Kolkata/Maidan
urban park in Kolkata
South of the bustling city centre of Kolkata, the Maidan (Bengali: ময়দান Maẏdān) is a 400-hectare park that stretches from the Hooghly River in the west to Chowringhee and Park Street in the east, and from the Victoria Memorial in the south to Raj Bhavan and Eden Gardens in the north.
The tiger-haunted jungle which cut off the village of Chowringhee from the river was cleared and gave way to the wide grassy stretch of the Maidan of which the city is so proud. The Maidan was developed as a 5-km parade ground for the British forces and even today is army property. It is a vast stretch of field and home to numerous playgrounds, including the famous cricketing venue Eden Gardens, several football grounds, and the Kolkata Race Course. The Maidan sports several statues. The roads on the Maidan are dotted with tiny greenish bungalow tents (clubhouses) belonging to various sports clubs. There are numerous patches for playing. Some of the larger clubs occupy the fields with wooden galleries.
The big three of Kolkata football, Mohun Bagan, East Bengal and Mohammedan have a noticeable presence but there also are names with faded glory such as Rangers. Somewhere in between fit-in organisations such as Kennel Club and Press Club. There also are lower-order clubs, who do not have much of a following but have a noticeable contribution and sometimes spring a surprise – Wari, Aryans, Rajasthan and so on – and a host of office clubs. Once in a while, the Brigade Parade Ground has political rallies with crowds numbering one hundred thousand plus.
