BHAGWANTI
INDENTURED SURVIVOR
By Shamshu Deen
Independent
May 19, 2000
Page 21
As we approach the 155th Anniversary of Indian Arrival to Trinidad, it is good to mention environmental friendliness - a concept quite in vogue these days.
It is interesting to note that when Indians went out to the diaspora they took in their jahaji bundles - several seeds; they knew that wherever they were their dharti marta (mother earth) would sustain them.
And so, like economists would tell us, putting aside seeds for future crops was really a form of capital investment. Perhaps that also gave Indians a 'kick start' in agriculture (and business) as they brought seeds of trees like mango and cohwa (jackfruit) as well as of vegetables seim, carailli, bhaigan, ochro etc.
Among the survivors there was one who was environmentally friendly. This is her story:
On the outskirts of Rio Claro lives a tiny, frail lady called Bhagwanti. She remembers very little of her migration from India. She recalled her mother's name was Atwaria and her father's as Sheoratan. And they were lured to the sea by a recruiter who said that salt water would cure Bhagwanti's constant belly pain.
Documents at the National Archives show that Bhagwanti and her mother were from the village of Badalpur in Janpur. On October 12, 1912, they registered at the sub-depot of Sultanpur. They then went to Calcutta where they would have met Sheoratan, who was from Faizabad and Sukdaye of Lucknow, who Bhagwanti always felt was her mother's sister.
These four people were destined for Trinidad aboard the Sutlej ship, which sailed on October 28, and arrived on December 11, 1912. They were taken to the Rio Claro estate and were accompanied by jahajis Goli, Autar, Kashi and Sitaram.
Bhagwanti said the estate was cultivating sugar cane, but switched to cocoa and coffee as these were more profitable at the time. After they 'cut bong' (concluded their indentureship) she left with her mother and stepfather, Sheoratan for the nearby Lapeyrouse Estate.
Bhagwanti never went to school, as there were numerous domestic chores to be done. When they moved tot their won home on a ten-acre plot Sheoratan bought at Sumair Trace, they worked hard to maintain their carat palm house with its (lepayed) mud walls. There were about six bedrooms by the time she had siblings Gonaye, Pootoon, Chootoo, Sookdaya, Lalee and Ramdaye.
With her husband Patiram, Bagwanti had 18 children.
One of the most heartbreaking moments for Bhagwanti was when Sheoratan was crushed while selling garden produce at the roadside in Esperance near Penal. A truck ran off the road and knocked him down as well as scattering his hard-earned produce all over the ground. When the police jeep arrived at Charuma to inform her, Bhagwanti jumped in the vehicle and demanded to be taken to the San Fernando Hospital.
"Beti", Sheoratan, eyes closed, but aware of his hand in hers, moaned slowly and almost inaudibly, "Bhagwanti ah done gyul, ah eh go live you know, look after you mai eh." Then he groaned sadly, "Beti, give me some water nah." She gave him a few teaspoons of water, but he died soon after.
For many years, Bhagwanti sold Indian delicacies under a shop near the Rio Claro roundabout. Every morning from 2 o'clock, she would prepare the various items, pholouri, aloo pies, bara and channa, and two not so familiar ones, googia and bhatasa. Sometimes, Bhagwanti would remain all day trying to sell her goods.
Patiram was occupied more in the garden planting rice and vegetables and catching guabin and cascaduras when the river backed in the rice jheels in the rainy season.
Bhagwanti also used other skills to bring in much needed money. She did 'granny work' as a midwife (chamali) delivering hundreds of babies in the Rio Claro area. She would stay up to six days with the new mother, rubbing her belly and also massaging the 'little popo.' She washed clothes and cooked for the family.
Her massaging skills were learnt from her mother and she was able to fix back pain for 'woman and man', too. "Ah could tell right away if dey back open, den ah rub it and give it a good crack. Dey does feel good after dat." Bhagwanti's love for her family and parents also had her in love with her dharti mata (mother earth). Her life is a lesson in environmental friendliness.
"Mih mai used to always buy things in the market and plant the seed in we land. Ah does do just like she," she claims, "all kinda things ah plant here yes, jamoon, mamee seepote, Soursop, pottigal, sapotee (sapodilla), coconut, mango and chenette, but two ah de chenette turn papa, dey does flower and doh bear." She was all fired up now. "Ah like to plant, not only garden ting, but fruit tree too, one day it go bear and mih chirren and neighbours go get to eat."
Bhagwanti confirmed this love for the land, which caused her relatives and friends to put various seeds in their 'jahaji' bundles when they left India. Even today, despite commercial seed packaging, many families hold dearly to special strains of bhaigan, carailli etc, and pass them on to close relatives.
Bhagwanti has eight surviving children, Daye, Sookdaye, Deassia, Rosey, Golia, Sonnylal, Boodram and Praboodyal. She has 40 grandchildren, more than 60 great grands and three great great grand children.
Having endured several operations for gallstones, hernia and abscess, Bhagwanti seems entitled to a little 'vice' as she lights up her zoot…"When ah was eight years is de doctor who make me smoke a little cigarette every time de belly pain come."
Today her neighbours were thrilled to know that they have a survivor in their midst.