Geography of Kolkata

Kolkata is located in the eastern part of India. It has spread linearly along the banks of the Hooghly River. The Kolkata Municipal Corporation has an area of 205 square kilometres.[1] The city is near sea level, with the average elevation being 17 feet.[2] The whole area is in the Ganges Delta which starts within 100 km south of the city. Most of the city was originally marshy wetlands, remnants of which can still be found especially towards the eastern parts of the city.

Location of Kolkata

Geology

Indo-Gangetic Plain, the soil and water are predominantly alluvial in origin. Kolkata is located over the "Bengal basin", a pericratonic tertiary basin.[3] Bengal basin comprises three structural units: shelf or platform in the west; central hinge or shelf/slope break; and deep basinal part in the east and southeast. Kolkata is located atop the western part of the hinge zone which is about 25 km (16 mi) wide at a depth of about 45,000 m (148,000 ft) below the surface.[3] The shelf and hinge zones have many faults, among them some are active. The total thickness of sediment below the Kolkata is nearly 7,500 m (24,600 ft) above the crystalline basement; of these the top 350–450 m (1,150–1,480 ft) is quaternary, followed by 4,500–5,500 m (14,760–18,040 ft) of tertiary sediments, 500–700 m (1,640–2,300 ft) trap wash of cretaceous trap and 600–800 m (1,970–2,620 ft) permian-carboniferous Gondwana rocks.[3] The quaternary sediments consist of clay, silt, and several grades of sand and gravel. These sediments are sandwiched between two clay beds: the lower one at a depth of 250–650 m (820–2,130 ft); the upper one 10–40 m (30–130 ft) in thickness.[4] According to the Bureau of Indian Standards, on a scale ranging from I to V in order of increasing susceptibility to earthquakes, the city lies inside seismic zone III.[5]

City geography
Kolkata — the skyline across the Maidan
A satellite image of Kolkata showing land usage
The Prinsep Ghat which is located on the bank of the Hoogly River

Spread roughly north–south along the east bank of the Hooghly River, Kolkata sits within the lower Ganges Delta of eastern India; the city's elevation is 1.5–9 m (5–30 ft).[6] The city is fringed by extensive mangrove ecosystems and tidal flats.[7]

Urban structure
Howrah Bridge from the western bank of the Ganges

The Kolkata metropolitan area is spread over 1,886.67 km2 (728.45 sq mi)[8]: 7  and comprises 4 municipal corporations (Kolkata Municipal Corporation, Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation, Howrah Municipal Corporation and Chandernagore Municipal Corporation), 37 local municipalities (Bally Municipality is merged with Howrah Municipal Corporation and Rajarhat-Gopalpur Municipality is merged with Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation, so total number of municipalities becomes 37 from 39) and 24 panchayat samitis.

See also: Kolkata metropolitan area § Jurisdiction

The urban agglomeration encompassed 72 cities and 527 towns and villages, as of 2006.[9] Suburban areas in the Kolkata metropolitan area incorporate parts of the following districts: Kolkata, North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas, Howrah, Hooghly and Nadia.[10]: 15  Kolkata, which is under the jurisdiction of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), has an area of 205 km2 (79 sq mi).[11] The east–west dimension of the city is comparatively narrow, stretching from the Hooghly River in the west to roughly the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass in the east—a span of 9–10 km (5.6–6.2 mi).[12] The north–south distance is greater, and its axis is used to section the city into North, Central and South Kolkata. East Kolkata is also a section.

