26 January), Kolkata Book Fair, the Dover Lane Music Festival, the Kolkata Film Festival, Nandikar's National Theatre Festival, Statesman Vintage & Classic Car Rally and Gandhi Jayanti.

  

Media

See also: Kolkata in the media and List of Bengali-language television channels

A five storied building in cream colour with multiple columns in front

Akashvani Bhawan, the head office of state-owned All India Radio, Kolkata

 

The first newspaper in India, the Bengal Gazette started publishing from the city in 1780.[247] Among Kolkata's widely circulated Bengali-language newspapers are Anandabazar Patrika, Bartaman, Sangbad Pratidin, Aajkaal, Dainik Statesman and Ganashakti.[248] The Statesman and The Telegraph are two major English-language newspapers that are produced and published from Kolkata. Other popular English-language newspapers published and sold in Kolkata include The Times of India, Hindustan Times, The Hindu, The Indian Express, and the Asian Age.[248] As the largest trading centre in East India, Kolkata has several high-circulation financial dailies, including The Economic Times, The Financial Express, Business Line, and Business Standard.[248][249] Vernacular newspapers, such as those in the Hindi, Urdu, Gujarati, Odia, Punjabi, and Chinese languages, are read by minorities.[248][103] Major periodicals based in Kolkata include Desh, Sananda, Saptahik Bartaman, Unish-Kuri, Anandalok, and Anandamela.[248] Historically, Kolkata has been the centre of the Bengali little magazine movement.[250][251]

 

All India Radio, the national state-owned radio broadcaster, airs several AM radio stations in the city.[252] Kolkata has 12 local radio stations broadcasting on FM, including two from AIR.[253] India's state-owned television broadcaster, Doordarshan, provides two free-to-air terrestrial channels,[254] while a mix of Bengali, Hindi, English, and other regional channels are accessible via cable subscription, direct-broadcast satellite services, or internet-based television.[255][256][257] Bengali-language 24-hour television news channels include ABP Ananda, Tara Newz, Kolkata TV, 24 Ghanta, News Time and Channel 10.[258]

Sports

See also: Football in Kolkata, Kolkata Marathon, and Kolkata derby

Salt Lake Stadium during Indian Super League opening ceremony

 

The most popular sports in Kolkata are football and cricket. Unlike most parts of India, the residents show significant passion for football.[259] The city is home to top national football clubs such as Mohun Bagan A.C., East Bengal F.C., Prayag United S.C., and the Mohammedan Sporting Club.[260][261] Calcutta Football League, which was started in 1898, is the oldest football league in Asia.[262] Mohun Bagan A.C., one of the oldest football clubs in Asia, is the only organisation to be dubbed a "National Club of India".[263][264] Football matches between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, dubbed as the Kolkata derby, witness large audience attendance and rivalry between patrons.[265]

A Twenty20 cricket match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Pune Warriors during Indian Premier League at the Eden Gardens

 

As in the rest of India, cricket is popular in Kolkata and is played on grounds and in streets throughout the city.[266][267] Kolkata has the Indian Premier League franchise Kolkata Knight Riders; the Cricket Association of Bengal, which regulates cricket in West Bengal, is also based in the city. Kolkata also has an Indian Super League franchise known as Atlético de Kolkata. Tournaments, especially those involving cricket, football, badminton, and carrom, are regularly organised on an inter-locality or inter-club basis.[211] The Maidan, a vast field that serves as the city's largest park, hosts several minor football and cricket clubs and coaching institutes.[268]

 

Eden Gardens, which has a capacity of 68,000 as of 2017,[269] hosted the final match of the 1987 Cricket World Cup. It is home to the Bengal cricket team and the Kolkata Knight Riders.

