Chandannagar's Light Hub: A Dim Promise In The City Of Illumination

By Palash Mukhopadhyay

Chandannagar: The three-storey structure stands tall, flanked by neat rows of palm and betel nut trees. It is inviting at first glance, but under the unforgiving afternoon sun, the courtyard lies eerily empty. Inside, most shutters are down. The much-touted Light Hub of Chandannagar in Bengal’s Hooghly district, once envisioned as a catalyst for its famed illumination industry, struggles to draw even a trickle of visitors.

When Trinamool Congress supremo and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee inaugurated the facility in February 2021, it carried the promise of transforming the lives of local artisans and nurturing future talent. Five years on, with the Assembly elections knocking, that promise is under scrutiny.

A City That Glows Beyond Borders

Chandannagar’s identity is inseparable from light. Its globally celebrated Jagaddhatri Puja turns the riverside town into a dazzling spectacle each year, where intricate lighting installations are not merely decoration, but storytelling art.

Orders flow in from across India and overseas, while competitive displays during the festival draw massive crowds, briefly turning the town into a vibrant tourism hub.

It was to formalise and scale up this legacy that the Light Hub was set up at a cost of over Rs 14 crore inside the KMDA Park. But the distance, both physical and functional, from the town’s commercial heart has become a recurring grievance.

Between Infrastructure and Livelihoods

For many in the trade, the hub represents a classic case of infrastructure without ecosystem. Shops remain locked, footfall is negligible, and marketing channels are virtually absent. Even the recent addition of a government-run training centre has done little to alter sentiment on the ground.

What artisans are seeking goes beyond workspace. There is a growing demand across Chandannagar to evolve into a production centre for LED lighting, reducing dependence on imports and unlocking employment.

Trader Dipak Chandra Ghosh captures this frustration in practical terms.

“We had hoped the Light Hub would become a marketing centre. Many artists have taken rooms there, but keep them locked. Proper marketing is not happening. Around 20,000 people are currently associated with this business. With better marketing, that number could have crossed one lakh. If raw materials currently imported from China were produced in Chandannagar, costs would drop and employment would increase,” he said.

Lives Behind Lights

The discontent is perhaps sharpest among workers who operate at the lowest rung of the industry. For them, the issue is not just about growth, but survival.

Welding worker Ashok Paswan points to the seasonal nature of employment.

“Whichever government comes to power should train artisans like us and create employment opportunities. Only then can we, and the next generation, will survive, and the lighting industry will survive too. At present, only a few have work. Most artisans are sitting idle. We demand year-round employment,” Ashok told Etv Bharat.

Safety and social security form another blind spot. Sushweta Pal, daughter of noted lighting artist Babu Pal, underscores the risks workers routinely take, often scaling great heights without protective measures. Budget constraints, she notes, make it nearly impossible for contractors to provide insurance or safeguards.

“Lighting artists and workers have been doing this work for years but don’t receive fair compensation. From the budgets we get from community pujas, it’s not possible to provide insurance or safety measures for workers. Even if I want to do better, I can’t. Workers often operate at great heights without protection. The government should at least provide low-cost insurance and introduce pension schemes for ageing artists,” said Sushweta.

Appeals for state-backed interventions in the form of pension schemes for ageing artisans, have so far remained unanswered.

Museum of Light, or a Missed Opportunity?

Beyond immediate economic concerns, there is also a push to reimagine how the craft is presented to the world. The idea of a dedicated lighting museum has found resonance among artists, who see it as a way to both preserve heritage and attract tourism.

For artists like Raja Yadav, the current location of the Light Hub limits its visibility. A more prominent, accessible space showcasing Chandannagar’s finest works, he argues, could draw visitors from across the globe and give the industry the recognition it deserves.

“The Light Hub is located in a corner of the town. It should have been in a more prominent area. I want a lighting museum in Chandannagar where different works of lighting artists can be displayed. People from across India and abroad would come to see it,” said Raja.

Politics in the Shadows of Illumination

As polling nears, the Light Hub has become a political flashpoint in Chandannagar constituency. CPI(M) candidate Manish Panda questions the very execution of the project, suggesting that its reality falls far short of its promise.

“We were initially very happy to hear about the Light Hub. But ask the artists what the reality is. How many artists are actually working there? How much of the original plan has been implemented? Instead of development, illegal activities are taking place there,” Manish said.

BJP’s Dipanjan Guha goes further, alleging that the benefits have been cornered by a select few, leaving many artists hesitant to even speak openly about their condition.

“Lighting artists have not progressed because the Light Hub has been monopolised. There is a syndicate. Artists are afraid and cannot speak openly. Look at their financial condition. There has been no proper marketing. If BJP wins in Chandannagar, we will take this business to the global stage,” Dipanjan said, stressing that transparent systems as part of his party’s pitch this election.

The ruling party, however, remains dismissive of such criticism. Trinamool Congress leader and party candidate Indranil Sen frames the attacks as routine opposition rhetoric, insisting that development is visible to those willing to see it.

“Many things are being said about the Light Hub. The opposition neither sees development nor understands it. Especially CPI(M), I would say try to move from third place to second. As for the BJP, they know nothing about Bengal,” said the outgoing minister of Mamata Banerjee’s cabinet.

A Bellwether Seat in Bengal’s Second Phase

Chandannagar votes on April 29 in the second phase of Bengal polls. The contest here reflects more than just party rivalry. It highlights a deeper tension between symbolic infrastructure and tangible economic impact.

The seat mostly presents a triangular fight involving the Trinamool Congress, BJP and CPI(M), each attempting to tap into different strands of voter sentiment.

For the ruling party, the challenge lies in defending its development narrative against visible gaps in implementation. For the opposition, the task is to convert industry-specific discontent into a broader electoral shift.

At the heart of it all is Chandannagar’s lighting industry, an economic and cultural lifeline to the town with deep and rich French flavour.

Whether the Light Hub becomes a symbol of missed opportunity or a foundation for future revival, may well influence how voters cast their ballots in this historic town of lights.