Digha has a low gradient with a shallow sand beach extending upto 7KM in length and has gentle rolling waves. The sea at Digha is calm and shallow for about a mile from the beach making it quite safe for swimming. Digha, originally known as Beerkul during Warren Hasting's time was discovered in the late 18th century by the British. It is mentioned as the ‘Brighton of the East' in one of Hastings'
letters (1780AD) to his wife. In 1923, an English tourist named John Frank Smith was charmed by the beauty of Digha and started living here.His writings about Digha slowly gave exposure to this place. After independence, he convinced Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy, who was the erstwhile chief minister of West Bengal to develop Digha as a beach resort.
