As the name suggests in Bengali, Baithakkhana would mean a place well suited sitting for long hours for meetings and similar purposes in general. In some context it would also mean the outer space (bahirmahal) of a residential house.
The name which designates a neighborhood in present day Central Calcutta derives its roots from a huge Banyan tree which lied on the eastern extremes of the city in eighteenth century. It is difficult for one to imagine that before 300 years, today's BB Ganguly Street would take one off the city limits. It is here under the shade of the banyan tree that traders from Sunderbans and Salt Lakes would gather to strike a deal with European merchants.
Job Charnock (Banglapedia)
Legend has it that Job Charnock would sit here, smoke tobacco and conduct business meetings with merchants. It is also believed that Job Charnock chose Calcutta on account of this large shady tree. He had so much affection for the shade of the tree that he resolved to fix his factory here. It must be highlighted that Baithakkhana Bazar existed prior to Job Charnock’s arrival in Calcutta.
The entire stretch of road leading from present day Lalbazar to Sealdah railway station was known as Baithakkhana (Bytaconnah) which roughly equates to present day BB Ganguly Street and its environs. Even during then, this was a major thoroughfare as is evident from its importance in connecting the town with its business hub. In some reference we find the road named as Avenue to the East as well. The banyan tree lied roughly where today's Sealdah flyover crosses the easternmost extremity of BB Ganguly Street. Apart from this, there was another way to reach Baithakkhana - that from the 'Black Town' or present day Baghbazar. This road (Baithakkhana Road) still exists which branches off from BB Ganguly Street and meets MG Road on the other end (It further extends north to join Keshab Sen St).
Baithakkhana Bazaar which lies off this road bears the legacy of this place in its name. With the road lying off the commercial street, it was hub of outlaws. The jungles close to the rendezvous site of European and Indian traders were infested with dacoits. With the growing notoriety of the area, the business houses were slowly moved further west to Clive Street at a later point in time.
On the street opposite to Baithakkhana Road, just beside Indian Overseas Bank, Sealdah Branch lies Church of our Lady of Dolours. The foundation stone of this catholic church was laid back on 13th June 1809 and it still stands as one of the few witness to the bygone era. The Portuguese, their descendants and their converts first settled in Murghihata and then dispersed to other parts of Calcutta as the population increased and especially when the Maharatta ditch was filled up and Circular Road (Now known as APC Road) was constructed off Baithakkhana. Along with the English and their descendants, Portuguese occupied the locality between Dharmatala and Bowbazar streets (now called BB Ganguly Street). The Catholics who settled near Baithakkhana felt the necessity of having another church as the one in Murghihata was far off. Louis Baretto was the first to take steps for building a church near Baithakkhana. In 1804, he obtained permission from Lord Wellesley (Governor-General 1798-1805) to do so but died soon after and the project was stalled. The idea was taken up by an Indian Christian lady, Mrs Grace Elizabeth, who with the help of four Portuguese gentlemen Diogo Pereira, Jesoph Pereira, Philip Leal and Charles Cornelius founded this Church. Mrs Elizabeth bought the land (2 bighas, 4 cottahs and 12 chattacks) from an Indian firm of goldsmiths. She offered in addition Rs 20,000 for building expenses and then again Rs 10,000 as a fund for defraying current expenses and lastly Rs 2000 more for completion of the work. Mrs Elizabeth was the daughter of Mary De' Rosario who belonged to a family of repute in Calcutta and were Madras Christians. Some members of the family were high domestic servants of Sir Eyre Coote. Mrs Elizabeth was a lady with fine business acumen which was demonstrated by the clear and precise directions she gave to the trustees regarding the management of the Church.
Further north in Baithakkhana Road lies Carmichael Hall's old building. Syed Shamsul Huda was an eminent Muslim political leader and scholar in British India. In 1919, he was appointed Judge of Calcutta High Court. In 1921, he became the President of Bengal Legislative Assembly. Apart from the patronage of newspapers which contributed to the awakening amongst Bengali Muslims, Shamsul Huda's main contribution was in promotion of Muslim education. It was due to his relentless efforts that Carmichael Hostel was set up at Baithakkhana aimed at providing residential accommodation to Muslim students from far flung suburbs who faced hardship in finding suitable living quarters in Calcutta.
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| Syed Shamsul Huda (Wikimedia Commons) |
During the infamous Calcutta Killings, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, a youth in his twenties was in Calcutta. As the city saw unprecedented bloodbath and communal riots, the fatalities surged. People stayed indoors and shopkeepers did not open their shops due to fear of it being looted. Meanwhile, the hostels were running out of rice and flour supply. Bangabandhu reached St. Xavier's College where rice was stocked and managed to deliver it to Baker Hostel, Eliot Hostel using a pushcart. However, Carmichael Hostel was far off and using a pushcart to navigate through Hindu neighborhoods was unthinkable. He finally managed to find a fire engine to serve the purpose and delivered rice to the hostel.
~ Souvik Bhattacharya
Bibliography:
> Campos, J.J.A - History of the Portuguese in Bengal
> Suhrawardy, Hassan - Calcutta and Environs
> Humphrey, Keith - Calcutta Revisited: Exploring Calcutta Through Backstreets
> Humphrey, Keith - Walking Calcutta
> Banerjee, Sumanta - Crime and Urbanization: Calcutta in the Nineteenth Century
> Rahman, Sheikh Mujibur - Sheikh Mujibur Rahman: The Unfinished Memoirs
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