Engagement of Contemporary Communities with the Shared Heritage Resources of the Dwindling Minorities of Central Calcutta

Abstract

The accelerated growth of Calcutta as a trading center under the British between the mid-18th and early 20th centuries brought an influx of diverse trading communities, including Armenians, Baghdadi Jews, Parsis, and Chinese, who settled in the historic bazaar nucleus of the city known today as Central Calcutta. These ethnoreligious communities erected significant heritage buildings reflecting their cultures. But with large-scale emigration and a rapidly dwindling local population, this shared built heritage is in neglect and has little or no relevance for Central Calcutta’s contemporary communities. This paper discusses the issues faced by these heritage resources and offers recommendations for enhancing community engagement, initiating co-management and developing common goals amongst contemporary communities so as to effectively safeguard this built heritage of dwindling minorities.

Keywords

• Urban heritage
• Cultural pluralism
• Shared built heritage
• Community engagement
• Participatory methods