Bansberia
| Bansberia | |||
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 India
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| State : | West Bengal | ||
| District : | Hugli | ||
| Sub-district : | Chinsurah | ||
| Location : | 22 ° 58 ′ N , 88 ° 24 ′ E | ||
| Height : | 5 m | ||
| Residents : | 103,920 (2011) | ||
| Website : | www.bansberiamunicipality.org/ | ||
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Bansberia is a city with around 105,000 inhabitants in the east Indian state of West Bengal . The city is significant because of two Bengali temples from the 17th and 19th centuries.
location
Bansberia is about 5 to 7 meters above sea level on the Hugli River . d. M. and approx. 60 km (driving distance) north of Kolkata ; From there buses run almost every hour (journey time approx. 1.5 hours). The temple city of Kalna is another 40 km to the north.
economy
Agriculture still plays the most important role in the villages around the city, which functions as a regional center of trade, crafts and services. After the partition of India (1947), many weavers from what was then East Pakistan (today Bangladesh ), only about 50 km away , settled in Bansberia and the surrounding area - the fine silk and cotton fabrics from the region are famous for their quality.
history
Bansberia already existed in the Middle Ages and was one of the seven Saptagram ports on the Hugli River. Perhaps the oldest mosque in Bengal was built in the neighboring town of Tribeni, 4 km to the north, in 1298 . However, temples from this period are no longer preserved.
Attractions
- The Ananta Vasudeva Temple, built entirely of brick on a square floor plan, was built in 1679. The building belongs to the single- tower type ( ekaratna ) of the Bengali temples ; the roofs are pulled down in the corners ( Bengali roof ). The four facades are clad with terracotta panels with figurative or floral decorations. Behind the four portals, each with three entrances, there is a passage for the ritual circumnavigation ( pradakshina ) of the cella ( garbhagriha ) located in the center of the building , which can only be entered by the Brahmin priests.
- The nearby Hansheshwari Temple is dedicated to a regionally revered aspect of the goddess Kali and was not built until the 19th century. The use of wood in the portal facade and the central tower is idiosyncratic; some window openings are covered with lunettes - a building detail that the British brought to India. The total of 13 spiers show a scale decor that is supposed to imitate lotus blossoms.
- The Swanbhaba Kali Temple , donated by Raja Nrisinha Deb Roy Mahasay in 1788, is about 300 meters away.
