Renovated Calcutta University beckons scholars and visitors

From restored rare paintings to a refurbished and digitised library, the varsity, set up in 1857, has undergone a much-needed transformation

These days, regular visitors to the University of Calcutta’s main campus on College Street — returning to the heritage buildings on official work after the long gap forced by the pandemic — often pause in disbelief: have we come to the right place?

Gone is the look one associates with a typical university campus in Kolkata: weather-worn buildings reeking of neglect, rickety furniture, walls painted with (and also reverberating with) political slogans, a place accustomed to seeing more demonstrations outside the classroom than inside.

Today the campus, dating back to January 1857, has witnessed a rebirth. The restoration began in 2017 but since the premises have reopened after a prolonged closure, the process appears overnight.