The east
Salt Lake & New Town
Two attempts at a rational Kolkata, built on drained marsh.
- Known for
- The planned city, the wetlands, the stadium
- Best hour
- Any time; it is built for cars
- Walk
- 50 min, 4 stops
Bidhannagar and New Town: numbered sectors and wide roads east of the old city, and between them the wetlands that treat its sewage for nothing.
Photographs
Photographs of the quarter. Open one to see it full size.
Must-see buildings
Salt Lake Stadium
1984. Once over 100,000 capacity; still among the largest anywhere.
East Kolkata Wetlands
A Ramsar site. Treats the city's sewage and produces 10,000 tonnes of fish a year.
Eco Park, New Town
480 acres, with a lake and a set of replica monuments.
Central Park ground
Where the Kolkata Book Fair has been held since it moved.
Where to eat
Bhojohori Manna
Salt Lake
The dependable Bengali lunch, in a sector you will need a map for.
Sector V food courts
The IT district
Weekday lunch for fifty thousand people.
Wetland fish
Any Kolkata market
Much of the city's freshwater fish is grown in the bheris.
Things to see
- 01
The bheris at dawn
Shallow ponds, nets, and a sewage system that works by sunlight. Go with a guide.
- 02
A derby at Salt Lake Stadium
Mohun Bagan against East Bengal. Enormous.
- 03
The Book Fair in late January
Two million visitors over twelve days.
Stories
Where this sits
Loading map
27 quarters · pinch or use + / − to zoom
