GarryNeuhaus77 at 16:05, 23 March 2026

2026-03-23T16:05:19Z

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{{Short description|Jail in Kolkata, India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2023}}
{{Infobox Prison
| prison_name = Alipore Jail
| former_name = Old Alipore Jail
| image = Alipore Central jail.jpg
| location = [[Alipore]], [[Kolkata]]
| coordinates = {{Coord|22.525275|N|88.339866|E}}
| status = Open
| classification = Maximum
| capacity = 2000
| opened = {{start date and age|1864}}<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://wbcorrectionalservices.gov.in/history_heritage.html |title=Presidency Correctional Home |access-date=4 May 2023 |archive-date=24 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230424115746/http://wbcorrectionalservices.gov.in/history_heritage.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
| closed =
| managed_by =
| director =
|website=http://independencemuseum.in/}}
[[File:The Alipore Gaol, Calcutta; Illustrated London News, 1870.jpg|thumb|The Alipore Gaol, Calcutta; in 1870]]
The '''Alipore Jail''' or '''Alipore Central Jail''', also known as '''Presidency Correctional Home''', is a defunct Indian prison in [[Alipore]], [[Kolkata]], where political prisoners were kept under [[British rule]]. It also housed the [[Alipore Jail Press]]. It is no longer in operation as a jail, having been shut down on 20 February 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/end-of-an-era-as-alipore-central-jail-closes-down-119022001262_1.html|title=End of an era as Alipore Central jail closes down|work=Business Standard|location=India|access-date=4 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211109082016/https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/end-of-an-era-as-alipore-central-jail-closes-down-119022001262_1.html|archive-date=9 November 2021|url-status=dead}}</ref> The jail site has been now developed into an independence museum in memory of the martyrs who were imprisoned and executed there.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/alipore-jail-to-house-museum-on-independence-movement/articleshow/86879626.cms|title=Alipore jail to house museum on Independence movement|work=The Times of India|access-date=9 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211009012314/http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/alipore-jail-to-house-museum-on-independence-movement/articleshow/86879626.cms|archive-date=9 October 2021|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2022-09-22 |title=Kolkata's historical Alipore prison turns into a Museum |language=en-IN |work=The Hindu |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/kolkata/kolkatas-historical-alipore-prison-turns-into-a-museum/article65918748.ece |access-date=2023-06-30 |issn=0971-751X}}</ref>

==Notable inmates==
* [[Sri Aurobindo]] (May 1908 – May 1909), imprisoned after the [[Alipore bomb case]]. During his stay, he wrote a series of articles in Bengali, in the journal ''Suprabhat'', later published as ''Tales of Prison Life''. He later said, "I have spoken of a year's imprisonment. It would have been more appropriate to speak of a year's living in an ashram or a hermitage. The only result of the wrath of the British Government was that I found God."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sriaurobindosociety.org.in/sriauro/aurolif1.htm#alipore|title=The Prison-Cell of Alipore|publisher=Sri Aurobindo Society|access-date=4 December 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101130091354/http://sriaurobindosociety.org.in/sriauro/aurolif1.htm#alipore|archive-date=30 November 2010|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* [[Dudu Miyan]] (1857–61)
* [[Subhas Chandra Bose]]
* [[Hemchandra Kanungo]]
* [[Kanailal Dutta]]
* [[Satyendranath Bosu|Satyendra Nath Bosu]]
* [[Gopinath Saha]]
* [[Anantahari Mitra|Ananta Hari Mitra]]
* [[Dinesh Gupta]]
* [[Birendranath Sasmal]]
* [[Jawaharlal Nehru]]
* [[K. Kamaraj]] (1930)
* [[Ramakrishna Biswas]]
* [[Bidhan Chandra Roy]] (1930)
* [[Parul Mukherjee]] (1930s)
* [[Charu Mazumdar]]
* [[Pramod Ranjan Choudhury]] (1926)
* [[Jack Preger|Dr. Jack Preger, MBE]] (1981)
* [[P. Kakkan]]
* [[Charu Chandra Bose]]

