In his book Land of Seven Rivers, Sanjeev Sanyal observed, “One of the positive consequences of its economic decline in the second half of the twentieth century, is that Kolkata is home to the finest collection of 19th century buildings that have survived anywhere in the world.”
One does not know, whether this is something to be proud of or to be ashamed of. Well, it depends on which side of the political spectrum you are.
A few days ago, an old building collapsed in Kolkata due to tunneling work for the East-West Metro Rail project. Geologist and civil engineers suggest that there are many other old buildings, which could collapse due to small scale tremor or construction activity.
Cities like Kolkata, where Communist government ruled for decades, look like old era cities. The old school architecture, unsophisticated urban planning, old ‘classist’ design are the typical traits of these cities.
Many British era buildings are on life support system, and the life of people living in these buildings is in danger. These cities give a feel of 70s movies, as almost all the pause areas have old school architecture. New construction and renovation of old structure did not take place because the Communist government had not allowed fresh investment from corporates.
Although New Town of Kolkata is booming with development and new infrastructure, the old Kolkata is where the crux lies. Kolkata has some of the old buildings which dates back to the British era. The old buildings of Kolkata give the city a crumbling charm altogether, however, it cannot be ignored that the people residing in those buildings are always in danger. Kolkata is very unique in a way from other cities in terms of architecture. Home to the capital of British India, it has some of the most majestic architecture from the British era. The old Bengali houses with big courtyard give the city a reminder of its glorious past, however, with little renovation these buildings are on the verge of collapse. When the mist of nostalgia and fondness of British era architecture evaporates, one would realise that Kolkata has been lagging behind a lot in terms of infrastructure.
In India, West Bengal and Tripura, two states with decades of uninterrupted Communist rule, are the best examples of how Communist rule shuts the opportunity of revival and modernization of a city. The trend is not limited to India, the cities around the world where a Communist government is in power, are deprived of modernization (Except China which is more capitalistic than India with ‘Communism with Chinese characteristic’ hypocrisy).
In Havana- the capital of Cuba, most of buildings are of pre-Communist era because no fresh investment came to city since the Communists took over. This peculiarity is not limited to construction sector, Havana has highest number of ‘old cars’ because the Cuban citizens were not allowed to import new cars, manufactured in Capitalist countries of America and Western Europe.
People often say that nostalgia is not a good thing because it prevents one from moving forward in time. But nostalgia is perhaps good for Kolkata because it could learn so much from its past glory which was ruined by successive Left Front and Trinamool Congress (TMC) governments.
Calcutta (now Kolkata) was an industrial hub in the pre-independence period and the early years of the post-independence period.
Many Marwari and Gujarati business families operated from Kolkata since the days of Mughal Empire. But during the Left rule, union strikes, harassment of businessman and industrialists were common occurrance, and these industrial families moved to Mumbai and Delhi. One major example of this is Birla group, which operated from Kolkata for decades, but moved to Mumbai after the oppressive Communist regime came to power.
BK Birla himself witnessed the ruin of one of the 60’s most industrialised states in India. He said, half in sorrow and half in mockery, “What can businessmen expect but unions, strikes, threats and God knows what else. Tell me, which businessman will invest there. You know, when they are out of Bengal, the people are the most hard working, industrious and enterprising. But inside the state…you can see what happened to Bengal over the last 40 years. I don’t need to elaborate. Of course, I have always considered Calcutta my home and always will. But frankly, I don’t see a bright future for the state.”
The cities which are ruled by Communist government become noncompetitive. Economic activity comes to halt and the capital (Human and economic) flights from the city. Ultimately they meet the fate of Kolkata, Agartala, and Havana. Kolkata needs an immediate renovation in terms of residential buildings, otherwise it is a perfect recipe for disaster.
