Kolkata Project Update II - project news from Kolkata [Archive] - Page 19

SarafIndian

January 28th, 2011, 07:14 AM

Well what is the use of it being good and comfortable for the minnows matches?

Yes there is the IPL and other matches too,but the India vs England was the main attraction.They could have used this match to push kolkata as a tourist destination,create tourist packages do some propaganda and market kolkata well!

But no,we have to face the ignominy of being debarred from holding the match because of our slow moving and lazy officials.Infuriating!

Hmm, I am not a cricket person but does a single match really can boast tourism in the state? It is not like Eden didn't host important matches in the past though it is almost abundant now a days. The responsibility completely goes to BCCI or whatever is in charge. And Kolkata doesn't have any Prime Minister to save the situation. Anyway, we need political stability than anything else in the state.

debayanlahiri

January 28th, 2011, 08:22 AM

Anyway, we need political stability than anything else in the state.

It is the people who can provide political stability to a state, not any political party!

This might derail the thread, but I need to say this..

As all Kolkata related forums have run into political discussions ever since the success of TMC, and as forumers have virtually been divided into lobbies, it is important that we forumers understand that Kolkata is more important than the politicians and the political parties..

When the WB Govt is lacking in funds, a group starts criticising, and another starts defending! When the IR is out of funds, the other group starts criticising and there is a group that starts defending! When CAB is at fault, a group starts blaming Mamata, another starts blaming the LF! Over the last few days, I have seen many new joiners who have started blaming Mamata from the first post.. a poll gift I guess for our forum! Nevertheless, all r welcome to SSC..

But the issue is different! Losing a game in Eden may not be a major loss in tourism revenue, but its a shame for the nation and the city first! I understand that we all have political inclinations, as we r human.. but this forum is beyond politics!

debayanlahiri

January 28th, 2011, 09:30 AM

The Eden Gardens, which is considered the Mecca of Indian cricket, is likely to get a second chance to host the India-England World Cup match on February 27. The ICC had on Thursday, cancelled Eden Gardens as a venue as the grounds would not be ready before the due date of January 31.

Meanwhile Sashank Manohar, president of BCCI, has in a letter requested the ICC to take a fresh visit to the Eden on January 31. Biswaroop Dey, Joint-Secretary of the CAB, said on Friday that after the visit to Eden Gardens the ICC team will sit with the BCCI bosses on February 1. All this followed from a letter sent to Manohar by CAB president last night. Dey said that the grounds would be more or less ready by January 31. He argued that three cricket grounds in Sri Lanka as well as the Wankhede Staduim in Mumbai had been given an extension of 14 days.

The CAB met on Friday to discuss ways and means to finish the remaining work within the next 72 hours.

Source: http://www.taratv.com/top_story.php?task=full&newsid=2225

studdmanster

January 28th, 2011, 04:38 PM

roy2010

January 28th, 2011, 09:01 PM

Buddha called Dalmiya evil at one time. Plus CAB is not run by the govt. The govt did what it could like giving tax breaks.

Kintu sejonyo Bimaner kachhe bishon baka kheta hoyechhilo Buddher ... if U remember. However I think he should have intervened in some way or other.

Suncity

January 29th, 2011, 02:58 AM

I personally don't mind project related political discussions in the threads as long as people discuss and argue without insulting each other.

However let's take a vote here.

Do we want to keep out politics completely from the Kolkata/WB threads?

1) Yes
2) No
3) Keep a bit as it makes it interesting
4) Undecided

sidney_jec

January 29th, 2011, 03:00 AM

we can't really tae out politics out of the project updates. It will pop up every once in a while. Lets keep it as a part of discussion but keep a self check so that not get carried away.

3 it is for me

Bombay2Calcutta

January 29th, 2011, 04:01 AM

3 for me too

Suncity

January 29th, 2011, 04:47 AM

An interesting article

Rivals in politics, partners in business

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/Rivals-in-politics--partners-in-business/742906

SarafIndian

January 29th, 2011, 05:22 AM

You can not avoid politics completely from this forum. 3 for me..

I must say one thing though, I don't worship neither any politician nor any organization and I believe SSC is not a place to worship them. If I feel they are incompetent or corrupt, I will continue raising my voice against them in SSC. ;)

SarafIndian

January 29th, 2011, 05:37 AM

www.daylife.com

Hmm, it looks like significant amount of work still pending. And, why the hell this guys still use Bamboo frames(2nd pic) for the construction work? They are in stone age and no wonder they can not finish the work in time..

http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/9665/x610mi.jpg

http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/3432/610xb.jpg

http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/3323/610xgb.jpg

http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/7324/610xna.jpg

http://img822.imageshack.us/img822/6796/610xpl.jpg

http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/8973/610xem.jpg

http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/2159/610xhtr.jpg

http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/1706/610xbsw.jpg

http://img541.imageshack.us/img541/5467/610xou.jpg

Suncity

January 29th, 2011, 11:15 PM

I must say one thing though, I don't worship neither any politician nor any organization and I believe SSC is not a place to worship them. If I feel they are incompetent or corrupt, I will continue raising my voice against them in SSC. ;)

I have noticed one thing. Almost no one is upset or opposes anything that I say is critical of the commies. But quite a few people get very upset if I say anything critical of the tommies.

I am going to criticize both the commies and the tommies for their failures. I try to be pretty careful of the language I use though in my criticism. I hope everyone will be careful of the language used in criticism. No need to call Mamata ugly lady or Buddha as buddhu.

And I hope that if commies is an acceptable word, then tommies (trinamoolis doesn't rhyme) is an acceptable word too.

sabya99

January 30th, 2011, 02:57 AM

I have noticed one thing. Almost no one is upset or opposes anything that I say is critical of the commies. But quite a few people get very upset if I say anything critical of the tommies.

I am going to criticize both the commies and the tommies for their failures. I try to be pretty careful of the language I use though in my criticism. I hope everyone will be careful of the language used in criticism. No need to call Mamata ugly lady or Buddha as buddhu.

And I hope that if commies is an acceptable word, then tommies (trinamoolis doesn't rhyme) is an acceptable word too.

commies= CPM and left front
Tommies= TMC
This rhyme is acceptable to me! ^^

mountaincloud

January 30th, 2011, 05:58 AM

excellent initiative by INTACH's Kolkata chapter:

http://www.intachcalcutta.com/#/imageGallery/gallery1?page=1/

click on the images and then on the "i"s below to know the details. i hope the real estate boom also spreads to restoring the wonderful structures all over the city.

any updates on neotia's basubati project?

SamitB

January 30th, 2011, 01:05 PM

Hindustani

January 30th, 2011, 02:30 PM

diguisting. disgraceful. absolutely waste of money. :bash:

the more I look at eden redevelopement, the more you realise how far away it is from actual renderings. no sleekness, no real tier format. Its neither here nor there. Just looking at those ugly columns holding roof of 2nd floor is making me puke.

one this is for sure, India is still stuck in 1960s when it comes to stadia construction.

www.daylife.com

Hmm, it looks like significant amount of work still pending. And, why the hell this guys still use Bamboo frames(2nd pic) for the construction work? They are in stone age and no wonder they can not finish the work in time..

http://img199.imageshack.us/img199/9665/x610mi.jpg

http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/3432/610xb.jpg

http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/3323/610xgb.jpg

http://img15.imageshack.us/img15/7324/610xna.jpg

http://img822.imageshack.us/img822/6796/610xpl.jpg

http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/8973/610xem.jpg

http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/2159/610xhtr.jpg

http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/1706/610xbsw.jpg

http://img541.imageshack.us/img541/5467/610xou.jpg

devmoitra

January 31st, 2011, 04:50 AM

sidney_jec

January 31st, 2011, 04:55 AM

this time around it was neither of them.
BTW Tommies felt offensive to my dog. :lol:

Suncity

January 31st, 2011, 08:27 AM

^^I wish we had the law to whip these guys in public for this shame, are we only good in organising rallies,bands and putting spanner in any development work . Probably this is the culture we have inherited in 34 years of Commies and it appears that Tommies are all set to take the Baton ahead with the same spirit !!!!!!

Neither commies nor tommies to be blamed. This was plain old desi style capitalism at work (or rather no work). Unfortunately the jugaad lagao business culture didn't work this time.

G.Ag

January 31st, 2011, 08:36 AM

Neither commies nor tommies to be blamed. This was plain old desi style capitalism at work (or rather no work). Unfortunately the jugaad lagao business culture didn't work this time.

How do you explain the extremely poor condition of the state as compared to rest of the country? Relatively speaking.

sidney_jec

January 31st, 2011, 09:01 AM

Suncity

January 31st, 2011, 04:48 PM

How do you explain the extremely poor condition of the state as compared to rest of the country?

It's extremely easy. I just need to close my ears and eyes and think that nothing good has happened, is happening and will happen.

But fortunately, I don't have to.

arijeetb

January 31st, 2011, 05:26 PM

oh puhlease.
WB is no better or worse than most of the states.
All thats been happening all the while is that only the worst gets showcased.
Their are positives and their are negatives as well.
And seriously what does this have to do with Eden not getting clearance?
The CWG preparations were a mess? Do you blame the commies as well for it?

Edit: I saw the word "extremely" just now. How closely have you been watching the progress of the state?

^^@sidney - Eden tragedy may probably have nothing to do with the current situation in the state, but it is clearly one more nail in WB's coffin since hopes of seeing a match at Eden after many years simply vaporized for those who wanted to.:ohno:

I for one wish that those nails are pulled out one by one after May this year.

Suncity

January 31st, 2011, 07:00 PM

Arijeetb > when did you take this photo? Found it in someone's blog..

http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/7450/kolkataeconomyhub1.jpg (http://img337.imageshack.us/i/kolkataeconomyhub1.jpg/)

sidney_jec

January 31st, 2011, 08:08 PM

^^@sidney - Eden tragedy may probably have nothing to do with the current situation in the state, but it is clearly one more nail in WB's coffin since hopes of seeing a match at Eden after many years simply vaporized for those who wanted to.:ohno:

I for one wish that those nails are pulled out one by one after May this year.

yeah. Whosoever does it it's always WB and its people who are at the receiving end. :ohno:

anirban_ban

January 31st, 2011, 10:34 PM

I have noticed one thing. Almost no one is upset or opposes anything that I say is critical of the commies. But quite a few people get very upset if I say anything critical of the tommies.

I am going to criticize both the commies and the tommies for their failures. I try to be pretty careful of the language I use though in my criticism. I hope everyone will be careful of the language used in criticism. No need to call Mamata ugly lady or Buddha as buddhu.

And I hope that if commies is an acceptable word, then tommies (trinamoolis doesn't rhyme) is an acceptable word too.

Commenting after a long time, I think Commies and Tommies are both equally worthless. We need a 3rd group, which does not end with Ommies :lol:

Suncity

January 31st, 2011, 10:54 PM

Commenting after a long time, I think Commies and Tommies are both equally worthless. We need a 3rd group, which does not end with Ommies :lol:

:lol:

jdla

February 1st, 2011, 01:04 AM

Hello,

Does anyone know about the latest on Canopy Group and its land development project in New Town? They had a income tax raid last week. Last year there was a news in Times of India that WB govt served a benami land notice on their New Town project.

Any update is much appreciated.

Thanks!

Suncity

February 1st, 2011, 03:37 AM

Some updates on Kolkata Financial Hub from ABP:

1) New joint venture company formed in January - Bengal Orion Financial Hub Ltd.
2) Board chairman is ex WB Govt Chief Secretary - Ardhendu Sen. Other members are HIDCO Managing Director - Sourav Das and Orion CEO Sandip Agarwal.
3) First phase will comprise of 28.84 acres. Three Banks UBI, UCO and SBI will get land here.
4) There will also be a twin tower in first phase - Kolkata International Financial Centre. UTI Bank and IFCI Bank will get space in these two towers
5) In second phase IDBI, PNB, Axis Bank and National Insurance will get land
6) Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee will inaugurate the work on phase 1 hopefully in February

UNIWORLD

February 1st, 2011, 04:35 AM

I heard, they had finished Phase-I infra, Phase-II construction on hold, cause they have been waiting for NOC from BRADA.
Now the news of IT-Raid on Sarala Maheswari and the involvement of "Olive Garden" name will create some Q-mark to issue the NOC. Hope everything will be fine and OG will get its look soon!

Hello,

Does anyone know about the latest on Canopy Group and its land development project in New Town? They had a income tax raid last week. Last year there was a news in Times of India that WB govt served a benami land notice on their New Town project.

Any update is much appreciated.

Thanks!

guessthecity

February 1st, 2011, 05:51 AM

hi..did u collect from any bank or order from outside...can u let me know if i can apply for brochure from outside....it seems to be there is no brochure available now in bank...

thanks...

flats with 448 squarefoot costing rs 3.79 lakhs (rs 848 . sqft)
flats with 2074 sqarefeet costing rs 95 lakhs ( rs 4581 /sq ft)

the plan on the website under location does not outline different clubs and community hall. So all lig,hig members have the same type of building maintainence facility, same club and same community garden? would some people living in lig later would object to higher cost of building maintainence and then the project may not be as well maintained as it could be? at theses prices lig,mig is a good value but hig,i am not sure.

how are the lig hig maintained at other peerless projects?

People who can afford 95 lakhs has a lot of choice in the embypass belt.will hig flats in such a complex hold value over time?

i went to get forms but the bank ran out of forms. they said if i did a fd with them they could give me a form...bank workes are playing some kind of game there?

debayanlahiri

February 1st, 2011, 01:18 PM

The Bidhannagar Municipality has launched its Green City Clean City programme in Salt Lake. Under the programme, the staff engaged in waste management will collect the daily garbage in the township and dump it directly in Mollar bheri, minimising the use of vats as far as possible.

The Green City Clean City initiative has been taken with the plan to completely abolish the vat collection system. The workers engaged in sweeping the streets and collecting the daily accumulated garbage have been provided with gloves, masks and uniforms. The workers will clean up all the roads in the township.

"It is a new system that we are now experimenting with and trying to fully implement for the entire township. Apart from the existing set-up, we are bringing five more garbage collecting trucks very soon," said chairman-in-council (waste management) member Debasis Jana. The civic authorities will spend about Rs 15 lakh for the project. The authorities have in fact increased the budgetary allocations implementing the scheme.

The workers have been divided in such a way that each of them will be looking after some particular lanes inside the blocks. The project has been launched from AE and BE blocks and will further spread to other areas of the township. The waste is collected from all the individual residential houses and there are separate bins to dump specific types of garbage. The garbage on the roads is also collected and put into the bins. After mass collection, the garbage is then dumped in the trucks that goes directly to the Mollar bheri dumping ground.

Civic officials said it will take some time for the project to be fully operational across the entire township. "We are trying to remove the vat system in this way which is more systematic in nature," said a civic official. The old waste collection system through the vats will be steadily phased out.

Among the other long-term plans of the civic authorities is to carry out tree plantation programmes, beautification and maintenance of the islands and the green verges that falls in between the blocks and to switch to solar power for the lighting of the islands and for the streetlights, particularly for the added areas.

Read more: Civic move to achieve a clean, green Salt Lake - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Civic-move-to-achieve-a-clean-green-Salt-Lake/articleshow/7400524.cms#ixzz1Chlc4VfG

Rajarshi

February 1st, 2011, 01:19 PM

Accenture Kolkata Office (http://www.indiainfoline.com/Markets/News/Accenture-opens-delivery-center-for-Technology-in-Kolkata/5070845087)

The new center joins more than 50 delivery centers in Accenture’s Global Delivery Network (GDN).

Accenture has opened a new technology delivery center in Kolkata at Unitech Infospace in the Rajarhat New Town area.

The addition of the latest delivery center in Kolkata brings the number of Accenture delivery center facilities in India to 25, with locations in Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi (National Capital Region), Hyderabad, Pune and Mumbai, serving more than 500 clients in India and around the world.

The new center joins more than 50 delivery centers in Accenture’s Global Delivery Network (GDN).

The new delivery center will provide a full range of IT services including application development and management and infrastructure support. The center will also focus on developing capabilities in enterprise technologies such as SAP and Siebel, as well as net-centric technologies including Java and Microsoft. It will in addition provide business-intelligence and testing capabilities.

The center will leverage the rich local talent of technology graduates and IT professionals, as well as that of existing Accenture professionals whose skills match the center’s needs and wish to relocate to Kolkata.

“The launch of our operations in Kolkata is further evidence of Accenture’s deep commitment to India and allows us to tap into a large pool of high-quality talent from the region,” said Keith Haviland, global lead for technology delivery, Accenture. “Our employees in Kolkata will work seamlessly with their Accenture colleagues around the world, sharing the same training, methodology, tools and metrics to ensure the same high level of service to our clients.”

