West Bengal

Modern Indian state. It was formed after
Indian independence in 1947, after the
partition of the state of Bengal into West
Bengal and West Pakistan, the latter now
known as Bangladesh. Most of the state
lies in the lowland of the Ganges River
delta, although in the north, Darjeeling
extends into the Himalayas. West
Bengal’s capital, Calcutta, was the
administrative center of British India
until the beginning of the twentieth century. It was also a hotbed of anti-British
resistance and has remained one
of India’s great artistic and intellectual
centers. West Bengal has a number
of important religious sites: Kalighat, in
the heart of Calcutta, and Dakshineshwar, Tarakeshvar, Tarapith, and
Navadvip. For general information
about West Bengal and all the regions of
India, an accessible reference is
Christine Nivin et al., India, 8th ed.,
Lonely Planet, 1998.