BBD Bagh (Dalhousie)
বিবাদী বাগ (ডালহৌসি)
The capital of British India
A square of water, Lal Dighi, ringed by the buildings from which British India was run until 1911: Writers’ Buildings, the General Post Office, banks and churches. It is renamed for Benoy, Badal and Dinesh, the three young revolutionaries who stormed Writers’ in 1930. On a Sunday morning it is one of the best heritage walks in Asia.
Did you know
- The GPO stands on part of the site of the original Fort William.
- The office district is almost empty on Sundays, which is the best time to walk it.
A short walk to try
Circle Lal Dighi: GPO, Writers’ Buildings (from outside), St Andrew’s Church, then down to St John’s Church and Metcalfe Hall.
Getting there
- Metro
- Mahakaran (Green Line)
- Train
- BBD Bagh (Circular Railway)
Places to visit in BBD Bagh (Dalhousie)
- BBD Bagh & Lal Dighi: The tank and square at the centre of the colonial capital.
- General Post Office: A domed post office on the site of the first Fort William.
- St John’s Church: A 1787 church whose garden holds the tomb of Job Charnock.
- St Andrew’s Church: The 1818 Scottish church with a tall white spire.
- Old Mission Church: The oldest Protestant church in the city, founded in 1770.
- Metcalfe Hall: A colonnaded hall of the 1840s facing the river.
- Currency Building: An Italianate banking hall of 1833, rescued from demolition.