KOLKATA, India -- In terms of Indian architecture, no city compares with Kolkata in the eyes of experts. Established as a trading post by English merchants in 1690, the city has so many grand government buildings, gothic mansions and Victorian terraces that it was once known as the "London of the East."
Yet neither time nor politics has been kind to the city's architectural marvels. Centuries of neglect, coupled with nearly three-and-a-half decades of communist rule that stymied investment, have seen many of Kolkata's beautiful old buildings condemned. But interest in India's architectural heritage has been steadily growing. In April a group of prominent citizens marched on Kolkata's city headquarters urging the authorities to do more to preserve its historic buildings.
