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Kolkata is known as the City of Joy and its vintage charm will make anyone fall in love with it. However, this old city, once the capital of British India, is home to many historical and old buildings and it is rumored that some of them are haunted. In fact, there are quite a few other destinations in the city which have been witnesses to strange supernatural activities and have really scary stories to tell. Here are some of them and beware when you visit them after dark:
The National Library was the former residence of the Governor General during the British era and it is a treasure trove of artifacts, and a wide collection of books and publications. It was known that Lady Metcalf, the wife of Governor General Charles Metcalf was a cleanliness freak and it is said that one can still see her roaming in between shelves, dusting the old books and shelves. In fact, it said that the night guards and the students who study till late have heard footsteps of the Lady Metcalf and have seen grey shadows on the wall. It is also said that in 2010, a door less room was discovered on the ground floor and that it was secret chamber from the British times. The library, already quiet, is one of the spookiest places in the city.
What is now known as the Race Course, is said to be a very haunted place, with incidents revolving around “Willam Saheb ka Sada Ghora”. It is said that a white horse named Pride, belonging to an Englishman, George Williams had died on the tracks here. Williams was obsessed about racing and also about his horse but eventually Pride became old and weak. One year, he lost a derby and the next day he was found dead on the tracks. It is said that on moonlit Saturday nights, Pride can still be seen racing across the tracks. Many commuters going by the Race Course had often reported that they had seen a white horse galloping and the sudden vision is sure to freak anyone out. The late night guards have now grown used to it.
Hastings’ College is now an underground women’s college under the Calcutta University but formerly, it was known as the Belvedere Estate, the residence of the former Governor General William Hastings. It is said that staff and well as the girls in the hostel often see an Englishman entering the premises and galloping in the huge grounds of the college and that it is none other than Hastings Saheb himself! On the other hand, a few years ago a young boy had died an unnatural death while playing football on the same grounds and it is said that at times this boy can be seen running around. There are many other incidents revolving this huge building and the open, silent ground around it and it happens to be one of the most haunted places of Calcutta.
Not only in the city, but this happens to be one of the oldest graveyards in the entire country. Built in 1767, the Park Street Cemetery is the oldest in the city and it houses generations of British families who lived during the British era. The tombs here are like works of art themselves and the place has an eerie beauty to it, with tall vegetation and graves and tombstones which are centuries old. It is said that it is one of the spookiest places in the cities, with shadows often drifting in and out from between the tombs. Eerie sounds can be heard and it is said that photographers who come here to capture the photo of the tombs and for nature photography had also caught strange shadows in their photographs. Some even feel breathless and dizzy. It is really a place to avoid after dark. It is one of the most haunted places in Kolkata.
One of the busiest metro stations in the North- South metro route of Kolkata, Rabindra Sarovar has the highest number of suicide cases. It is said that the souls of those who had committed suicide here still roam the platform at late hours. Peculiar shadows are seen on the pillars and the walls from time to time and when the platform is deserted, shadows can be seen jumping on to the track. It can be quite scary to see such a sight when you are calmly thinking of returning home.
The Kolkata dock or the Kidderpur Dock was built was the Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Awadh. He had come here from Awadh, relinquishing his throne and kingdom in the hopes that the British would give him refuge to London where he would have a comfortable life for the rest of his days. He waited here, commission the ships, but the call never came. Instead, he was dumped by the Government and he spent the rest of his days in Calcutta and built the dock, which is now an important port in the east coast of the country. It is said that the soul of Nawab Saheb still roams the dock area and that his soul would not rest in peace unless he had had his revenge from the British for their betrayal. Many soldiers and sailors who died here, waiting with him, can also be seen here and sailor and officials at the dock working at night often find themselves paralyzed in fear.
While the ghats and banks of the River Ganga are some of the most beautiful spots in the entire city, they also happen to be the most haunted. There have been countless incidents of suicides or of accidents related to drawings and every ghat has some weird story to say. Those near Howrah Bridge are especially scary. Moreover, there are a number of burning ghats along the river as well and some can discern strange shadows when they go for their early morning dip in the river. The Mullick Ghat and the Zanana Ghat are very haunted, as it is said one can see hands rising out of the water asking for help even now. Regulars to the ghat have become used to this sight but for a first timer, it can be quite scary.
The building is the present secretariat of the West Bengal State Government and it was the office of clerks and junior staff during the British era. It is said that people came from far and wide in those days to lodge their complaints and grievances but often returned empty- handed due to the hard- heartedness of the British officials. There are many vacant and unutilized rooms in the building still and strange and eerie noises come from here. Night guards and vendors outside the building have often heard cries coming from inside as well. It is surely a place to be avoided after dark.
House of Dolls, or Putul Bari, is a century old haunted house in North Calcutta, which is almost in ruins. In a region where every inch is precious and a place to stay is highly in demand, the vast upper floors of this huge mansion like residence is empty. The most horrid screams can be heard from the house after dark and no one has had the guts to go upstairs after sunset. The interesting thing is that the lower floor of the houses is still inhabited by tenants who have been residing here for centuries and they have simply gotten used to the screams, although even they do not climb up the stairs. As to the shrieks that can be heard, it is said that a zamindar used this house as his haunt where he brought women from wherever he wanted for his pleasure. The house is so named because of the figures of dolls etched into the arches of the building. Any outsider who has gone into the house once has not ventured a second time.
The Wipro office in the Salt Lake region of Calcutta is a swanky corporate office now but it was allegedly built on a graveyard near the wetlands. It is said that many late night shifters had seen eerie apparitions in the dark on the third floor of Tower 3 and it had been shut off since then. People had also claimed that they had heard noises of things falling when they take a lift to the upper floors or when they have taken the stairs. Security guards have complained of strange noises all through the night.
The Lower Circular Road Cemetery is not in use anymore but is a memorial of the past. The ghost sighting here is that of Sir William Hay MacNaghte, who was a civil servant under the British. His wife had found his body one day, cut into pieces. His brutal murder had been the talk of the town for many days and he was buried in this cemetery. It is said that the ghost of this Englishman still roams the grounds and whenever the incident is narrated, the tree above the tomb starts shivering. Late night guards have often reported hearing eerie noises from inside the cemetery.
These are some of the most notable landmarks in Calcutta, as the city was formerly known, and also the most haunted of them all. Strange paranormal activities have been reported here and if you have an interest towards the supernatural, you may consider visiting some of these places, or not!
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April 15, 2024 
