A View of Tank Souare, Calcutta, 1826

ট্যাঙ্ক স্কোয়ার (লাল দিঘী), কলকাতা, ১৮২৬
This image shows the Great Tank, which was an important reservoir supplying much of the city. Fraser wrote: “Inside the gate, a ramp, crowded with those who come to draw water, slopes down to the water’s edge…the Bengali inhabitants of the city add interest, with a group of bhistis or water carriers with their goat-skins for carrying the water slung over their shoulders.” Turnstiles in the gateway stopped animals from entering. The box at the entrance was the station of the watchmen, or chowdikars, who prevented people from bathing in the Tank.
by James Baillie Fraser