Published (1) partly in “Sindhiyat”,
Jan-2006 (2) “Hindu” (Sindhi) Dec-12-2005, Dec-26-2005 (3) “Sujag Sindhi"
(Dev), Jan-23-2006 and Feb-20-2006
(Mohan G. Rohira - Advocate)
I got a golden
opportunity to meet important Sindhis living in some cities of M.P. during the
recent Diwali Vacation in 2005. They were good enough to arrange long meetings
of Sindhis at a short notice on my request for promoting our ancient culture,
language & sanskriti as well as for cementing bonds of brotherhood in our
community. The love & affection extended by them cannot be described. The
taste of pudding is in its eating. The report in a nutshell is as under:-
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NAGDA (Oct 19, 2005)
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This city is on W.Rly at a distance of
45 kms. from Ratlam.Its population is 1 lakh which includes 55 Sindhi families.
They have one Puj Sindhi Panchayat whose President is Shri Bhojraj Daswani and
Vice President is Shri Bhagwandas Lilani and a dedicated Social Worker is Shri
Vasudev Chandnani on whose noble efforts a big meeting could take place at a short
notice of a few hours. The city has one marvelous Jhulelal Sindhi Dharmashala
& a temple at Jawahar Marg which was built recently with a sizeable
contribution from a Philanthropist lady of Khar (Mumbai) i.e. Smt. Dhanwanti
Devi Amarvani, not only for happy & unhappy occasions but also for lodging,
which has enhanced the prestige of these few Sindhi families.
They always meet
on happy & unhappy occasions such as marriage & death ceremonies. At
least 80% of them speak in their mother tongue Sindhi at home and among
themselves. So long as Sindhi is spoken even in small towns in this way, there
is no damage to our ancient rich language and culture of Mohen Jo Daro. Of
course there is no Sindhi school or Sindhi class. They are mainly in business
and they are well off on the whole. They celebrate Chetichand as Sindhiyat day
by closing shops, by taking out a big procession and by arranging Priti Bhojan
for all. They have made a Sindhi Telephone Directory and plan to make a big
Telephone Directory. They are united and have cordial relations with local
people. They promised to keep a laminated Murti of Jhulelal on each & every
Sindhi Shop on the lines of Bangalore Sindhi Samaj. There is a Sindhi press
reporter and the President of Lions Club of Nagda is also a famous Sindhi Dr.
S. R. Chawla. The places worth seeing are Greeson factories and a famous Birla
Mandir.
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UJJAIN (Oct 20,
2005)
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The population of this prestigious
ancient city (Avantika Nagri) is 8 lakhs including 25,000 Sindhis. They have 19
Sindhi Associations, each of them having contributed a lot in their respective
fields. The main organization among them are Sindhu Jagrat Samaj (President,
Shri Arjan Khatri), Sindhu Seva Ujjaini (President, Shri Tulsidas Dhanwani and
Founder President, Shri Tirathdas
Ramlani), Madhavnagar Sindhi Panchayat (President Shri Tulsidas Dhanwani), Lai
Lohana Panchayat (President Shri Mohandas Vaswani), Puj Sindhi Sukkur Panchayat
(President, Shri Murlidhar Kataria), & Sindhi Cloth Merchants Association
(President, Shri Vasu Khatri). Each of these Associations have published a
separate Sindhi Directory. They have built famous temples such as Alakh Dham in
Free Ganj whose Mahant is Swami Atamdas who is widely honoured by all of
them. Other temples (Jhulelal Mandirs)
are in Gordhandham Nagar & Satram Sindhi Colony. Recently,
they have started Swami Shanti Prakash Ashram in Sindhi Colony from 9.6.2013. There are 2 Sindhi
Dharamshalas for happy & unhappy occasions with Lodging arrangement also -
Shri Nenumal Gagandas Jethwani Dharamshala (Opp. Alakh Dham in Free Ganj) and
Sindhi Hindu Dharamshala in Satram Sindhi Colony. Besides these, there are 3
other Sindhi Public places for happy and unhappy occasions and meetings such as
Jacobabad Sindhi Dharamshala & Puj Sindhi Sukkur Panchayat Dharamshala
(both at Boxipura) and Dhanwani Community Hall in Saket Nagar. They normally