Kolkata skyline from Chowringhee
Kolkata riverfront at night
Vidyasagar Setu over the Hooghly River at dusk

North Kolkata

North Kolkata is the oldest part of the city. Characterised by 19th-century architecture, all include areas such as Shyambazar, Hatibagan, Maniktala, Kankurgachi, Rajabazar, Shobhabazar, Shyampukur, Tala, Sonagachi, Kumortuli, Bagbazar, Jorabagan, Burrabazar, Jorasanko, Phoolbagan, Ultadanga, Chitpur, Pathuriaghata, Cossipore, Belgachia and Sinthee.[13]: 65–66 

Central Kolkata

Central Kolkata hosts the central business district. It contains B. B. D. Bagh, formerly known as Dalhousie Square, and the Esplanade on its east; Strand Road is on its west.[14] The West Bengal Secretariat, General Post Office, Reserve Bank of India, High Court, Lalbazar Police Headquarters, and several other government and private offices are located there. Another business hub is the area south of Park Street, which comprises thoroughfares such as Chowringhee, Camac Street, Wood Street, Loudon Street, Shakespeare Sarani and A. J. C. Bose Road.[15] The Maidan is a large open field in the heart of the city that has been called the "lungs of Kolkata"[16] and accommodates sporting events and public meetings.[17] The Victoria Memorial and Kolkata Race Course are located at the southern end of the Maidan. Other important areas of Central Kolkata are Park Circus, Sealdah, Beliaghata, College Street, Burrabazar, Bowbazar, Taltala, Janbazar, Entally, Chandni Chowk, Lalbazar, Chowringhee, Dharmatala, Rabindra Sadan, Tiretti Bazaar, Bow Barracks, Babughat, Princep Ghat and Hastings. Another important park is Millennium Park on Strand Road, beside the Hooghly River. Fort William, on the western part of the city (besides Maidan), houses the headquarters of the Eastern Command of the Indian Army.[18]

South Kolkata

South Kolkata developed mainly after India gained independence in the year 1947. It includes upscale neighbourhoods such as Ballygunge, Behala, Thakurpukur, Alipore, New Alipore, Lansdowne, Bhawanipore, Kalighat, Gariahat, Charu Market, Chetla, Jodhpur Park, Lake Gardens, South City, Jadavpur, Dhakuria, Tollygunge, Joka, Pailan and Amtala .[19]

East Kolkata

East Kolkata is largely composed of newly developed areas like Topsia, Picnic Garden, Tangra, Gobra, Kustia, Tiljala, Anandapur, East Kolkata Twp, Panchasayar, Madurdaha, Nayabad, Kalikapur, Purbalok, Mukundapur, Ajoy Nagar, Hiland Park, Chak Garia, Patuli, Budherhat, Nayabad and New Garia. Outlying developing areas include Dhapa, Uttar Panchannagram, Chowbaga, Bantala and VIP Nagar. In the pace of rapid urbanization and growing demand for housing and commercial spaces, the New Town, Kolkata was created on the eastern outskirts of Kolkata to serve the dual purpose of establishing a new business centre to reduce the mounting pressure on the existing Central Business Districts (CBD) and increasing housing stock supply by creating new residential units.

Howrah and Hooghly (Urban)

Technically Howrah and the urban part of Hooghly all have individual identities alongside they are the part of Kolkata Metropolis. Likewise Howrah city is a twin city of Kolkata city. Nabanna, Santragachi, Belur, Bally, Uttarpara, Konnogar, Rishra, Serampore, Bhadeswar, Chinsurah, Hooghly, Chandannagor and Bandel all cities under Kolkata Metropolitan Area, having their fragrance of history, culture. This area is called "Little Europe Of India". All areas are well connected with the city centre.

Climate
Main article: Climate of Kolkata

Kolkata has a Tropical wet-and-dry climate, with summer monsoons. The annual mean temperature is 29.2 °C (84 °F); monthly mean temperatures range from 19 °C to 30 °C (67 °F to 86 °F) and maximum temperatures can often exceed 45 °C (113 °F) during May–June. Winter tends to last from December to early-February, with the lowest temperatures hovering in the 12 °C — 14 °C range during December and January. The highest recorded temperature is 43 °C (111 °F) and the lowest is 5 °C (41 °F).[20]

Monsoon is the most notable phenomenon in the climate of the city. Maximum rainfall occurs during the monsoon in August (306 mm) and the average annual total is 1,582 mm. Early morning mists and evening smog occur often due to temperature inversions. Summer is dominated by strong southwesterly monsoon winds. The city's total duration of sunshine is 2,528 hours per annum, with the maximum insolation occurring in March.[21] Often during early summer, spells of thunderstorms and heavy rains lash the city, bringing some relief from the heat and intolerable humidity. These thunderstorms are locally known as Kalbaishakhi (Nor-wester). According to a United Nations Development Programme report, its wind and cyclone zone is a "very high damage risk".[5]