The Accenture Global Delivery Network comprises more than 120,000 professionals at more than 50 delivery centers and other Accenture and client locations worldwide. By applying a systematic approach to creating and capturing proven, repeatable processes, methodologies, tools, metrics and architectures, Accenture’s GDN delivers consistent services and solutions to clients globally.

G.Ag

February 1st, 2011, 03:46 PM

Commenting after a long time, I think Commies and Tommies are both equally worthless. We need a 3rd group, which does not end with Ommies :lol:

:lol:

arijeetb

February 1st, 2011, 04:05 PM

Arijeetb > when did you take this photo? Found it in someone's blog..

http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/7450/kolkataeconomyhub1.jpg (http://img337.imageshack.us/i/kolkataeconomyhub1.jpg/)

^^Sun, this was taken about 2 years back.

studdmanster

February 1st, 2011, 05:59 PM

SarafIndian

February 1st, 2011, 09:19 PM

Great news. Good luck to Accenture.. :cheers:

Accenture Kolkata Office (http://www.indiainfoline.com/Markets/News/Accenture-opens-delivery-center-for-Technology-in-Kolkata/5070845087)

The new center joins more than 50 delivery centers in Accenture’s Global Delivery Network (GDN).

Accenture has opened a new technology delivery center in Kolkata at Unitech Infospace in the Rajarhat New Town area.

The addition of the latest delivery center in Kolkata brings the number of Accenture delivery center facilities in India to 25, with locations in Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi (National Capital Region), Hyderabad, Pune and Mumbai, serving more than 500 clients in India and around the world.

The new center joins more than 50 delivery centers in Accenture’s Global Delivery Network (GDN).

The new delivery center will provide a full range of IT services including application development and management and infrastructure support. The center will also focus on developing capabilities in enterprise technologies such as SAP and Siebel, as well as net-centric technologies including Java and Microsoft. It will in addition provide business-intelligence and testing capabilities.

The center will leverage the rich local talent of technology graduates and IT professionals, as well as that of existing Accenture professionals whose skills match the center’s needs and wish to relocate to Kolkata.

“The launch of our operations in Kolkata is further evidence of Accenture’s deep commitment to India and allows us to tap into a large pool of high-quality talent from the region,” said Keith Haviland, global lead for technology delivery, Accenture. “Our employees in Kolkata will work seamlessly with their Accenture colleagues around the world, sharing the same training, methodology, tools and metrics to ensure the same high level of service to our clients.”

The Accenture Global Delivery Network comprises more than 120,000 professionals at more than 50 delivery centers and other Accenture and client locations worldwide. By applying a systematic approach to creating and capturing proven, repeatable processes, methodologies, tools, metrics and architectures, Accenture’s GDN delivers consistent services and solutions to clients globally.

Rajarshi

February 2nd, 2011, 05:16 AM

Three Best Western hotels in Bengal (http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110202/jsp/business/story_13524164.jsp)

City-based developer Jain Group is tying up with international hotel chain Best Western to build three hotels in Bengal.

The first one will come up at Rajarhat by early 2014. The 150-keys property, primarily targeting the IT sector clients, will involve an investment of Rs 100 crore.

Shreyas Jain, vice-chairman of Jain Group, said the other two hotels would come up in Siliguri and Durgapur.

While the Calcutta and Siliguri hotels will be premium properties, Durgapur will be a budget destination with 65-75 rooms.

Siliguri will be a 100-key hotel with top-end retail attached to it.

“We are putting in around Rs 260 crore in the three hotels. The properties will be owned and managed by us. Best Western will set the standard for design and service. They will also take up worldwide marketing,” Jain said.

Sudhir Sinha, president and chief operating officer of Best Western in India, said the company was upbeat about Bengal’s prospects.

The Phoenix, Arizona-based company, which has lent its name to Vedic Village and Spa in Rajarhat, is operating 19 hotels in India at present. The number will go up to 30 by 2011.

“We are also looking at Kharagpur, Ranchi, Dhanbad, Jamshedpur and Guwahati in eastern India. Once the Jain hotels come up, we will have both leisure and business properties in Calcutta,” Sinha said.

The upcoming Calcutta property at Action Area III of Rajarhat is being tailormade for business travellers. The hotel will have an exclusive club floor with private conference rooms to suit executives. It may also act as a transit hub for airport travellers.

There will also be three banquet halls and two conference rooms.

SarafIndian

February 2nd, 2011, 05:23 AM

The Telegraph

(Feb 01)

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/7600/01022011001026012.jpg

Junior Engineer

February 2nd, 2011, 02:20 PM

The Telegraph

http://img217.imageshack.us/img217/7600/01022011001026012.jpg

Looks like lots of works to be done.....
India match moved out.
Will it be ready in time to host other scheduled matches?

TwinCities

February 2nd, 2011, 03:49 PM

hi..did u collect from any bank or order from outside...can u let me know if i can apply for brochure from outside....it seems to be there is no brochure available now in bank...

thanks...

I called BP yesterday and was told that they had sent the Brochure through a courier agency the previous day. I am stationed outside India.

But what I gather from the info already available at their web site, imho, this complex will not be as good as their Avisikta or Anahita projects. But that's my opinion.

niljee

February 2nd, 2011, 04:59 PM

avishar

February 2nd, 2011, 05:11 PM

I think they are talking about the "atmosphere" project by saraf group.

Suncity

February 2nd, 2011, 05:19 PM

Just saw a news in one of the Bengali News channels about a twin-tower project somewhere on the Bypass. It will have a hanging cloud-shaped club on the bridge connecting the two towers (which are also going to be the tallest buildings in Kolkata), complete with a park having swimming pool, jogging track etc. etc. The estimated project cost is 500 crores. Probably will learn more details about this project in tomorrow's newspaper.

Avishar is right. We have some posts on this proposed project.

Here's news from today from ibnlive website sourced from PTI

Unique tesidential complex planned to be built on EM Bypass

http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/unique-tesidential-complex-planned-to-be-built-on-em-bypass/562425.html

luxury residential condominium, christened 'Atmosphere', comprising two tall towers with a suspended club hanging between them at a height of 500 feet is planned to be erected on the city's eastern outskirts. The project has been claimed by its promoters, the city-based Forum Group, to be the first of its kind in the country. It would come up on the city's Eastern Metropolitan Bypass which is fast emerging as a fashionable address. Forum Group managing director Rahul Saraf said here today that after its IT-park project 'Technopolis' in Salt Lake, which had been recognised as the first commercial building recognised by the UN as eligible for carbon credits', this project will be a large luxury residential condominium in the city. He said that construction of the ambitious project, spanning more than 320 feet in width with 55,000 sqft in usable space, is scheduled to start by March and would take about 30 months to complete at an estimated investment of Rs 500 crore with Australian know-how. According to him, this will be a landmark building in the city.

Suncity

February 3rd, 2011, 01:41 AM

More about the proposed project from The Telegraph

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110203/jsp/calcutta/story_13526545.jsp

The second is a “luxury residential condominium project” for 80 families, christened Atmosphere. It boasts twin towers, — at 125m, these are taller than the South City condos — with gardens on each duplex unit.

What distinguishes it from other “floating gardens in the sky” is a 100m-long “cloud” hanging in between the towers like a hammock at a height of 500ft. This “amorphous” shape-shifting, tubular piece of floating sculpture is named “Deya”, meaning cloud, derived from Rabindranath Tagore’s verse.

The green sculpture, Deya, is designed by the Singapore-based Arc Studio, headed by the young couple Khoo Peng Beng and Belinda Huang. With four levels, the highest being the party deck, it will serve as a community space, and both its interior and “outer” skin will be put to use. It will command a 360-degree view of the wetlands stretching before it and accommodate a gym, a jogging track and a swimming pool.

The impact of earthquakes and wind at that height has been tested, and a mock-up is being done in Singapore, where for six months the structure will weather the elements.

Deya will have a transparent, porous skin and gusty winds that will slam it will be “ionised” into a cool breeze that will waft into the interiors.

The structural design is by Web Structures with Hossein Rezai-Jorabi as its director and wind tunnel investigations by Tony Rofail of Australia-based Windtech Consultants. The contractor is Mero Construction, which has a subsidiary in Chennai.

The lighting is being conceived by the Japan-based Kaoru Mende, and at night Deya will be lit up by myriad LED lamps.

The “Cloud” will have a silver lining — 15,000 kinetic discs will shimmer on its surface.

The construction process will be documented by a Singaporean author who discovered the word “deya” by trawling the Net.

sidney_jec

February 3rd, 2011, 02:19 AM

^^Found this image on Calcuttatube (http://calcuttatube.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Aerial-Dusk_04-1high-res.jpg)

http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/1077/aerialdusk041highres.jpg

sabya99

February 3rd, 2011, 02:19 AM

The Telegraph report :

On cloud nine above the wetlands
A STAFF REPORTER

The sculptured “Deya” or cloud cradled between the twin towers of Atmosphere that will come up off Science City. (Above) An artist’s impression of the tubular community centre “Deya” with its four levels, the topmost being the party deck followed by a jogging track and a swimming pool
In a city swamped by ugly concrete-and-glass boxes, two architectural projects could reverse the trend of setting up monstrosities anywhere and everywhere.

The first of this is the Kolkata Museum of Modern Art designed by the Basel-based firm Herzog & de Meuron coming up in Rajarhat.

The second is a “luxury residential condominium project” for 80 families, christened Atmosphere. It boasts twin towers, — at 125m, these are taller than the South City condos — with gardens on each duplex unit.

What distinguishes it from other “floating gardens in the sky” is a 100m-long “cloud” hanging in between the towers like a hammock at a height of 500ft. This “amorphous” shape-shifting, tubular piece of floating sculpture is named “Deya”, meaning cloud, derived from Rabindranath Tagore’s verse.

If everything goes according to the plan announced by Rahul Saraf, the managing director of Forum Group, at a city hotel on Tuesday afternoon, the ambitious and technically-challenging project will come up on 3 acres adjoining Science City.

The Forum Group will break ground between March 17 and 15, and the Rs 550-crore project, including cost of land, will take “a maximum of 30 months” to come up. The estimated cost of Deya alone is Rs 100 crore.

The “iconic” building will dominate the EM Bypass and can be viewed from many angles. A flyover is coming up along this stretch. Saraf claimed this was perhaps the first such structure being erected anywhere, and initially he was wary of the feasibility of setting it up in Calcutta, not known for its infrastructural excellence.

The green sculpture, Deya, is designed by the Singapore-based Arc Studio, headed by the young couple Khoo Peng Beng and Belinda Huang. With four levels, the highest being the party deck, it will serve as a community space, and both its interior and “outer” skin will be put to use. It will command a 360-degree view of the wetlands stretching before it and accommodate a gym, a jogging track and a swimming pool.

The impact of earthquakes and wind at that height has been tested, and a mock-up is being done in Singapore, where for six months the structure will weather the elements.

Deya will have a transparent, porous skin and gusty winds that will slam it will be “ionised” into a cool breeze that will waft into the interiors.

The structural design is by Web Structures with Hossein Rezai-Jorabi as its director and wind tunnel investigations by Tony Rofail of Australia-based Windtech Consultants. The contractor is Mero Construction, which has a subsidiary in Chennai.

Asked why most of the consultants were based in Singapore, Saraf admitted that even in this day and time face-to-face interaction facilitated design coordination.

The lighting is being conceived by the Japan-based Kaoru Mende, and at night Deya will be lit up by myriad LED lamps.

The “Cloud” will have a silver lining — 15,000 kinetic discs will shimmer on its surface.

The construction process will be documented by a Singaporean author who discovered the word “deya” by trawling the Net.

Poetry notwithstanding, will such exorbitantly-priced flats find many takers in a stagnating city like Calcutta? Saraf was confident of their saleability and wanted all investors out.

sidney_jec

February 3rd, 2011, 02:22 AM

Hi5 Sabya

SarafIndian

February 3rd, 2011, 02:35 AM

This is nice project. Probably the best in the country in recent time (well the plan atleast). Not wanted to be negative but hope those "wetland protectors" and those so called "green" activists stay calm. Othewise this project also will go to Gujrat.

This building can change the skyline of east Kolkata..

Suncity

February 3rd, 2011, 03:45 AM

Not wanted to be negative but hope those "wetland protectors" and those so called "green" activists stay calm.

Yeah, that's a distinct possibility too. Such ambitious projects often attract publicity seeking activists. Then we will have the Medha Patkars flying in and creating cacophony. Hope the project managers are oiling the two main political fronts in the state.

guessthecity

February 3rd, 2011, 04:27 AM

"It will command a 360-degree view of the wetlands stretching before it and accommodate a gym, a jogging track and a swimming pool."

ATMOSPHERE project will have the view of the wetland and the building will not be built on wetland. hence the green activists should not have a problem.

so 80 flats is worth 500 crore. so each flat will be 6.5 crore.

studdmanster

February 3rd, 2011, 06:06 AM

The ToI report and pics regarding Atmosphere:
Ever seen pictures of dinners and parties being hosted in the sky and wished Kolkata had such facilities as well If Forum Group managing director Rahul Sarafs dreams come true,Kolkata might soon get something that will not only allow you to party in the sky,but swim,work out,jog or even enjoy a movie 500 feet above the ground.
Saraf is planning a giant structure hosting a club suspended in the air just like a cloud at a height of 500 feet from the ground which is being touted as the first such structure in the sky in India.The cloud or Deya will be suspended between two towers on EM Bypass,which will also be the tallest structures in the city.
Conceived and designed by the best known architects and engineers of the world,Deya will sometimes appear solid,sometimes translucent and sometimes fluid.The shimmering kinetic disks at strategic places will give this cloud its own silver lining,said Saraf.
When we bought this prime land in 2009,I kept asking myself how we should conceive the plan.It had to be iconic,something that would gel with the ethos of my city the art and cultural capital of the country.I decided it has to be a sculpture and it must be in the sky.Gradually,we conceived the idea of housing a full-fledged club in the structure.It faced many challenges,like ensuring its safety and structural stability.We had to engage some of the best professionals of the world.Now,it is ready to be constructed, Saraf said.
Projected to be the most expensive club in India,the suspended Deya alone would cost the developer,Forum Projects,a solid Rs 100 crore.Spread across four levels and spanning more than 320 feet in width,Deya will house multiple swimming pools,a gym,a spa,squash courts,badminton court,a joggers track,a mini theatre,an open-air party deck and amphitheatre and multiple lounges and spaces for small gatherings across 55,000 square feet usable space, said Saraf.
The two towers,between which the structure will be suspended,are part of the residential condominium called Atmosphere for 80 families only.Atmosphere is designed like villas in the sky with large open hanging gardens with each apartment.It is designed to cater to the needs of those families that seek to make their own bungalows on small plots of land.Each villa will have its own exclusive lift and lobby, said Saraf.The project is scheduled to completed in 30 months.

For pics look @ http://lite.epaper.timesofindia.com/getpage.aspx?pageid=4&pagesize=&edid=&edlabel=TOIKM&mydateHid=03-02-2011&pubname=&edname=&publabel=TOI

SarafIndian

February 3rd, 2011, 06:46 AM

The Telegraph

http://img9.imageshack.us/img9/7548/03022011024025.jpg

SarafIndian

February 3rd, 2011, 06:52 AM

Yeah, that's a distinct possibility too. Such ambitious projects often attract publicity seeking activists. Then we will have the Medha Patkars flying in and creating cacophony. Hope the project managers are oiling the two main political fronts in the state.

Medha is more dengerous than Maoists. At least Maoists don't fly :laugh:..

studdmanster

February 3rd, 2011, 07:02 AM

cc: TNN

The Matua Mahasangha was handed over 20 cottah at Rajarhat New Town on Wednesday to set up the Harichand Guruchand Research Foundation.
Around 3,500 to 4,000 members of the Matua community were present on the occasion.Their spiritual head Boroma,however,was not present.
Housing minister and Hidco chairman Gautam Deb said he did not initially know much about the Matua community and their history.The Matuas have 300 years of history behind them.I did not know much about them.It was Biman Bose who told me that a Matua conference was to be held at the city.It was then that I contacted former education minister Kanti Biswas to know more about them, he said.
Deb brushed aside any political motive in handing over the plot.Many are asking me why I am entering into a matter of the Matuas.I am feeling proud at helping them.What politics is in this Why is such a big issue being made about whether Boroma could be present or not on the occasion It is a huge occasion for all of us and there is no party or politics involved in this, Deb said.
Deb added that in matters of vote shares,the Left Front has always got cent percent votes from the tribal communities.The government has given plots to 56% people from the OBCs in the state.It has also been decided that people from the tribal communities will get pension after 60 years of age and tribal students will get subsidy in education, the minister said.
Kapil Krishna Thakur,Boromas elder son,said there has been a conspiracy to prevent this research foundation from coming up.There have been conspiracies in making this research foundation happen but we have overcame the troubles, he said.
Boroma sent a letter to Deb,in which she said that she was very happy that a plot has been handed over to the Matuas for setting up the research foundation.

studdmanster

February 3rd, 2011, 07:05 AM

Yeah, that's a distinct possibility too. Such ambitious projects often attract publicity seeking activists. Then we will have the Medha Patkars flying in and creating cacophony. Hope the project managers are oiling the two main political fronts in the state.

