Issued by India

Issued on May 7, 1999

Issued for : The Department of Posts is happy to issue this stamp to commemorate 150 years of Bethune Collegiate School.

Design : First Day Cover design depicts the Foundation Ceremony of the School.

Credits :
Stamp & FDC : Dipak Dey and Gautam Chatterjee
Cancellation : Alka Sharma

Type : First Day Cover

Colour : Single Colour

Denomination : 300 Paise

Overall size : 3.91 x 2.90 Cms.

Printing size : 3.55 x 2.54 Cms.

Perforation : 13 x 13

Paper : Imported unwatermarked Adhesive Gravure Coated Stamp Paper in Sheets 50.8 x 53.5 cms.

Stamps Printed : 0.7 Million

Number per issue sheet : 35

Printing Process : Photogravure

Printer : India Security Press, Nashik

About : 

• Bethune School, the first recognized Government institution for the education of girls in Bengal, was founded by John Elliot Drinkwater Bethune in 1849. J.E.D. Bethune had come to India in 1848 as legal member in the Governor General’s Council. Education of women was a subject close to his heart, and by virtue of his committed work he soon became the President of the Council of Education. His noble efforts found support from the great social reformer of Bengal, Pandit Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, who also possessed a similar vision.
• The initial years were full of adversities and it was mainly the efforts of Pandit Vidyasagar who was the secretary of the school that ensured the survival of this institution. Dakshinaranjan Mukhopadhyay, Ramgopal Ghosh and Madan Mohan Tarkalankar also associated themselves with the school. That J.E.D. Bethune was a true visionary is evident from the fact that he not only focussed on women’s education at a time when education was the privilege of men-folk, but also promoted education through mother tongue where as English was the preferred medium those days. In the foundation stone laying ceremony Bethune announced. “You have seen possession of this land symbolically given by delivering to us of a young Asoka Tree, ……… I am told that its Bengali name may be not unfitly paraphrased as “The Tree of Gladness”. It is commended for this day’s ceremony not only by the gracefulness of its foliage, and the surpassing beauty of its flowers, but also because it is held in especial honour among Hindu Women…… I propose therefore, henceforth that the Asoka tree be made the symbol of female education in India and not here but by every school which has been already established in the villages of Calcutta in imitation of this, and near all those which shall hereafter be multiplied in the land, I suggest that an Asoka Tree be planted.” The tree still adorns the campus.
• This historical institution has withstood the test of time and led the way for the whole of Bengal in the field of women’s education. The school produced prominent students like Bhubanmala, Kundanmala, Sarala Das, Abala Bose, Kamini Rao and Priyambada Devi. The first lady doctor of Bengal, Kadambini Ganguly and the first lady graduate, Chandramukhi Bose were also students of this institution. The progress of Bethune Collegiate School can be measured in terms of the achievements of its students. In later years, Suchitra Mitra, the renowned Rabindrasangeet maestro, Ila Mitra, the famous politician, Asima Chatopadhayay, eminent scientist, Shova Sen, famous theatre personality and Polly Guha, the eminent designer brought glory to the school. This dignified institution comprising of primary, secondary and higher secondary sections with twelve hundred students on the roll is one of the most successful Government schools of Bengal.
• Text : Based on material supplied by Headmistress, Bethune Collegiate School, Calcutta.

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Issued by India

Issued on Dec 27, 1993

Issued for : The Department of Posts is happy to mark the Sixth India National Philatelic Exhibition held in this historic city with the issue of the stamp and the first day cover both showing significant landmarks of the city.

Type : Stamp, Postal Used

Colour : Multi Colour

Denomination : 200 Paise

Overall size : 3.91 x 2.90 cms.

Printing size : 3.55 x 2.54 cms.

