![]() Central Business District of Kolkata | |
Currency | Indian Rupee (INR, ₹) |
---|---|
1 April – 31 March | |
Statistics | |
Population | 2011 census: ![]() ![]() ![]() 2023 estimate: ![]() ![]() |
GDP | ![]() |
GDP rank | 3rd in India |
Population below poverty line | ![]() |
![]() | |
Main industries | Coal Steel Manufacturing Leather IT Food processing Textile |
External | |
Exports | ₹38,917 crore (US$4.7 billion) |
All values, unless otherwise stated, are in US dollars. |
Kolkata is the prime business, commercial and financial hub of eastern India and the main hub of communication for the North East Indian states. [2] Kolkata is the third largest city by GDP in India after Mumbai and Delhi, with a GDP of $160 billion (PPP) (as of 2022). [3] Kolkata is home to India's oldest, stock exchange company (bourse) [4] – The Calcutta Stock Exchange. [5] Kolkata is home to many industrial units operated by large public- and private-sector corporations; major sectors include steel, heavy engineering, mining, minerals, cement, pharmaceuticals, food processing, agriculture, electronics, textiles, and jute.
Kolkata was the capital of the British Indian Empire until 1911. Throughout the British Raj, the city was a major port and commercial center in the world economy. The Partition of India in 1947 was a major blow to the once flourishing economy during the world wars, it removed most of the hinterland, cutting down the supply of the human resource and a took away a huge portion of its market. Also the huge inflow of refugee from East Pakistan was a major drain to the city's infrastructure which was inadequate for the population boom. In the 1970s, the city saw a predominance of the trade-union movements which led the investors to flow out of the state to other newly emerging destinations in India. As the investors lacked trust in the newly formed communist government, the lack of capital destroyed most of its small-scale industries like foundries and tool casting. Once India's leading city, Kolkata experienced a steady economic decline in the decades following India's independence due to steep population increases and a rise in militant trade-unionism, which included frequent strikes that were backed by left-wing parties. [6] From the 1960s to the late 1990s, several factories were closed and businesses relocated. [6] The lack of capital and resources added to the depressed state of the city's economy and gave rise to an unwelcome sobriquet: the "dying city". [7]
There are a few of the oldest and front line banks and PSUs —such as UCO Bank, Allahabad Bank, United Bank of India and Geological Survey of India, Zoological Survey of India, Botanical Survey of India and Tea Board of India—were founded and is headquartered in Kolkata. The oldest operating photographic studio in the world, Bourne & Shepherd, is also based in the city. The Standard Chartered Bank has a major branch in Kolkata. [8] Kolkata is also the headquarters of Botanical Survey of India and Zoological Survey of India and many more organisations and companies.Kolkata is 3rd richest City in India after Mumbai & New Delhi as well as in South Asia.
Kolkata is home to many industrial units operated by large public sector and private-sector corporations; major sectors include steel, heavy engineering, mining, minerals, cement, pharmaceuticals, food processing, agriculture, electronics, textiles, and jute. [9]
Flexible production has been the norm in Kolkata, which has an informal sector that employs more than 40% of the labour force. [10] Over the years, the informal sector has grown in size and as a proportion of the total workforce of the Kolkata metropolitan area. [11] One unorganised group, roadside hawkers, generated business worth ₹ 87.72 billion (US$ 2 billion) in 2005. [12] As of 2001 [update] , around 0.81% of the city's workforce was employed in the primary sector (agriculture, forestry, mining, etc.); 15.49% worked in the secondary sector (industrial and manufacturing); and 83.69% worked in the tertiary sector (service industries). [13] : 19 As of 2003 [update] , the majority of households in slums were engaged in occupations belonging to the informal sector; 36.5% were involved in servicing the urban middle class (as maids, drivers, etc.), and 22.2% were casual labourers. [14] : 11 About 34% of the available labour force in Kolkata slums were unemployed. [14] : 11 Since 2017, warehousing industry in the vicinity of the city experienced significant increase, and was the fastest growing market in India, per 2019 report. [15] [16]
Kolkata is home to many industrial units operated by large public- and private-sector corporations; major sectors include steel, heavy engineering, mining, minerals, cement, pharmaceuticals, food processing, agriculture, electronics, textiles, and jute.