==Alipore Jail Museum==
The defunct Alipore Jail has been transformed into a museum, maintained by the [[West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation]] (WBHIDCO).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://independencemuseum.in/|title=Alipore Jail Museum – History and Information|access-date=4 May 2023|website=independencemuseum.in|archive-date=18 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230318214501/http://independencemuseum.in/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/cities/kolkata/story/kolkata-alipore-jail-tunrs-into-museum-open-for-public-2003179-2022-09-22|title=Kolkata's 116-year-old Alipore jail turns into museum, open for public – Details here|date=22 September 2022|access-date=4 May 2023|first=Suryagni|last=Roy|website=India Today|location=Kolkata|archive-date=3 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221003095102/https://www.indiatoday.in/cities/kolkata/story/kolkata-alipore-jail-tunrs-into-museum-open-for-public-2003179-2022-09-22|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=https://www.thestatesman.com/features/alipore-jail-museum-where-history-is-kept-in-a-freeze-frame-1503134097.html/amp|title=Alipore Jail Museum: Where history is kept in a freeze frame|date=26 November 2022|access-date=4 May 2023|first=Debanjana|last=Banerjee|website=The Statesman|location=Kolkata|archive-date=25 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221125194047/https://www.thestatesman.com/features/alipore-jail-museum-where-history-is-kept-in-a-freeze-frame-1503134097.html/amp|url-status=live}}</ref> It was inaugurated and opened to the public in September 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Alipore Independence Museum launches an exclusive navigation app for visitors |url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/my-kolkata/news/alipore-independence-museum-launches-an-exclusive-navigation-app-for-visitors/cid/1906465 |access-date=2023-06-29 |website=www.telegraphindia.com}}</ref> Various prison cells and gallows of notable inmates have been curated for visitors to preserve the memory of those individuals who lost their lives for India to gain its independence. The museum project can broadly be categorised into ten parts: gallows, watchtowers, special cells, general cells, detention cells, jail canteen, jail hospital, hospital building exhibition, segregation ward, and an art studio.<ref name=":0" /> Apart from these diverse presentations, the museum has an [[Indian National Army|INA]]-themed food court, a souvenir shop, and "a light and sound show" dedicated to informing the visitor about the struggles and hardships endured by the freedom fighters.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ghosh |first=Shreya |date=2022-10-31 |title=Kolkata's Century-Old Alipore Jail Is Now A Museum. It Has A Food Court, Souvenir Shop, And More |url=https://curlytales.com/kolkatas-century-old-alipore-jail-is-now-a-museum-it-has-a-food-court-souvenir-shop-and-more/ |access-date=2023-06-29 |website=Curly Tales |language=en-US}}</ref> There is an exclusive exhibition in the museum dedicated to [[Subhas Chandra Bose]].

As of February 2023, the Police Museum Kolkata has also been shifted within the premises of the Alipore Jail Museum from the Acharya Prafulla Chandra Roy Road location in Kolkata.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-02-12 |title=New-look police museum opens doors in Kolkata's Alipore |work=The Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/new-look-police-museum-opens-doors-in-kolkatas-alipore/articleshow/97833084.cms?from=mdr |access-date=2023-06-29 |issn=0971-8257}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=MP |first=Team |date=2023-02-11 |title=Mayor opens shifting of several artefacts to Independence Museum |url=https://www.millenniumpost.in/bengal/mayor-opens-shifting-of-several-artefacts-to-independence-museum-508397 |access-date=2023-06-30 |website=www.millenniumpost.in |language=en}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110728173024/http://www.westbengalcorrectionalservices.org/history_martyrs.html Martyrs of Indian Freedom]

{{Authority control}}
{{Coord|22.5300|N|88.3300|E|source:wikidata-and-enwiki-cat-tree_region:IN|display=title}}

[[Category:Defunct prisons in India]]
[[Category:Prisons in West Bengal]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Kolkata]]
[[Category:Alipore]]
[[Category:Law enforcement in West Bengal]]
[[Category:1910 establishments in British India]]
[[Category:Prisons completed in the 1860s]]

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Alipore Central Jail - Revision history

GarryNeuhaus77 at 16:05, 23 March 2026