Perforation : 13 x 13

Paper : Imported Unwatermark Adhesive Photogravure Stamp Paper

Number of stamps Printed : 10,00,000

Number per issue sheet : 35

Printing Process : Photogravure

Printer : India Security Press

About : 

• The city of Calcutta, more than three hundred years old, continues to live through the sketches, lithographs, engravings and paintings of artists of the bygone era. Many of the civil servants during the British administration and even before, showed artistic gifts of high quality and their works provide useful historical records of the old city.
• Ganga, the river of life, has been inextricably associated with the founding of Calcutta on its bank and its growth into an important shipping port of the orient.
• Sir Charles D’ Oyly, poet and artist, spent forty years in India (1798-1838) as a civil servant under the East India Company. His Views of Calcutta and its Environs was published in 1848 after his death. Included in these Views is a picturesque scene of the shipping on the river Hooghly, viz., “Custom-House, Wharf” (since 1835). The Journal of Bishop Reginald-Heber records that “Vessels of all descriptions, to the burden of 600 tons, may lie almost close up to this quay, and there is always a crowd of ships and barks”.
• Sir Charles D’ Oyly’s depiction of the old custom-house wharf brings to life the vibrant trade and commerce that flourished through the tall-masted sea-facing vessels which sailed the waters from the port of Calcutta.
• The Victoria Memorial as a museum of medieval and modern Indian history was conceived by Lord Curzon at the turn of the century. The Indian aristocracy responded liberally to Curzon’s appeal the construction of this stately building surrounded by an exquisite garden was entirely funded by Indian subscriptions. Sir William Emerson, President of the British Institute of Architect of designed this building adopting Italian Renaissance style with a touch of orientalism in the arrangement of the domes.
• The work of construction was entrusted to Martin & Co. of Calcutta. While the marble used for the building (338′ x 228′ and soaring to a height of 184′) was quarried at Makrana in the princely State of Jodhpur, the groups of the statues ornamenting the memorial porches and the central dome were executed in Italy. A bronze Angel of Victory crowns the dome. The foundation stone was laid by the Queen‘s grandson, the Prince of Wales (later King George V) on January 4, 1906, but it was not before December 28, 1921 that the Memorial became open to the public. The Memorial houses a fine collection of paintings, sculptures and various other memorabilia of the Raj. Since January 1988, the monuments has been illuminated investing it with an aura of mystery as the photograph on the First Day Cover shows.

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Issued by India

Issued on Sep 23, 1989

Issued for : The Club completed a hundred years of its meritorious existence, to commemorate which a postage stamp is being issued.

Description of Designs : The stamp is based on designs supplied by the Club, depicting its footballing tradition. The logo of the Club has been used on the First Day Cover. The pictorial cancellation showing a football in the centre, has been designed by Ms. Nenu Gupta.

Type : Stamp, Postal Used

Colour : Multi colour

Denomination : 100 Paise

Overall size : 3.91 x 2.90 cms.

Printing size : 3.55 x 2.54 cms.

Perforation : 13 x 13

Paper : Imported un W/M Adh. Gr. Coated Stamp Paper

Number Printed : 15,00,000

Number per issue sheet : 35

Printing Process : Photogravure

Printed : India Security Press

About : 

• Mohun Bagan Athletic Club was established in 1889. At that time Indian football was in its infancy. The Britishers were then considered as an indomitable footballing side. In 1911, a band of 11 bare-footed intrepid Bengalee footballers became the first Indian side to win the coveted Indian Football Association (IFA) shield under the captaincy of Sibdas Bhaduri defeating the might of the finest British combination, East Yorkshire Regiment. Though a triumph in a particular sporting event, it symbolised an Indian victory over the foreign rulers, thus making it a matter of rejoicing for every Indian. The club thereafter came to be recognised as a national institution. It heralded the advent of football in the East, and influenced the game in the whole of Asia. Since then the Club has had a glorious sporting tradition. It is an achievement for a sports body to carry on its activities for one hundred years retaining its prestigious traditions and status. Two of its players have been honoured by the award of Padma Shree for outstanding achievements in the field of football.
• The Club also broke the tradition of having only British military teams to participate in the Durand Cup Football Tournament, in 1923 in Simla. Subsequently, the Club was also invited for the Rovers Cup Tournament.
• The Club’s activities are not restricted to Football alone, but also cover Cricket, Tennis, Athletics, etc. in which fields also it has earned a good reputation of not having protested against the decisions of referees, in the true spirit of sports. The hockey team of the Club was initially captained by Jaipal Singh, under whose captaincy India also won the first Olympic Hockey Gold Medal at Amsterdam in 1928. Major Dhyan Chand, the wizard of hockey, had also played for the club during his Calcutta visits. The Club is also proud of producing a number of Olympians in hockey.
• Text : Courtesy Mohun Bagan Athletic Club.

