The paper is divided into four sections. The first and the last section deal with broad issues of refugee rehabilitation and the condition of the city of Calcutta. In the first section, I will make an appraisal of the rehabilitation schemes of the government focusing on the way the refugees were categorised according to their background and previous occupation and what was the consequence of such a practice; the second and third section will focus on two particular groups of population— the Muslim population of the state and the women of the refugee families. The tension between the Hindu refugees and the Muslim residents of the state give us a glimpse of a complex situation and questions our understanding of violence and social justice. The third section will specifically focus on the women and the various training and job they took up to sustain themselves and their family. I will try to see if there were any changes in the location of women within the patriarchal society. In the final section, I will focus on the situation of Calcutta and how the city changed due to the massive influx of population in the initial years of independence.