GOBINDARAM MITRA
According to Radharaman Mitra the first post of “Zamindar” was created in the year 1720. The task of collecting revenue from Kolkata was independently given to such an employee of the East India Company who is not a member of the President’s Council of the Company. In that very year, a post of ‘Deputy Zamindar’ or as the British called them – Black Zamindar, was also created. And the first appointment to this post was Gobindaram Mitra. He held the post for nearly 36 years from 1720 to 1756. He was the founder of the House of Mitras of Kumartuli. Originally, Gobindaram Mitra hailed from Chandanpukur or Chandanpur located near Barrackpur.
Gobindaram Mitra and his son Raghu Mitra were the most notable among the 16 commissioners appointed for distribution of the money that, as a part of the peace treaty, Nawab Mir Zafar had to pay as compensation for the loss suffered by the British, Armenians, Greeks and Indians from the attack of Kolkata (then Calcutta) by Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah. He had a huge “Bagan Bari” (which literally translates to ‘Garden House’) on the eastern flank of Upper Circular Road (now Acharyya Prafulla Chandra Road) see map. The alignment of the “Mahratta Ditch” had to be diverted around this place to include it within the precincts of Kolkata. As a result of this diversion, this area is still included in the Kolkata Municipal Corporation area, even though it falls within North 24 Parganas. Interestingly, if any litigation arises in this area, the case is not heard in either the lower courts of Sealdah or Alipore, but straight at the High Court in Calcutta. The extent of influence of power of Gobindaram Mitra can be surmised from a small folk-verse of the times – Bonomali Sarkarer bari, Gobindaramer chhori, Umichander dari, Hujurimaler kori (The house of Banamali Sarkar, The cane of Gobindaram, The beard of Umichand, The money of Hujurimal.) The verse identifies the outstanding achievements of these persons. Among them Gobindaram’s ‘chhori’ (cane) signifies the power he wielded. |