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Issued by India

Issued on Jul 1, 1982

Issued for : Indian Posts and Telegraphs Department is privileged to issue a commemorative stamp on his birth centenary.

Description of Designs : The stamp, designed by India Security Press, Nasik shows Bidhan Chandra Roy with the Writers’ building in the background. First day cover depicts the personality and R. G. Kar Medical College, Calcutta. Both first day cover and cancellation have been designed by Charanjit Lal.

Type : Stamp, Postal Used

Colour : Burnt Sienna

Denomination : 50 Paise

Overall size : 4.06 X 2.75 cms.

Printing size : 3.70 X 2.40 cms.

Perforation : 14 x 14½

Paper : Unwatermarked P.G. Matt coated stamp paper

Number printed : 20,00,000

Number per issue sheet : 40

Printing process : Photogravure

Printed at : India Security Press

Name : Bidhan Chandra Roy 

Born on Jul 1, 1882 at Bankipur, Patna, Bihar, India

Died on Jul 1, 1962 at Kolkata, India

About : 

• Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy passed the Entrance Examination from the Patna Collegiate School in 1897, and First Arts Examination from Patna College in 1899. He passed the Bachelor of Arts Examination with Honours in Mathematics in 1901 after which he joined the Calcutta Medical College. He was admitted to the St. Bartholmew’s Institution in London in 1909 and within about two years he had the distinction of passing both the M.R.C.P. (London) and F.R.C.S. (England) being placed first in the former.
• He held the post of Professor and Head of the Department of Medicine in Carmichael (now R. G. Kar Medical College) and later on was the Emeritus Professor of Medicine and Consulting Physician till the last day of his life. He was also the President of the Medical Education Society of Bengal (Governing Body of R. G. Kar Medical College). He was associated with R. G. Kar Medical College Hospitals, Calcutta for about 44 years.
• Dr. Roy was drawn into politics very early in his life and in 1923 as a young doctor he contested against Sir Surendranath Banerjee as an independent candidate supported by the Swarajya Party of Deshabandhu Chittaranjan Das and dramatically defeated the veteran nationalist leader at the polls. In the Bengal Legislative Council, Bidhan Chandra soon established himself as a prominent parliamentarian. After the death of Chittaranjan Das, Bidhan Chandra was chosen as the Deputy Leader of the Swarajya Party in the Council and he played a leading role in guiding Bengal politics for some time. In 1928, he was elected a member of the All Indian Congress Committee and he came in close personal contact with Mahatma Gandhi, Moti Lal Nehru, Jawahar Lal Nehru and other leaders many of whom, as a physician, he had under his care. He entered the Calcutta Corporation as an Alderman after the third general municipal elections in 1930. During the Civil Disobedience Movement of 1930 he resigned his seat alongwith others in the legislature.
• Bidhan Chandra was Vice Chancellor of the Calcutta University from 1942 to 1944 and was awarded by it the honorary degree of Doctor of Science. In 1947, the Calcutta University sent him to the Bengal Legislative Council, and in 1948 Congress legislators of West Bengal chose him as their leader. It was then that Bidhan Chandra got ample scope to prove his mettle as the Chief Minister of this problem State. His continuous tenure till his death in 1962 (been elected in 1952, 1957 and 1962) constitutes a brilliant chapter in the chequered history of the State. In recognition of his great stature as a constructive leader and a patriot that the Govt. of India awarded him the highest honour of Bharat Ratna in 1961. 
• This architect of modern West Bengal died on the 1 July 1962, the date on which he was born.
• The above text is based on material published elsewhere and/or supplied by the sponsors.

