Let us look back to the 17th. century to explore the history of Kolkata. In the year 1690 Job Charnock, an agent of East India Company came to the bank of the river Hooghly. Earlier he had various disputes with officials of  Mughal empire at the port of river Hooghly and was forced to abandon his plan of establishing his settlement. His repeated attempts to establish his plan at other places down the river also turned futile. However, Mughal empire finally did not want to lose the benefit they had gained from the British company's commerce and  at last decided to permit him to return once again. Job Charnock carefully choose a site which was being protected by the river Hooghly on the West, a creek to the north and by lakes (presently called Salt Lake) about few miles to the east. He also took lease of three villages Sutanuti, Govindapur and Kalikata  in pursuit of establishing a trading post of the British East India Company.  

In 1756 the city became famous in when Siraj-Ud-Dullah,  last independent nawab of Bengal captured the city. The British regained power of Bengal and the city was recaptured in 1757 by Robert Clive.

Thereafter, General Warren Hastings was chosen as the first Governor General of India and Calcutta became the  capital of British India in 1772.
During the British Raj Kolkata was known as the Jewel Of The East and was the capital of the country till 1911. Kolkata ceased to be the capital of British India, as the capital was removed to the newly built city of Delhi, but remained the capital of undivided Bengal until the partition of India in 1947. Bengal was then split up into two parts, the Western portion remained within India (and renamed West Bengal) while the Eastern portion went to Pakistan ( now Bangladesh).

Today Kolkata is the capital of West Bengal, a state in India. It is still the most important city in the East, the nerve center of trade and industry, commerce, port and business center of international consequence. Kolkata always captured attention of cultural ferment, artistic expression and political causes. It is a symbol of India's unity in diversity. Now kolkata is the A-1 city of India.

In 1707, Calcutta became a separate presidency under the control of the directors of The East India Company. In 1717, Mughal emperor Aurangazeb's grandson Farrukh Siyar gave the Company duty-free trading rights in Bengal for a yearly payment of Rs 3,000. Calcutta became an important port and trading centre.

SHOPPING IN KOLKATA    
Kolkata can be described as a 'shopping paradise' for those who want the value for their money. There are many markets spread all over the city. From 'cucumbers' to 'cargos' and from 'shoe-strings to 'sarees' everything is available under one roof at this century-old market.

Festivals in Kolkata
When's a bamboo tent not a bamboo tent? When you're in Calcutta. For, in this city, a step into a luxurious bamboo edifice known locally as a pandal could well be your baptism to the festive side of the city. Pandals, in which the idols of deities are places and worshippers congregate, are a staple of Hindu festivals Kolkata, but the festive landscape of Calcutta isn't about which religion you belong to. Festivals are a great opportunity to meet people, soak in the culture of the city, pamper your taste buds, discover the cosmopolitan side to the city and, of course, give yourself up to religious fervor.

Rath Yatra Kolkata
Travel along with the Lord of Puri, Jagannath, as his chariot takes him to his midsummer vacation. Legend has it that Jagannath, a reincarnation of Lord Vishnu, goes on this vacation with his brother Balaram and sister Subhadra. Religious fervor runs high and the streets of Calcutta turn into a mélange of colors. Devotees take turns to pull gigantic chariots bearing idols of the three divinities through the narrow bylanes of the city.

Saraswati Puja
If you wake up to streets dotted with young girls in yellow saris, don't get an eye test. Just throw on your best Indian wear and hurry down to the roads for the festivities of Saraswati Puja. Dedicated to Saraswati, the goddess of learning, science, and the creative arts, this festival is all the way for students. The youngest girl in every Bengali family is decked in yellow on this day, and students flock to the pandals to pray for their academic success. Night of Shiva - Shivratri in Kolkata

Shivratri
For an all-night festive experience, catch the celebration of the "Night of Shiva". Devotees meditate, pray, sing and recite hymns in praise of Lord Shiva and offer milk, curd, honey and glossy green leaves of the bel tree in worship. Celebrated in February-March, the festival is also a time for the devotees to observe fasts. The Shivratri celebrations in Tarakeshwar, in the neighboring Hooghly, are special and worth a visit.

Poila Baisakh
The first month of the Bengali calendar, Baishakh, marks the beginning of the crop cycle in Bengal. A lot of Bengali weddings are held in this month, and new businesses started. The first day of this month is called Poila Baisakh is celebrated as the Bengali new year. Chances are, if you step into a shop in Calcutta on this day, you'll be offered sweets and maybe the odd gift or two. Traders start the new year by inaugurating new accounting books. Islamic month of Ramzan, Id-ul-Fitr in Kolkata

Muharram
The solemnity of Muharram is best experienced by following an "Ashoura" procession in the city. Led by a snow-white horse, the procession of tazias and the devout wends its way through areas such as Metiabruz and Khiderpore.