Companies such as ITC Limited, ABP Group, CESC Limited, Exide Industries, Emami, Eveready Industries India, Lux Industries, Rupa Company, Berger Paints, Patton International Limited, Birla Corporation, Khaitan India Ltd., Peerless Group and Britannia Industries, Jai Balaji group, Shyam Steel Industries Limited are all headquartered in the city. Philips India, PricewaterhouseCoopers India, Tata Global Beverages, Tata Steel have their registered office and zonal headquarters in Kolkata. Some of the oldest public sector companies are headquartered in the city such as the Coal India Limited, National Insurance Company, Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers, Tea Board of India, Geological Survey of India, Zoological Survey of India, Botanical Survey of India, Jute Corporation of India, National Test House, Hindustan Copper and the Ordnance Factories Board of the Indian Ministry of Defence, Damodar Valley Corporation and India Govt. Mint are also headquartered in the city. Kolkata hosts the headquarters of three major public-sector banks:Allahabad Bank, UCO Bank, and the United Bank of India and India's one of the newest private bank Bandhan Bank.
Among these three of the Forbes Global 2000 listed companies are headquartered in Kolkata, which includes ITC Limited, Coal India, Allahabad Bank and UCO Bank. [17]
Kolkata is an important centre for banking. At present, the city serves as the headquarters of large nationalised bank UCO Bank [18] and a private scheduled bank - Bandhan Bank. Several large financial companies and insurance companies are headquartered in Kolkata including Magma Fincorp, Bandhan Bank, SREI Infrastructure Finance, National Insurance Company. Many Indian banks, multi-national banks and the World Bank have located their Branch offices operations in the city. All main banks from India have their branch office here. Also big financial banks like Standard Chartered Bank, Bank of America and HSBC Bank have office and branches in Kolkata. Bandhan Financial, the largest Microfinance Group in India from Kolkata and 2nd largest of its kind in the World has got RBI's nod to set up banks all over India. Bandhan Bank has its Head Office in Kolkata, which is the only bank after independence to be established in the city. [19]
The electricity supply in Kolkata is mainly done by CESC Limited and WBSEDCL.
CESC is the sole distribution company serving 567 square kilometres (219 sq mi) of area administered by the Kolkata municipal corporation, in the city of Kolkata, as well as parts of Howrah, Hooghly, 24 Parganas (North) and 24 Parganas (South) districts. CESC also has its own Transmission & Distribution system through which it supplies electricity to its consumers. This system comprises a 474-kilometre (295 mi) circuit of transmission lines linking the company's generating and receiving stations with 85 distribution stations; a 3,837-kilometre (2,384 mi) circuit of HT lines further linking distribution stations with LT substations, large industrial consumers and a 9,867-kilometre (6,131 mi) circuit of LT lines connecting its LT substations to LT consumers.
West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (WBSEDCL) is a wholly owned enterprise of Government of West Bengal, established in 2007 as one of the two successors of West Bengal State Electricity Board, and is responsible for providing power to 96% of West Bengal which is not covered by CESC.
Kolkata has excellent roads with numerous flyovers which add to the convenience of commuters. A network of expressways like Kona Expressway, Kalyani Expressway, Belghoria Expressway, flyovers and widening of southern stretch of Eastern Metropolitan Bypass are being created to ease up road traffic. Maa Flyover is an important flyover in Kolkata.
A large network of roads are spread over in Kolkata which helps to reduce traffic congestion. Elevated roads are present in New Town and Rajarhat area of Kolkata. Kolkata is connected to other parts of India by the National Highways 2, 6, 34, and 117. The Belghoria Expressway connects NH 34 with NH 2 and 6 via the Nivedita Setu while the NH 117 is connected to NH 6 by the Kona Expressway via the Vidyasagar Setu.
Kolkata is well-connected to the rest of India by an extensive railway network of the Indian railways. Two divisions of the Indian railways - the Eastern Railway and the South Eastern Railway - are headquartered in the city. A total of five railway stations serve Kolkata. The two major railway stations of the city are at Howrah and Sealdah. The third station is called Kolkata has recently been constructed. International trains such as Maitree Express and Bandhan Express depart from Kolkata Station. The fourth station is Santragachi Junction which operates weekly and bi-weekly express trains to ease pressure on Howrah junction. The fifth station is named Shalimar Railway Station which used to be a goods yard has been transformed into a station from where mail and express trains operate. The Circular Rail encircles the entire city of Kolkata, starting and terminating at Dum Dum Junction.
Kolkata was the first city in South Asia to have an underground railway system that started operating in 1984. Kolkata Metro is jointly owned by Metro Railway, Kolkata and Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation. It has four operational lines of total length of about 60 km. As of 2024, various other metro links of approximately 74 km route length are underway in different phases of construction in Kolkata.