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Issued by India

Issued on Oct 17, 1970

Issued for : The Posts and Telegraphs Department is proud to be associated with such a saga of growth and phenomenal development by issue of a special commemorative stamp on the occasion of the centenary of Calcutta Port Commissioners.

Description of Design : The design of the stamp is horizontal and depicts a picture of a Dredger’ Pilot Vessel and cranes at Calcutta Port with the crest of the Port Commissioners Calcutta. Howrah Bridge over the River Hooghly is shown in the background.

Type : Stamp, Mint Condition

Colour : Peacock Blue 

Denomination : 20 Paise

Overall Size : 3.91 X 2.90 cms.

Printing Size : 3.56 X 2.54 cms.

Perforation : 13 x 13

Watermark : Printed on unwatermarked adhesive stamp paper

Number Printed : 30,00,000

Number per issue sheet : 35

Printing Process : Photogravure

Designed and Printed at : India Security Press

About : 

• The origin and growth of Calcutta, the first city in the country, is intimately connected with the development of Calcutta Port. It would be true to say that the city grew out of the port. It had its beginning in the 17^th century when the rich and profitable trade with Bengal attracted foreign adventures. It was Job Charnock, the English Agent of the East India Company who chose the present site of Calcutta, 125 miles from the sea, and built the English Settlement here around 1690 with the permission of the then Moghul Emperor, Aurangzeb. The port and the city of Calcutta grew out of these settlements along the left bank of River Hooghly. However, the transition of Calcutta into a modern port really began in the second half of the last century.
• It is now the premier port on the Eastern Coast of the country handling the largest volume of dry cargo.
• The port commands a vast hinterland of about half a million square miles, comprising the States of West Bengal, Assam, Bihar, Orissa, almost the whole of Uttar Pradesh, a part of Madhya Pradesh and also the neighbouring countries of Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan. This region is rich in agricultural, mineral and industrial resources.
• The Port of Calcutta which is sited 126 nautical miles away from the sea, presents difficult navigational problems. There are several sand bars and sharp bends in the river which ships have to negotiate.
• The channel is dredged constantly and is well marked with numerous navigational aids to facilitate navigation – both by day and night. Pilotage of ships on this river is compulsory.
• The affairs of the port are managed by a statutory body constituted under the terms of Act V of 1870, later consolidated under the Calcutta Port Act, 1890, and known as “The Commissioners for the Port of Calcutta” It is composed of 24 official and non-official members representing the principal chambers of commerce in the city of Calcutta, customs, railways, Corporation of Calcutta, Howrah Municipality, the Government of West Bengal, Indian Steamship Owner’s Association and the labour employed in the Port. The Chairman and the Deputy Chairman are appointed by the Government of India. The Chairman is the executive head of the Commission.
• In the early years, the ships were anchored in the river and there were no proper shore facilities for them to come alongside for loading or discharging their cargo. Between the years 1850 and 1870, to meet the needs of shipping, four screw pile jetties with cranes and sheds were constructed. The modern Port of Calcutta with its extensive facilities grew out of this humble beginning.
• At present, it provides 34 alongside berths in the Kidderpore Docks and the King George‘s Dockand there exists further provision for 46 ships to work in the river side moorings. There are also eight jetties available at Budge Budge, 11 miles below Calcutta for handling of oil. In addition, there are five Dry Docks for ship repairs in the Port. All these developments took place over a period of last hundred years.
• The final phase of port development started after Independence. The total expenditure on development incurred during the First, Second and the Third Five-Year Plan periods amounts to Rs. 46 crores. As a result, the execution of these development plans, the Port is now equipped to handle about 14 million tonnes of cargo every year. The estimated outlay on projects included in the Fourth Five-Year Plan for the development of the Port is of the order of Rs. 25 crores.
• The number of vessels which enter and leave this port in a year is round about 1800. About 40% of the total value of exports from the country and 28% of the total value of imports into the country pass through this port. Exports roughly account for 5 million tonnes, and imports 6 million tonnes. The revenue of the Port now amounts to about Rs. 26 crores per year.
• The Port provides about 48 lakhs square feet of ware housing accommodation for storage of cargo by the users of the Port. Besides, the Port has its own railway system with a track mileage of 350 kilometres and route mileage of 36 kilometres.
• The Port of Calcutta, like any other modern international port, has had to face the challenge thrown up by the increasing size of ships, particularly tankers and bulk carriers. It is necessary to provide deep draught berths for such ships and also fast mechanical equipment for loading and unloading them. The Calcutta Port Commissioners have accordingly undertaken the Haldia Dock Project at Haldia about 56 miles down-stream of Calcutta. This is being developed as a subsidiary port of Calcutta.
• Thus, while the first century of the Calcutta Port Commissioners’ life marks the development and growth of the Port of Calcutta from four screw pile jetties into a vast modern port complex, the second century is expected to usher in an era of far-greater prosperity.