 

The multi-use Salt Lake Stadium, also known as Yuva Bharati Krirangan, is India's largest stadium by seating capacity. Most matches of the 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup were played in the Salt Lake Stadium including both Semi-Final matches and the Final match. Kolkata also accounted for 45% of total attendance in 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup with an average of 55,345 spectators.[270] The Calcutta Cricket and Football Club is the second-oldest cricket club in the world.[271][272]

 

Kolkata's Netaji Indoor Stadium served as host of the 1981 Asian Basketball Championship, where India's national basketball team finished 5th, ahead of teams that belong to Asia's basketball elite, such as Iran. The city has three 18-hole golf courses. The oldest is at the Royal Calcutta Golf Club, the first golf club built outside the United Kingdom.[273][274] The other two are located at the Tollygunge Club and at Fort William. The Royal Calcutta Turf Club hosts horse racing and polo matches.[275] The Calcutta Polo Club is considered the oldest extant polo club in the world.[276][277][278] The Calcutta Racket Club is a squash and racquet club in Kolkata. It was founded in 1793, making it one of the oldest rackets clubs in the world, and the first in the Indian subcontinent.[279][280] The Calcutta South Club is a venue for national and international tennis tournaments; it held the first grass-court national championship in 1946.[281][282] In the period 2005–2007, Sunfeast Open, a tier-III tournament on the Women's Tennis Association circuit, was held in the Netaji Indoor Stadium; it has since been discontinued.[283][284]

 

The Calcutta Rowing Club hosts rowing heats and training events. Kolkata, considered the leading centre of rugby union in India, gives its name to the oldest international tournament in rugby union, the Calcutta Cup.[285][286][287] The Automobile Association of Eastern India, established in 1904,[288][289] and the Bengal Motor Sports Club are involved in promoting motor sports and car rallies in Kolkata and West Bengal.[290][291] The Beighton Cup, an event organised by the Bengal Hockey Association and first played in 1895, is India's oldest field hockey tournament; it is usually held on the Mohun Bagan Ground of the Maidan.[292][293] Athletes from Kolkata include Sourav Ganguly and Pankaj Roy, who are former captains of the Indian national cricket team; Olympic tennis bronze medallist Leander Paes, golfer Arjun Atwal, and former footballers Sailen Manna, Chuni Goswami, P. K. Banerjee, and Subrata Bhattacharya.

IMG_0418

Pegasus beat Bishop Auckland 2-1

I began my 2016 “Streets Of Ireland” programme with a visit to Kilkenny [9-11 May] and the weather was terrible because it did nothing but rain and at times the rain was very heavy. Based on experience gained in 2015 and 2014 I recently spent a lot of money getting suitable all-weather gear and a more suitable weather-proof camera system and while this investment did help the sky was very grey and impacted greatly on my photography. I had to undertake a lot of work in post to dehaze many of the images so at times the sky may appear a bit strange.

 

Kilkenny is very much a party town but I wanted to photograph something other then hen/stag parties, nightclubs and tourist-attractions so I asked some local shopkeepers for suggestions and every one of them suggested the ‘Nore Linear Park’ but they all made it sound like a bit of a marathon [maybe they thought that I looked a bit old or unfit].

 

I made two attempts to explore the linear park, the first was late on Monday but the weather was just so bad that I abandoned the task after I had difficulty exiting a raised-rampway after I came across an arrow pointing to John Street because every gateway that I came to was locked. I had to retrace my route and as a result I did find an interesting old graveyard which I returned to on Tuesday [I will publish those images later in the week]. I asked a number of people about the old graveyard but no one that I asked was aware of it or its history.

 

On Tuesday I made a second attempt in the morning and while the weather was not good I did manage to photograph all sections within a few hours and along the route I got to meet some very interesting people and one really rude person.

 

On Monday I used a Sony 28-135mm lens but for my visit the the linear park I switched to a Zeiss Batis 25mm lens [which may have been a bad choice because it is a wide-angle lens]. The Batis is light and much easier to protect from the rain which is why I decided to use it.

 

The Nore Linear Park follows the banks of the River Nore as it flows through Kilkenny City. The park has a network of accessible cycleways and footpaths on both sides of the river within Kilkenny City and Environs.

 

The Linear Park can be roughly divided into four sections: -

  

1. The West Bank (from Bishopsmeadows to the weir at Talbot's Inch): This section is approached from Riverside Drive close to Green's Bridge or from the Sycamores Housing estate. It can also be accessed (by foot only) from steps at Talbot's Inch on the Freshford/Urlingford Road. This section of the park travels through mainly meadow grassland. The footing is easy and level. The section of the park is accessible to persons of limited mobility from the Riverside Drive entrance and from the Sycamores entrance. It should be noted that the Linear Park is located in a floodplain and in periods of high rainfall may be inaccessible.

