Burrabazar (also spelled Bara Bazar) is the neighborhood of central Kolkata, formerly known as Calcutta, in the district of Kolkata in the Indian state of West Bengal. Burrabazar thrives from the yarn and textile market into Kolkata's commercial core and one of India's largest wholesale markets.
Video Burrabazar
Etymology
Burrabazar (Hindi: ?????? ) is a Hindi word meaning big market. In Bengali, it is called Barobazar, (Bengali: ??????? ), meaning it remains the same. However, there is another theory. The neighborhood was previously named 'Buro', the popular name of Shiva. A Hindi-speaking trader who overthrew a previous local merchant, made him 'Bara'.
Maps Burrabazar
History
Sutanuti haat
Before the British came, the strongest families in the region were Sett and Bysacks, yarn traders and cloth markets in Sutanuti. With the coming of England, these families flourished with renewed vigor. Janardan Sett is a UK trading agent. Shobharam Bysack (1690-1773) became a millionaire by supplying textiles to the British East India Company. One of the earliest names in circulation was the Mukundaram Sett, who lived in the early part of the sixteenth century and moved from Satgaon to Gobindapur. Sutanuti haat has been traced back to 1738 by Orme. In the siege of 1756, Siraj ud-Daulah forces burned the market and seized Jorabagan and Kumortuli, a further settlement to the north where merchants lived.
Kolkata Bazaar
Among Sutanuti haat paved the way for the Kolkata Bazar, sometime in the 18th century. The market is spread over nearly 500 bighas and the residential area covers 400 other bighas. Apart from Seths and Basaks, there are Mullicks gold merchants and others of their caliber. Their prosperity and grandeur are legends even in their day. There are also traders with relatively lower prosperity. For example, the area around what is now known as Jalan Kalakar is known as Dhakapatty, as it is home to Sahas, the fabric merchant from Dhaka. Sheths and Basaks have close ties to fabric-producing centers such as Dhaka, Murshidabad, and Cossimbazar.
House of police section
In 1888, one of the 25 newly organized police houses was located in Burrabazar.
Geography
Location
Burrabzar is limited by Posta and Jorabagan in the north, Jorasanko and Kolutola to the east, B. B. D. Bagh in the south and the Hooghly River to the west. Lalbazar and Bowbazar are in the southwest corner of Burrabazar. This neighborhood is adjacent to Howrah Bridge (renamed Rabindra Setu). One description of its boundaries is as follows: from Posta in the north to Canning Street in the south, and from Strand Road on the west to Chitpur Road to the east. In this rough boundary is the world itself.
The cut right across Burrabazar is Harrison Road, which runs straight from Howrah Bridge to Sealdah train station. Built between December 1889 and 1892, it swept through many crowded tenements and festering streets. It is a 75 foot wide uniform and named after Sir Henry Harrison, chairman of the company, by whom the scheme is inaugurated and matured. It has been renamed after Mahatma Gandhi.
Police district
The Burrabazar police station is part of the Kolkata Police Center division. Located at 8th, Mullick Street, Kolkata-700007, it has jurisdiction over the police district, which borders the north from the point on the western border of the approach (part of Strand Road) to Rabindra Setu (Howrah Bridge) at Kolkata side, opposite the connecting lane between the approach road and Strand Road, then the eastern ward across the approach road with the shortest line to the point on the Mint Property boundary, then circling the Mint property to the northern boundary of the connecting lane between the approach road to Howrah Bridge and Strand Road to point at the eastern boundary of the Mint Property on the Strand Road opposite the north-east corner of the intersection of Mirbahar Ghat Street and Strand Road, then after crossing the Strand Road with the shortest line to the northeast corner of the intersection of Mirbahar Ghat Street and Strand Road, then east with boundaries north of Mirbahar Ghat Street to the northwest corner of the intersection on Jalan Maharshi Debendra and Jalan Mirbahar , then cross the Maharshi Debendra Road to the northeast corner of the intersection, then cross the Bartala Street street south of the Netaji Subhas Road border to the northeast corner of Utkalmani junction of Gopabandhu Avenue and Netaji Subhas Road, then east along north of Utkalmani Gopabandhu Avenue to the northwest corner of the junction of Utkalmani Gopabandhu Avenue and Rabindra Sarani (Lower Chitpur Old Road), then cross Rabindra Sarani to the north-east corner of Utkalmani Gopabandhu Avenue intersection, and Rabindra Sarani and Madan Mohan Barman Street. In the east, it borders from the north-east corner of Utkalmani Gopabandhu Avenue (Old Cotton Street) and Rabindra Sarani (Lower Chitpur Old Road), then southward to the eastern border of Rabindra Sarani to the northeast corner of crossing Biplabi Rash Behari Bose Road (Old Preservation Road) and Rabindra Sarani. In the south, it borders from the north-eastern corner of the Biplabi Rash Behari Bose Road intersection and Rabindra Sarani (Lower Chitpur Old Road) from there across Rabindra Sarani on the west-ward, to the north border Biplabi Rash Behari Bose Road to the northeast corner of Biplabi Rash Behari Bose Road and Strand Road crossroads, then across Strand Road to the northwest corner of the Biplabi Rash Behari Bose Road and Strand Road junctions. In the west, it borders the northwest corner of the intersection of Biplabi Rash Behari Bose Road and Strand Road, then north-north by the western boundary of Strand Road to the point on the western boundary of the approach road ( part of Strand Road) to Howrah Bridge on the Calcutta side, opposite the connected path between the approach road and Strand Road.
