BY AMRAPALI CHAKRABORTY
( B.ARCH, 1 ST YEAR)
KOLKATA, 13 MARCH 2024:
Governor of West Bengal C. V. Ananda Bose will inaugurate the grand celebrations of
the 250 years of the General Post Office (GPO) in Kolkata tomorrow.
A special philatelic cover on 250 years of Kolkata Gpo, will be released by the governor of west bengal in commemoration of the landmark 250 th anniversary of Kolkata GPO. An exhibition of Journey of Mails will also be inaugurated by the Governor C.V.Ananda Bose on the Rotunda of Kolkata GPO.
The inaugural ceremony will be followed by an anniversary concert at the South Verandah by a renowned Kolkata based orchestra. From 15 th March to 19 Th March the celebrations will take place.
A Special cover on Grand Clock of Kolkata GPO will be released by Mamata Shankar, eminent dancer. On 15 th March there will be an inauguration in a moving tram from Esplanade to Gariahat at Esplanade Tram Depot.
The other guests include eminent archer, Bombayla Debi Laishram, Gurbux Singh, hockey player, Subrsata Bhattacharya, footballer, Bula Chowdury, swimmer, Sanjiv Chakraborty, swimmer, Shirsendu Mukhopadhyay, author, , Simita Kumar, director General of Postal
Services etc.
Picture postcards of Bongo Tori ( boats of Bengal), , special philatelic cover – post box through the ages will be inaugurated.
On 17 th March a heritage walk will take place and a picture postcard of Heritage Buildings of Kolkata GPO will be released. A special philatelic cover on lantern, badges and spears of runners will also be released.
“ The exhibition at the GPO and other events are expected to showcase the vital role played by the postal service in the last two and half centuries. The celebration highlights the deep connect of the Post Office with lives of people,’ says Tushar cHowdhury, ADPS ( Building
and philately) of West Bengal Postal Circle.
Chief Post Master General of West Bengal, Niraj Kumar, Chief Post Master General of Kolkata, Sanjeev Sanjan, Director of Kolkata GPO, Hammad Zafar etc will be present on the occasion.
On March 31 st, 1774, the GPO at Calcutta was established by the then Governor General of Bengal, Lord Warren Hastings at Fort William. The old GPO was relocated several times to various locations during the year 1774 to 1868 till the construction of the present GPO building ,
which was opened to the public on 2 nd October 1868.
“ This is a momentous occasion for all of us and we would like to celebrate it in a manner that benefits its significance. A week-long celebration will commence from 14 March to 19 March 2024,” concludes Niraj Kumar, CPMG of West Bengal Postal Circle.
He has also been the brain behind setting up the world’s first floating post office at Shikara in Dal lake of Srinagar during his previous stint as the Chief Post Master General of Jammu and Kashmir Postal Circle. Besides playing the music of Rabindra Sangeet at the Shantiniketan Post Office at Tagore’s abode of Peace, Shantiniketan in Birbhum district.
Already the GPO building in Kolkata is decorated with lights and looks mesmerising at night.
In his X handle Niraj Kumar, CPMG of West Bengal Postal Circle writes, “250 years is synonymous with the modern history of our country. And the world. 1774, it started. Established by Warren Hastings, the Kolkata GPO has been a part of the journey our country undertook. Through the broad avenues of epochal moments, to the painstaking details and the intricacies that goes with the postal operations, the GPO is a grand symbol of the aspirations of the people it serves. It was housed in different buildings, and from 1868 it’s in this grand, majestic 104 room building with a massive dome and 28 Corinthian pillars. Designed by Grenville. Celebrations start with an inaugural ceremony on 14th of March, with an exhibition on mail carriage, sculptures, paintings, stamps, release of covers, stamp in precious metal, photography….followed by a Concert by Abraham Mazumdar’s Orchestra. There is a mobile exhibition on a Tram, an event on a boat, a heritage walk and so on. Come, join the celebration. 14th of March, 3.30 pm.”
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