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Saturday Club The Calcutta Racket Club
Calcutta Swimming Club - Heriatage Clubs
1831    Dibyendu Banerjee    14/09/2019

Located on Strand Road near Babughat in Calcutta, the Calcutta Swimming Club was founded in 1887 under the name Calcutta Swimming Bath by a group of European merchants of the city, headed by Messrs AH Willis and Busland, to provide swimming facilities for their young and junior assistants, who had neither the social standing nor the financial means necessary for membership of more important Clubs. However, the club, that we see today, was subsequently founded by the Late Walter Davis, a partner of Hamilton & Company, though it was renamed the Calcutta Swimming Club as late as in 1941.

Calcutta Swimming Club

From its very inception, the Lieutenant Governor of Bengal was the Head of the Club until 1923, when Mr N Hamilton was elected as its first President. Even after the independence of India, the membership of the club was restricted for the Europeans only and that insulting discriminating rule was withdrawn in 1964, when the Maharaja of Cooch Behar was introduced as its first Indian member. Much later, in 1976 PT Basu was elected as the First Indian President of the Club.

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During the days immediately following the First World War, the club had only the inside Swimming Bath with dressing cubicles on the North side. Apart from that, there was a small rectangular tank, outside the northern periphery. Even in those days, any member could reserve the Bath for private parties against a modest fee. The present dressing rooms and the porch were added later, after 1926 and the rest of the buildings came up gradually, after the construction of the outside pool in the 1930s. Swimming sessions for the Ladies, twice or thrice a week for about an hour, started from the mid 1920s and mixed bathing was permitted on Friday evenings. During those early days, the men used the dressing cubicles on the North side, while the Women used the Gallery.

Calcutta Swimming Club
The Indoor Pool
Calcutta Swimming Club
The Outdoor Pool

The Club has lush green lawn designed and maintained at high standards. The pools, with their placid, clean and transparent water are the star attractions of the club. Every year, the club provides coaching facility for the amateur swimmers and the beginners, which commences from the month of March.

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However, as there is no arrangement to coach the advanced swimmers or any other swimming related activities like diving or water polo, it does not participate any district or state level competitions. The open-air swimming pool of the club is considered as one of the largest in India. Both the pools remain open from morning to late evenings. Apart from swimming, the club building is equipped with a large Billiards Room with two tables, a Card Room and arrangements for playing table tennis.

Calcutta Swimming Club
Calcutta Swimming Club

The Banquet Hall, located on the first floor, can be booked fully or partially. A large Dining Hall is available with facilities of the dance floor. The Banquet and Dining Hall are used for parties, conferences, seminar and other purposes. The club has three well-equipped bars. The Poolside Bar is mainly used for cocktail parties. One can also spend a good time at the Terrace on the Rooftops. Dress codes are strictly followed.

Calcutta Swimming Club
The Lounge
Calcutta Swimming Club
The Dining Hall

However, being an elite club, it is not very easy to be a member of the Calcutta Swimming Club, as the club provides membership based only on referrals.

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Moreover, applications for new membership in the prescribed form, along with the reference of at least two existing members of the Club, are accepted for consideration only during a specific period of time in a calendar year. The club, the oldest swimming club of Calcutta, celebrated its centenary in 1985.

Calcutta Swimming Club
Saturday Club The Calcutta Racket Club
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Author Details
Dibyendu Banerjee
Ex student of Scottish Church College. Served a Nationalised Bank for nearly 35 years. Authored novels in Bengali. Translated into Bengali novels/short stories of Leo Tolstoy, Eric Maria Remarque, D.H.Lawrence, Harold Robbins, Guy de Maupassant, Somerset Maugham and others. Also compiled collections of short stories from Africa and Third World. Interested in literature, history, music, sports and international films.
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