PHOTOS FROM THE FIELD > India > north > 4

Kolkata (Calcutta), West Bengal, India

 India

  north

  centre

  south

 Kolkata (Calcutta) is one of the largest and poorest urban centres in the world. 

Periodical famines pushed starved farmers from adjacent countrysides in West Bengali and Bihar to move in, hoping to find a way of survival.  This is not going to end: despite famine strikes have become less murderous in recent years, urban population is still expanding and infrastructure is well beyond the breaking point. 

Well over ten million people live there, millions of which either in slums with no sanitization (i.e. toilets, running water) or on the streets themselves, sleeping on the city's pavements. Large families are often forced to live on one dollar a day, and they rarely have more than two small meals. A room the size of a Western bedroom usually houses a dozen people. 

It is hard to describe the mayhem, squalor but also the unbelievable energy that Kolkata generates. This is a place that anyone really interested in urban development of developing countries should read about and try to understand. Also, it is a necessary element in comprehending Indian society. For those interested, and although it is slightly too poetic to provide a realistic impression of life in Kolkata, the famous "City of Joy" can be an interesting read. Nobel Prize winner Naipaul's "A Million Mutinies Now" is also recommended.

Of course, there are many organizations at work here. But the size of the problem is simply overwhelming. Have more details in our "what you can do" section.

       Next >>

   << Previous 

Photos in this section:

1 > 2 > 3 > 4 > 5 > 6 > 7 > 8 > 9 > 10 > 11 > 12 > 13 > 14 > 15 > 16