For flying Medha Patkar should go on a regular diet of RED BULL, coz red bull gives you wings to fly...:lol:

avishar

February 3rd, 2011, 04:51 PM

Oh for heavens sakes!

Did you read the last line of the tele graph report "Will it find enough takes for a stagnating city like calcutta?"
They just cant see something good happening cant they?I dont think a prominent city based realty group build something just out of his own whim will he,if he has no clue ast to whether it will have any takers or not.

Its hardly 80 flats,i read in a recent report that kolkata has an estimated 5,000+ "crorepati families".And most of these flats would be sold by invitation only.

Other than that lovely project,but i dont think they can be the tallest in kolkata i guess.
45 floor urbana towers must be taller than 125m.

If this things starts getting built,it deserves a thread the international "highrises" subforum.

sidney_jec

February 3rd, 2011, 05:24 PM

^^ I guess it would be.
500 ft that means roughly 150 m

mountaincloud

February 3rd, 2011, 05:25 PM

Oh for heavens sakes!

Did you read the last line of the tele graph report "Will it find enough takes for a stagnating city like calcutta?"
They just cant see something good happening cant they?

I had a similar reaction when I read that line.

http://www.sify.com/finance/rs-1-300-crore-adb-loan-to-kolkata-municipality-news-default-lcdturecedh.html

Rs.1,300 crore ADB loan to Kolkata municipality

Kolkata, Feb 3 (IANS) The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide a loan of Rs.1,300 crore to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) to undertake different projects, Mayor Sovan Chatterjee said Thursday.

'The ADB has sanctioned a loan of Rs.1,300 crore to the KMC to carry out sewage treatment, water supply and solid waste management projects,' Chatterjee told reporters here.

The Ganga beautification project will be carried out from Garden Reach to Corripore in the city, he said, adding an MoU for this was signed among KMC, Kolkata Port Trust and the railways last year.

'The project area will be of more than 200 acres where the area will be used for commercial and residential purpose,' he said, adding that the Delhi School of Architecture is preparing the plan for the beautification project.

I guess by "Delhi School of Architecture" Chatterjee or the reporter meant Delhi's School of Planning and Architecture.

Suncity

February 3rd, 2011, 05:29 PM

Oh for heavens sakes!

Did you read the last line of the tele graph report "Will it find enough takes for a stagnating city like calcutta?"

Well the quality of the Kolkata and Bengal based journalists is definitely stagnating.

:lol:

They also said "In a city swamped by ugly concrete-and-glass boxes". Who are they to decide what is ugly glass and concrete? That's an opinion - not a piece of news.

BTW,a relevant piece of news; not sure about the veracity:

http://www.thehindu.com/business/companies/article1153432.ece

In Kolkata, all the flats in Eden Court and Eden Court-Primo for the upper income segment in Rajarhat area had already been sold out, he (Brotin Banerjee, managing director and CEO of Tata Housing Development Company Ltd) said.

mountaincloud

February 3rd, 2011, 05:32 PM

Good to read that people are thinking ahead and are open to ideas from a diverse group of people. I liked Sivaramkrishnan's and Kulshrestha's ideas.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Break-the-mould-and-make-Kolkata-futuristic-Planners/articleshow/7415176.cms

KOLKATA: Ecological sustenance, economic growth and effective governance will be central to the process of formulating the Kolkata Metropolitan Area (KMA) perspective plan, 2035.

At a symposium organized by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) to set the agenda for a more holistic development plan, decision makers and planning professionals from Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai and Kolkata urged KMDA to look at the planning process afresh and take a bold approach even if it didn't fit into the eco-political context of the day.

At the end of the daylong deliberation, KMDA chief executive Vivek Bharadwaj was convinced that economy, ecology and governance needed to be embraced for Kolkata to emerge as a metropolis with global aspirations.

It was former KMDA chief executive KC Sivaramkrishnan who set the tone by impressing upon KMDA executives to first decide how Kolkata would position itself economically with North-East, Bangladesh and Myanmar in mind.

"The traditional approach has been to stick to one's own domain and have a blinkered outlook. But if we are planning for 20-25 years ahead, we need to set the agenda for new realities. One would say that trade and commerce are not state subject. But these barriers may dissolve by 2035. We need to factor possibilities into planning even if they appear to be far-fetched now. Remember, when the perspective plan for Kolkata 2011 was set in 1991, planners saw things according to the political reality at the time. Planners have to make an extraordinary effort to look beyond the immediate political reality," Sivaramkrishnan said.

State municipal affairs secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay, former KMDA chief and Kolkata Municipal Corporation commissioner, felt the agency was at the crossroads and had to reinvent itself and only take up mega projects in the execution stage and leave the rest to urban local bodies. "KMDA needs to restructure itself and think ahead," Bandyopadhyay said.

Urban and regional planner SK Kulshrestha outlined a five-point agenda for KMDA with a vision to transform KMA into an attractive investment region and promote good quality of life. "KMDA should provide technical support to Kolkata Metropolitan Planning Committee (KMPC), pursue a regional approach to spatial planning and socio-economic development, evolve a humane urban land policy, conserve Kolkata's heritage and promote inclusive planning and development," he enumerated.

Bangalore Regional Metropolitan Development Authority additional director B Mahendra said it was the mistake of concentrating only on the city instead of the region that ultimately led to the creation of BRMDA. "The multiple agencies present, including Bangalore Metropolitan Development Authority, will only implement projects. Planning is the sole reserve of BRMDA," Mahendra said.

Delhi Development Authority additional commissioner SP Bansal felt agencies in other cities, too, needed a course correction. "We are introspecting as well. For the past 50 years, we have been talking about balanced regional development. Yet, the pressure on Delhi continues. One has to see if it is due to planning failure or lack of will to implement policies," he said.

State urban development minister and KMDA chairman Asok Bhattacharya said concentrating on just the core city was the basic flaw in the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission programme.

Suncity

February 3rd, 2011, 05:41 PM

mountaincloud

February 3rd, 2011, 06:45 PM

^^

The discussions are fine.

But why have all these organizations failed Indian cities? That is what they need to figure out first. Otherwise like all other past plans, any future plans will fail. The course correction will only be on paper.

Three of the problems I think are social underdevelopment, too much politicization of every issue and rampant corruption. City planners cannot change that, but have to accomodate that. But what is the limit of accomodation? Extreme politics is now about stopping all development. How do they factor this in?

in a poor country like ours, political tensions will never go away. i guess planners have to accomodate that within their strategy implementation plan (plan A, plan B, plan C.. like that). but with the politicians, we also have a callous middle class (unlike our role models: the US and Europe). the government of the day has to take the responsibility of generating consensus.

incomplete wishlist:

public infrastructure has to be designed well -- for the public. flyovers will always fall short of what's needed. metro, bus etc. needs to be efficient first, followed by large amounts of toll (may be certain times of the day) to discourage private vehicle usage. at least 100 3-4 storey structures -- long , along the road -- for parking. good income for the governemnt. can charge more if needed. this will free up space on the roads. people can walk 1-2 blocks from these parking towers.

raise a different category of police -- anti-encroachment police -- to keep public spaces for the public. clear all footpaths (haven't read the new urban hawker rules) for walking.

building codes for different regions of the city according to achitectural styles. ugly facades and poor designing not allowed. all eyesore hoardings takewn down and the city made to breathe with more sunlight and better views. advertisements can do undergound -- hevily in the metro, bottoms of flyovers. better aligning of zebra crossings and traffic lights (for people and cars) at every junction.

better traffic management -- comprehensive plan for dealing with autos, thelawallahs, bicycles, big trucks, buses, two-whelers, cars, rickshaws after taking into account public behavior e.g., how people get into and get off autos. well, all of this requires leadership and co-ordination. It starts with getting licenses. one can go to Beltala road, interview one of the hundreds of touts moving around the area, and get a first hand account of the mess our transportation system is in. all private buses should be taken over by the state and public transportation in the city should be managed by the state -- like all well managed cities do. make public transportation so attractive that people look forward to using it.

i could go on and on...

niljee

February 5th, 2011, 07:27 AM

Any idea what project is going on in the block right opposite the Mithai/Ruia building on Syed Amir Ali Avenue? Its seems to be a humongous project!

Suncity

February 5th, 2011, 07:49 AM

Any idea what project is going on in the block right opposite the Mithai/Ruia building on Syed Amir Ali Avenue? Its seems to be a humongous project!

It's probably the RPG/Spencers/Godrej Mall.

niljee

February 5th, 2011, 08:54 AM

It's probably the RPG/Spencers/Godrej Mall.

Thanks Suncity. I think you are right. I remember reading about the project sometime back...thought it's going to be somewhere on the PC connector. It's surely going to be a massive project! Any render/plan of the project available anywhere? Who is going to be the architect and the builder?

studdmanster

February 5th, 2011, 01:00 PM

in a poor country like ours, political tensions will never go away. i guess planners have to accomodate that within their strategy implementation plan (plan A, plan B, plan C.. like that). but with the politicians, we also have a callous middle class (unlike our role models: the US and Europe). the government of the day has to take the responsibility of generating consensus.

incomplete wishlist:

public infrastructure has to be designed well -- for the public. flyovers will always fall short of what's needed. metro, bus etc. needs to be efficient first, followed by large amounts of toll (may be certain times of the day) to discourage private vehicle usage. at least 100 3-4 storey structures -- long , along the road -- for parking. good income for the governemnt. can charge more if needed. this will free up space on the roads. people can walk 1-2 blocks from these parking towers.

raise a different category of police -- anti-encroachment police -- to keep public spaces for the public. clear all footpaths (haven't read the new urban hawker rules) for walking.

building codes for different regions of the city according to achitectural styles. ugly facades and poor designing not allowed. all eyesore hoardings takewn down and the city made to breathe with more sunlight and better views. advertisements can do undergound -- hevily in the metro, bottoms of flyovers. better aligning of zebra crossings and traffic lights (for people and cars) at every junction.

better traffic management -- comprehensive plan for dealing with autos, thelawallahs, bicycles, big trucks, buses, two-whelers, cars, rickshaws after taking into account public behavior e.g., how people get into and get off autos. well, all of this requires leadership and co-ordination. It starts with getting licenses. one can go to Beltala road, interview one of the hundreds of touts moving around the area, and get a first hand account of the mess our transportation system is in. all private buses should be taken over by the state and public transportation in the city should be managed by the state -- like all well managed cities do. make public transportation so attractive that people look forward to using it.

i could go on and on...

+100000

studdmanster

February 5th, 2011, 02:19 PM

Active acres
http://img824.imageshack.us/img824/2986/image1031l.jpg

G.Ag

February 5th, 2011, 05:15 PM

^^ Was told that the location and approach road sucks.

studdmanster

February 5th, 2011, 06:31 PM

yes its topsia. dont expect good neighbourhood or roads!!!...

Suncity

February 5th, 2011, 06:44 PM

Thanks Suncity. I think you are right. I remember reading about the project sometime back...thought it's going to be somewhere on the PC connector. It's surely going to be a massive project! Any render/plan of the project available anywhere? Who is going to be the architect and the builder?

sourav2010 posted this sometime back

As per a corporate report in RPG website,the work should have already started at this plot.

Adda at spencer's galleria

CESC is setting up a spanking new mall in the heart of Kolkata.

http://img835.imageshack.us/img835/8629/spencersgalleria.jpg

Adda is Kolkata’s life-blood. For the uninitiated, it loosely translates as a group activity, where people just hang around and talk on everything under the sun, crack jokes or simply watch
the world go by, over a cuppa. Like content, the venues of adda continue to be forever fluid. In the past few years, adda, like Kolkatans, has moved away from verandahs, parks, and busstops and slowly inched its way to the ultimate feel-good destination -- malls.

To capitalise on this mall mania and give Kolkata its most premium mall to shop, eat and indulge in adda, CESC is setting up Spencer ’s Galleria, spread across 730,000 sq.ft, at Park Circus. “Wait for another 24 months and Calcutta will soon have India’s most attractive premium segment mall which will be the city’s pride,” Vice Chairman Sanjiv Goenka had told the media earlier in January, this year, while announcing CESC’s Q3 results.

Designed by RTKL of UK, one of the best-known mall designers in the world, the mall will house a hypermarket, a number of anchor stores, as well as vanilla stores. There will be a multiplex, as well as a food court and restaurants. Another major attraction will be the 11-level car park
accommodating 800 cars, possibly the largest in Kolkata. The construction agreement has been signed with the Engineering, Construction and Contracts Division (ECC) of Larsen & Toubro Limited, one of India’s bestknown companies.

CESC set a new benchmark in the market when it took advantage of the downturn to bring down the project cost by 16% to Rs 200 crore and thereafter awarded the contract to
L&T for immediate commencement of work.

“We intend to make the project a reality within the shortest possible time”, said Subrata Talukdar, Executive Director -Finance, CESC. The “bhoomi puja” was conducted in February 5, 2010 under the guidance of vedic priests from Varanasi. This marked the beginning of construction work at the eagerly-awaited shopping mall, to be located at 33, Syed Amir Ali Avenue in the heart of Kolkata. The site is a stone’s throw away from the 7-point Park Circus traffic crossing, a nodal point in Kolkata’s inner city traffic system.

Siddhartha Chattopadhyay, Chief Technical Advisor, CESC Properties Limited (CPL), said, “The zero date for the project is 1st February, 2010.” CPL is executing the project.

G.Ag

February 5th, 2011, 07:58 PM

^^ Location?

niljee

February 5th, 2011, 08:26 PM

sourav2010 posted this sometime back

Great!! Looking forward to it. Thanks Suncity.

niljee

February 5th, 2011, 08:27 PM

^^ Location?

Its as the report says: "The site is a stone’s throw away from the 7-point Park Circus traffic crossing, a nodal point in Kolkata’s inner city traffic system." Its actually on the block right opposite to Ruia House/Mithai - the sweet shop on Syed Amir Ali Avenue.

sidney_jec

February 5th, 2011, 10:24 PM

btw found this. Don't know if you guys already know of it or not. Looks like we are spied on by DrWho :D

boardreader . com/thread/Kolkata_Project_Update_II_project_news_f_j1faXaceo.html

remove the spaces in URL

G.Ag

February 6th, 2011, 11:01 AM

SamitB

February 6th, 2011, 04:36 PM

Rs.1,300 crore ADB loan to Kolkata municipality (http://news.in.msn.com/business/article.aspx?cp-documentid=4880572&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter)

Kolkata, Feb 3 (IANS) The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide a loan of Rs.1,300 crore to the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) to undertake different projects, Mayor Sovan Chatterjee said Thursday.

'The ADB has sanctioned a loan of Rs.1,300 crore to the KMC to carry out sewage treatment, water supply and solid waste management projects,' Chatterjee told reporters here.

The Ganga beautification project will be carried out from Garden Reach to Corripore in the city, he said, adding an MoU for this was signed among KMC, Kolkata Port Trust and the railways last year.

'The project area will be of more than 200 acres where the area will be used for commercial and residential purpose,' he said, adding that the Delhi School of Architecture is preparing the plan for the beautification project.

©Indo-Asian News Service

Suncity

February 6th, 2011, 04:40 PM

Too optimistic for the state.

and for the country.

niljee

February 7th, 2011, 05:15 AM

Elite NSG hub out of Bengal

The Ministry of Home Affairs has decided to move the proposed regional hub of National Security Guards (NSG), out of West Bengal. This after the state government failed to provide land to set up the hub. The Union ministry is now planning to establish the hub in neighbouring Assam and Orissa.

“It is unfortunate that we did not get land in West Bengal. So we are looking for sites in Orissa and Assam,” said Union Home Secretary G K Pillai.

The search for land to set up a regional NSG hub started in the aftermath of 26/11 terrorist attack on Mumbai. Union Home Minister P Chidambaram had then suggested that a NSG hub should be establish in each of the states of West Bengal, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, which have extensive an coastal borders.

Post 26/11, it was felt that commandos should be deployed at strategic locations in the country to reduce their ‘strike time’ for conducting “swift” anti-terror and counter-hijack operations.

In the last two years, two NSG director generals — J K Dutt and N P S Aulakh — visited the state for the same purpose.

