Article by Dr. Apurva Tamhane
The Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden which is also known as the Calcutta Botanical Garden or the Indian Botanical Garden is one of the largest and also the oldest reserves of Botanical trees , shrubs and greeneries in the South East Asia. Given its age oldness and richness in Botanical pranlts and Orchids, it has also been given the fame of being a premier institution for botanical and horticultural research in India.
8 kilometers away from the central city of Kolkota the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden is situated along the western banks of the Hooghly River in Shibpur in Howrah. It can be reached by a ferry service from Bichali ghat in Metiabruz. As of now the best way to reach the Botanical Garden is by making use of the Vidyasagar Setu through one of its exits which reach towards the Garden.
History of the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden
Colonel Robert Kyd was a Secretary to the board of Fort William in the Department of Military and he owned a private Garden in Shalimar along the side of Howrah district of the Hooghly River. He put up the concept of having another Botanical Garden to the Governor General Sir John Macpherson who was the then Scottish administrator in India and also the acting Governor General of India from 1785 to 1786. He had proposed the site for Botanical Garden along the Calcutta area of the Hooghly river to conserve the native plants in the area. Sir John Macpherson put up this proposal with the Court of Directors of the East India Company which was approved on 31st July 1787.
In the ordeal, Colonel Kyd identified plants of commercial value both for the Bengal local people and also for the East India Company to trade. Plants and trees such as Teak, Coffee, Cinnamon, Sandalwood, Indigo, Tobacco and Dacca cotton were conserved in the Botanical Garden.
The Botanical Garden started taking a new look by the new and unique landscaping in 1872 under Sir George King which gave the accreditation of being one of the best botanical gradens in the world rich with undulated land surfaces, artificially made lakes, moats which were interconnected with underground pipes and these lakes were watered by the waters from the river Hooghly.
This garden underwent multiple naming ceremonies where it was previously known as the East India Company Garden or the Company Bagan, then the Calcutta Garden and then the Royal Botanic Garden. After the Independence of India, the Garden was renamed as the Indian Botanic Garden in 1950. The garden was taken under the care of Botanical Survey of India (BSI) on 1st January 1963.
The Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden which is also known as the Calcutta Botanical Garden or the Indian Botanical Garden is one of the largest and also the oldest reserves of Botanical trees , shrubs and greeneries in the South East Asia. Given its age oldness and richness in Botanical pranlts and Orchids, it has also been given the fame of being a premier institution for botanical and horticultural research in India.
8 kilometers away from the central city of Kolkota the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden is situated along the western banks of the Hooghly River in Shibpur in Howrah. It can be reached by a ferry service from Bichali ghat in Metiabruz. As of now the best way to reach the Botanical Garden is by making use of the Vidyasagar Setu through one of its exits which reach towards the Garden.
History of the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden
Colonel Robert Kyd was a Secretary to the board of Fort William in the Department of Military and he owned a private Garden in Shalimar along the side of Howrah district of the Hooghly River. He put up the concept of having another Botanical Garden to the Governor General Sir John Macpherson who was the then Scottish administrator in India and also the acting Governor General of India from 1785 to 1786. He had proposed the site for Botanical Garden along the Calcutta area of the Hooghly river to conserve the native plants in the area. Sir John Macpherson put up this proposal with the Court of Directors of the East India Company which was approved on 31st July 1787.
In the ordeal, Colonel Kyd identified plants of commercial value both for the Bengal local people and also for the East India Company to trade. Plants and trees such as Teak, Coffee, Cinnamon, Sandalwood, Indigo, Tobacco and Dacca cotton were conserved in the Botanical Garden.
The Botanical Garden started taking a new look by the new and unique landscaping in 1872 under Sir George King which gave the accreditation of being one of the best botanical gradens in the world rich with undulated land surfaces, artificially made lakes, moats which were interconnected with underground pipes and these lakes were watered by the waters from the river Hooghly.
This garden underwent multiple naming ceremonies where it was previously known as the East India Company Garden or the Company Bagan, then the Calcutta Garden and then the Royal Botanic Garden. After the Independence of India, the Garden was renamed as the Indian Botanic Garden in 1950. The garden was taken under the care of Botanical Survey of India (BSI) on 1st January 1963.