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Issued by India

Issued on Sep 9, 1970

Issued for : The Posts and Telegraphs Department joins the millions in this country in paying its silent homage to the memory of this invincible harbinger of national freedom and glory, by issuing a special commemorative stamp in honour of Jatindra Nath Mukherjee.

Description of Design : The design of the stamp is horizontal and depicts a portrait of Jatindra Nath Mukherjee holding the reins of a horse.

The design is based on the drawing prepared by Shri C. Kar, Principal, Govt. College of Art & Craft, Calcutta.

Type : Stamp, Postal Used

Colour : J.B.A’s Red Brown

Denomination : 20 Paise

Overall Size : 4.06 X 2.28 cms.

Printing Size : 3.80 X 2.0 cms.

Perforation : 14 x 14½

Watermark : Printed on unwatermarked adhesive stamp paper

Number Printed : 30,00,000

Number per issue sheet : 50

Printing Process : Photogravure

Designed and Printed at : India Security Press

Name : Jyotindra [as he signed] Nath Mukhopadhyay [Bagha Jatin]

Born on Dec 7, 1879 at Kusthia, Nadia district, Bengal Presidency, British India [now in Bangladesh]

Died on Sep 10, 1915 at Balasore, Bengal Presidency, British India [now in Odisha]

About : 