The state government had shown them plots at Panagarh, Barrackpore, Dankuni, Kaikhali and Jagadishpur in Rajarhat, but none of the sites satisfied the NSG teams. Earlier, the elite security force had sought 600 acres to set up the regional centre, which would house an extensive training facilities and a shooting range. But later, the NSG reduced their requirement to 300 acres.

“We were ready to offer land at the rate of Rs 18 lakh per acre, but the Centre did not accept our offer,” a senior state government official said.

Sources said the state government retracted from its earlier stand of giving the land in Rajarhat as price of the land had become an issue. There was also the problem of water-logging in some parts of the earlier proposed site. At present, a small contingent of NSG are positioned at Badu in North 24-Parganas. But sources said that disappointed by the turn of events, the Centre is planning to move it to another state as well.

niljee

February 7th, 2011, 05:16 AM

Elite NSG hub out of Bengal

^^ Very very frustrating!!!

Suncity

February 7th, 2011, 06:26 AM

^^ Very very frustrating!!!

Why frustrating?

Bengal's big intellectuals, even bigger leaders and their vocal "pro farmer" supporters have said that the state government should not acquire land. They have said anyone interested in large parcels of land like 300 or 600 acress should buy it themselves from the individual owners at market prices.
They have also said if somebody doesn't want to give land then land will not be taken from them. Not only that, some have even promised jobs that will never materialize. The people and the media have supported this stance.

So there should be no frustration. We should all be happy at the victory of the people.

:cheers:

niljee

February 7th, 2011, 06:56 AM

Why frustrating?

Bengal's big intellectuals, even bigger leaders and their vocal "pro farmer" supporters have said that the state government should not acquire land. They have said anyone interested in large parcels of land like 300 or 600 acress should buy it themselves from the individual owners at market prices.
They have also said if somebody doesn't want to give land then land will not be taken from them. Not only that, some have even promised jobs that will never materialize. The people and the media have supported this stance.

So there should be no frustration. We should all be happy at the victory of the people.

:cheers:

I thought direct purchase of land has been the demand for commercial projects primarily. But, this is directly related to National Security and very much dependent on geography..I dont understand how they can just shift it elsewhere? If they can acquire land for rail-roads and other government projects (with whatever clause in place - returning 10% of developed land to even the illegal squatters along with a job :bash:) they should have tried that model for this as well. Or may be this is just another ploy from our opposition front to save the project and hence the state, just in time for the elections. Lets wait and see.

Suncity

February 7th, 2011, 07:35 AM

But, this is directly related to National Security and very much dependent on geography...

Does anyone really care about security issues in West Bengal?

Politicians are agitating, musicians are singing, intellectuals are yelling - to throw out security forces from West Bengal. Interestingly they are never demanding that the Maoists be thrown out of the state!

The states borders are free for all and no one cares two hoots about it either.

Suncity

February 7th, 2011, 08:00 AM

Eden Gardens
videos by siddharthomatic

rGd-qvJ_TG8

GOitYBzR7Pw

Eden looks unprepared

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110207/jsp/calcutta/story_13546415.jsp

Suncity

February 7th, 2011, 08:19 AM

Coast Guard regional HQ in city by year-end

A regional headquarter of the Coast Guard, headed by an inspector general, will be set up in Kolkata by the end of this year. To augment security along West Bengal's coastline further, a Coast Guard station will come up at Frasersgunj in South 24-Parganas.

Read more: Coast Guard regional HQ in city by year-end - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Coast-Guard-regional-HQ-in-city-by-year-end/articleshow/7439578.cms#ixzz1DFe6GWUr

studdmanster

February 7th, 2011, 12:17 PM

If not NSG atleast we have the Coast Guards HQs!!!...:lol:

niljee

February 7th, 2011, 12:36 PM

If not NSG atleast we have the Coast Guards HQs!!!...:lol:

Just because nobody could claim living on or owning the water bodies so far...but wait, this could well be an environmental hazard.... :down:

jdla

February 8th, 2011, 12:18 AM

flats with 448 squarefoot costing rs 3.79 lakhs (rs 848 . sqft)
flats with 2074 sqarefeet costing rs 95 lakhs ( rs 4581 /sq ft)

the plan on the website under location does not outline different clubs and community hall. So all lig,hig members have the same type of building maintainence facility, same club and same community garden? would some people living in lig later would object to higher cost of building maintainence and then the project may not be as well maintained as it could be? at theses prices lig,mig is a good value but hig,i am not sure.

how are the lig hig maintained at other peerless projects?

People who can afford 95 lakhs has a lot of choice in the embypass belt.will hig flats in such a complex hold value over time?

i went to get forms but the bank ran out of forms. they said if i did a fd with them they could give me a form...bank workes are playing some kind of game there?

Hi,

It appears that you can download the HIG brochure and terms & conditions doc from Bengal Peerless website. Let us know if you find out anything more on the maintainability issues you asked. I am also wondering if HIG would be sharing the same facilities with LIG/MIG flats in which case HIG owners would get out voted by LIG/MIG on day to day maintainance issues.

Have anyone investigated Urbana project coming up behind Ruby Hospital? This is pricier but there are no LIG/MIG flats there.

Thanks!

guessthecity

February 8th, 2011, 05:22 AM

Hi,

It appears that you can download the HIG brochure and terms & conditions doc from Bengal Peerless website. Let us know if you find out anything more on the maintainability issues you asked. I am also wondering if HIG would be sharing the same facilities with LIG/MIG flats in which case HIG owners would get out voted by LIG/MIG on day to day maintainance issues.

Have anyone investigated Urbana project coming up behind Ruby Hospital? This is pricier but there are no LIG/MIG flats there.

Thanks!

6-7 months back urbana was 4500 and now after selling a lot of flats to investors and actual customers, they have artificially inflated the price to 8500 for the sold out flats. the ones there are selling at 6500.

if u compare terms and condition then lig ,mig maitainance is 1.5 per sqaurefeet and hig is rs.3.5. also lig,mig gets open play area, community hall.hig gets club house with 2 different swimming pool, separate community hall. the primary open sppace is also surrounded by hig blocks. so that hig still remains luxorious and maitainence is separate. the only problem i see is the allotment of flat at discrition of peerless. so paying a premium price for a premium flat, buyer does not have right to choose north-south facing or the floor. there is no plc or floor charge. hence as a potential buyer, if i get 15th floor south facing flat, i am lucky but if i get 2nd floor road facing flat, then the resale value of my flat goes down. i dont know the market rate there in bengal peerless upohar projects, resale flats at greenwood nook, abhishikta, projects like ideal lake view, active acres in that belt. Also projects by mani group. is 4500 a cheap rate for that area? any realty expert in this forum can share an insight about investement at avidipta at that price ? any possibility of another project in that belt that is under planning?

SarafIndian

February 8th, 2011, 06:42 AM

Sports Complex inaugurated (http://calcuttatube.com/sports-complex-inaugurated-by-west-bengal-law-minister-rabi-lal-moitra/141008/)

Kolkata Feb 7 (Calcutta Tube / IBNS): West Bengal Law Minister Rabi Lal Moitra on Saturday inaugurated a multi-purpose sports complex on the northern fringe of the city. Soccer personalitiesr P.K.Banerjee and Sayed Nayemuddin besides former hockey player Gurbux Singh were among those present at the inauguaration ceremony. Built by Jagriti, a non-government organization, the sports complex will host various sports events of football, cricket, volleyball, gymnastic and swimming.

studdmanster

February 8th, 2011, 01:48 PM

^^for the first time i came to know the law minister's name, infact i never knew that v have a law minister...:ohno:

studdmanster

February 10th, 2011, 06:20 AM

cc: TNN

The city police is set to get 40 acres in Rajarhat New Town to set up a state-of-the-art training centre.
HIDCO managing director Saurav Das said the land will be handed to Kolkata Police soon.The process is being worked on, he said.I had proposed a state-of-the-art training centre for police personnel to the government.The current police training school is old and has certain limitations, said Kolkata Police commissioner Gautam Mohan Chakrabarti.
The commissioner had maintained that modernization of city police in terms of technology,infrastructure,weaponry as well as behavioural aspects topped his agenda.The force will use more and more electronic equipment for better surveillance and communication.Chakrabarti said the policing system itself is on the threshold of major change from lathi-wielding cops to intelligent policing.The weaponry is becoming more sophisticated.We have achieved some success in the field of intelligence.We integrate each of these aspects to build an intelligent,invisible safety wall against terror groups.The safety of the city and citizens cannot be compromised, he said.
Chakrabarti,however,did not play down the role of conventional policing.That is our base.Conventional policing is the foundation on which the new training syllabi will be built.We are now recruiting a lot of very energetic,intelligent youths right from the level of constables.They will be picked for further training, he added.
The school will focus on super surveillance,use of technology in crime prevention,as also forensic science,IT laws and familiarisation with a host of other white-collar crimes.The course modules are also reported to be innovative and interactive.There will be reallife case studies,said a senior officer.
The school will also focus on improved firepower.There is a firing range for small firearms at the current police training school.We need a much bigger firing range, said another officer.

SarafIndian

February 11th, 2011, 06:59 AM

http://img148.imageshack.us/img148/4849/6a00d834515c2769e20120a.jpg

studdmanster

February 11th, 2011, 11:53 AM

What's Moni Bhandar???

guessthecity

February 11th, 2011, 06:49 PM

realty expo Feb 11 - 14, 2011 kolkata The CREDAI Bengal Realty Expo 2011 is the biggest real estate event in East India.http://www.realtyexpo.in/realtyexpo.htm at Science City Grounds

SarafIndian

February 12th, 2011, 05:21 AM

What's Moni Bhandar???

^^

Buddhadeb opens state data centre (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Buddhadeb-opens-state-data-centre/articleshow/7479262.cms)

TNN, Feb 12, 2011, 04.30am IST

KOLKATA: Chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Friday inaugurated Moni Bhandar which will house the West Bengal State Data Centre, making it the third state in the country to have such a centre. A statewide area network system will be operated from this centre and data from government departments will be collected and assembled here.

niljee

February 12th, 2011, 06:35 AM

^^

Buddhadeb opens state data centre (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Buddhadeb-opens-state-data-centre/articleshow/7479262.cms)

Also in the same news: "A Trinamool-affiliated union of Webel staged a silent demonstration in front of the chief minister and the IT minister saying that Webel had been engaging in wasteful expenditure."

The rise of Bamfront 2.0! :bash:

SarafIndian

February 12th, 2011, 09:24 AM

Also in the same news: "A Trinamool-affiliated union of Webel staged a silent demonstration in front of the chief minister and the IT minister saying that Webel had been engaging in wasteful expenditure."

The rise of Bamfront 2.0! :bash:

Yes, making dabba train is useful expenditure..

SSCaddict

February 12th, 2011, 09:56 AM

Yes, making dabba train is useful expenditure..

:lol:

mountaincloud

February 12th, 2011, 11:55 AM

Yes, making dabba train is useful expenditure..

please sponsor amtrak or eurorail in our country when you can

sidney_jec

February 12th, 2011, 06:26 PM

please sponsor amtrak or eurorail in our country when you can

if it has to be big then why not think about HSR ;)

BTW I wasted my precious money on Amtrak today :bash:

SarafIndian

February 12th, 2011, 08:49 PM

please sponsor amtrak or eurorail in our country when you can

Please tell that to Indian railway. That's not by job..

Rajarshi

February 16th, 2011, 05:32 AM

Webel, Reliance join hands Kolkata (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Webel-Reliance-join-handsKolkata-The/articleshow/7505333.cms)

The state-owned nodal IT and electronics industry body, Webel, has tied up with Reliance Animation to set up the Webel-Reliance Media and Entertainment Academy in Kolkata.

Announcing this at Writers' Buildings on Tuesday, state IT minister Debes Das said Reliance Animation which is one of the finest animation studios in the country will provide the curriculum and will also handle the operational responsibilities while Webel will provide the infrastructure for the academy.

The academy will offer advanced animation courses. Around `4 crore will be spent to set up the academy.

studdmanster

February 16th, 2011, 10:15 AM

cc: TNN

Seven years ago,the former Trinamool Congress-run Kolkata Municipal Corporation civic board renovated Mayer Ghat (Bagbazar Ghat),included in the list of KMC heritage committee,on the banks of Hooghly.Now,the civic board has taken up renovation of Mayer Bari,Sarada Devis house,and its surrounding areas at Bagbazar Street.Sarada Devi had stepped into the century-old building on May 23,1909,and made it her abode till her demise on July 20,1920.Though the Ramkrishna Mission renovated the structure included in the heritage list,the civic body wants to overhaul the building that attracts devotees,not only from different parts of India,but also from abroad.
Besides,the KMC health department has planned to renovate and beautify Kashi Mitra burning ghat adjoining Nimtollaghat in north Kolkata,where the last rites of Ramakrishna Paramhansa were performed in 1886.Anti-socials like extortionists have made it their haven.The KMC would spruce up the entire place and demolish unauthorized structures that have been erected on it in the past one decade.The memorial built beside the place where Paramhansa was cremated,would also be renovated and opened for visitors,said Atin Ghosh,member of mayor-in-council of the KMC health department,on Tuesday.
The Centre has sanctioned grants for restoration of historic buildings,including the residences of Sarada Devi and sister Nibedita,listed in the KMC heritage committee list as part of 150th birth centenary celebrations of Swami Vivekananda.A panel has been constituted with railway minister Mamata Banerjee on board.
However,one of the major challenges that might crop up in Mayer Bari renovation plan is the encroachments opposite it.We have started discussion with the encroachers about our plans to relocate them to a four-storey building in the neighbourhood, Ghosh said on Tuesday.
The area needs to be cleared of illegal structures to allow widening of the road leading to the house.We will arrange everything once the plot,which is now heavily encroached,comes to our possession, Ghosh said.He added that he had held talks with local Trinamool Congress MLA Tarak Banerjee and senior monks of Ramkrishna Mission on this issue and together they had taken up the matter with the local encroachers. We hope there will be no problems in taking over the land adjacent to Mayer Bari and that the renovation would start in its due course of time.

studdmanster

February 16th, 2011, 11:54 AM

this is a new project coming up at VIP Road. according to the website status is under construction!

here goes the render:
http://img35.imageshack.us/img35/7728/gloryele.jpg

and the exact address of the site is:
403/1, Dakshindari Road, Near Ultadanga, (On VIP Road) Kolkata-700048

for more visit: http://www.diamondgroupweb.com/residetails1.php?id=4

studdmanster

February 16th, 2011, 12:07 PM

hmm..another howrah project, this one by Ideal group. Around 600 units. Here goes the render:

http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/6833/92628759.jpg

source: http://www.nkrealtors.com/residential_services.php?ID=1&PaSubID=4

studdmanster

February 16th, 2011, 12:14 PM

No idea about the builder. its a residential project. here goes the render:

http://img411.imageshack.us/img411/7493/105gh.jpg

Facilities

•Video Surveillance
•Video Door Phone Facility
•Sprinkler System in Basement
•Mechanical Covered Guest Parking
•Waiting Area for Sales Person at Ground Floor
•Modern Club with fully equipped gym and swimming pool
•3000 Sq. Ft. of A. C. Party Hall with Open Area for Barbeque
•Gas Pipeline (subject to Fire approval), Rain water harvesting
•Building water filtration plant, 24 hour power back up, Freebies

Freebies:
Utility Area – Washing Machine
Kitchen – Cabinets with shelves, Complete light fittings
Servant Room – Toilet with fittings, Bunk bed with cabinet
Per Flat – Home Theater System, Persian Style Carpet in Bedrooms

Source: http://www.nkrealtors.com/residential_services.php?ID=1&PaSubID=4

studdmanster

February 16th, 2011, 12:25 PM

this is a project coming up in Behala, infact to be more specific beside 3A bus terminus in Thakurpukur. Here goes the render. Work has begun about a year ago, as of now piling work is in full swing!

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/9061/slide1lij.jpg

source: http://www.99acres.com/customised/idealregency/aboutproject.htm

studdmanster

February 16th, 2011, 12:34 PM

for exact location look: http://nkrealtors.com/viewDetails.php?ProId=110

render:

http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/6968/110rpd.jpg

studdmanster

February 16th, 2011, 12:38 PM

source: http://www.nkrealtors.com/viewDetails.php?ProId=107

http://img412.imageshack.us/img412/3585/107pit.jpg

Souvik_N

February 16th, 2011, 04:15 PM

:cheers: Studd rocks !!!!

SamitB

February 17th, 2011, 01:48 PM

Found in today's TOI
http://lite.epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/TOIKM/2011/02/17/1/Img/Ad0010608.png

studdmanster

February 17th, 2011, 04:55 PM

^^but the ad dint mentioned the site, i tried searching on web but dint find anything!!!...going by the list one more eco biz park is coming up other than this one!
btw, TCG is the same group who made Chaterjee International

avishar

February 17th, 2011, 05:31 PM

@studd Go to the lemongrass website you will find it there,along with a few more IT parks.

studdmanster

February 17th, 2011, 05:55 PM

@ avisar- thnx dude!!

