East Indians mark 161st Anniversary

East Indians will be celebrating the 161st anniversary of the arrival of Indians to TT with several programmes. The major events will take place at the Mid Centre Mall, Chaguanas, with the Mere Desh Agricultural Expo and at the Divali Nagar Site, Charlieville, where the National Council of Indian Culture will host a parade through the streets of Chaguanas. The Hindu Credit Union will also host a Currifest at the Freeport Convention Centre.

People of all walks of life have been participating in several programmes which these three major bodies have been hosting over the past five days.

Indian Arrival Day commemorates the arrival of the first Indian indentured labourers from India to Trinidad, in May, 1845, on the ship Fatel Razack. While this event has been celebrated among the East Indian community in TT for many years, it was only in 1994 that it was made an official public holiday. It was called Arrival Day. In 1995 it was re-named Indian Arrival Day.

Indian immigration to Trinidad spanned the period 1845-1917. During that time over 140,000 Indians came to this country. They were brought here by the British to work in the sugar cane industry as indentured labourers. They were promised a free trip back to their homeland after a five-year period. Many of these labourers chose to purchase land and settled in Trinidad and Tobago.

According to historian Shamshu Deen of Princes Town, when the ship named Fatel Razack sailed into the Gulf of Paria in 1845, it brought not only a new labour force, but also a new culture, because the Indians brought with them their food, dress, language, music, dance, religion and customs.

East Indian music which is a fundamental part of the various Indian festivals is now considered part of TT’s overall culture. The Indians brought several musical instruments with them when they migrated to Trinidad. These instruments which were previously unknown in the West Indies included the tassa, tabla, dholak, majeera, bansoori, sitar and harmonium.

The Indians also brought a wide range of festivals and religious observances. For the Indians — both Hindus and Muslims — these celebrations were important. The British bosses allowed the Indians to hold on to the values and principles which had sustained them for centuries. Events such as Divali, Eid-ul-Fitr, Phagwa and Hoosay have, over the years, become part of the cultural fabric of TT.

Deen noted that the Indians who came to the Caribbean initially came from various regions in India, each with its own language and customs. However, by the late 19th century there was less diversity in language as the majority of immigrants originated from Uttar Pradesh. The inhabitants of this region spoke Bhojpuri, a Hindi dialect, which became the shared and unifying language for Indians in Trinidad.

The indentured labourers brought not only their religion, food and clothing, but also the names of the places from which they came. They gave those names to the places they settled in Trinidad, hence the reason for village names such as Fyzabad, Barrackpore, Chandernagore, and many others.

In order to deal with the inter-communal conflicts and family problems, the Indians introduced the “panchayat” system. In this system the elders of the villages met to analyse their problems so as to reach an amicable solution.

The indentured labourers who came to Trinidad brought with them their own cuisine, complete with traditional seasonings and methods of cooking. Most important of their spices were the curries. Foods such as roti, doubles, saheena, katchowrie, barah, anchar and pholourie have become part of the national cuisine of TT.