 

2. The Peace Park (between John's Bridge and Green's Bridge in the City Centre):This is the most urban section of the Linear park, travelling through town along the eastern bank, parallel to Michael Street. Much of this section is paved and lined with shrub planting beds with plenty of seating areas to sit and enjoy. Access is from Michael Street or from John's Quay in the city centre or from Greensbridge Street.

 

3. The Canal Walk (parallel to Kilkenny Castle Grounds) :-

The third section of the park runs between the Kilkenny Castle Park and the River Nore and involved the upgrade and extension of the existing 'Canal Walk'. This is an attractive walk lined for much of its length with mature trees especially limes. The walk runs from Canal Square and terminates at Fennessy's Mill . During Kilkenny Castle Park open hours it is possible to access the grounds of the Castle Park from the Canal Walk. See www.heritageireland.ie for Castle Park opening hours.

 

4. The Lacken Walk: This area has recently been upgraded with bank stabilisation works to restore eroded areas and extended with the installation of a raised timber boardwalk. This walk is accessible from steps on the Dublin Road or from the lower path on Maudlin Street and from a newly constructed ramp linking the area with the Ring Road. The path which is narrow in places runs between HSE grounds on the Dublin Road and the river bank and links to the Nore Valley Walk to Bennettsbridge and beyond.

The Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP) currently includes over 100 Issuing Banks in the EBRD region and more than 800 Confirming Banks worldwide. The event gave EBRD partner banks the opportunity to review and discuss industry challenges, pricing, limits and trade opportunities with key industry specialists, regulators and representatives from the World Trade Organization, the International Chamber of Commerce HQ and local National ICC Committees.

  

It also featured the highly popular award ceremony for ‘The Most Active EBRD TFP Banks’ and ‘The Best Transaction of 2016’.

 

For many years I have tried to photograph this laneway but with little success mainly because of limited space and poor lighting.

 

On Monday I purchased a Voigtlander 15mm which is an ultra-wide-angle lens so I decided to give it a try within the alleyway and here is one of the images. The lens is fully manual so it it is not easy to use without introducing high levels of distortion. White balance was another major problem.

 

Walking down Essex Street East it’s easy to miss the entrance to this hidden laneway, but for those in the know it is a handy shortcut between Temple Bar and Dame Street.

 

If you look down the dark laneway beside the Dublin Theatre Festival Office and you will see original artwork by Dublin street artist Maser ‘I’d Rather Trust a Dealer on a Badly Lit Street Corner, than a Criminal in a Three Piece Suit’.

 

If you are brave enough to walk down the lane you will see various items of street art and you will be surprised when this narrow lane opens out onto a small square, framed by the Olympia Theatre. Continue along the laneway by the side of the Olympia Theatre

and pass under the sign for Brogan’s Bar, before Crampton Court opens out onto Dame Street.

 

Anna Doran, a Dublin Street Artist, tried to re-invent one end of the lane as ‘Love Lane’. I have been a fan of Anna for a number of years ... ever since I saw her painted traffic control cabinet on Bolton Street. You can also some of her work on the walls of the "Hungry Mexican" restaurant in Bodkin's on Bolton Street.

 

Be aware that this laneway attracts some anti-social behaviour particularly in the lane on the Temple Bar side.

 

Love the Lanes is a joint initiative between Dublin City Council and the Temple Bar Company to pilot solutions and interventions to address issues in the laneways of Temple Bar. Over the years these lanes have fallen into disuse and have become magnets for anti-social behaviour. The stated goal is to reactivate these lanes for people to use and enjoy through creative intervention.

The project was launched on 21st March 2014 with an open call for new ideas. The response from the public was remarkable and shows that there is a real desire by the public to bring life back into the laneways in this historic part of the city. The main focus for the project was Adair and Bedford Lanes, Copper Alley and Crampton Court. 10 proposals were shortlisted and are being developed for implementation on the Laneways of Temple Bar with the support of residents and businesses.

 

A number of ideas were trialled in 2015 while others require financial investment and a longer timeline.

13 February, First day of Spring in Bengali Year...

Location: Fine Arts Institute, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

SMB3515Y

I took Morag's mum to the bus station this morning and on the way back home stopped off to take some pics. Just some random shots.