Souvik_N

February 18th, 2011, 10:55 AM

KMC trying to make Kolkata free of water-logging
oneindia (http://news.oneindia.in/2011/02/15/kmctrying-to-make-kolkata-free-of-waterlogging-aid0126.html)

Kolkata Mayor Sovan Chatterjeetoday said that by taking up new projects, they are trying tomake the city free from water-logging.

The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has taken up projects for desiltation of drainage and sewerage system inthe city and its outskirts.

A total of Rs 2300 crore will be spend in the firstphase of the project by the end of this year and in the secondphase, Rs 2000 crore will be spend, the Mayor said.

"To revamp pumping stations, we will also replace oldpumps with new and modern ones across the city. Many pumps in the city are very old, dating back to the British period. The new pumps will number around 300," Chatterjee said.

Souvik_N

February 18th, 2011, 11:00 AM

Supreme Infra bags new orders worth Rs 239 cr
MONEYCONTROL (http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/press-release/supreme-infra-bags-new-orders-worth-rs-239-cr-_523210.html)

Supreme Infrastructure India Limited, one of the most versatile Infrastructure companies in India announced that it has bagged in three new work orders worth Rs. 238.95 cr.

The first order is for Hex City in Navi Mumbai. This Project is for the construction of Multi storied High rise towers for the Project named, HEX City, situated at Navi Mumbai. The estimated value of the Project is Rs. 137.5 Cr and is expected to be completed by March 2013.

The second order is for Construction of Dwelling Units for DGMAP, Kolkata. This Project is for construction of dwelling units at Kolkata. The value of the Project is Rs. 71.1 Cr. & is expected to be completed by Dec – 2013

The third order bagged by SIIL is from Mahalaxmi TMT for the laying of foundation and construction of for the steel plant at Jalna-Wardha. The value of the Project is Rs. 30.35 Cr. & is expected time frame is till June-2012.

Commenting on the order Mr. Vikas B. Sharma, Director, Supreme Infrastructure India Ltd said “Considering the above work orders, the Company has the total outstanding order book position of appx. Rs. 3035 Cr including L1 orders. As part of the Company’s strategy to expand its presence across various geographies, we have recently opened a Regional Office in Kolkata for execution of contracts awarded to the Company in the Eastern Region.”

Souvik_N

February 18th, 2011, 11:03 AM

Unity Infra bags order worth Rs 592.6 mn
MYIRIS (http://www.myiris.com/newsCentre/storyShow.php?fileR=20110214155944043&dir=2011/02/14&secID=livenews)

Unity Infraprojects bagged an order amounting Rs 592.6 million for construction of Super Speciality Block at Kolkata Medical College under PMSSY, Kolkata by Ministry of Health & Family Welfare - Govt. of India.

The said project is to be completed within a period of 24 months.

psychedelic_renegade

February 21st, 2011, 04:55 PM

Cognizant requested for 40 acres land in Rajarhat to build another campus. Source : ABP

http://img576.imageshack.us/img576/9075/anandabazarpatrikabyabs.png

Suncity

February 21st, 2011, 05:08 PM

^^Please post at least a one line translation of the news if possible. We do have a lot of non Bengali readers.

Something like this would be fine:

"Congnizant wants to build a campus in Rajarhat - ABP"

Suncity

February 21st, 2011, 05:09 PM

BTW this project is named Shiromani as per Samrat Mukherjee. Avishar snapped a pic of this a few weeks back.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/85296574@N00/5355969352/

psychedelic_renegade

February 21st, 2011, 05:48 PM

studdmanster

February 21st, 2011, 07:45 PM

Cognizant requested for 40 acres land in Rajarhat to build another campus. Source : ABP

http://img576.imageshack.us/img576/9075/anandabazarpatrikabyabs.png

Now that's a great news!!!...:cheers:

studdmanster

February 21st, 2011, 07:49 PM

BTW this project is named Shiromani as per Samrat Mukherjee. Avishar snapped a pic of this a few weeks back.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/85296574@N00/5355969352/

^^the link took me to seaman's flicker album!!...btw isnt seaman and suncity the same person...!!!:colgate:

Suncity

February 21st, 2011, 07:57 PM

^^the link took me to seaman's flicker album!!...btw isnt seaman and suncity the same person...!!!:colgate:

seaview99

Suncity

February 22nd, 2011, 06:01 AM

BTW this project is named Shiromani as per Samrat Mukherjee. Avishar snapped a pic of this a few weeks back.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/85296574@N00/5355969352/

Based on Samrat M's comment, found that Shiromani (http://hazraelectricals.com/Commercial_project.html) is G+16 storey tower by Mani Group at 60/1, Ballygunge Circular Road.

While the Sri Avani (http://cssarcade.com/avani/sri-avani.html)project by Avani Group is a 25 storey tower at 60, Ballygunge Circular Road, Kolkata 700 019, Opposite Saint Lawrence School.

http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/9571/sriavanikolkatacssarcad.jpg (http://img62.imageshack.us/i/sriavanikolkatacssarcad.jpg/)

studdmanster

February 22nd, 2011, 06:39 AM

so, which one was it that was in ur album?

Suncity

February 22nd, 2011, 12:41 PM

so, which one was it that was in ur album?

Shiromani

Souvik_N

February 22nd, 2011, 04:39 PM

West Bengal wants to rewrite Salim group chemical hub pact

LIVEMINT (http://www.livemint.com/2011/02/21205844/West-Bengal-wants-to-rewrite-S.html?atype=tp)

P.S : Couldn't open the link,anyone please try ! Must be a gr8 news...

Rajarshi

February 22nd, 2011, 04:58 PM

all i can say it's not a good news . I haven't been able to open the article but the first three lines clearly state that bengal's deal with salim and usel group has turn sour ! So no good news here !

Suncity

February 22nd, 2011, 04:59 PM

Aritra Das

February 22nd, 2011, 08:19 PM

The headline seems to be negative.

Cannot open the link though.

try this link
http://epaper.livemint.com/Default.aspx?Id=314E42654865713565385A58635071373363565171723078632F54566943356A316152547271326A566A593D

arijeetb

February 22nd, 2011, 09:17 PM

Based on Samrat M's comment, found that Shiromani (http://hazraelectricals.com/Commercial_project.html) is G+16 storey tower by Mani Group at 60/1, Ballygunge Circular Road.

While the Sri Avani (http://cssarcade.com/avani/sri-avani.html)project by Avani Group is a 25 storey tower at 60, Ballygunge Circular Road, Kolkata 700 019, Opposite Saint Lawrence School.

http://img62.imageshack.us/img62/9571/sriavanikolkatacssarcad.jpg (http://img62.imageshack.us/i/sriavanikolkatacssarcad.jpg/)

^^BCC is getting a lot of sleak and high-end rises, but can this 2.5-3 lane wide road take any more load....

SarafIndian

February 23rd, 2011, 07:51 AM

Photo cc pink-kitty

www.flickr.com
http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/8973/546884064321077a508ao.jpg

Joy_ghosh02

February 23rd, 2011, 04:37 PM

Suncity

February 23rd, 2011, 04:43 PM

studdmanster

February 23rd, 2011, 05:39 PM

Heard that its Mayor's pet project. According to Star Ananda, there was initial hitch in construction of this airport, as some residents restricted taking up of a kutcha road as that was a shortcut, then mayor sought out a new solution by construction another road, and instead of kutcha road, the mayor is now giving them a pukka road!
also heard that all the NE fli8s and some chartered and Small planes would be landing there!!!
I have no confirmed news, only a visit (by any of our forumers) can make a confirmation of this news!

sabya99

February 24th, 2011, 03:22 AM

Hi... any body has any update about the Behala Airport modernisation project. Few months back I heared that this airport will be modernised and opened for regular travellers... but do not know what is the progress till date.........

Behala airport has a small runway which is not hardened. It could handle onlt single seated training aircraft. Perhaps it is only suitable for air training school and not for passenger flight. If NSCBI airport gets saturated then easiest technically feasible option is Kancharapara-Halisahar airstrip which was useable till 1971. Behala could not come close to it ,in length or infra. wise!

debayanlahiri

February 24th, 2011, 08:11 AM

When British India's first star hotel reopens in its new avatar as the Lalit Great Eastern Hotel in November, Kolkata stands to gain more than just a colossal luxury house. The hotel is tying up with Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) to beautify the pavement in front of the heritage structure.

"We will reopen the hotel on November 19, my husband's (Lalit Suri) birthday," said Jyotsna Suri, the chairperson & managing director of Bharat Hotels Ltd.

Beautification of the portico-covered pavement in front of the hotel has to be completed in time for the inauguration. Palm trees will line the pavement, according to the original facade design. Holes are being carved in the roof to let sunlight in for the trees.

The entire stretch will also be adorned with rare indoor plants. After the beautification, a walk along the pavement will be a pleasure. The project will serve another purpose: it will help remove the encroachment that has been a long-standing problem for both the hotel authorities and KMC.

A senior KMC official said: "We have long been trying to do away with encroachment on the pavement. It's a tough task. Street dwellers and hawkers simply refuse to move out. We are interested in this beautification project as it will help clear the pavement."

Debasish Chakraborty, officer-on-special-duty (OSD), parks and squares, said, "The beautification of the pavement will start soon after certain formal clearances from our department. Such private participation is very encouraging."

The proposal has been cleared by the KMC heritage committee. The permission is mandatory because the 166-year-old Great Eastern was sold for revival on condition that the facade remains unchanged.

Pavements in Dalhousie Square ( BBD Bag) are already being renovated under the heritage zone beautification project. But KMC has always been uncertain about this dingy sidewalk that has remained cramped with illegal occupants.

A KMC official said, "Maintaining the pavement after beautification will be a costly affair. It's just as well the onus will be on the hotel. They will be better disposed to maintain the trees and plants and keep the pavement clean." But will the hotel be able to free all the encroachers who have been "living" comfortably under the shaded pavement. "The encroachers will automatically move out once the beautification begins," the official replied.

The renovation for the first phase of the hotel is running three years behind schedule.

The hotel was shut down in October 2005 and the state government invited bids for the heritage property in November 2005. The successful (`52 crore) bid by Suri's Bharat Hotels evoked a lot of anticipation and hype.

The hotel was supposed to re-open in October 2010. The authorities, sources said, are extremely serious about the November 2011 deadline.

Read more: Great Eastern bonus: A pretty pavement - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Great-Eastern-bonus-A-pretty-pavement/articleshow/7559024.cms#ixzz1Er0qbHpo

debayanlahiri

February 24th, 2011, 08:13 AM

The state government has made owners of heritage buildings an offer they cannot refuse. The state will reimburse 50% of the cost if they get their buildings renovated. If it works out, it will change the cityscape.

For now, the scheme is for Grade-I heritage structures. "We may extend it beyond government buildings. Grade-I private heritage buildings will be covered under the Great Kolkata Tourism project. The city's heritage is a major focal point of the scheme jointly implemented by the tourism department and ministry of culture," said principal secretary, tourism, Raghavendra Singh.

This announcement comes close on the heels of the tax exemption for Grade-I heritage buildings.

Though many historical buildings owned by the government are in better condition, an equally large number of such structures are in pathetic state. Most owners do not have money to renovate the structures. The result is ghostly buildings that stick out in the chaotic urbanscape of Kolkata.

"Most of the buildings in the heart of the city's heritage zone Dalhousie and beyond are owned by the government. If they can be renovated, the city-scape would look different," said Singh.

The town residence of Bengal's first governor general Warren Hastings at Kiran Shankar Ray Road is in a shambles. The palace of Raja Subodh Mullick (owned by Calcutta University) is literally falling apart, said Arun Ray, a city heritage enthusiast.

Most of the privately owned Grade-I heritage buildings are worse off. "Privately owned heritage buildings are inseparable from the history of the city. If the scheme works out, many such buildings can be saved. It is next to impossible for us to renovate the structures on our own," said Tapan Sen, grandson of Narendranath Sen, the editor of Indian Mirror, a fearless newspaper of the Raj era.

"Only the ground floor of the printing press survives. The original house is divided into several parts, owned by different persons. If something can be done to restore the buildings, I will remain indebted to the government," said Sen.

Asim Das, a fifth generation progeny of Rani Rashmoni, finds it very difficult to maintain his part of Rani Rashmoni Bhawan (each floor sprawls over 19 cottah). Das, a businessman, managed to maintain his part well. But the front of the building, now owned by the Hazras, descendants of Rani Rashmoni's daughter, is in poor shape.

The courtyard has been converted into a garage. The terrace is falling off. "We are trying to repair some parts on emergency basis. But it is very difficult to carry on," said a family member.

Read more: State offers to pay 50% heritage restoration - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/State-offers-to-pay-50-heritage-restoration/articleshow/7559026.cms#ixzz1Er1SKqMc

mountaincloud

February 24th, 2011, 08:56 AM

The state government has made owners of heritage buildings an offer they cannot refuse. The state will reimburse 50% of the cost if they get their buildings renovated. If it works out, it will change the cityscape.

^^ good initiatives! I think the government should first begin an institute that trains rajmishtris in building repair, lime and mortar work, surface finish etc. not many mishtris can do this kind of work. the terrible workmanship of our contemporary mishtris is evident in most new brickwork constructions.

the government can organize workshops like scotlime (http://www.scotlime.org/index.asp) does. [better still, some enterprising individual can offer these rare services for a price.]

http://i56.tinypic.com/a4ubf7.jpg

avishar

February 24th, 2011, 12:18 PM

BTW this project is named Shiromani as per Samrat Mukherjee. Avishar snapped a pic of this a few weeks back.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/85296574@N00/5355969352/

So what i had clicked is Sri Avani and the Shiromani is another project that will come up beside it?

sabya99

February 24th, 2011, 12:57 PM

State govt. should put its money on hospitals, schools,and other infra. projects and not on rebuilding historical/sentimental item. Current generation of Bongs could not afford that!

Joy_ghosh02

February 24th, 2011, 03:01 PM

State govt. should put its money on hospitals, schools,and other infra. projects and not on rebuilding historical/sentimental item. Current generation of Bongs could not afford that!

Hi Sabya..... I do not agree with you. All these buildings are our herritage and Government should help to maintain our herritage. Every big city in the world (whethere it is London, Paris or Delhi) are trying to maintain their herritage, then why not Kolkata. Kolkata has a very rich herritage whether it is Bengali or British or Armenian architectural bulidings. Why should not we try to maintain all these buildings as these are the real faces of Kolkata.......... original Kolkata.

mountaincloud

February 24th, 2011, 03:26 PM

Aritra Das

February 24th, 2011, 05:55 PM

Hi Sabya..... I do not agree with you. All these buildings are our herritage and Government should help to maintain our herritage. Every big city in the world (whethere it is London, Paris or Delhi) are trying to maintain their herritage, then why not Kolkata. Kolkata has a very rich herritage whether it is Bengali or British or Armenian architectural bulidings. Why should not we try to maintain all these buildings as these are the real faces of Kolkata.......... original Kolkata.

^^ completely agree to Joy......this are our money making machine........tourism can do wonders....n we can be proud of things which will be actually there instead of just imagining....u will understand what i mean......!

CalcuttaChromosome

February 24th, 2011, 06:53 PM

Yes, the heritage buildings must be restored. This is what defines Kolkata! :)

debayanlahiri

February 24th, 2011, 09:20 PM

@Sabya.. sorry to say, but u live too far to understand the need of restoration of heritages at Kolkata.. Don't take this personally, but its a fact that we need those heritages restored! The WB Govt has proposed something that has been very successful in other cities of the country as well..

As per your comments on the development of infrastructure, I totally agee with u.. I believe that good infrastructure must be extended to the suburbs and also the suburban skyline of Kolkata must be rebuilt to accomodate the growing population of the city! However, the old city of Kolkata must have that colonial feeling..

debayanlahiri

February 24th, 2011, 09:24 PM

^^ good initiatives! I think the government should first begin an institute that trains rajmishtris in building repair, lime and mortar work, surface finish etc. not many mishtris can do this kind of work. the terrible workmanship of our contemporary mishtris is evident in most new brickwork constructions.

the government can organize workshops like scotlime (http://www.scotlime.org/index.asp) does. [better still, some enterprising individual can offer these rare services for a price.]

http://i56.tinypic.com/a4ubf7.jpg

^^ A lovely proposal I must say..

sidney_jec

February 24th, 2011, 09:24 PM

State govt. should put its money on hospitals, schools,and other infra. projects and not on rebuilding historical/sentimental item. Current generation of Bongs could not afford that!

