Budge Budge

History

Hindu evangelist Swami Vivekananda landed at Budge Budge ferry ghat in 1897 when he returned from his Chicago visit. The anniversary is still celebrated on 19 February with great zeal. The old station from where he boarded the train to Calcutta is decorated with flowers on this day. The waiting room where he rested for a while is preserved.

A curious feature of this small and old town is the large number of Sikhs who live here.

Budge Budge was the site where the ship Komagata Maru was allowed to land following its return from Vancouver. The ship was chartered by a group of Sikhs to challenge the exclusion laws enacted by Canada to restrict Indian immigration. Upon entry into the harbour, the ship was stopped by a British gunboat, and the passengers were placed under guard. The government of the British Raj saw the men on the Komagata Maru not only as self-confessed lawbreakers, but also as dangerous political agitators. When the ship docked at Budge Budge, the police went to arrest Baba Gurdit Singh and the 20 or so other men that they saw as leaders. He resisted arrest, a friend of his assaulted a policeman and a general riot ensued. Shots were fired and 19 of the passengers were killed. Some escaped, but the remainder were arrested and imprisoned or sent to their villages and kept under village arrest for the duration of the First World War. This incident became known as the Budge Budge Riot.

Historically the oldest people of this place were the 'Haldars' who came here to guard a fort near the bank of the River Ganges. A British writer who had come with Clive around 1740-50 chronicled this event. Maniklal was the main person at the fort and his soldiers lost to Clive's troops.

Geography

Budge Budge is located in the south-western suburbs of Kolkata, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River. Over the past few years Budge Budge has developed considerably in terms of lifestyle and infrastructure. With the ongoing projects like Calcutta Riverside, widening of the Budge Budge Trunk (BBT) road and the starting of the 7.7 km elevated corridor from New Alipore to Batanagar; the economy of this area is expected to get a major boost.

Economics

Budge Budge owes much of its importance to the Port, oil storage and jute mills. Being close to Kolkata and on the shores of Hooghly river makes it a strategic location for oil storage and is the biggest oil storage for the metropolis Calcutta with big PSUs like Petroleum Wharves Budge Budge (PWBB) under Kolkata Port trust (কলকাতা বন্দর প্রতিষ্ঠান). BPCL, HPCL, IOC having large units there. Jute mills were the biggest employers in the area till they started falling sick. Prominent among them are New Central Jute Mill and Budge Budge Jute Mills. At their height before 1971 these jute mills used to employ thousands of workers (New Central Jute Mills has been said to have employed as many as twenty thousand people) but after the partition of India and the subsequent creation of Bangladesh, supply of raw materials for these jute mills decreased. This, along with failure of trade unions lead to the closing of most of these jute mills.

The Budge Budge Thermal Power Station set up by CESC in Achipur (named after a Chinese called Achhu saheb by the locals who had established a sugar cane unit there) is a major source of electricity for Kolkata and its suburbs.

Transport

The Sealdah-Budge Budge line was constructed in 1890. It is part of the Kolkata Suburban Railway system. The Tollygunge railway station on the Sealdah Budge Budge line is at the surface level over the underground Rabindra Sarobar station of Metro Railway.

In 1952 the Indian government set up a memorial to the Komagata Maru martyrs near the Budge Budge. In 2013, the Budge Budge railway station was renamed as Komagata Maru Budge Budge Railway Station by the West Bengal Government.

Ferry service connects Bauria (Howrah District) to Budge Budge.

Tourism

Budge Budge is a quiet small town with soothing nature and historical places. The banks of River Ganga is a beautiful place to roam about. Indira Ghat is a children park, as well as a picnic spot, in Pujali. The lodge of Pujali Municipality, just beside this park, provides accommodation to tourists. Some places to visit are Komagatamaru, Budge Budge Public Library, Bawali Zaminder Palace, Kalibari, Jhautala Farighat, Robindra Sishu Udyan Park, and Budge Budge Old Post Office.

Demographics

As per 2011 Census of India Budge Budge had a total population of 76,837, of which 39,510 (51%) were males and 37,327 (49%) were females. Population below 6 years was 6,946. The total number of literates in Budge Budge was 59,504 (85.14% of the population over 6 years).

The following Municipalities and Census Towns in South 24 Parganas district were part of Kolkata Urban Agglomeration in 2011 census: Maheshtala (M), Joka (CT), Balarampur (CT), Chata Kalikapur (CT), Budge Budge (M), Nischintapur (CT), Uttar Raypur (CT), Pujali (M), and Rajpur Sonarpur (M).

As of 2001 India census, Budge Budge had a population of 75,465. Males constitute 55% of the population and females 45%. Budge Budge has an average literacy rate of 70%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with male literacy of 75% and female literacy of 64%. 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.

The majority of the population comprises Bengali Hindus belonging to Mahishya caste. Sunni Muslims live in specific areas. Christian families live in Hindu majority localities.

Education

Apart from the century old schools (Budge Budge Uchcha Balika Vidyalaya, Budge Budge P.K. High School,Abbey High School, Kalipur High School, Sarengabad High School, Jagweshwari Paathshaala, Subhas Girl High School) Shankpukur High School ,several English medium schools (including the St Paul's day school, Budge Budge St. Thomas Memorial School, St. Stephen's School, Carmel School) have been established. The oldest school of this locality is Sarengabad High School. The school was established in 1856, the same year when Calcutta University was founded. Noted philanthropist of the locality late Shri Anath Bandhu Mitra was instrumental for converting the small village school to a large institution. Shri Mitra was also founder of Jagweshwari Paathshaala High School, Arya Rishikul School, Bandhab Pathagar and Baikuntha Ashram. His able grandson Dr. Ramesh Chandra Basu carried the legacy and during his tenure as the secretary, Sarangabad High School had a through transformation to its present form. There is a college named Budge Budge College. There is an engineering college called Budge Budge Institute of Technology (BBIT) affiliated to West Bengal University of Technology (W.B.U.T.) offering B.Tech & Diploma courses on various engineering streams such as Computer Science & Engineering (CSE), Electronics & Communication Engineering (ECE), Electrical Engineering (EE), Mechanical Engineering (ME) and Civil Engineering (CE), along with MBA course. This institute is one of the best engineering college in Kolkata and has one of the biggest college campus in Kolkata. Every year the institute organizes test-fest attended by several college students . There is also a B.B.I.T. Public School inside the college campus. Another private college, Batanagar Institute of Engineering, Management & Science (BIEMS), offering various technical, management and basic science programs, is also in operation.

Kalipur High School was established in 1919. Budge budge- Maheshtala region has also an organization named as Budge Budge Maheshtala Nature Study Centre Which is a member organization of Paschim Banga Vigyan Mancha and West Bengal Mountaineers and Trekkers Confederation. Over here, each year they organize the biggest Science Fair in and around Kolkata.

Health care

High levels of arsenic in ground water was found in 12 blocks of the district. Water samples collected from tubewells in the affected places contained arsenic above the normal level (10 microgram a litre as specified by the World Health Organisation). The affected blocks are Baruipur, Bhangar I, Bhangar II, Bishnupur I, Bishnupur II, Basanti, Budge Budge, Canning I, Canning II, Sonarpur, Mograhat II and Joynagar.