| A shortfall of four annas way back in 1828 made the State Bank of India (SBI) return a customer's cheque. This piece of information would have long been forgotten had the customer been less illustrious. But it was none other than the then governor-general of Bengal, Lord William Bentinck. Shocked? Here is the full story. Long before the National Movement gained momentum, Bentinck faced his first opposition from the locals. In 1828, the SBI returned a cheque presented by him because "his account fell short of four annas". This professional attitude of the bank impressed the Governor-General who went on to say, "This was the bank to do business with, which would not violate its rules in the smallest particular for the Governor-General himself."
You can discover more such remarkable anecdotes at the State Bank Archives, which were inaugurated here last month. "Take from the altars of the past the fire, not the ashes": a quote by French socialist leader Jean Jaures adorns the entrance of the museum on the 11th floor of Samriddhi Bhavan, the Kolkata headquarters of the first nationalised bank of India. The museum does just that. For, every exhibit is borrowed from the rich history of the bank, originally known as the Bank of Calcutta (later becoming the Bank of Bengal) way back in 1806. The Archives are the SBI's tribute to its 200 years of existence.
Interesting anecdotes and pieces from the past line the walls of the spacious, 7,000-sq-ft museum. For instance, did you know that SBI came into existence only when the Imperial Bank of India (as the merged Banks of Bengal, Bombay and Madras came to be known) was nationalised in 1955? There is deep history behind the birth of the Bank. But for that, you need to walk into the quaint quarters of the museum on weekends. That is when visitors are invited in. The décor by artist Ranen Ayan Dutta comprises a bright interplay of white, beige, orange and yellow. A life-sized statue of Prince Dwarkanath Tagore greets you at the entrance. A regular borrower from the bank till 1824, stories of Tagore's various economic misadventures find place inside the glass drawers.
There is more. Ledgers of legends such as Rabindranath Tagore, Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar, Jagadish Chandra Bose, Dadabhai Naoroji and Ashutosh Mookerji are open for public scrutiny. If the numbers don't interest you, take a look at the immaculate calligraphy displayed by the clerks and employers in the old days. The idea for such a museum took seed in 1975 when then chairman R.K. Talwar suggested chronicling the history of the bank. A history cell was formed and researchers scavenged every branch of SBI in the country and abroad to unearth old record books and registers. Many seals, stamps, notes and cheques were discovered.
It was then that the management floored the idea of a museum to exhibit all the findings. The museum even has the first Minutes Book of the bank, one that contains the declarations and discussions of the first meeting of the board of directors. Ancient seals and notes from Peshawar, Dacca, Kozhikode and Ajmer also find pride of place in the museum.
Here's a striking piece of history concerning J.R.D. Tata. Everyone knows that the bank was managed by Europeans when India was still under British rule. But even when it began moving towards independence, Europeans continued to be appointed to the important posts and Indians were sidelined. In 1943, Tata wrote a stinging letter to William Lamond, the then managing director of the bank, exhorting him to see to it that Indians were treated equally. J.R.D. resigned as the director of the Central Board of the Imperial Bank thereafter but his challenging letter spurred the Indianisation of the bank. Sample another factoid. Not many would know that Maharaja Sookmoy Bose, the first Indian director of the bank, was the grandson of Robert Clive's moneylender and the founder of the Posta Raj family of Kolkata.
A visit to this museum is like taking a walk through the lanes of the bank as well as Bengal's history. Paintings of ancient Bengal, its buildings, market places and trade activities cover the walls on the ground floor. The Archives are guaranteed to help researchers too. A separate study room has been built where scholars can browse through the volumes of books available on the history of banks in India. And the best part is that all this is for free. The management has decided to shun the concept of entry fees as it feels that SBI has been riding the wave of banking glory all these years because of public faith. A free ride into the realm of the bank's history is surely the best way to reward that trust.
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