Raj Bhavan opens its gates to the public for one-of-its-kind ‘heritage walk’

With the Raj Bhavan in Kolkata finally opening its gates to the public for ‘heritage walk’, citizens will get to witness an outstanding landmark steeped in history.

An initiative taken by Governor CV Ananda Bose, the gates of the grand building were opened to the public through a symbolic ceremony where President of India Droupadi Murmu handed over a key to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

The Raj Bhavan in the city used to be the seat of the British imperial power. Sources said Governor Bose took the initiative to pay homage to the freedom fighters of the country and to do away with the colonial mentality that is associated with the property.

Built in the years 1799-1803 when Marquis Wellesley was the Governor General, according to the archives, this historic building was designed on the lines of Kedleston Hall in Derbyshire, the ancestral house of Lord Curzon, who later lived here as the Viceroy and the Governor General exactly 100 years after Wellesley. Further, the three-storeyed building with a magnificent central area consisting of large halls has curved corridors on all four sides radiating to detached wings, each constituting a house in itself.

The total area occupied by the Raj Bhavan is 27 acres with the building occupying 84000 sq ft floor space. The residential suites are in the four corners of the second floor while the main suite — the Prince of Wales suite — used by visiting dignitaries is on the first floor at the North-West. On the ground floor, the central area is called the Marble Hall. The first floor central area consists of the Throne Room, Banquet Hall and the Blue Drawing and Brown Dining Rooms.

On the first floor, North East corner has the Council Chamber in which major government decisions were made during the British rule. The second floor has the Governor’s apartments and the ball room.

Three oil paintings in Raj Bhavan, Kolkata, have been restored with assistance from Victoria Memorial Hall. The paintings include that of Rabindranath Tagore by Atul Bose which is displayed in the Governor’s study and the paintings of Marques of Hastings and Queen Alexandra in the ballroom of the Raj Bhavan which were received back from the Victoria Memorial Hall. Besides heritage interests, tourists will come across a medicinal herbal garden that was set up later in Raj Bhavan as learnt from the archives.