Culture and history · Mungpoo
Walk the 1864 cinchona plantation
Walk the plantation roads of India's first cinchona plantation, begun in 1864 to make quinine against malaria. Old factory sheds, workers' lines and slopes of medicinal trees tell a story of empire, disease and science.
For much of the 19th century malaria was one of the great killers in India, and quinine, from the bark of the South American cinchona tree, was the only effective treatment. The government's answer was to grow it here. Cinchona planting at Mungpoo began in 1864, the first such plantation in India, and a quinine factory followed. The estate is still run by the West Bengal Directorate of Cinchona and Other Medicinal Plants.
Walk the public roads through the plantation and around the village. You will pass slopes of cinchona trees, nurseries, factory buildings and long lines of workers' quarters, many of them home to families who have worked here for generations. The land is warm and green, and the roads are gentle by hill standards. Cinchona trees are evergreen, with glossy leaves and, in season, clusters of small pale, scented flowers; ask a worker to point one out if you are not sure.
Factory visits are not a routine tourist service and may need permission from the directorate, so do not expect to go inside. Stay on public roads, ask before photographing buildings or people, and do not pick plants or strip bark. Combine the walk with Rabindra Bhavan for a half day. Afternoons can bring mist and rain, so go in the morning, wear shoes with grip for the steeper side lanes and carry water, as shops are few.
Cost: Free
Questions people ask
Good to know
Can I visit the quinine factory in Mungpoo?
Not as a routine. The factory is a working government unit under the Directorate of Cinchona and Other Medicinal Plants, and visits may need prior permission. Walking the public roads through the plantation and village is usually fine. Ask locally and check current status before you travel if a factory visit matters to you.
When was the Mungpoo cinchona plantation started?
Cinchona planting at Mungpoo began in 1864, making it the first government cinchona plantation in India. It was set up to produce quinine, the main treatment for malaria at the time, and a quinine factory followed. The plantation is still run by the West Bengal Directorate of Cinchona and Other Medicinal Plants.
Is quinine still made at Mungpoo?
The plantation and factory still operate under the state's cinchona directorate, though synthetic antimalarials have long replaced bark quinine for most uses, and the directorate also works with other medicinal plants. Ask locally for what is produced now; output and activities have changed over the decades.
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