Sanskrit College to set up gallery on history of College Street

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KOLKATA: A gallery, showcasing the history of the College Street area and the world-famous book market there, will come up at the 194-year-old Sanskrit College and University, a top university official said.

The gallery will highlight the history of the College Street and the hallowed institutions skirting the street, Vice-Chancellor Paula Banerjee said here on the sidelines of the 194th-anniversary celebrations of the Sanskrit College and University here on Monday.

The place is also surrounded by institutions such as the Calcutta University, the Presidency University, the Hare School, the Hindu School and the Coffee House.

"You cannot think about College Street without these institutions and hence the gallery will also refer to these institutions, and how they became an integral part of College Street," she said.

The history behind the name of College Street goes back to the time when the Hindu College was established in 1817 which was later renamed as the Presidency College, she said.

Other educational institutions along the stretch also came up during the 19th century.

While the Calcutta University was established in 1857, the Hindu School came up in 1817, the Hare School in 1818 and the Sanskrit College in 1824.

Banerjee said, "Our teachers and scholars are already doing research work on the past history of the place and the institutions and the luminaries who had been associated with these places.

"We also plan to approach the Curator of Victoria Memorial Jayanta Sengupta, who is an expert in this field, for his inputs to prepare a detailed project report."

The VC said once the project report for the gallery was ready by this year it will be sent to the state Higher Education department for sanction.

Dotted with makeshift bookstalls along both sides of the road, College Street is one-of-a-kind book market in the world that draws locals and tourists alike from every nook and cranny of the globe.

Clothes, hand-made pottery articles and brass ornaments, which were part of the lifestyle of the common people of the 19th century of the city will be put up for display in another part of the gallery, the VC said.