Kolkata is the only city in India to have a tram network. Trams are under the administration of the Calcutta Tramways Company, a government of West Bengal Undertaking, popularly called CTC (now merged with West Bengal Transport Corporation). The environment-friendliness and the age-old charm of the trams attract some people. Now, several initiatives have started to improve the tram's popularity as well as increasing revenues. The results are positive. The Tram Museum is the latest addition to such schemes, which also include heritage trams' small models and meals on wheels trams i.e. with dining options. 1st AC passenger tram ran in the city in 2019. Each of the AC trams, built at the Nonapukur tram depot near Muzaffar Ahmed Sarani, cost Rs 25 lakh and is fitted with a 5.5 tonne AC unit, LED light bulbs and fans.
The government buses were previously run by Calcutta State Transport Corporation, Calcutta Tramways Company, West Bengal Surface Transport Corporation, North Bengal State Transport Corporation and South Bengal State Transport Corporation. In the year 2016, the first three government bus companies merged and formed West Bengal Transport Corporation. The government buses are generally painted either blue color with white stripes or white color with blue stripes. This buses are identified by the WBTC symbol on the front windscreen and on their body. Both the name of the destination place as well as the name of the originating place is mentioned on the front of the bus either digitally [LED Board] or written [White Board]. The fleet consist of Ashok Leyland JanBus, Tata Motors Marcopolo Bus, and Volvo 8400 buses and Eicher Starline buses. Air-conditioned buses have been introduced in the year 2009 under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and are operated by WBTC. Air-conditioned buses have been included to provide comfort to daily commuters to make there travel less tiresome. In the year 2019, electric AC buses were introduced. Tata Motors were given contract by Government Of West Bengal to supply 80 such buses to WBTC. Non-AC buses fare start from ₹10 (12¢ US) whereas AC buses fare start from ₹25 (30¢ US).
Kolkata is a major river-port in eastern India. The Kolkata Port Trust manages both the Kolkata docks and the Haldia docks. There is passenger service to Port Blair on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and cargo ship service to ports in India and abroad, operated by the Shipping Corporation of India. Kolkata Port handled 65.660 million tonnes (mt) of traffic in 2022-23, around 12.86% higher vis-a-vis that handled during previous fiscal. Kolkata Dock System, the first major dock formally commissioned in 1870, handled cargo traffic of 17.052 mt in 2022-23, registering a significant growth of 11.46% over the previous year. Haldia Dock Complex, the 1st green port of the country in 2015, handled 48.608 mt in 2022-23, recording growth of 11.8% over the last year. During 2022-23, 6,75,904 Container TEUs were handled at the Port vis-à-vis 7,35,195 TEUs during 2021-22. Total containerised tonnage handled at SMP, Kolkata was 10.59 million tonnes in 2022-23 vis-à-vis 11.8 million tonnes in 2021-22. Kolkata Dock System handled 5,68,722 TEUs in 2022-23 compared to 5,69,783 TEUs in 2021-22, recording a marginal decline. In 2019-20 Kolkata Dock System achieved the highest ever container throughput of 6,75,439 TEUs. Haldia Dock Complex handled 1,07,182 TEUs in 2022-23 vis-a-vis 1,65,412 TEUs in 2021-22.
Kolkata Port ranked 1st in terms of coking coal & other coal handling amongst major ports of India.
Spread over 2640 acres at Dum Dum in Kolkata, the largest in eastern India, the newly modernised Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport is the sixth busiest international airport in India in respect of aircraft movement (after Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Chennai). It has two asphalt runways, the primary one extended by 700 meters (3627 × 46m) and upgraded to CATIIIB, and the secondary one (3190 × 46m) upgraded to CATII ILS standards. Its terminal is a new and sprawling L-shaped six-level integrated terminal of over 2,510,000 sq ft inaugurated in 2013, able to handle 25 million passengers per annum. It includes check-in counters that use CUTE (Common User Terminal Equipment) technology, 78 immigration counters, 12 customs counters, passenger lounges provided by Air India and Jet Airways, 18 aerobridges, 57 remote parking bays, 2 underground two-leveled carparks and car parking facilities in landscaped area capable of handling 5000 cars. The airport has a Centre for Perishable Commodities (CPC), two luxury hotels and a shopping mall.
In the fiscal year April 2023 to March 2024, the airport handled 1,40,879 aircraft movements including 20,078 international aircraft movements, 19.784 million passengers (including 2.4 million international passengers and 17.31 million domestic passengers), 1,51,626 metric tonnes of freight.