Notes
  1. "Kolkata Municipal Corporation".
  2. "Calcuttaweb site". Archived from the original on 4 April 2006. Retrieved 18 March 2006.
  3. Das, Diptendra; Chattopadhyay, B.C. (17–19 December 2009). Characterization of soil over Kolkata municipal area (PDF). Indian Geotechnical Conference. Vol. 1. Guntur, India. pp. 11–12. Retrieved 19 November 2012.
  4. Bunting, S. W.; Kundu, N.; Mukherjee, M. "Situation analysis. Production systems and natural resources use in PU Kolkata" (PDF). Stirling, UK: Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling: 3. Retrieved 26 April 2006. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. "Hazard profiles of Indian districts" (PDF). National Capacity Building Project in Disaster Management. UNDP. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 May 2006. Retrieved 23 August 2006.
  6. "PIA01844: space radar image of Calcutta, West Bengal, India". NASA. 15 April 1999. Retrieved 15 January 2012.
  7. Murray, N.J.; Clemens, R.S.; Phinn, S.R.; Possingham, H.P.; Fuller, R.A. (2014). "Tracking the rapid loss of tidal wetlands in the Yellow Sea" (PDF). Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 12 (5): 267–272. doi:10.1890/130260.
  8. "Introducing KMA" (PDF). Annual Report 2011. Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority. 2011. Archived (PDF) from the original on 5 June 2013. Retrieved 9 February 2012.
  9. "007 Kolkata (India)" (PDF). World Association of the Major Metropolises. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 March 2012. Retrieved 31 August 2007.
  10. Sahdev, Shashi; Verma, Nilima, eds. (2008). "Urban Land price Scenario- Kolkata − 2008" (DOC). Kolkata—an outline. Industry and Economic Planning. Town and Country Planning Organisation, Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India.
  11. "Official Website of Kolkata Municipal Corporation". www.kmcgov.in.
  12. Calcutta, West Bengal, India (Map). Mission to planet earth program. NASA. 20 June 1996. Archived from the original on 4 January 2013. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
  13. Sahdev, Shashi; Verma, Nilima, eds. (2008). "Urban Land price Scenario- Kolkata − 2008" (DOC). Trends in land prices in Kolkata. Industry and Economic Planning. Town and Country Planning Organisation, Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India.
  14. "Kolkata heritage". Government of West Bengal. Archived from the original on 14 January 2012. Retrieved 27 November 2011.
  15. "BSNL may take two weeks to be back online". The Times of India. New Delhi. Times News Network (TNN). 9 July 2009. Archived from the original on 1 July 2012. Retrieved 27 November 2011. With the Camac Street-Park Street-Shakespeare Sarani commercial hub located smack in the middle of the affected zone ...
  16. Yardley, Jim (27 January 2011). "In city's teeming heart, a place to gaze and graze". The New York Times. New York. Archived from the original on 6 March 2014. Retrieved 27 November 2011. To Kolkata, it is the 'lungs of the city,' a recharge zone for the soul.
  17. Das, Soumitra (21 February 2010). "Maidan marauders". The Telegraph. Kolkata. Archived from the original on 18 January 2012. Retrieved 27 November 2011.
  18. "Eastern Command". Indian Army. Archived from the original on 2 May 2014. Retrieved 25 June 2012.
  19. Chakravorty, Sanjoy (2000). "From colonial city to global city? The far-from-complete spatial transformation of Calcutta". In Marcuse, Peter; Kempen, Ronald van (eds.). Globalizing cities: a new spatial order?. Oxford, UK: Blackwell Publishing. pp. 56–77. ISBN 978-0-631-21290-4.
  20. Weatherbase entry for Kolkata
  21. "GAIA article". Archived from the original on 7 January 2019. Retrieved 8 April 2006.

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