Kali Puja
A festival to propitiate the dark goddess Kali, Kali Puja is held in the dark of a new moon night. With her blue-black skin, blood-smeared face, terrifying third eye, Kali wears little other than necklaces of snakes and skulls. In her four hands, she bears weapons and blessings for her followers. This is one festival that is seldom performed within a home, and is often marked by animal sacrifices. Makar Sankranti, Kolkata

Makar Sankranti
A festival that marks the winter solstice, the Makar Sankranti festival is marked by two melas or fairs, both held a little distance from Calcutta. The maidan in Kolkata, however, plays host to the hordes of faithfuls thronging to the three-day Ganga Sagar Mela held on Sagardwip to commemorate this festival. Even as the Ganga Sagar Mela winds down, bauls - a cult of minstrels - wend their way to nearby Bolpur for the Baul mela.

Lakshmi Puja
Durga Puja is closely followed by Lakshmi Puja - the festival honoring the goddess of wealth, peace and prosperity. Every home celebrates this festival as a chance to welcome the goddess of wealth to their homes. A day or two before the festival, the bazaars of Kolkata are choc-a-bloc with vendors selling idols of the gracious Lakshmi, seated on a lotus.

Durga Puja in Kolkata
For four days in September-October, Calcutta comes to a standstill as almost everyone in the city throngs its streets, visiting the pandals dressed in their festive best and fêting their taste buds with food from the stalls that spring up on the roadsides. Incense, drumbeats, chants, laughter, the sizzle and smell of food characterize this festival dedicated to Goddess Durga. Durga Puja is a chance to meet old friends, rub shoulders with the young and eligible, buy new clothes, walk the streets of the city till the wee hours of the morning, and, of course, admire the oeuvre of idol makers who craft beautiful idols of Durga, Lakshmi, Saraswati, Ganesh and Kartik out of bamboo, straw, jute, clay and paint.

Joydev Mela
Strictly speaking, the Joydev Mela is held at Kenduli, a small village near Tagore's Shantiniketan, and not in Calcutta. However, this fair-cum-festival held in the early half of January and commemorating the birth of the Bhakti cult poet Jaydev is a wonderful way to connect with rural India. For three days, Baul minstrels, spiritual shoppers and city slickers seeking a high flock to this festival and lose themselves to the trance-like magic of baul songs. Bhai Phota, Kolkata

Bhai Phota
This is the day brothers and sisters put aside their family squabbles and celebrate their familial ties. Women maintain a fast through the morning and break it by applying a dab of sandalwood to their brothers' foreheads, praying for their safety and welfare and plying them with sweets. In turn they receive gifts from their brothers. Do wangle an invite to a Bengali house on this day if you can - it's a day when the kitchen turns out some of its best fare of the year!

Places Visit

Indian Museum
Set up in the year 1878, this museum is built in Italian architectural style and is regarded as the major museum in the country and one of the best in Asia.

Victoria Memorial
Modeled on the Taj Mahal, this is an impressive architectural construction in white marble, which was situated in the early 20th century in memory of Queen Victoria.

St Paul's Cathedral
Built between 1839 and 1847, St Paul's Cathedral is one of India's most important churches.

Howrah Bridge
On the river Hooghly, Howrah Bridge is one of three bridges and the most famous symbol of not only Kolkata but also West Bengal.

Ochterlony Monument
Now publicly renamed the Shahid Minar, this 48m column tower named after Sir David Ochterlony over the northern end of the Maidan, the Monument was set up in 1828.

Eden Garden
Created in 1840 and named after the sister of Lord Auckland, situated in the North-West corner of the Maidan are small & pleasantly laid out Eden Gardens.

Kali Temple
Rebuilt in 1809 on the site of a much older temple, Kalighat is the actual temple where innumerable devotees throng at everyday.

Marble Palace
Situated on Muktaram Babu St, this private mansion was set up in 1835 by a Bengali zamindar, which houses an bizarre collection of significant statues and paintings.

Zoo & Horticultural Gardens
South of the Maidan, Kolkata's 16 hectare zoo was opened in 1875. Some of the animals are displayed in near natural environments, others in the pitiful conditions characteristics of Third World zoos. It's open from sunrise to sunset.

Birla Planetarium
Near the government of India tourist office, this planetarium is one of the largest in the world and is to be found on Kolkata's Eastern metropolitan bypass.