Well I knida disagree with you here. The restoration of heritage should be inclusive to the restoration of the city. It would provide jobs plus the best thing is the fillip to tourism it would give. Its a baby step but a much needed one

sabya99

February 25th, 2011, 03:00 AM

mountaincloud

February 25th, 2011, 05:30 AM

choosing between "hospitals/schools" and "heritage business" is a false binary. it need not be either/or.

hospitals/ schools are more urgent no doubt, but then fancy skyscrapers can wait as well.

heritage business generates more revenue from tourism > govt spends that money for hospitals / schools/ infra projects.

also, heritage is more important than just "business".

sidney_jec

February 25th, 2011, 05:42 AM

the fancy skyscrapers are not built by the govt.

mountaincloud

February 25th, 2011, 06:09 AM

the fancy skyscrapers are not built by the govt.

but they are a well thought out part of the plan for the future. same with the heritage buildings.

sidney_jec

February 25th, 2011, 06:14 AM

oh I didnt get the tone of your post. You and I are basically saying the same thing

mountaincloud

February 25th, 2011, 06:28 AM

oh I didnt get the tone of your post. You and I are basically saying the same thing

that's right. not sure if the news below has been posted already

http://www.thehindubusinessline.in/2011/01/13/stories/2011011352561900.htm

Ambuja Realty mulls boutique hotel on Kolkata heritage property

Abhishek Law

Kolkata, Jan. 12

Kolkata will have one of its heritage buildings converted into a hotel for the first time to ensure the upkeep of the property now in poor condition. Ambuja Realty plans to develop a theme-based boutique hotel on 4-bigha (80 kottas) ‘Basu Bati' (House of the Basus) in north Kolkata.

Declared a heritage building by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), Basu Bati has reportedly played an important role in the country's freedom movement.

According to Ambuja Realty, the company currently owns the property and there are plans to develop a boutique hotel in the building. “We are awaiting necessary clearances in this regard. The heritage committee of the KMC has to clear the proposal after which work on the project may start,” Mr Harsh Neotia, Managing Director of Ambuja Realty, told Business Line.

He, however, did not disclose the financial details of the project. “It's too early to comment on tie-ups and the estimated investment,” he said.

Kolkata currently has a heritage hotel in the century old Great Eastern in the central business district.

The only other proposal so far that has come to develop a heritage property in the city has been in the house of Lady Ranu Mukherjee, once a prominent name in the social circle of Kolkata and the wife of Sir Biren Mukherjee, a well-known entrepreneur and founder of Indian Iron and Steel Company Limited (IISCO), now a part of SAIL, in the colonial era.

According to records available with the KMC, the building adorns ‘revival architecture' which was a shift from the traditional Hindu architecture but not a copy of the colonial structures that came up in abundance in the city in those days.

Interestingly, the original owners of the property, Pashupati Basu and Nandalal Basu, were not considered much of a luminary. However, they offered patronage and shelter to many prominent freedom fighters and reformists of those days, the famous among them being Swami Vivekananda.

A major developer in this part of the country, Ambuja Realty runs two hotels in the city and its outskirts. The group had previously renovated and restored the city's iconic Town Hall.

debayanlahiri

February 25th, 2011, 07:52 AM

State tourism minister Manab Mukherjee on Thursday announced three mega tourism projects, one each in Dooars, Kolkata and Murshidabad. The state, he said, would spend about Rs 200 crore on these projects.

The minister said that the entire Dooars, along with Jalpaiguri, will be included in the mega project. He said that the focus is to develop eco-tourism in Buxa, Rajabhatkhawa, Jayanti, Alipurduar, Madarihat, Gorumara, Murti and Chalsa along with the forest department. Even Gajoldoba and Tilabari will be developed in the circuit along with Jalpesh and Debi Chaudhurani temples.

There will be a special package for tourists coming to Kolkata as north Kolkata will be specially decorated as part of the mega project. The old heritage zone in Dalhousie will be made more attractive to tourists. There are plans for arranging special light and sound shows in presidency jail where a number of national leaders like Netaji, CR Das and Aurobindo Ghose had been confined. The jail will be decorated on the lines of the Cellular jail in Port Blair.

The riverfront of north Kolkata will also be decked up. Work on that is already on at Baghbazar, Ahiritola and Sovabazar ghats. The ghats at Barrackpore, Serampore, Chinsurah, Nabadwip and Mayapur have earlier been decked up and private cruises were also organised. These will be increased, the minister said. Old palaces in north Kolkata will also be included in the tourism circuit. There are plans to revamp Sovabazar Rajbari and Natmandir, Mullickbari, Star and Minerva theatres. Swami Vivekananda's house will be on tourism map, Mukherjee said. They will also try to promote Coffee House among tourists.

Mukherjee said that they are holding talks with Pawan Hans for helicopter services between Kolkata and Sunderbans and also to Kalimpong, Darjeeling, Jaigaon and Murshidabad. The state is in favour of projecting Murshidabad in a major way and all historical places of the district, including Hazarduari and Lalbagh, will be majorly promoted. A light and sound show will be held at Hazarduari.

Read more: Rs 200-crore tourism projects announced - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/Rs-200-crore-tourism-projects-announced/articleshow/7566580.cms#ixzz1EwmhUOw1

Joy_ghosh02

February 25th, 2011, 08:07 AM

I think my post has been completely misunderstood! I am not against heritage structure. In fact I want at least four heritage structures of Kolkata must be well maintained: New Market, Metropolitan building, Esplanade Mansion and National library. However under current economic condition I will be foolish to expect Bengal govt. to come forward and pay for heritage structures. It is undeniable that when you choose between hospital ,school and infra. project heritage business gets a low priority.
This type of situation is happening in New York also. As a result they have set up heritage fund, a tax exempt trust fund where people and corporations could donate money. Such funds could be developed for Kolkata also, but don’t expect Bengal govt. to save heritage structures.
Another option could be Archeological Survey of India (ASI) to fund some projects. If ASI could save Kutub Minar/ Nalanda why not Dalhousy square and adjoining area. After all this area controlled the Indian subcontinent for 150 years.
Corporate investment in our heritage structures are also very meager – they are interested only in making money from Kolkata.

Hi Sabya.........thanks for your clarification. but you will also agree that these heritage bulidings can help to flourish the tourism and Govermnent can earn more money which can be utilised to build hospitals and schools.
Not only the above four, but there are also lots of places which are our heritage. 1) China town 2) Kumartuli (i think work has been already started to modernise Kumartuli), 3) Kalighat temple and potua para, 4) Dakhineswar temple 5) Maidan and lots of other places...........
Also I agree with your point that Goverment can bulid a herritage fund, ot it may levy a herritage tax which can be utilise maintain all these places.

sabya99

February 26th, 2011, 02:16 AM

Hi Sabya.........thanks for your clarification. but you will also agree that these heritage bulidings can help to flourish the tourism and Govermnent can earn more money which can be utilised to build hospitals and schools.
Not only the above four, but there are also lots of places which are our heritage. 1) China town 2) Kumartuli (i think work has been already started to modernise Kumartuli), 3) Kalighat temple and potua para, 4) Dakhineswar temple 5) Maidan and lots of other places...........
Also I agree with your point that Goverment can bulid a herritage fund, ot it may levy a herritage tax which can be utilise maintain all these places.

@Joy_ghosh02 I am glad that you understood my point. For your information maidan is not a heritage site , it belongs to Indian Army and MOD. Heritage site preservation and city reorganization / transformation/ redevelopment must go on side by side as Sidney has rightfully pointed out. However large areas of Kolkata downtown are 200 years old, houses are crumbling, sewer line does not exist. Such localities must be redeveloped with private fund before they are reduced to South Bronx like situation. There are no point in preserving these ancient eighteenth century pockets of Kolkata! It is not economically viable.

niljee

February 26th, 2011, 08:30 AM

thanks for all the updates!!

In his book "Monsoon: The Indian Ocean and the Future of American Power," Robert Kaplan (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_D._Kaplan) predicts that Kolkata is going to be the next global city. He gives several reasons for this. Browse the book and take a look at the table of contents here:

http://www.amazon.com/Monsoon-Indian-Ocean-Future-American/dp/1400067464/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1295588405&sr=8-1#reader_1400067464

http://i56.tinypic.com/bis0wm.jpg

The following article was probably a precursor to the book...

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/04/oh-kolkata/6734/

Joy_ghosh02

February 26th, 2011, 09:09 AM

@Joy_ghosh02 I am glad that you understood my point. For your information maidan is not a heritage site , it belongs to Indian Army and MOD. Heritage site preservation and city reorganization / transformation/ redevelopment must go on side by side as Sidney has rightfully pointed out. However large areas of Kolkata downtown are 200 years old, houses are crumbling, sewer line does not exist. Such localities must be redeveloped with private fund before they are reduced to South Bronx like situation. There are no point in preserving these ancient eighteenth century pockets of Kolkata! It is not economically viable.

Coming to your first point....... I know Maidan belongs to Indian Army. I said that Maidan is our heritage which does not mean it has been declared by Government as heritage site. Coming to your last point, again I fully disagree with you that there is no point in preserving 18th century pockets. Government should try to maintian all these buildings. I am not going too far, take an example of Rajasthan. Fortunately I visited all most all the important places in Rajasthan whethere it is Jaipur, Udaipur or Bikaner, Jaisalmer. I really felt glad to see how well they are maintaining their 400-1000 years onld culture. At the same time all these places help them to generate revenue. So, why Kolkata can not do it.... I think we should change our mentality that destory all the old things and build new.

sabya99

February 26th, 2011, 01:51 PM

Coming to your first point....... I know Maidan belongs to Indian Army. I said that Maidan is our heritage which does not mean it has been declared by Government as heritage site. Coming to your last point, again I fully disagree with you that there is no point in preserving 18th century pockets. Government should try to maintian all these buildings. I am not going too far, take an example of Rajasthan. Fortunately I visited all most all the important places in Rajasthan whethere it is Jaipur, Udaipur or Bikaner, Jaisalmer. I really felt glad to see how well they are maintaining their 400-1000 years onld culture. At the same time all these places help them to generate revenue. So, why Kolkata can not do it.... I think we should change our mentality that destory all the old things and build new.

I think at last we have come to a common ground. One could not possibly protect all the heritage structures available , only those are economically viable and technically feasible should be protected. Rajasthan have a dry arid climate, most buildings are made of stones. Hence historical structures last long. But Bengal have 80-100 inch rain fall which is very destructive to brick buildings. Perhaps only steel and concrete could withstand that. My grandfather’s brick building collapsed ;was only 100 years old. It was sold to a promoter who build a three story building on the same land. There goes my heritage building!!

sabya99

February 26th, 2011, 02:13 PM

@niljee The book you have referred does not say anything new, it just an old wine in new bottle! In 1700 to 1900, Kolkata was a major player in international trade and commerce . Exports from Kolkata reached to far away places. I came to know that in early 1800 a kind of jute cloth was exported to America’s southern states ; it was called Calcutta cloth. Perhaps it was introduced by Rajen Moliicks’ group in USA. It was used to prepare early version of genes. It is still used today for ladies garments. Such was the power of Kolkata trade and commerce that there was direct shipping link between Charlston, SC and Kolkata.
Its fortune collapsed after independence . It was compounded by destructive leftist/anarchist politics introduced by JB and his cronies. Most Bong babus had no knowledge what this type of politics will lead to! I think now it is becoming clear that unless they create an investor friendly environment , their existence will be at stake. So Babus avoid Singur type circus parties, worship wealth generation and creation. Then Kolkata will get a prominent place in world trade and commerce!

Suncity

February 26th, 2011, 03:07 PM

Hardware Park inaugurated

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110226/jsp/calcutta/story_13638179.jsp

Chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee inaugurated the Webel Electronic Industry Park on Dwarir Road in Sonarpur on Friday. Hardware units and those engaged in the manufacture of telecommunication devices and components for solar and other renewable power can set up facilities in the 11-acre park.

Suncity

February 26th, 2011, 03:10 PM

Reliance Trends at Axis Mall

http://calcuttatube.com/reliance-trends-opens-first-store-in-axis-mall-kolkata/142909/

Reliance Trends, the Apparel, Luggage and Accessories specialty format of Reliance Retail, on Friday launched its first store in West Bengal at Axis Mall, New Town, Rajarhat, Kolkata.

After the launch of Reliance Trends stores in 31 cities across 14 states, this is the 41st Reliance Trends store in the country.

Spread over 16,000 square feet of shopping area, this store offers more than 100 Indian and International brands which are the best in apparel and accessories.

mountaincloud

February 26th, 2011, 03:28 PM

Ramdulal Dey's trade with Boston predates most Bengal-US trade stories. The first elephant went to the US from Calcutta (for a circus, I think).

there are many original ideas in Kaplan's book including geopolitics, availability of water, and reviving past linkages.

"Singur type" isn't a circus. It involved people's lives and deaths. acquiring private land for private enterprise is fraught with danger and poor prospecting. Because many people on this forum swear by what's happening in the US (and the corollary: follow their footsteps) it would be instructive to read the Kelo vs. City of New London (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelo_v._City_of_New_London) case in the US supreme court. Now Pfizer (the pharma company on whose behalf the land was taken) has said bye bye (http://www.insidebiz.com/news/new-twist-kelo-v-new-london) to New London, probably because the prospects aren't any positive now.

What Mamata has declared for Singur and Nandigram in the Railway Budget this year is the way to go. If the government has to acquire private land for public purpose, let it be truly public purpose. Railway industries will have the demand for years to come, unlike Nano. After all, future projections of demand for industrial products are ultimately done by managers through their private surveys and "spreadshitting" in excel. We shouldn't depend on those calculations too much. Railways are a much safer bet.

And we are all in the GDP race (which is also linked to the HDI), but a little check on the adrenaline is good thing to do (once in a while). So, yes, someone who is concerned about the education and health-care for the millions of people in Bengal, the incidents in Singur and Nandigram shouldn't be labeled casually in an off-hand manner as "circuses."

mountaincloud

February 26th, 2011, 03:44 PM

The following article was probably a precursor to the book...

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/04/oh-kolkata/6734/

Thanks for the link, niljee.

Suncity

February 26th, 2011, 03:46 PM

Ramdulal Dey's trade with Boston predates most Bengal-US trade stories. The first elephant went to the US from Calcutta (for a circus, I think).

there are many original ideas in Kaplan's book including geopolitics, availability of water, and reviving past linkages.

"Singur type" isn't a circus. It involved people's lives and deaths. acquiring private land for private enterprise is fraught with danger and poor prospecting. Because many people on this forum swear by what's happening in the US (and the corollary: follow their footsteps) it would be instructive to read the Kelo vs. City of New London (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelo_v._City_of_New_London) case in the US supreme court. Now Pfizer (the pharma company on whose behalf the land was taken) has said bye bye (http://www.insidebiz.com/news/new-twist-kelo-v-new-london) to New London, probably because the prospects aren't any positive now.

What Mamata has declared for Singur and Nandigram in the Railway Budget this year is the way to go. If the government has to acquire private land for public purpose, let it be truly public purpose. Railway industries will have the demand for years to come, unlike Nano. After all, future projections of demand for industrial products are ultimately done by managers through their private surveys and "spreadshitting" in excel. We shouldn't depend on those calculations too much. Railways are a much safer bet.

Since most private investors and industrialists are fair weather birds, are you then suggesting that private investment shouldn't then be encouraged? And more stress should be on public / government sector investment?

studdmanster

February 26th, 2011, 03:56 PM

Hardware Park inaugurated

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110226/jsp/calcutta/story_13638179.jsp

thanks for posting it!!...i was searching for this news!:)

studdmanster

February 26th, 2011, 03:59 PM

Reliance Trends at Axis Mall

http://calcuttatube.com/reliance-trends-opens-first-store-in-axis-mall-kolkata/142909/

If m nt wrong, this is the first Hypermart of Reliance in the city...right?

mountaincloud

February 26th, 2011, 04:54 PM

Since most private investors and industrialists are fair weather birds, are you then suggesting that private investment shouldn't then be encouraged? And more stress should be on public / government sector investment?

no. private enterprise and entrepreneurship should definitely be encouraged. but where piecemeal and forceful land grab is involved (as opposed to the thoughtful preparation of a "land bank" that the government has learnt -- surprisingly -- the hard way), "public purpose" should be truly public purpose. the details of the land acquisition amendment act are yet to be fleshed out in the parliament. (probably held up because of Bengal elections)

else, the private party should be left to their their own land appropriation. (Like Mahindra World City did near Chennai).

The current government has learnt a good lesson: China-style land grab is not possible in India. Nirupam Sen had visited China (and wrote a book also - China-r Diary).

Anyway, this is a long (and maybe boring) discussion that can go on till the roots of private property rights. we can continue in the adda thread.