don't speak in Sindhi but they have assured that they will put their best
efforts to speak in their mother tongue Sindhi. Though they have one school
managed by them, unfortunately it does not have any Sindhi subject for which
they were persuaded to keep Sindhi at least as one of the subjects. However,
one Sindhi luminary Shri Chimanlal Lakhani takes Sindhi classes on every Sunday
for 2 hours. The other famous Sindhi social and political worker is Shri Shiva
Kotwani who has remained as MLA for a long time. Though they have no Sindhi
Central Panchayat, Sindhu Jagrat Samaj arranges Chetichand Mela in coordination
with other Sindhi Associations, on a grand scale, such as with long procession,
Jhankies, Bhandara and musical parties. The other melas are Parbrahma (Chhadi)
'Sinhastha' and Kavi Kalidas Samaroha etc. They have given many valuable suggestions
such as constitution of a Sindhi All India Co-ordinating Body for getting our
Legitimate Rights from the Govt., starting Sindhi T.V. Channel etc. They have
also agreed to keep a laminated Murti of Jhulelal at each & every Sindhi
shop / office. At least 95% of them are in business and are well off
financially on the whole. The tourism Deptt. at Bus Stand, (near Rly. Station)
arranges daily Luxury Bus Service 'Ujjain Darshan' for 4 hours showing all the
important Tourist & pilgrimage places such as Mahakaleshwar Jyotirling, Har
Sindhi Mandir, Raja Bharthari Gufa etc.
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DEWAS (Oct 22,
2005)
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This city of 3 lakhs strength is near
Ujjain. Though there are only 700 Sindhi families, they shine in every field.
They have 5 Big Associations such as (i) Puj Sindh Hindu Panchayat, Dayanand
Chowk (President Shri Parmanand Raichandani, Secretary Shri Srichand Manwani),
(ii) Sindhi Mahila Mandal (President, Smt. Kantadevi Punjabi), (iii) Sindhi
Yuva Sangathan (President, Shri Anil Talreja), (iv) Sindhu Seva Samiti
(President, Shri Anandram Khattar), (v) Shri Guru Nanak Graha Nirman Sahakari
Sanstha (President, Shri Sureshkumar Manwani). Each Association is working
efficiently in its respective field in which ladies & youth are not lagging
behind. They have built 2 big Dharamshalas for lodging as well as for happy
& unhappy occasions - Sindh Hindu Panchayat Bhawan at Dayanand Chowk &
Sindhu Bhawan Trust (with a huge garden), at Ujjain Road. The temples here are
par excellence such as (1) Sindhi Gurudwara at Mohan Dham, Jai Prakash Marg,
(ii) Swami Parmanand Bhandar at Alankar Market, (iii) Shri Anandpur Trust at
Peetha Road, (iv) Sant Asudaram Seva Samiti at Vasudev Pura. On an average, 50%
of them speak in Sindhi. Almost all of them are in business and are well off
financially. There is no trace of Sindhi school or classes. However they have
surpassed other cities in celebrating Melas particularly 'Chetichand Mela' so
much so that our heart is dancing to participate in it even at the cost of
Mumbai Chetichand Mela! On such an auspicious day they close their shops, take
out a huge procession with 'Jhankies' and 2 'Langars' (one for them & one
for poor people) and arrange Cultural Programme for 5 continuous days. The
famous Mumbai Builder & Sindhi Social Worker Narsingh Golani's name was
respectfully taken by them. They also celebrate Diwali Milan, Devi Mata's 'Jagran'
and 'Visarjan' (in which they are second to Calcutta City only). 2 Press
reporters Shri Ramesh Talreja & Shri Khubchand Manwani stay here. One Hindi
'Namcheen' weekly Newspaper is published from here with a Sindhi Column. They
have published a useful Sindhi Directory which is worthy of seeing by every
Sindhi. They have also got arrangement of Ambulance Service. They strongly
desire that an all India Sindhi Coordinating Body should be formed at the
earliest, Sindhi programmes should be telecast on T.V. & viewed on Radio,
particularly when they are not arranged in M.P. The places worth seeing are 2
famous temples of Mata Tulja Bhawani Devi & Mata Chamunda Devi on a hill
nearby which are venerated by one and all which no visitor to the city can
afford to miss.
