Kanailal Vidyamandir

Kanailal Vidyamandir [English Section] is one of the oldest schools (Established:1862) in Hooghly district in the state of West Bengal. It is located in Chandannagar town beside the Grand Trunk Road (G.T Road).

History
Kanailal Vidyamandir was established as the "Saint Mary's Institution" by Father Maglayer Barthet in 1862. As Chandannagar was a French colony, the school initially taught only in French. English education began in 1872 by the then Puducherry French government.

In 1887 the institution was taken over by the French government, and in 1901 "Saint Mary's Institution" was renamed "Dupleix College". In 1908 the college department of "Dupleix College" was abolished, but was later restored in 1931 by the efforts of Charu Chandra Ray, Harihar Seth and Narayan Chandra Dey.

On 17 May 1948, just before the liberation from French rule, the school was renamed Kanailal Vidyamandir after the Bengali revolutionary Shahid Kanailal Dutta, a student of the school.

The Centenary ceremony of the school was inaugurated by Dr. Brajakanta Guha, the Vice Chancellor of University of Burdwan. The school celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2012.

Kanailal Vidyamandir celebrated its 160th anniversary in 2022 with festivities lasting six months. The celebration began with a ceremony in the school on 18 August, followed by a road rally with decorated cars on 19 August 2022. It ended on 30 January 2023.

Sections
The school is divided into two sections: the English Section and the French Section.

These sections run from separate buildings situated on opposite sides of the Barabazar Main Road.

The English Section is from Primary to Higher Secondary, and the French Section is from Primary to Class 10. After Class 10, students from the French Section choose whether to be transferred into the English Section or to a different school of their choice.

Architecture
The school’s Colonial architecture features a building made of brick and lime and a wooden roof. It was declared as heritage in 2017 by the West Bengal Heritage Commission.

Notable alumni

 * Kanailal Dutta
 * Rash Behari Bose (an ex-student of Dupleix College, now separate from Kanailal Vidyamandir)