Joy_ghosh02

February 27th, 2011, 11:21 AM

I think at last we have come to a common ground. One could not possibly protect all the heritage structures available , only those are economically viable and technically feasible should be protected. Rajasthan have a dry arid climate, most buildings are made of stones. Hence historical structures last long. But Bengal have 80-100 inch rain fall which is very destructive to brick buildings. Perhaps only steel and concrete could withstand that. My grandfather’s brick building collapsed ;was only 100 years old. It was sold to a promoter who build a three story building on the same land. There goes my heritage building!!

hey Sabya..... I think today technology is much more advanced so they can maintain old buildings even in wet climate. More over I did not say that we have to maintain all the old bulidings..... what I want to say that we should maintain our heritage. Heritage does not mean only the old bulidings, it means our culture, our architecture. Luckily I got chances to visit some foreign cities like London, Paris, Berlin, Prague, and I saw how they are maintaining their heritage (I beleive London and Paris has much more wet climate than in Kolkata). Even if a new buliding comes up, it follows the same architecture of that place atleast for the exterrior with the modern ameninties inside. Few days back, I visited North Kolkata for the first time and I was really wonder to see the architectural beauty of those old buildings in that place. The bulidings with red color and green windows and doors were really looking very good, but unfortunately maintenance was very poor. I want to say even if we demolish those bulidings to build new one, we should follow the same architecture atleast for the exterriors because this is our herritage. Moreover if Government want to fund for the maintenance, i dont thik there is something wrong................

sabya99

February 27th, 2011, 03:03 PM

hey Sabya..... I think today technology is much more advanced so they can maintain old buildings even in wet climate. More over I did not say that we have to maintain all the old bulidings..... what I want to say that we should maintain our heritage. Heritage does not mean only the old bulidings, it means our culture, our architecture. Luckily I got chances to visit some foreign cities like London, Paris, Berlin, Prague, and I saw how they are maintaining their heritage (I beleive London and Paris has much more wet climate than in Kolkata). Even if a new buliding comes up, it follows the same architecture of that place atleast for the exterrior with the modern ameninties inside. Few days back, I visited North Kolkata for the first time and I was really wonder to see the architectural beauty of those old buildings in that place. The bulidings with red color and green windows and doors were really looking very good, but unfortunately maintenance was very poor. I want to say even if we demolish those bulidings to build new one, we should follow the same architecture atleast for the exterriors because this is our herritage. Moreover if Government want to fund for the maintenance, i dont thik there is something wrong................
Yes, I agree with you that technology exists. In fact here in New York whole airport terminals have been moved from one side of airport to another side because it was declared heritage. But cost was exorbitant , Bong babus could not afford that. If money is available I have no problem in preserving old architectures. The building of new house in place of old demolished house , is a part of civil engineering code that exist all over the world. I don’t know whether Kolkata have such building codes, I have no problem with it. The old architecture of Kolkata is wonderful, so are the new architectures. If there are money and peace both could coexist. This is how I conclude this discussion.

Suncity

February 28th, 2011, 05:18 AM

Prime land in Kolkata leased to Bengali paper

http://www.livemint.com/2011/02/27223215/Prime-land-in-Kolkata-leased-t.html?atype=tp

The Trinamool Congress-controlled Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has allotted two acres on lease to a Bengali newspaper, run by a trust founded by a party member, for a premium of Rs.6.6 crore, when it may have earned 10 times that amount by auctioning the land.

KMC has leased out the plot to Pratidin Media Trust, which runs the Sambad Pratidin newspaper, for Rs.550,000 a cottah, or Rs.3.3 crore an acre, and an annual lease rent of Rs.1 a cottah. A cottah is one-sixtieth of an acre. The 33-year lease is renewable for two more terms of 33 years each.

Developers said the plot could have fetched a lease premium of Rs.70-80 crore if KMC had chosen the tenant through an auction.

The founder of Pratidin Media Trust, Swapan Sadhan Basu, is a Trinamool Congress representative in Rajya Sabha. His son and the newspaper’s editor-in-chief, Srinjoy Bose, said there isn’t anything surprising in the deal. “The Left Front has in the past done similar things many times.”

Kolkata’s mayor Sovan Chatterjee when asked why the concession was made, said the trust would use the plot for “some good cause”, without elaborating.

Former mayor and Trinamool Congress leader Subrata Mukherjee said in his term (2000-2005) he had allotted land to several newspapers irrespective of their political leanings.

“I had given land to Pratidin, too,” he said.

Suncity

February 28th, 2011, 05:22 AM

PPP model to light up Salt Lake roads

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata-/PPP-model-to-light-up-Salt-Lake-roads/articleshow/7583741.cms

Bidhannagar Municipality has entered into a public-private partnership with Philips to light up the streets of Salt Lake with sodium vapour lamps. At present, the streetlights at the satellite township are equipped with bulbs and fluorescent lamps.

About 500 sodium vapour lamps of 150 watts each will be installed in the township by Philips, it has been decided.

The last meeting of Bidhannagar civic board decides to replace all the worn-out and damaged fluorescent street lamps with sodium vapour ones. The civic body will use the Rs 15 lakh they received from local Trinamool MLA Sujit Bose's MLALAD fund to implement the project.

Municipality vice-chairman Sabyasachi Dutta, who looks after streetlighting said quite a few reputed companies had bid in response to the tender the civic body floated for the project. "Philips was selected for the job and we have already given them the work order so that they can start work as soon as possible. We will utilise the Rs 15 lakh MLALAD fund our MLA, Sujit Bose has provided for the project. There will be an emphasis on poorly lit wards of Salt Lake during implementation," Dutta said. The civic authorities wants to kick off the project immediately so that it doesn't get entangled under the electoral model code of conduct.

Besides, the civic body has plans to install about 100 solar lights in Salt Lake's added areas which lack streetlights altogether. The civic body earlier sent this proposal to the West Bengal Green Energy Development Corporation.

Suncity

February 28th, 2011, 05:25 AM

Bengal parties on foundation stone-laying, inauguration spree

http://www.sify.com/finance/bengal-parties-on-foundation-stone-laying-inauguration-spree-news-default-lc1uEhhfbjd.html

With dates for elections to the West Bengal assembly likely to be announced next week, political parties are on a spree of stone-laying ceremonies and inaugurations across the state.

The opposition Trinamool Congress is well ahead of the ruling Left Front in terms of number of programmes.

While party chief and Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee busy in Delhi for parliament's budget session, Trinamool MPs and state leaders were busy inaugurating various projects and the laying the foundation stones of various projects.

A renovated and air-conditioned indoor stadium of Eastern Railways was inaugurated by Kolkata mayor Sovan Chatterjee and opposition leader Partha Chatterjee in Kolkata's Behala area, while the foundation stone of Hooghly river beautification project was laid by Minister of State for Shipping Mukul Roy.

Trinmool MP Sudip Bandopadhyay laid the foundation stone of Kamardanga Halt station, while Minister of State for Rural Development Sisir Adhikari inaugurated the new computerised rail reservation centre at Egra area in East Medinipur district.

All these programmes had advertisements in various dailies across the state which screamed 'with the initiative of Mamata Banerjee'.

Meanwhile, a new office of Housing Development Infrastructure Development Corporation (HIDCO) was inaugurated by Tripura Chief Minister and Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) politburo member Manik Sarkar in Jyoti Basu Nagar area of North 24 Parganas district. The program was also attended by state Housing Minister Gautam Deb.

mountaincloud

February 28th, 2011, 05:54 AM

Prime land in Kolkata leased to Bengali paper

http://www.livemint.com/2011/02/27223215/Prime-land-in-Kolkata-leased-t.html?atype=tp

that's not done! i hope someone files a PIL or uses some other means to ensure that the 60 Crores or so public money is retrieved. A lot can be done with that money!

Joy_ghosh02

February 28th, 2011, 07:00 AM

Yes, I agree with you that technology exists. In fact here in New York whole airport terminals have been moved from one side of airport to another side because it was declared heritage. But cost was exorbitant , Bong babus could not afford that. If money is available I have no problem in preserving old architectures. The building of new house in place of old demolished house , is a part of civil engineering code that exist all over the world. I don’t know whether Kolkata have such building codes, I have no problem with it. The old architecture of Kolkata is wonderful, so are the new architectures. If there are money and peace both could coexist. This is how I conclude this discussion.

Thats why I sgreed with you earlier that the Government should create herritage fund or levy heritage tax............................

studdmanster

February 28th, 2011, 07:03 AM

that's not done! i hope someone files a PIL or uses some other means to ensure that the 60 Crores or so public money is retrieved. A lot can be done with that money!

ab agey agey dekho, hota hai kya!!!

studdmanster

February 28th, 2011, 07:29 AM

http://img695.imageshack.us/img695/6158/ad0030502.png

Aritra Das

February 28th, 2011, 09:42 PM

sidney_jec

February 28th, 2011, 09:46 PM

^^Good lord Aritra. way to go!!! :applause:

studdmanster

March 1st, 2011, 05:38 AM

niljee

March 1st, 2011, 06:08 AM

^^Hey guys!......i'm working for smart transport option for Kolkata....i happened to get selected in a competition conducted by IIT roorkee, for smart transport options and my case study was kolkata....i now have to make a report and by 5th and present it on 11th in presence of the members of Planning Commision of India......i was hoping a bit help on your part.....if u guys could help me by lending me with any transport related (both proposed and actual) maps of Kolkat (any featured mode, metro....bus...sub-urban rail....,etc...as well as flyovers and highways...). plz ...it is urgent and i hope quick response from u guyz........

Great news Aritra! Congratulations! There are plenty of maps already in different threads of this forum, but if you need them sent to you then I guess u need to create an email account where people can send them to you directly.

Personally I wish to see some of the following changes facilitating smart transport in Kolkata:

There should be a concerted effort among the different modes of transportation (e.g., Metro, Suburban Railways, Bus) to have common hubs/junctions or crossover points where people can easily change their mode of transportation. This is not done today, even within a single mode of transportation like Metro for reasons we all know, but its needless to say that this has been a singular feature in the transportation system of any big city.

Possibility of having underpass rather than flyovers, which I guess takes more space a scarce resource in a city like Kolkata.

Removal of all illegal encroachments primarily from the important crossings and the arterial roads.

Gradual phasing out of vehicles like cycle-rickshaws from the city area.

debayanlahiri

March 1st, 2011, 07:04 AM

http://i51.tinypic.com/fn67w2.jpg

I was confused which thread to post this on! This is by the Kolkata Metro.. But as its a hospital, thought of posting it here!

Souvik_N

March 1st, 2011, 07:58 AM

I was confused which thread to post this on! This is by the Kolkata Metro.. But as its a hospital, thought of posting it here!

hey the construction of this hospital have already started and I don't think that it has yet been completed. If you guys remember..studd has posted a pic here few days back(near ST6 bus-stand before Karunamoyee bridge)..it was clearly seen that some pillars only came up...what is she inaugurating now???:bash:

Joy_ghosh02

March 1st, 2011, 08:12 AM

studdmanster

March 1st, 2011, 11:44 AM

^^here goes the pic, this much is only getting inaugurated today!!!Btw, from today evening election code will be in place, so, today is last date of Shilanyas!
http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/2249/image1055.jpg

Souvik_N

March 1st, 2011, 11:55 AM

Btw, from today evening election code will be in place, so, today is last date of Shilanyas!

In state govt projects,there can be no more silanyas but for Railways,it will continue !!

studdmanster

March 1st, 2011, 12:58 PM

I dont think so, coz this time the RM is from WB, over and above i still remember that in Mumbai RM was barred from an inauguration, as election code was in place (sorry cant recall the year or the who was that RM)

Suncity

March 1st, 2011, 02:29 PM

hey the construction of this hospital have already started and I don't think that it has yet been completed. If you guys remember..studd has posted a pic here few days back(near ST6 bus-stand before Karunamoyee bridge)..it was clearly seen that some pillars only came up...what is she inaugurating now???:bash:

Is she (re)inaugurating the existing metro hospital or is there really a "new phase"? Anyway the render doesn't look too bad considering the usually bad looking buildings the Indian railways builds

studdmanster

March 1st, 2011, 03:12 PM

Nah its a new one, multi-speciality hospital, near Karunamayee bridge (tollygunge). But its only two storied that is being inaugurated (see the pic), that is all that will be inaugurated as of now!

studdmanster

March 1st, 2011, 04:04 PM

Aritra Das

March 1st, 2011, 05:19 PM

^^thanx a lot sidney_jec, studdmanster and niljee....@niljee: its really great to hear the suggestions from u.......infact i have proposed these in the report....n as for e-mail id.......mail me at dasaritra007@gmail.com

Aritra Das

March 1st, 2011, 05:32 PM

Congrats..:applause:...i hope u win it!!!
Btw, when is ur submission date?
the report has to be sent by 5th of this month...n i need maps.... :(

sidney_jec

March 1st, 2011, 06:19 PM

the report has to be sent by 5th of this month...n i need maps.... :(

here you go!!

Have a look at this document - "A comprehensive mobility plan for KMA - 2001-2025" here (http://www.kmdaonline.org/pdf/comprehensive_mobility26122007.pdf)

avishar

March 1st, 2011, 07:09 PM

@studd yes it has been purschased and its residence is salt lake!..Actually one of the very few V10s in the country.

That was very sharp of you make out it was a v10 and not a normal v8..:)

G.Ag

March 1st, 2011, 11:50 PM

Today i went to SL to visit a friend of mine, while returning i took the SL bypass, while xing Nicco Park saw that the FOB is almost ready now. I guess after election it could be opened! as of now its being painted Silver!

OT: on the same strech near Nalban saw an Audi R8 V10. it was copper colored and was zooming towards SL. Man what a sound it had, V10 felt like music to ear. Wow!....before i could take a snap it zoomed past!!!:shocked:..i think it has been purchased, Avisar???

@studd yes it has been purschased and its residence is salt lake!..Actually one of the very few V10s in the country.

That was very sharp of you make out it was a v10 and not a normal v8..:)

I didn't visit BHP.

Suncity

March 5th, 2011, 08:37 PM

Tapan Sinha Memorial Hospital, Metro Railway

photo copyright Swarup Singh Rathaur

Render

http://img856.imageshack.us/img856/9048/tapansinharenderhosp.jpg (http://img856.imageshack.us/i/tapansinharenderhosp.jpg/)

Initial phase (actual; note the metro!)

http://img810.imageshack.us/img810/4540/tapansinhamemhospswaroo.jpg (http://img810.imageshack.us/i/tapansinhamemhospswaroo.jpg/)

studdmanster

March 6th, 2011, 06:31 AM

^^heard that the Inaguration ceremony was a lowkey affair as Mamta dint turn out, bcuz of Election code of conduct which merged with the time of inauguration!!!

Forum Pravesh

March 6th, 2011, 09:13 AM

http://img855.imageshack.us/img855/2840/23012011771.jpg

RD Mall at Liluah Howrah.
Inox is coming soon...........may be this month

Forum Pravesh

March 6th, 2011, 09:15 AM

http://img153.imageshack.us/img153/9821/23012011773.jpg

Dominos pizzas at Liluah Howrah

studdmanster

March 6th, 2011, 04:36 PM

^^has the Big Bazaar, Beleliuos road being shut down???

Forum Pravesh

March 6th, 2011, 07:17 PM

^^yes it is shut down...........Now we have 2 big bazaar one at Golabari near Howrah AC market and second one at liluah........

Suncity

March 7th, 2011, 12:41 AM

mountaincloud

March 7th, 2011, 03:12 AM

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1110307/jsp/calcutta/story_13675864.jsp#

JAYANTA BASU

Calcutta is generating much more electronic waste than a few years back and very little of it is being recycled, increasing the risk of an environment disaster.

A recent study by the state pollution control board along with the central pollution control board, the Indian Chamber of Commerce and German organisation GiZ has found that nearly 26,000 tonnes of e-waste is generated in the Calcutta Metropolitan Area (CMA) every year.

The CMA includes the city and its suburbs like Howrah, Salt Lake, Kalyani, Barasat and Uluberia.

The figure is almost thrice the annual e-waste generation estimate of 9,000 tonnes by Delhi-based organisation Toxic Link and Jadavpur University five years ago.

The recent study predicts e-waste generation will shoot up nearly six times to about 1,45,000 tonnes within a decade.

“The 12 e-waste hotspots in the city are Chandni Chowk, Biplabi Anukul Chandra Street (Prinsep Street), Maniktala, Kankurgachhi, Phoolbagan, Kadapara, Tarak Pramanik Road, Rajabazar, Hazra, Topsia in Calcutta and Ghusuri and Bajrangbali areas in Howrah,” said Shyamal Adhikary, a senior engineer in the state pollution control board who looks after waste management.

