Field Visit: Hamsheswari Temple (Bansberia), Bandel Church, Hooghly Imambara, Chandannagar College and French Museum

On 27th April 2025, the students of History Method went on a field trip as part of their B.Ed. Curriculum. Our trip began with a visit to Hamsheshwari Temple, located at Bansberia, Hooghly. The temple under the protection of the Archaeological Survey of India. It is made partly of stone and partly brick and has thirteen ratnas arranged around its five stories which are conical with lotus petal design. The temple was built by zamindar Rameshwar Dutta in 1679C.E. After our temple visit, we stopped briefly at Bandel Church and then continued on to Hooghly Imambara. This Imambara was constructed between 1641-1861 out of the funds of philanthropist Haji Mohammad Mohsin for general welfare of all people, so people of all religion, caste, creed can visit this place. Inside the Imambara premises, we saw a sun clock used to measure time using shadow from the sun, the Tazziah utilized for Muharram. The Imambara has passages from the Hadith on the walls. There was also a hammam or a common bathing area for ladies, along with an unani dawakhana-place to get medicines.

After this, we visited the Chandannagar College and Museum. This college, constructed in 1862, began as a school. It was then upgraded to a college. It is now a Heritage Building declared under West Bengal Heritage Commission. It is a single storey building in colonial style with verandah supported by Tuscan columns. Inside the college museum, we learned about the history of Chandannagar city, the history of the college which initially began as a school and also about the freedom fighters from this area and leaders who found refuge during revolutionary activities during the freedom struggle. We ended our trip with a visit to the French Museum or Dupleix Palace, where we saw artifacts like colonial period furniture, original manuscripts, coins, original copies of newspapers started by Indian freedom fighters.

The trip was an enlightening and enriching experience for all of us.