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MHOW (Oct 25, 2005)
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This city of 1 1/2
Lakh strength is hardly at a distance of 20 kms from Indore. 115 Sindhi
families stay here, most of them at M.G. Road, near Rly. Station, having their
shops nearby. They have one Puj Sindhi Panchayat whose President is a famous
Advocate Miss Geeta Lakhwani & Vice President is Shri Pupchand Savlani. Apart from these, one more dedicated worker
& Treasurer is Shri Nanikram Makrani. The Mahila Samaj of this city is very
active so much so that the President of Puj Sindhi Samaj is a dedicated iady
and the attendance of ladies was more than Gents in the meeting. They have one
Sindhi Dharamshala with Jhulelal Temple at Plouton Road meant only for happy
& unhappy occasions, hence they were advised to make it fit for lodging
also so that any Sindhi visitor could stay in the Sindhi atmosphere without
wasting money on Hotels. Apart from not having Sindhi school, they mainly speak
in Hindi. However they have assured me to speak in Sindhi in future, at home
& among themselves for preserving our ancient rich language & culture.
They are mainly (say 90%) in business and are quite well off financially on the
whole. They are not lagging behind from other cities in celebrating annual
melas, particularly Chetichand. On this auspicious Sindhiyat day, they close
down their shops, keep path Sahib of Sri Guru Granth Sahib for 3 days, take out
procession in the city with Jhankis and arrange 'Langar' for all Sindhis. They
arrange entertainment programme for children along with 'Priti Bhojan' in the
function of Devi Mataji. These activities Serve as moral boost among the community,
particularly youngsters. They have made a Sindhi Telephone directory and have
planned to have a marvelous Sindhi Directory along with other social activities
in the near future. They also agreed to keep a Jhulelal Murti on every Sindhi
Shop on the lines of Bangalore Sindhi Samaj. The city has a big Military Camp
& School as well as many famous temples, i.e. Swarga Mandir, Gurudwara, etc
and a sufficient number of various factories.
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KHANDWA (Oct 27,
2005)
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This city stands on the C.RIy. Junction
Station. It has population of 3 lakhs which includes 975 Sindhi families, out
of which 750 families stay in Sindhi Colony and remaining 225 families stay in
Padam Nagar. There are 3 main Sindhi Associations such as (i) Pujya Sindhi
Panchayat, Sindhi Colony (President, Shri Bhagwandas Artani, Secretary, Shri
Mohanlal Diwan & 'Sanrakshak', Shri Gehiram Sitlani), (ii) Jhulelal
Navyuvak Mandal, Sindhi Colony (President, Shri Udhavdas Udasi & Secretary,
Shri Radhakishan Udasi), (iii) Sindhi Panchayat, Padam Nagar (President, Shri
Shankarlal Tirthani & Secretary, Shri Bhagwandas Ahuja). Sindhi Colony residents
have 2 Sindhi Dharamshalas for happy & unhappy occasions - Shewa Mandli and
Jhulelal Sindhi Dharamshala, as well as Baba Tirathdham & Balakdham
Gurudwaras, Shivdham & Swami Shanti Prakash Temples. Padam Nagar residents
also have constructed a new Temple which is going to be inaugurated on Makar
Sankranti day of January 2006. Sindhi is mainly spoken in Sindhi Colony where
as Padam Nagar Sindhi residents (hardly 4 kilometers away) mainly speak in
Hindi. The city has one school managed by Sindhis but unfortunately Sindhi is
not taught there even as one of the subjects. They are mainly in business and
are primarily in middle class financially. However Padam Nagar Sindhi residents
are better off financially. They celebrate Chetichand as Sindhiyat day and take
out procession in city along with Baharana Sahib & close down their shops.
Dasera is celebrated through Daserra Utsava Samiti by burning the effigy of
Ravana. Guru Nanak Jayanti is celebrated through Tirathdham Gurudwara. Sindhu
Seva Samiti (President, Shri Maniklal Lalwani & Secretary, Shri Dilip
Ahuja) manage school upto 8th standard as well as Nari Shalla. In all 35
members attended the meeting. They also agreed to keep a Jhulelal Murti in
every Sindhi Shop in the near future. They gave many valuable suggestions such
as creating dedicated & selfless Sindhi leaders, establishing an All India
Sindhi Coordinating Body as well as Sindhi T.V. Channel, arranging Community
marriages, taking active part in politics etc. The places worth seeing are Nagachun
Talao & temples of Nav Chandi Devi Dham, Laxrni Narayan, Bhawani Mata,
Rameshwar & Sai Baba. Here also Shri Narsingh Golani has done some
creditable work in social field.
