Kolkata: Dismayed at the sorry state of Dwarkanath Tagore bust in London, an Indian, in collaboration with British conservationists, helped the renaissance man get a new statue.
In January, Kolkata based Professor and founder of iLEAD College Pradip Chopra during his visit to Kensal Green Cemetery noticed that Dwarakanath Tagore’s monument was in bad shape and required urgent restoration.
“Contribution of Dwarkanath cannot be ignored and finally with the help of my friends, we renovated it. We have decided to visit this cemetery every year to pay our respect to one of the great visionaries (Dwarkanath Tagore) of the world. Also, we will try to teach our college students about him and his vision,” he said.
Dwarkanath was the first Bengali businessman to set up an Indo-British business partnership called ‘Carr, Tagore and Co.’ It invested in coal, salt, sugar, tea, and Indigo, among other things.
Speaking to News18, Rabindranath Tagore’s distant relative Supriya Tagore welcoming the initiative said, “I heard that the Dwarakanath Tagore’s monument is in bad shape and it needed an immediate repair. I am glad that it was renovated with the initiative taken by a group of people in Kolkata. I would like to thank all of them. I am very happy and touched”.
Sourav Niyogi of Bengal Heritage Foundation, which was spearheading the project along with the Friends of Kensal Green group, said, “Very few Indians are aware of Prince Dwarkanath Tagore and his tomb in London. From coal to banking to trading, he successfully set up the foundation of an industrial Bengal. Our effort is a humble tribute to this great son of Bengal and to keep his heritage alive for the future generations.”
Tagore was a signatory to the anti-Sati petition and a close friend of social reformer Rammohun Roy, Queen Victoria, Prince Albert and King Louis Phillipe of France. He died at Brown's Hotel in London on August 1, 1846.
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