Taltala (also spelt Taltola, archaic spelling Taltollah) is a neighbourhood in Central
Kolkata
Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...
, in
Kolkata district
Kolkata district (formerly known as Calcutta district) is a district in the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It only contains the entire city proper of Kolkata, the capital city of the state and therefore it i ...
in the
India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
n
state
State most commonly refers to:
* State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory
**Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country
**Nation state, a ...
of
West Bengal
West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...
. One of the oldest neighbourhoods of the metropolis, it has a police station on its own name.
Etymology
Taltala was named after its tal (
Palmyra
Palmyra ( ; Palmyrene dialect, Palmyrene: (), romanized: ''Tadmor''; ) is an ancient city in central Syria. It is located in the eastern part of the Levant, and archaeological finds date back to the Neolithic period, and documents first menti ...
) trees.
[Nair, P. Thankappan, ''The Growth and Development of Old Calcutta'', in ''Calcutta, the Living City'', Vol I, edited by Sukanta Chaudhuri, pp. 11-18, Oxford University Press, .]
History
According to
H. E. A. Cotton Taltala was chiefly peopled by Bihari Muslim khalasis and lascars.
Wellesley Street (renamed
Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Road) is described as a ‘fine broad thoroughfare’, along the course of which is situated Wellesley Square (renamed
Haji Mohd. Mohsin Square). To the north of it is the
Madrasa
Madrasa (, also , ; Arabic: مدرسة , ), sometimes Romanization of Arabic, romanized as madrasah or madrassa, is the Arabic word for any Educational institution, type of educational institution, secular or religious (of any religion), whet ...
.
In 1758, one year after their decisive win in
Battle of Plassey
The Battle of Plassey was a decisive victory of the British East India Company, under the leadership of Robert Clive, over the Nawab of Bengal and his French Indies Company, French allies on 23 June 1757. The victory was made possible by the de ...
, the British East India Company commenced construction of the new
Fort William in the center of the village
Gobindapur. The inhabitants of the village were compensated and provided with land in Taltala,
Kumortuli and
Shovabazar.
Although a predominantly Muslim locality, its early Hindu settlers included
Durga Charan Banerjea, father of
Surendranath Banerjea.
Muslims have been living in the area since the early 19th century, and the earliest inhabitants were mainly
Bengali Muslims
Bengali Muslims (; ) 'Mussalman'' also used in this work.are adherents of Islam who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. Comprising over 70% of the global Bengali population, they are the second-largest et ...
, though
Bihari Muslim settlers began arriving in a flood since 1870-1880 and more so since the 1980s.
In 1888, one of the 25 newly organized police section houses was located in Taltala.
Geography
Location
Ward nos 52 and 53 of
Kolkata Municipal Corporation
Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is the local government of the Indian city of Kolkata, the List of Indian state and union territory capitals, state capital of West Bengal. This civic administrative body administers an area of . Its motto, ' ...
are under Taltala Police Station and part of Taltala. Small parts of ward nos 50 and 51 (only under Taltala Police Station) are part of Taltala. Ward no. 62, under both Park Street Police Station and Taltala Police Station, is also a part of Taltala. Ward no 61, under Park Street Police Station, is a part of Taltala too. A little part of ward no 63 (only under Park Street Police Station) is also a part of Taltala. The neighbourhood is bound by
Bowbazar in the north,
Entally in the east,
Park Street neighbourhood in the south and
Janbazar and
Chowringhee
Chowringhee (also Chourangi) is a neighbourhood of Central Kolkata, in Kolkata district in the Indian States and territories of India, state of West Bengal. Chowringhee Road (officially Jawaharlal Nehru Road) runs on its western side. A neighbo ...
in the west. Great celebrities of Taltala are Surendranath Banerjee, Durga Charan Banerjee,
Jnanendra Nath Mukherjee,
Hirendranath Mukherjee, Rezaul Karim, Dr. Moni Biswas, Dr Tamiz Khan, Narendranath Sen, Tripura sankar Sensastry, Sudam Banerjee, Nilmoni Mukherjee, Bijoy Singh Nahar, Benjamin Gomes, Syed Badruddoja and so on
Police district
Taltala police station is part of the
Central division of
Kolkata Police
The Kolkata Police () (formerly "Calcutta Police"), is the Law enforcement in India, territorial police force responsible for law enforcement and crime prevention within the Kolkata metropolitan region, metropolitan area of the city of Kolkata, ...
. It is located at 4, Taltala Lane, Kolkata-700014.
Taltala Women police station, located at the same address as above, covers all police districts under the jurisdiction of the Central division i.e. Bowbazar, Burrabazar, Girish Park, Hare Street, Jorasanko, Muchipara, New Market, Taltala and Posta.
Demographics
Ward nos. 52 and 53 (Taltala Police Station area) of
Kolkata Municipal Corporation
Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is the local government of the Indian city of Kolkata, the List of Indian state and union territory capitals, state capital of West Bengal. This civic administrative body administers an area of . Its motto, ' ...
had a total population of 43,348 in the 2001 census, of which 24,121 were males and 19,227 were females. Ward nos. 50 and 51 (Taltala Police Station Area) had population of 17,251 and 13,556 respectively. (Park Street police station area) had population of 29,704 and 24,387 respectively. Ward no. 62 (under both the Police Stations) had a population of 34,832. The locality is largely Urdu-speaking. Urdu-speaking Muslims form 85% of the population. Taltala has its own literary Bengali journal named ''Taltala Darpan''.
Transport
Road
Many buses ply along Lenin Sarani, Surendranath Banerjee Road (S.N. Banerjee Road) and
Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Road. Few buses and
Kolkata tram route no. 25 run along Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Road and Royd Street-Elliot Road in Taltala.
[Google maps]
Train
Sealdah Station, one of the five major railway-terminals of
Kolkata Metropolitan Area
The Kolkata Metropolitan Area (abbreviated KMA; formerly Calcutta Metropolitan Area), also known as Greater Kolkata, is the urban agglomeration of the city of Kolkata (Calcutta) in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the third most populous ...
, is located nearby.
Important landmarks
*
Baker Hostel, 8 Smith Lane, established in 1910
*
Taltala High School, established in 1910
*
Calcutta Boys School, 72 S.N. Banerjee Road, Kolkata-14, established in 1877
* Taltala Public Library, (oldest existing public library of Calcutta established in 1882), 12B, Taltala Library Row, Calcutta - 14
*
Church of the Lord Jesus on Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Road
*
Osmond Memorial Church on S.N. Banerjee Road
* Central Methodist Episcopal Church on Lenin Sarani
* Taltala Police Station, the local police station
*
Wellesley Gol Talab, a park surrounding a pond off Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Road
*
Madrasa 'Aliya on Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Road
* Headquarters of
Communist Party of India (Marxist)
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) (abbreviated as CPI(M)) is a Communism in India, communist List of political parties in India, political party in India. It is the largest communist party in India in terms of membership and electora ...
on Alimuddin Street
Gallery
File:Calcutta, Prabhu Jisur Girja.JPG, Church of the Lord Jesus, Kolkata, Rafi Ahmed Kidwai Road
Calcutta, Osmond Memorial Church.JPG, Osmond Memorial Church, S.N. Banerjee Road
image:Kolkata Taltala2.jpg, Calcutta Madrsah College established in 1780
image:Kolkata Taltala1.jpg, Muzaffar Ahmed Bhawan, CPI(M) party office at 31 Alimuddin Street
image:Kolkata Taltala3.jpg, Muslim Institute
See also
*
Taltola (Vidhan Sabha constituency)
References
{{Kolkata neighbourhoods
Neighbourhoods in Kolkata