Kolkata Armenian College and Academy unites locals as it turns 195

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Armenian College and Philanthropic Academy (ACPA) in Kolkata, India will organize on Saturday, April 2 the biggest congregation of Armenians in recent times as the institution turns 195 this year, the Times of India said.

Amid all the hype, ACPA has embarked on a most difficult task of creating a databank of Armenians from Kolkata. "This is the first such databank since 1956," said Rev. Zaven Yazichyan, the India-Armenian Spiritual Postorate.

Armenians arrived here in early 1600s even before the East India Company did. Settling in the city, the Armenians spent lots of money and resources on colonial mansions, virtually transforming the wilting city into what Kolkata eventually became.

For the last six decades, however, the number of Armenia residents has been dwindling. The city of 4.5 milling has 150 Indian Armenians left at most. According to the Armenian General Benevolent Union, the number of students dropped from 206 in 1961 to just six in 1998. Out of the 68 students studying here now, only two are Armenian-Indians. The school relies on students from abroad - mostly immigrants from Iraq, Iran, Russia and Armenia - to fill its dormitories.

The school is being thoroughly renovated, with several projects currently underway. The Araratyan library has been computerized and the school has started cooperating with different international educational institutions. Also, the college has launched weekly online Skype chats so that students can interact with their parents living abroad.