Source: Paras Ramoutar
TRINIDAD, March 23, 2002: During the colonial days, thousands of Hindus were transported to various parts of the world by the British, as Indentured laborers or “Girmitia” or “Jahaji” people. The countries included Mauritius, South Africa, Fiji and Trinidad. The majority of the people who were taken to the other shores were from Utter Pradesh, Bihar, Bengal and Tamilnadu. One of the great sons of India, Siewdass Sadhu, was a great saintly person from the Girmitia population in Trinidad. The colonial masters in those days demolished a mandir built on their lands by Siewdass Sadhu. He was jailed and fined a hefty sum of money. Determined to carry on his devotion, Siewdass ji declared that since he was not allowed to build his temple on the mainland, then he would build it in the sea. Single-handedly he proceeded with the construction, transporting stones on his bicycle until he had built a small temple for our Hindu brethren. Now on the very site the Hindu community assisted by the government of Trinidad and Tobago, has built a beautiful temple to replace the one built by Siewdass ji which was damaged over time by the sea. It has become a pilgrimage centre for the Hindus. Unfortunately, very little is known about the sacrifice of our girmitia brothers and sisters and their glorious history of struggle in preserving their dharma and culture. For the Trinidadians Siewdass Sadhu has become the symbol of determination, sacrifice and devotion to the God. It is proposed that the year 2002, the centenary year of his birth, be declared as Siewdass Sadhu Centenary Year. A committee is being formed to spread information about the great contribution of Siewdass Sadhu and other great ancestors of the Girmitias, to build a fitting memorial for the sadhu and to develop a permanent center for Girmitia history in India itself. The center would serve to help Girmitias connect with their roots in India and even reunite with the descendants of their ancestors. For further information, write paras_ramoutar@yahoo.com.