The Port of Kolkata (previously Calcutta) is the capital of West Bengal in India, and it was the capital of the former British Indian colony. It’s located almost 100 miles upstream from the Bay of Bengal on the Hooghly River.
Port History
Archeological evidence suggests that people have lived in the Calcutta area for more than 2000 years. However, recorded history began when the British East India Company arrived there in 1690. The British East India Company chose Calcutta as their operations center because it was nearer the sea than other European settlements. It was also near three local villages where Indian merchants had settled. When rebellion erupted in 1696, the trading post was fortified. The resulting mud and brick structure was called Fort William.
In 1717, the Mughal emperor gave the East India Company freedom of trade, stimulating growth in the Port of Kolkata. Many Indian merchants came to Calcutta, and the company operated duty-free private trade. The English received permission to further fortify the town when Maratha attacks began against the Mughals in 1742. The rebuilt Fort William signaled rising British military presence.
About 12 thousand people lived in the Port of Kolkata in 1706, and that number increased to 120 thousand by 1752 and 180 thousand by 1821. The names of city neighborhoods still reflect the occupational casts occupying the city. By the end of the 1700s, the Port of Kolkata was clearly divided into British and Indian areas, and Calcutta was known for being an unhealthy place. In 1814, attempts to fund improvements began that to some extent succeeded. But cyclones between 1864 and 1870 all but destroyed the poorer low-lying districts.
As British power extended across the country, all of north India became an outlying region for the Port of Kolkata. In 1854, construction of railways started, and business and industry boomed. British financial and commercial interests thrived, and the Port of Kolkata was a growing busy center for commerce and trade. Calcutta also became the intellectual center of India.
During the 20th Century, the Port of Kolkata faced many difficulties. In 1912, British India’s capital was moved to Dehli due to Calcutta’s constant strife. As the city grew, social problems and calls for independence increased. Riots occurred in 1926 and in 1930. More serious riots occurred in 1946 when Muslim-Hindu tensions increased and partitioning loomed.
The formal partitioning of Bengal between Indian and Pakistan in 1947 was a setback for the Port of Kolkata when it lost significant trade from much of its former hinterlands. Refugees from East Pakistan (Bangladesh) flooded the Port of Kolkata, exacerbating its problems. By the middle 1960s, economic stagnation, social strife, and political instability drove many companies from Calcutta, and many others were taken over by the state. In the 1980s, conditions improved somewhat with large-scale public works and centralized regional planning. Since the end of the 20th Century, small assembly, service, and commercial companies have replaced large manufacturing.
Port Commerce
The Port of Kolkata may not be as economically healthy as other Indian cities, but it is the cultural, literary, intellectual, and artistic center of India. The Port of Kolkata is India’s oldest port. It has two major dock systems and a deep-water dock. In the 19th Century, it was the most important port in British India. But after independence and with the partitioning of Bengal in 1947, it lost much of its influence.
In the 21st Century, the Port of Kolkata has seen infrastructure improvements and economic recovery, making it the nation’s second biggest container port and one of India’s fastest-growing ports. Today, the Kolkata Port Trust is responsible for managing the Kolkata Dock System and the Haldia Dock Complex.
On the left bank of the Hooghly River, the Kolkata Dock System is about 126 miles from the sea. It contains the Kidderpore Docks, the Netaji Subhas Docks, Budge Budge with six petroleum wharves, and anchorages at Diamond Harbor. The Haldia Dock Complex consists of an impounded dock, three oil jetties, three barge jetties, and the Haldia Anchorage.
During the 2007-2008 season, the Port of Kolkata handled mover than 57 million tons of cargo, its all-time record, and was ranked third of India’s major ports. The Kolkata Dock System handled almost 14 million tons, and Haldia Dock had over 43 million tons of cargo traffic. The Port of Kolkata has seen tremendous increases in container traffic, increasing to over 4 million TEUs of containerized cargo (a 22% increase over the prior year). In 2007-08, the Port of Kolkata handled more vessels than any other Indian port (3373 ships). Further, the port handled over 20 million tons of rail traffic.
Cruising
Today, the City of Kolkata is home to 14 million people. It has many ephitets, among them “City of Joy” and “City of Palaces.” Calcutta is busy and crowded, with a mix of Indian and British Victorian architecture and many tourist attractions, including the New Market area, the Botanical Gardens, the Victoria Monument, and the Dakshineshwar Kali Temple. You can find hotels, restaurants, and much information about visiting Kolkata (Calcutta) on the Indian Holiday website.
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