Shaheed Minar, Kolkata

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For the other monunment in Dhaka known as Shaheed Minar, see Shaheed Minar

Shaheed Minar, literally 'tower of the martyrs' in words common to Hindi, Urdu and Bengali, is the name of the tower that dominates the skyline of the Maidan in Kolkata.

The Calcutta Shaheed Minar, formerly known as the Ochterlony Monument, was erected to commemorate Major-general David Ochterlony, commander of the British East India Company's main force in the Gurkha War of 1816. On the northern fringe of the vast park known as the Maidan, adjoining the Esplanade, it is the centre of political life in Calcutta. Rallies, demonstrations and agitations of all sorts - of which Calcutta has more than its fair share - traditionally start here. There is also a fair on Sunday with participants that bus in from villages in the countryside hours away.