‘Kolkata needs to retain its vibrant neighbourhoods’ – Times of India

Kolkata: Kolkata should preserve its neighbourhoods that reflect the multi-religious and multi-cultural character of the city, French economist and Nobel laureate Esther Duflo said during a conversation on Kolkata and heritage with writer and heritage activist Amit Chaudhuri on Friday evening. The discussion was organised by Calcutta Architectural Legacies in partnership with Bengal Club and Intach.
“Kolkata has still managed to retain neighbourhoods with cultural vibrancy. Here, every individual building may not be architecturally remarkable but they add up to the spirit of the neighbourhoods and the city. We need to protect these localities because the built environment does matter,” said Duflo.
In an interaction with TOI during a trip to Kolkata seven years ago, Duflo had stressed that the city needed to recognise its potential as a tourist attraction and preserve precincts in north, central and south where neighbourhoods still retained old buildings that were architecturally distinct. “Investing in preserving these localities can be financially rewarding,” she had then said.
On Friday, she recounted her long association with the city. “It was its intellectual vibrancy that struck me. It is rare to find such a city in India or in any developing country. Kolkata needs to retain the architectural heritage,” she said.
Over the years, Esther has visited the city more than 20 times. Now wedded to former Kolkatan and Nobel prize winning economist Abhijit Vinayak Banerjee, the sight of demolition of old buildings continue to irk her. “Every time I come here, I see one more splendid building gone and replaced by a glass building. Someone needs to put an end to the destruction and fix the crumbling buildings,” she said.