The Taltala Women police station covers all the police districts under the jurisdiction of the Central division of Bowbazar, Burrabazar, Girish Park, Hare Street, Jorasanko, Muchipara, Pasar Baru, Taltala and Posta.
Economy
Burrabazar thrives from the yarn and textile market into one of the largest wholesale markets in India. Burrabazar is divided into highly specialized sub-markets, according to the commodities it does - Dhotipatti, Fancypatti, Tulapatti, Chinipatti, etc. Subsequent subdivisions are katra, chowk or kothi. The popular saying goes, "Anything and everything is available in Burrabazar.Even the tiger's eye is available here if you pay the right price." Each katra (market) is known for certain goods. There are about 25 katra in Burrabazar. In King Katra, which originally belonged to Maharaja of Bardhaman, most of the shops dealt with spices. In Manohar Das Katra most of the hardware and textiles. Vikram Chand and Khangrapatti markets sell most of the electronic goods and artificial ornaments.
For Diwali, the lamp festival, it turned into a huge market for celebration and religious materials. The number of emergency kiosks is about 800, spread around Jalan Kalakar and other areas. From idols to their gorgeous dresses, designers diyas (ground lamps) to saffron-colored laddies, every possible article can be taken from this bazaar gala, the largest collection of puja gear in the city. A series of shops across from the Jain temple, near Satyanarayan Park, showcased idols filled with Ganesh and Lakshmi-the gods that symbolized wealth and prosperity.
Administration
With the crime of big trouble in Burrabazar until 2008, the police station was having a tough time.
More than 50,000 merchants from around the country have been attracted to Burrabazar because of the enormous business opportunities but musclemen have followed them to the trading center. From providing protection to employers and transporting their black money to run satta (bet form) rackets and finalizing property and payment disputes, these people, mostly from neighboring countries, started as trust people of the trading community. Within a few years, they freed themselves and formed their own gang to extort money and engage in other forms of criminal activity.
Even the small traders who come to Burrabazar face problems, but of a different kind. Over 1,000 cyclists cross Howrah bridge daily to make purchases at Burrabazar. Most of them are small traders, across the Hooghly River and they bring back items for sale in their area. Such people are regularly harassed by the police on duty and break away from small payments.
Traffic
Slow traffic movements, crowded walkways, accident-prone roads, police-politician-hoodlum relations and administrative apathy have become Burrabazar's curse. Traffic in the area, including the approach road to Howrah Bridge, has been an old problem for people passing through the area. All walkways and even about 30% of Brabourne Roads are clogged by hawkers who have permanent shops on both sides of the road made of tarpaulins and bamboo which cut down very rare roads in the area. The pedestrians are forced to walk on the road along with the vehicle. While trucks, taxis, vans, and three-wheelers filled the main road, slow-moving vehicles such as bicycle wheels and carts clogged side streets. It often takes more than half an hour to cross a two-kilometer stretch.
Unsafe building
According to estimates by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, about 600 buildings in Burrabazar are risky and dangerous and another 500 are at risk. According to West Bengal Fire Department officials, at least 100 people were injured in separate accidents in which five buildings collapsed and 30 buildings collapsed partially in 2007. In almost every building, 50 to 100 shops were built on each floor by setting up plywood partitions. The civilian body has plans to bring down many unsafe buildings.
On March 31, 2016, the flyover on Jalan Vivekananda near Burrabazar collapsed, killing 22 people and injuring many more.
Fire hazard
Along with the threatened buildings collapsed, the fire department's department has improved its view on the structures in Burrabazar that can burn at any moment due to damaged cables. According to firefighters, most of the 50-odd fires that occurred at the trading center in 2005 were caused by short-circuit, consequences of incorrect connections. At least 500 buildings in Burrabazar can be described as a fire hazard. Disaster can strike anytime. There are many buildings with hundreds of temporary electrical connections. Most tenants have made a temporary connection, ignoring all the rules. These illegal and reckless connections often cause short circuits and fires.
According to firefighters, "It is generally believed that there were more fires during Kali puja, but the number of fires during the puja has fallen considerably recently due to the imposition of fire safety norms There used to be about 15 fires during Durga puja and more than 100 fires during Kali puja.In 2005, there was only one fire during Durga puja and no fires at all during Kali puja. "
In January 2008, a fire struck the Nandram market in Burrabazar for nearly a week. 1,200 stores on fire. Three hundred firefighters and 54 anglers were sent to fight the fire. More than 1,000 people, living in neighboring residential apartments, were evacuated. Traffic in the area was thrown out of the equipment.
Fire is a regular feature in Burrabazar. In January 2000, a row of shops was destroyed in Manohar Das Katra. In December 2002, there was a fire on the wholesale market of woolen goods. In April 2003, a fire hit the Satyanarayan Park AC market. In September 2004 there was a fire at a sari shop on Jalan Hari Ram Goenka. In July 2005, there was a fire in a sock storage shed, just outside Kalakar Road. In September 2005, there was a fire in Jackson Lane's warehouse filled with plastics and paper. In March 2006, there was a fire at the bank on Ezra Street.
See also
References
[1]
External links
- Kolkata/Kolkata North travel guide from Wikivoyage
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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