Bhoot Bunglow on Damodar
- Kunal Konar
- 14 hours ago
- 4 min read
Author: Kunal Konar
Contact: konar.kunal@gmail.com
On the Eve of Chhaat Utsab 2025, I decided to take a totally unplanned scooter ride along the bank of the River Damodar.
Reasons of such a choosing could be many-fold;
I am an Water & Environment Professional, I grew up with Damodar and its Irrigation Canals and Branch River Systems or simply because I was curious about the settlements that are longitudinal in geometric/geographical shape and common people's life there. So I reached Kamalpur, a small village on the right bank of Damodar on 27Oct25. This village is situated just upstream of the Krishak Setu, commissioned in 1977 to connect Bardhaman with Bankura and Hooghly via the State Highway No. 7 of the State of West Bengal.
The River and its Child
Seen some human activities on the flood plains like agriculture and pasture lands. Also saw the abundance of Kash Phools (the blossom of this flower's white shines is synonymous of Sarat Ritu (the Autum) in the East of India which indicates the ensuing Durgotsab). These abundance reminds me of the change in the Resistance offered by these floodplains to the flow and from a very different fluid mechanics perspective, Nikuradse's emperical Boundary Layer Theory :-). These roughness of the River Bed and Floodplains wasn't visible during Monsoon Season. See the two photographs in Figure-1.
Figure-1: Damodar River near Krishak Setu, in Early June 2025 (Left Panel) and Late October 2025 (Right Panel)
The black-topped road as seen in Figure-1 (right panel) is a typical embankment cum roadway through which the goods, services, information and people flows. Generic condition of this road is not so good, however works towards betterment of its conditions started already as evident from the following picture. The locals told me that this civil work in going on under the supervision of the Panchayet -- which makes me wonder who owns this road? The Irrigation and Waterways Directorate or the Public Works Department or District Administration's Khandaghosh Division? This is an important issue in executing any kind of developmental works as which government agency is the owner and who is responsible for the maintenance.
Now comes the people, I observed extraordinary diversity and subtle peacefulness in the village. Agriculture seems to be the prime mode of livelihood. Well, this is an expected scenario as once the vagaries of floods by the Mighty Damodar was tamed via oldest river valley project of the modern India (now embodied in the Damodar Valley Corporation), the fertile land which is capable of supporting two or three times Paddy Harvest along with one time harvest for vegetables, agriculture should be the prime mode of livelihood. Also, in the recent history after independence, West Bengal Government had good success on Land Reforms around 1980s which resulted in much more humane distribution of land ownership even among most marginalized farmers. There were also some shops and a big brickklin.
Friendly chats with the local people and looking at the religious monuments spread over the Kamalpur village, I sensed/semi-discovered the presence of all kinds of communities there: Kayastha, Tanti, Jele (Fishermen), Wealthy Business Communities (Basu and some hues of Brahmins), Muslim Communities (mainly Karigars and Farmers); and finally (this is something very new compared to my childhood memory, about three decades earlier), there was a full 'broken-Bangla' speaking community -- the locals call it Bihari Tola!! And I have now some genuine understanding about the potential of common Bihari people in terms of their resilience and single-minded capability of doing hard work. So, yes, I expect more such change in Demographic pattern in near future. There is also very strong cultural exchange and bonding between Bihar and Bangla which got established over millennia. For the curious reader, I am leaving one single strand of history from the last five hundred years -- The Celebrated Mughal Empress, Noorjahan was the wife of the Governor of Bardhaman, Sher Afghan, around 1600 AD. :-)
The Bhoot Bunglow
After just the Noon, I was exhausted due to bad roadway conditions, high sun and lack of tea shops along the way for rejuvenation and so I decided to turn back towards home. Well, the community people sensed that and told me to visit the 'Bhoot Bunglow' (Ghost Mansion) of the Kamalpur Village. I sensed a history lesson and reached there and found an old fashioned mansion like structure. A part of it is still inhabited, most likely by one of the owner. Found several Shib Mandirs and two very old and mysterious looking ponds. Found one Big Mandap (which was reinstalled very recently via a Trust named 'Dewan Debnarayan Durgotsab Trust'). When I entered into the desolated 'At Chala' (a form of temple compound, 'At' means 8) marked for Durga/Kali Poojas, I do felt certain curiosity mixed uncanny sensation even during high noon. Got busy in pondering over the past of this building as an witness of the bygone Zamindari Era and so forgot to take pictures of many corners of this half-decayed architecture. The only one is in Figure-3.
Later on, I was able to locate an article in the Telegraph (Link) which tells us about the ghost stories around this house. The Zamindari (small landlord-ship) of Basu's in the area was established by some Kishore Basu in 16th Century. The Basu family hold their first Durgotsab few years after the Battle of Palashy (1757). Implies original Zamindari rights was probably obtained via Mughal/Pathan System of Governance through the Zaigeerdar of Bardhaman or the Governor of Undivided Bengal. The current custodian of this house is Dr. Srikanta Basu, who probably works as librarian in a local college (Etechona College).
Here I end today's story-telling as the final climax of that Telegraph feature article is inviting me towards the realms of magic-realism of Sangri La and Makondo. Hope my readers will enjoy this recollection of an unplanned field trip.
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