“The board has been facilitating the setting up of an e-waste reprocessing unit in Bengal by 2011-12,” he added. Over the past few years, 20 such units have been set up in India.

TV sets and their components constitute over 60 per cent of the e-waste generated in the CMA. Abandoned computers and refrigerators contribute 15 per cent each to the -waste dump. Cellphones, CDs and DVDs make up the rest.

According to experts, the most alarming aspect of e-waste is that only 2,022 tonnes of it is being recycled — that too mostly in an unorganised manner. Thus more than 90 per cent of e-waste remains dumped in houses and offices or gets mixed with other forms of waste.

The saleable parts of e-waste, such as cables, plastic cases, condensers and batteries, are manually removed in the city. Unorganised recycling of e-waste, including generation of heavy metal dust during dismantling or crushing of abandoned gadgets and emission of noxious fumes during acid treatment and burning of e-waste, is dangerous.

“Toxic emission not only affects those who recycle e-waste manually but also people in the neighbourhood,” said an expert who was associated with the recent study.

“Lead, cadmium, mercury, chromium and beryllium, present in e-waste, are extremely toxic and often carcinogenic,” said Aniruddha Mukherjee of Calcutta University’s environment department.

When such waste is dumped randomly, toxic materials get mixed with the soil and contaminate ground water. This can result in neurological disorders, kidney damage, reproductive problems, cancer and lung, eye and skin diseases.

sabya99

March 7th, 2011, 01:03 PM

niljee

March 7th, 2011, 06:38 PM

A rapid rebuilding program must be lunched to save north Kolkata. It is old and crumbling. Otherwise it will become another South Bronx like neighborhood!

Well, if South Bronx can co-exist with Manhattan so can North Kolkata with the other parts of the city. Launching massive rebuilding program will ruin much of the older Kolkata, which IMO should be preserved as heritage. The need of the hour I guess is to build proper, planned infrastructure in the suburbs (much in the way NCR is getting developed) so as to decongest some of older parts of the city, which will in turn make them easier to maintain and manage.

studdmanster

March 7th, 2011, 07:31 PM

^^yes it is shut down...........Now we have 2 big bazaar one at Golabari near Howrah AC market and second one at liluah........

Ohh..dint knew bout that...so, has anything new opened there in place of Big Bazaar...or its still closed?

studdmanster

March 7th, 2011, 07:37 PM

Population will have a big impact on projects. Maybe it is time to start thinking of building massive LIG housing to house the homeless in the city.

CENSUS 2011

As per ABP, the provisional results for Kolkata Municipal Corporation are indicating some changing trends:

Population of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation has declined from 4,445,279 to 4,328,111.

The bad news is that the homeless population has increased from 55,000to 70,000.

Much of the population decline has been in the older parts of the city (north Kolkata). On the other hand,areas like Behala, Metiabruz, Jadavpur, EM Bypass have added people.

It was highlighted once in Star Ananda that because of staff shortage and non co-operation by residents, many areas got unaccounted for!!!
In my personal case, the Census people came in our 'para' on 27th Feb!!!
No one was at home except mom, so mom called up dad and our census was held through cell phone!!!:cheers:

OT: this time instead of giving a chalk mark they put a sticker in front of the houses that participated in the process!:)

What about Garia, if m nt mistaken even Garia has seen a considerable rise in population. Also it would have been good if ABP could have given figures of New Town!

Souvik_N

March 10th, 2011, 12:31 PM

Kolkata's Dhunseri Hikes Tea Capacity With Four Deals In FY11
SOURCE (http://www.vccircle.com/500/news/kolkatas-dhunseri-hikes-tea-capacity-with-four-deals-in-fy11)

The four acquired factories have brought 42 lakh kg p.a, leading to over 50% increase in its existing capacity.

Kolkata-based Dhunseri Petrochem & Tea Ltd has struck its fourth acquisition this financial year by purchasing a small-sized tea factory from Sona Assam Tea Co for an undisclosed sum that will boost core business of Dhunseri that has over the recent past expanded into new business lines viz. IT infrastructure and manufacturing of PET lines.

The capacity of the acquired factory is 7 lakh kg p.a and Dhunseri plans to expand it to 10 lakh kgs p.a. during this season, it disclosed on Thursday. With this deal, its total capacity has crossed 11 million kg a year mark and strengthens its position among the top ten tea companies in the country.

The four acquired factories in the current financial year has brought 42 lakh kg p.a. in capacity leading to over 50% increase in its existing capacity. The company has plans to expand the capacity of these four factories to 60 lakh kg p.a. this season.

Last December, it acquired Sonaguri Tea Factory earlier owned by Manas Factories Combine Pvt Ltd, Guwahati, from The Federal Bank Ltd under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interests (SARFAESI) Act in India. Three years ago, it merged Tezpur Tea with itself and gained further scale.

Besides tea, in the petrochemical/packaging segment, the company had recently given the contract for the expansion of new PET project of 2.1 lakh TPA at Haldia. This project is expected to achieve commercial production in 1st quarter of FY 2012-13. Its PET business under Aspet was created last year with amalgamation of South Asian Petrochemical Ltd with Dhunseri.

The company is also in the process of setting a new plant with a capacity of 4.2 lakh TPA in Egypt with a 70% stake with two Egyptian government entities holding the balance. Dhunseri also has an upcoming IT SEZ project coming up at Kolkata, that could further diversify its revenue stream. This is expected to be ready by January 2012.The company had consolidated revenues of Rs 1,153 crore with Rs 56 crore net profit for the year ended March'10.

Suncity

March 19th, 2011, 06:57 PM

Google earth now has updated imagery of Kalyani

http://img718.imageshack.us/img718/6/kalayan2ggl.jpg (http://img718.imageshack.us/i/kalayan2ggl.jpg/)

studdmanster

March 19th, 2011, 07:32 PM

Bas, Kalyani is this much only?...such a small area has 4 stations!!!

debayanlahiri

March 20th, 2011, 12:16 PM

Bas, Kalyani is this much only?...such a small area has 4 stations!!!

Kalyani main station is where Kalyani have connectivity with all local trains. However, the other three stations, namely, Kalyani Shilpanchal, Kalyani Ghoshpara, and Kalyani Simanta are connected by the Kalyani Simanta Local ony.

Kalyani is a small place but a very imp city. The KMA in the north starts from Kalyani. If re-built properly, Kalyani can turn out to be self-sufficient and also provide employment to many. Geographically also, it has a lot of advantages. It is very close to Kampa (where we might see Kolkata's next airport in future). If metro is extended till Kalyani through the Kalyani Expressway (considering the Kalyani Expressway is widened to minimum 4 to 6 lanes), u can expect huge development on both sides of the Kalyani Expressway.

Kalyani looks similar to Salt Lake, with wider roads! People here are affulent.. the presence of many english medium schools in the area, a few private colleges, the Kalyani University, and a recently built Medical College makes Kalyani an educational hub for people staying nearby. There are many hospitals and nursing homes in Kalyani. There used to be many industries here, but most of which are sick presently. The Kalyani beer factory is still operational. :cheers1:

Kalyani needs to be on the priority list of our politicians, so that Kolkata can be de-congested..

The only IT project proposed by Webel in Kalyani is on hold and does not seem to see the light, unless infrastructre is developed.. :ohno:

http://www.webel-india.com/EoIDocument-IITTKalyani%20PDF%206.02.09.pdf

http://www.webel-india.com/IT_SEZ_Kalyani_EOI_document.pdf

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/webels-kalyani-projecthold/410093/

sabya99

March 20th, 2011, 02:02 PM

I agree with your views. During WWII it was a major American base used to be called Washington town! Then Dr.B.C. Roy lunched the rebuilding project. But somehow its development was stalled! Its time to start building this place again.

studdmanster

March 20th, 2011, 05:38 PM

Kalyani main station is where Kalyani have connectivity with all local trains. However, the other three stations, namely, Kalyani Shilpanchal, Kalyani Ghoshpara, and Kalyani Simanta are connected by the Kalyani Simanta Local ony.

Kalyani is a small place but a very imp city. The KMA in the north starts from Kalyani. If re-built properly, Kalyani can turn out to be self-sufficient and also provide employment to many. Geographically also, it has a lot of advantages. It is very close to Kampa (where we might see Kolkata's next airport in future). If metro is extended till Kalyani through the Kalyani Expressway (considering the Kalyani Expressway is widened to minimum 4 to 6 lanes), u can expect huge development on both sides of the Kalyani Expressway.

Kalyani looks similar to Salt Lake, with wider roads! People here are affulent.. the presence of many english medium schools in the area, a few private colleges, the Kalyani University, and a recently built Medical College makes Kalyani an educational hub for people staying nearby. There are many hospitals and nursing homes in Kalyani. There used to be many industries here, but most of which are sick presently. The Kalyani beer factory is still operational. :cheers1:

Kalyani needs to be on the priority list of our politicians, so that Kolkata can be de-congested..

The only IT project proposed by Webel in Kalyani is on hold and does not seem to see the light, unless infrastructre is developed.. :ohno:

http://www.webel-india.com/EoIDocument-IITTKalyani%20PDF%206.02.09.pdf

http://www.webel-india.com/IT_SEZ_Kalyani_EOI_document.pdf

http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/webels-kalyani-projecthold/410093/

when i was in clge some of classmates used to come from Kalyani Simanta and Shilpanchal by Local, that time only came to know about Kalyani!!

Yes, i have been to Kalyani, and yes it a planned city, infact heard that it was set even before SL was born!

KBL has lost its glory, even wine shops in Kalyani sell kfs or fosters than KBL, leave Kolkata!!:cheers1:

Suncity

March 20th, 2011, 08:50 PM

What's this building u/c?

photo copyright Nikhil Kulkarni

http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/1904/kolkatawhatnikhilkulkar.jpg (http://img97.imageshack.us/i/kolkatawhatnikhilkulkar.jpg/)

Suncity

March 20th, 2011, 09:21 PM

Forum Pravesh

March 21st, 2011, 04:20 AM

What's this building u/c?

photo copyright Nikhil Kulkarni

http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/1904/kolkatawhatnikhilkulkar.jpg (http://img97.imageshack.us/i/kolkatawhatnikhilkulkar.jpg/)

Radisson hotel @ hesting:)

sidney_jec

March 21st, 2011, 04:51 AM

:cheers:

Suncity

March 21st, 2011, 06:07 AM

Radisson hotel @ hesting:)

Thanks.

:cheers:

debayanlahiri

March 21st, 2011, 07:18 AM

Kalyani is a pleasant township. But it has no city feel to it (my personal opinion). Santa Mamata should gift 15 daily nonstop trains connecting Kalyani and Sealdah. And once she becomes CM, she should expedite the four laning of Kalyani Expressway. Maybe it can become another hotspot like EM Bypass.

Yes, Kalyani is more of a township, than a city. For those who have not been to Kalyani, it looks exactly similar to Salt Lake, with good bunglows and good roads. Kalyani is a developed township and is divided into blocks. The primary residential bolcks are A-Block and B-Block. Kalyani has a lovely natural lake, and a stadium has also been built recently. The galleries of the stadium are under construction.

The population here is urban, but the business houses simply fail to capture the business here due to lack of infrastructure, and the neighbouring suburbs are not that upscale. There is also a huge difference between the people of Kalyani and people residing in neighbouring cities, in terms of education, financial health, vision, etc; that acts as a spoil sport for most big business houses to enter this space! There used to be a theatre named "Sangam", close to the railway station. However, we do not have a single multiplex or a shopping mall in Kalyani. People here generally shop from the posh localities of Kolkata.. but those heavy bands being made available in Kalyani seems to be far from real..

Non-stop trains from Kalyani to Sealdah is not required. It is required only if the govt does not think of de-congesting Kolkata (in that case so many people would still need to travel to Sealdah on a daily basis for work). What Mamata should do is, she should introduce the concept of fast and slow locals (present in Mumbai) in Kolkata Suburban Rail Network, instead of the "all stop" and "galloping"!

There used to a bus service from Kalyani to Kolkata named "Kalyani Express". It was an express bus with few stops. Later, it was converted into Kalyani - Kolkata and the number of stops were increased considerably. Introduction of air conditioned bus services from Kalyani to Kolkata, via Sector V is the need of the hour. People here are willing to pay for good public transportation, but alas, such services do not exist!

Also, if our next govt is visionary, it would rather think of de-congesting Kolkata, thereby developing areas in and around Kalyani. Since its under KMA, I do not see any reason why it can't be done!

If the next govt is visionary, it would not just develop Kalyani, it should also develop the entire stretch between Sodepur to Kalyani on both sides of the Kalyani Expressway. Yes, u r right.. it can be another EM Bypass.

Kalyani Expressway should be converted into six lanes (3/3 divided lanes) and not just 4 lanes (as approved presently)! The Metro should also be constructed along the Kalyani Expressway. At a later stage, I would also love to see the Kampa airport taking shape..

Kalyani was never on the priority list of our politicians. Not even a single major step was taken to pump up the township to make it self-sufficient! Most of the youth have moved out of Kalyani.. but their love for Kalyani never seem to die.. and in that wish, we hope.. and we can only hope.. that our next govt takes Kalyani to a new height! With the development of Kalyani, and given a good infrastructure, Kolkata would spread its wings to the suburbs, thus helping our old Kolkata breathe easy!

debayanlahiri

March 21st, 2011, 07:23 AM

when i was in clge some of classmates used to come from Kalyani Simanta and Shilpanchal by Local, that time only came to know about Kalyani!!

Yes, i have been to Kalyani, and yes it a planned city, infact heard that it was set even before SL was born!

KBL has lost its glory, even wine shops in Kalyani sell kfs or fosters than KBL, leave Kolkata!!:cheers1:

Ya u r right, KBL has lost its glory!

For those who do not know, Kalyani has a helipad since the WW II days. Developing Kalyani won't be that difficult. And a developed Kalyani would be a great boon for the Kolkata suburbs. But it needs political will on the part of our govt.

Suncity

March 21st, 2011, 08:43 AM

Yes, Kalyani is more of a township, than a city. For those who have not been to Kalyani, it looks exactly similar to Salt Lake, with good bunglows and good roads. Kalyani is a developed township and is divided into blocks.

The problem is Kalyani is already developed (that is most plots are developed). New Town has more potential and is more attractive because of its location and space for development. Also Baruipur township will be coming up in the near future. Kalyani will have to compete hard to get investments.

The only hope is new development along the Kalyani expressway. But I have seen farms on either side. So modern development may not be possible because of the land issues. Even efforts to establish the Ambani institute have been stuck because of political opposition to land transfer. The land issue will continue to be a noose around the future government of West Bengal.

debayanlahiri

March 21st, 2011, 08:51 AM

The problem is Kalyani is already developed (that is most plots are developed). New Town has more potential and is more attractive because of its location and space for development. Also Baruipur township will be coming up in the near future. Kalyani will have to compete hard to get investments.

The only hope is new development along the Kalyani expressway. But I have seen farms on either side. So modern development may not be possible because of the land issues. Even efforts to establish the Ambani institute have been stuck because of political opposition to land transfer. The land issue will continue to be a noose around the future government of West Bengal.

Land conversion is not possible within Kalyani township, i.e. conversion from residential to commercial, or from agricultural to commercial, etc. However, land conversion is possible along the stretch of the Kalyani expressway. A few SME business ventures are being set up there.. But we need planned development along the stretch. Yes, New Town being closer to Kolkata is a better option than Kalyani. But the development of Kalyani will spread the business to distant suburbs and areas stretching from Barrackpore to Kalyani will get developed in that process. And that will generate the need of the airport at Kampa.

Suncity

March 21st, 2011, 09:23 AM

Land conversion is not possible within Kalyani township, i.e. conversion from residential to commercial, or from agricultural to commercial, etc. However, land conversion is possible along the stretch of the Kalyani expressway. A few SME business ventures are being set up there.. But we need planned development along the stretch. Yes, New Town being closer to Kolkata is a better option than Kalyani. But the development of Kalyani will spread the business to distant suburbs and areas stretching from Barrackpore to Kalyani will get developed in that process. And that will generate the need of the airport at Kampa.

Well let them first widen the expressway. That would be a first step. Nowadays you cannot set up heavy industries around towns. IT industry will not come to Kalyani anytime soon. Maybe the government should try to convert Kalyani into a proper education hub like Manipal.

Kalyani region already has:

Kalyani University
Bidhan Chandra Agricultural University
National Institute of Biomedical Genomics
Kalayni Engineering College
Kalyani Medical College
S.K. Acharya Institute of Law
Netaji Subhas Regional Institute of Cooperative Management
JIS College of Engineering

West Bengal University of Technology may shift here in the future. If poltical opposition to the Dhirubhai Ambani institute stops then that will be another addition.

Also building a medical hub would boost the economy of the region.