Bidhannagar also known as Salt Lake City is a planned satellite city of Kolkata in North 24 Parganas district. As of April 2019, Sector V of Bidhannagar had approx 1,500 companies. Salt Lake Sector-V is the commercial sector of Bidhannagar city and a business district under Kolkata metropolitan area. Spread over an area of 430 Acres, Salt Lake Sector V is known as the IT Hub of Kolkata as well as East India.
As of 2023, there is 12.3 million sq. feet of grade A office space with 2.3 million sq. feet of grade A office space under development. Altogether Sector V have 14.6 million sq. feet of grade A office space which is highest in Kolkata Metropolitan Area. Most of the commercial spaces are eloped by IT/BPO companies.
New Town has emerged as the second IT hub of Kolkata after Salt Lake. Growing number of tech parks makes New Town a preferred destination for IT and ITes in East India. Several Information Technology majors are operational like Ericsson, Accenture, Capgemini, Tech Mahindra, ITC Infotech, Mindtree, Adani Labs, British Telecom, TCS, Wipro, Infosys, Cognizant etc. New Town also houses Bengal Silicon Valley Tech Hub.
Bengal Silicon Valley Tech Hub is an under construction technology hub in the Indian state of West Bengal, consisting of various tech parks, buildings, projects and premises which work on the sectors like IT/ITeS, Data Centre, E-commerce, IoT, KPO, AI, R&D and Telecom. The hub is projected to be completed in 2025, generating 1,00,000 direct jobs. As of 2022, the total investment in the hub is ₹1 trillion. It is being built on an area of 250 acres.
FinTech Hub is a financial, commercial centre and business district located in New Town. The hub has the presence of a large number of banking, financial companies and legal institutions. Many major companies have their headquarters, offices and training centres operational or under construction. In 2010, inspired by the Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai and to turn Kolkata into an international financial centre, the then chief minister of West Bengal Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and finance minister Asim Dasgupta proposed an International Financial Hub on 100 Acres of land in New Town. The union finance minister of that time, Pranab Mukherjee laid the foundation stone of the project on 13 October 2010. The project had a deadline to be completed in five years. In 2017, the project was relaunched as a FinTech hub. The purpose was to develop financial technology industry in West Bengal. In 2020, 23 financial institutions had their offices setup in the hub. First 10 acres were identified which was afterwards expanded. On 10 September 2021, HIDCO released an online portal for owing plots easily. Up to September 2021, 48 acres were allotted in 70 acres. As of 2022, 28 financial and legal institutions have their offices in fintech hub.
The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) is the central authority which deals with the processing of new trade licenses and the renewal of the same as well. [20] In 2019, Kolkata, along with Bengaluru was included in the list of cities in India for the World Bank's ease of doing business survey in India, which so far covered only New Delhi and Mumbai. [21]
Kolkata, also known as Calcutta, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, 80 km (50 mi) west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary financial and commercial centre of eastern and northeastern India. Kolkata is the seventh most populous city of India with an estimated city proper population of 4.5 million (0.45 crore). It is the centre of the Kolkata Metropolitan Region, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world with a population of over 15 million residents. Kolkata is the regarded by many sources as the cultural capital of India and a historically and culturally significant city in the historic region of Bengal. It is the second largest Bengali-speaking city in the world. It has the highest number of Nobel laureates among all cities in India.
UCO Bank, formerly United Commercial Bank, is an Indian public sector bank, and financial services statutory body headquartered in Kolkata. UCO Bank is the 10th largest public sector bank in India by total asset and ranked 1948 in Forbes Global 2000 list of year 2018 & ranked 80 on the Fortune India 500 list in 2020. During FY 2023–24, its total business was ₹4.50 lakh crore. The market capitalisation of bank is ₹71,078 crore (2024).
Transport in Chennai includes various modes of air, sea, road and rail transportation in the city and its suburbs. Chennai's economic development has been closely tied to its port and transport infrastructure, and it is considered one of the best infrastructure systems in India.
Sealdah Railway Station is one of India's major railway terminals serving the city of Kolkata. It is the second largest railway station in India and West Bengal in terms of platforms, tracks and overall daily passenger holding capacity. The other main railway stations in the Kolkata metropolitan area are Howrah, Shalimar, Kolkata and Santragachi. Over 1.5 million passengers use the station daily. It is an important suburban rail terminal. Kolkata Metro Line 2 passes through Sealdah with the new underground Sealdah metro station.
Tollygunge is a locality of South Kolkata, in West Bengal, India. It is known for being the center of Indian Bengali-language cinema, with filming locations used for other regional Indian films.
The transport system of Kolkata, a city in India, is a mix of modern mass rapid transport and old transport modalities like rickshaws. Kolkata is connected to the rest of India by the National Highways, the extensive network of the Indian Railways, National Waterways and by air. The most traffic to Northeast India route is via Kolkata.