• Jatin Mukherjee was a legendary name which sent a thrill among the younger generation of this country at the beginning of the First World War. Jatindra Nath Mukherjee was better known as Bagha Jatin because, as a young man he had tackled a Royal Bengal Tiger single-handed in his native village and killed it with a knife. This was not merely a feat of brute physical strength and great presence of mind, it was an instance of the cool courage and self-sacrificing determination which characterised him at all times. In fact, his contemporaries regarded him as a superman.
• Jatindra Nath Mukherjee was born in December, 1879 in a respectable and well-to-do Brahmin family of Jessore. His father, Umesh Chandra was a profound scholar, reputed for his strength of character and courage. His mother, Sharat Shashi Debi, was a poet of considerable merit. Even at an early age Jatin showed a remarkable development of body and mind. As a school boy, one day he halted a frenzied horse rushing down the streets of Krishnanagar and creating panic among the people. After calming it down, he returned the horse to its owner. While a student, he met Swami Vivekananda and came under his influence. Jatindra Nath, however, felt that the spiritual regeneration of India would not be possible till India was politically free. Even though Jatin joined the Bengal Secretariat as a stenographer and spent half the year at Darjeeling and the other half in Calcutta, he found time for other more important interests in his life. By his personal magnetism, he attracted young men who thronged round him to hear his lectures on Geeta and other sacred texts. But his classes extended beyond the Geeta to the fiery works of Yogendra Vidyabhushan, Bankim and many foreign authors and thinkers. He endeavoured to create in his audience a deep-rooted love for the Motherland whose bondage was much too painful for him to bear.
• In April, 1900, Jatindra Nath Mukherjee was married to Indubala Debi; and his children Ashalata, Tejen and Biren are still alive. When war broke out in 1914, Jatindra Nath went underground; a hushed rumour had it that he was preparing for an armed uprising for the freedom of the nation. Jatindra Nath‘s idealism and bearing impressed Aurobindo Ghosh, who advised him in the revolutionary movement for the independence of the Motherland. In this connection, he travelled from district to district organising the movement. When Sri Aurobindo was on trial in the Alipore Bomb Conspiracy Case, Jatindra Nath organised a series of daring actions to hamper the prosecution. Eventually, Jatindra Nath was arrested and put on trial with a number of others in the Howrah Conspiracy Case, but the case failed.
• At that time, the Indian revolutionaries had spread over the world to seek support for the freedom struggle. The then German Government was to extend aid in the form of supply of arms, money and officers and these arrangements were to be channelised through the German Embassy in U.S.A. The plans of the Indian revolutionaries were, however, betrayed to the Allied powers, who seized chartered ships with German arms aboard on the high seas. This exposed Jatindra Nath who had to seek shelter In the then Indian State of Mayurbhanj. The British Police mobilised all their resources within a radius of many miles in Mayurbhanj and the neighbouring Balasore District of Orissa and organised an elaborate man-hunt after the revolutionaries. Rewards were announced and the revolutionaries were branded as ‘dacoits’. Jatindra Nath and his party were often surrounded by police parties and there were several skirmishes. Finally, on the 9^th September, 1915, they were brought to bay and there was a pitched battle between the revolutionaries and the police aided by an Army unit on the banks of the river Bura-Balam in the village of Chashakhanda in Balasore District. It was an unequal battle between a handful of revolutionaries ill-equipped and bedraggled, and the organised might of the then British Empire. Even so, the battle lasted 75 minutes. Jatindra Nath fell mortally wounded. He was taken to Government hospital at Balasore where he expired the next morning. Thus ended the spectacular career of one of the heroes of the nation’s grim struggle for freedom. He blazed a trail and fired the imagination of his people in their fight for Independence. Since then, the 9^th of September is hallowed by the memory of this heroic son of India.

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Issued by India

Issued on Jul 1, 1962

Type : Stamp, Mint condition

Colour : Olive Green

Denomination : 15 Naya Paise

About : 

• The high Court at Calcutta, formerly known as the High Court of Judicature at Fort William, was constituted under Letters-Patent issued on May 14, 1862. It was formerly inaugurated on July 1, 1862. The Indian High Court Act passed by the British Parliament on August 6, 1861, had provided for the establishment of High Courts in the presidency towns of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras, in replacement of the Courts established by the East India Company and subsequently thereto.
• The High Court has Original and Appellate sides. On the Original side, there is still prevalent the “Dual” system, under which Solicitors act and Barristers or Advocates do the pleading. The jurisdiction of the High Court extends to West Bengal and the Andaman and the Nicobar Islands.
• The present building of the High Court, of which the foundation was laid in March 1864 and which was completed in May 1872, is an imposing structure in the gothic style and stands near the junction of Esplanade West and Strand Road.
• During the hundred years of its existence, the High Court has fulfilled the motto on its book-plate ‘सर्वस्यास्य यथान्याय कर्तव्यं परिरक्षणम्‘.

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Issued by India

Issued on Dec 31, 1957

Type : Stamp, Postal Used

Colour : Single colour

Denomination : 10 naya paisa

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