SERAMPORE: When Freddy Svane, ambassador of Denmark to India, graduated from Copenhagen University in 1982 with economic history and a special research paper on Danish trade in India and Serampore, little did he know that he would be inaugurating the last and the most important structure - the painstakingly restored Old Government House or Governor House - for reuse as an information and culture centre.
"The 'World Asiatic Company', which still exists, was doing business here. They struck a genuine bonding with Serampore and other places in India, even as they didn't colonize," he said.
Svane has visited Serampore many times during his first tenure in India (2010-15), and the second since 2019. "I do feel sad. It's like finishing a good book or graduating from the university. We have 400 years of shared history. For us, it is like protecting your roots. We take back the memories of the network that we built. It couldn't have been possible without the local government and the residents of this bustling town meeting us half-way. The state government has been fantastic," he said.
In 2008, when the Danes came to Serampore, or the erstwhile Frederiksnagore (christened after King Fredrik V), the neo-classical structures were in ruins. The local administration was even contemplating razing some of them. In 2013, the West Bengal Heritage Commission (WBHC) signed an MoU for the Serampore Initiative. And the rest is history.
"Revamping the single storeyed, colonnaded Danish Government House, which now has a permanent exhibition space, was rather complex," said WBHC's consultant architect Gopa Sen, who has been helping the Danish team led by Bente Wolff, curator, National Museum of Denmark. Smita Bajoria, honorary consul, nodded. WBHC chairman Suvaprasanna said, "Hats off to the Danes for the way they executed Serampore Initiative. We did our bit - removing encroachment and taking local people into confidence. It wasn't easy." The NMD team included restoration architect Flemmin Aalund, who have been travelling back and forth since 2008. "I am going back to Denmark next week," he said.
