The Bengal Chamber of Commerce & Industry (BCC&I) and The PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industry (PHDCCI) organised the “Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose Memorial Lecture”, on Monday, 16th January 2023 at Williamson Magor Hall, The Chamber premises. The commemorative them was Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav and Glorious Legacy of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.

The eminent speakers were:

• Dr. C V Ananda Bose, Hon’ble Governor of West Bengal;
• Shri Sanjeev Sanyal, Economist & Historian; Member, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC− PM) & Honorary Member of BCC&I;
• Shri Subir Chakraborty, President, BCC&I;
• Shri Gautam Ray, President Designate, BCC&I;
• Shri Saurabh Sanyal, Secretary General, PHDCCI and
• Shri Yashaswi Shroff, Chair, PHDCCI West Bengal State Chapter.

There were also recorded messages from Prof Dr. Anita Bose Pfaff, Daughter of Netaji & Senior Economist and Shri Chandra Kumar Bose, Grand−nephew of Netaji & Convener, The Open Platform for Netaji.

Shri Subir Chakraborty, President, The Bengal Chamber of Commerce & Industry said, “Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose is in the collective consciousness of Indians for over a century now. We connect with the thoughts of Netaji with a sense of deep reverence. He gave a new dimension to the dream of freedom − Azadi, which is intensely entrenched in our minds even today. Today’s programme is a tribute to the courage and passion of Netaji that drives the whole of India.”

Followed by the lecture, Shri Sanjeev Sanyal’s new book on, “Revolutionaries: The Other Story of How India Won Its Freedom” was also released. The Book was on the history of India's struggle for freedom, is usually told from the perspective of the non−violent movement. Yet, the story of armed resistance to colonial occupation is just as important. Names such as Vinayak Savarkar, Aurobindo Ghosh, Rashbehari Bose, Bagha Jatin, Sachindra Nath Sanyal, Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad and Subhas Chandra Bose are still widely remembered. Their story is almost always presented as acts of individual heroism and not as part of a wider movement that had any overarching strategy or significant impact on the overall struggle for Independence.

In reality, the revolutionaries were part of a large network that sustained armed resistance against the British Empire for half a century. They not only created a wide network inside India but also established nodes in Britain, France, Thailand, Germany, Persia, Russia, Italy, Ireland, the United States, Japan and Singapore. At various points, they received official support and recognition from the governments of some of these countries. Even the internal dynamics of the Indian National Congress of the time cannot be understood without the revolutionaries, who enjoyed widespread support within the organization. This was no small−scale movement of naive individual heroism but one that involved a large number of extraordinary young men and women who were connected in multiple ways to each other and to the evolving events of their times.

Revolutionaries tell their story, one that is replete with swashbuckling adventure, intrigue, espionage, incredible bravery, diabolical treachery and shockingly unpredictable twists of fate.

The initiative was partnered by MCKV Institute of Engineering; and Power Gilt Treasuries. The programme was very well covered in Media and well hugely appreciated and attended by 250 + participants.