Port of Kolkata or Kolkata Port, officially known as Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port, is the only riverine major port in India, in the city of Kolkata, West Bengal, around 203 kilometres (126 mi) from the sea. It is the oldest operating port in India and was constructed by the British East India Company. Kolkata is a freshwater port with no variation in salinity. The port has two distinct dock systems – Kolkata Dock at Kolkata and a deep water dock at Haldia Dock Complex, Haldia.
Khidirpur or Kidderpore is a neighbourhood of South West Kolkata in Kolkata district in the Indian state of West Bengal.
Kolkata Circular Railway, also known as the Kolkata Chakra Rail, is a 36.20 km (22.49 mi) long railway loop line operated by the Sealdah division of the Eastern Railway zone of Indian Railways, encircling the city of Kolkata.
West Bengal Transport Corporation (WBTC) is a West Bengal state government undertaken corporation. It plies buses, trams and ferries in the state. It was formed by merging existing state transport agencies, namely the Calcutta State Transport Corporation, the Calcutta Tramways Company and the West Bengal Surface Transport Corporation.
Calcutta Tramways Company (CTC) was a state-run company that operated trams and buses in and around Kolkata in West Bengal, India. The Kolkata tram is the only operating tramway in India and is the oldest electric tram in India, operating since 1902.
Kankurgachi is a neighbourhood of North-East Kolkata, in Kolkata district, West Bengal, India. With a cosmopolitan crowd and several commercial buildings and restaurants, Kankurgachi is considered one of the upmarket and elite places in Kolkata. Kankurgachi has become a very important part of Kolkata for its excellent connectivity and infrastructure. Kolkata Airport, Bidhannagar Road railway station, Salt Lake and New Town are close to Kankurgachi.
The economy of West Bengal is a mixed middle-income developing social market economy and the largest Eastern Indian economy with a substantial public sector. It is the India's sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP.
Kashipur is a neighbourhood of North Kolkata, in Kolkata district in the Indian state of West Bengal. One of the oldest neighbourhoods of the metropolis, it has a police station.
Paradip Port is a natural, deep-water port on the East coast of India in Paradip, just 53 km (33 mi) from Jagatsinghpur city in Jagatsinghpur district of Odisha, India. It is at the confluence of the Mahanadi river and the Bay of Bengal, 210 nmi south of Kolkata and 260 nmi north of Visakhapatnam.
Netaji Subhas Road, previously known as Clive Street, is an important thoroughfare in Central Kolkata that runs predominantly north to south in the B. B. D. Bagh neighborhood of Kolkata.
Sealdah railway division is one of the four railway divisions under the Eastern Railway zone of the Indian Railways. Its headquarters is located in Kaiser Street in Kolkata, West Bengal near the Sealdah railway station. Geographically the division covers the railway tracks and services in the areas between the Hooghly river on the west, Bangladesh on the north and east and the Sundarbans in the south.
The Haldia Port, officially Haldia Dock Complex (HDC), is a port on the confluence of the Haldi River and the Hooghly River. The port is located at Haldia in West Bengal, about 130 kilometres (81 mi) from the sandheads–deep sea area of the Bay of Bengal, 45 kilometres (28 mi) upstream from Pilotage Station at Sagar and 104 km downstream of Kolkata. In 1968, an oil jetty was commissioned at Haldia, and officially in 1977 the port facility of Haldia started functioning as a subsidiary port of the Port of Kolkata under the name Haldia Dock Complex.
Total length of road in West Bengal is 92,023 kilometers. Among these national highway are 2,377 kilometers, and state highway 2,393 kilometers. The road density of the state is 103.69 kilometers per 100 square kilometers ; the national density is 74.7 kilometers per 100 square kilometers. The average speed of the road in the state is between 40 and 50 kilometers/hour. The speed in the village and urban areas is between 20 and 25 kilometers/hour. This is the main reason the road is low and lack of maintenance. The total length of the railway line in the state is 3,825 kilometers. Indian Railways' Eastern Railway zone and South Eastern Railway zone Headquarter are located in Kolkata. The railways on the north side of the state Under the Northeast Frontier Railway. Kolkata Metro is India's first underground metro rail service. The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, part of the Northeast Frontier Railway, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
FinTech Hub is a financial, commercial centre and business district located in New Town city, which lies outskirts of Kolkata under its metropolitan area in the state of West Bengal, India. The hub has the presence of a large number of banking, financial companies and legal institutions. Many major companies have their headquarters, offices and training centres operational or under construction.