Looking Back at Howrah Bridge

 

The tagline of West Bengal tourism describes the state as " The sweetest part of India" and indeed it is so. Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal, with a history dating back to 1686, is brimming with rich cultural heritage.  Being the Capital of British India from 1773-1911, it has no dearth of iconic monuments  that speaks of colonial architecture. When we speak of Kolkata and its grandiose one cannot leave without mentioning the grand Rabindra Setu, better known as the old Howrah Bridge. Built in 1943 over the Hoogly river connecting the cities of Howrah and Kolkata, the bridge has become symbolic of the heritage of Kolkata. 

The proposal for bridging the Hoogly river was made in 1862 and initially a pontoon bridge was constructed.  Howrah bridge was ultimately commissioned in 1943 making it 3rd-longest cantilever bridge in the world at that time. The contract to build it was awarded to a company called The Braithwaite Burn and Jessop Construction Company, what’s interesting is that there are no nuts and bolts in the structure, as the builders used steel riveting instead. . It is one of the busiest cantilever bridges in the world that carrying a daily traffic of approximately 100,000 vehicles and possibly more than 150,000 pedestrians. Just crossing the Howrah Bridge we reach the Howrah Railway Station which is the oldest existing and largest railway complex in India. The area neighbouring the bridge consists of major tourist attraction spots like the Mallick ghat flower market which is one of the biggest flower markets in Asia, the cruise service by WBTC across the Hoogly river, BBD Bagh Popularly known as Dalhousie Square that has old-world charm. Grand, colonial-era landmarks including the Town Hall, the Writers’ Building,  iconic Eden Gardens and the Millennium Park.

Millennium Park

Eden Gardens