Johannesburg, Nov 3: Several outreach projects initiated by the Indian Consulate in Johannesburg over the past month have found great favour with the South African-Indian community. South Africa has one of the largest Indian communities in the Diaspora, and although there is frequent interaction between them and us, we felt that we could create greater awareness through hosting some events that linked up with the 75th anniversary of India’s independence Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, said Consul General Anju Ranjan.
Bolstered by Mahatma Gandhi’s links to both countries, there was even greater opportunity for this, added Ranjan as she explained her idea of undertaking a Gandhi Trail expedition with two busloads of enthusiasts visiting sites related to Gandhi’s stay in South Africa across six cities last month. These included Pietermaritzburg railway station where young lawyer Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was unceremoniously booted off a train, because the compartment he was in was reserved for whites only. This sparked off his lifelong commitment to fighting oppression and discrimination in South Africa and India.
The trail included the communes started by Gandhi, Phoenix Settlement in Durban and Tolstoy Farm near Johannesburg, as well as prisons and courthouses where Gandhi spent time during his stay in South Africa as he led marches. The interest that the Gandhi Trail exercise sparked in the diaspora community here has been phenomenal. People have apparently even been asking local libraries for more books on Gandhi, Ranjan said.
As India last week celebrated the 146th birth anniversary of independence leader Vallabhbhai Patel, popularly known as Sardar Patel, Ranjan and her team hosted an event in the semi-rural town of Standerton to share the message of hope for today’s world by screening a film and hosting a walk there. We were delighted that not only the local Indian community, but members of the neighbouring Black community, including the local councillor, joined us. Many people who knew nothing about Sardar Patel were amazed to learn that he had played such a significant role in uniting over 500 princely kingdoms in India to become one independent India, Ranjan said.
The success of the programme has resulted in the programme being taken to Nelspruit in Mpumalanga province later this month. The advent of Diwali and the annual pre-Diwali dinner hosted by the Consulate on Sunday also drew huge attendance from members of all South African communities who eagerly await the event.
My biggest regret was that we could not accommodate more people due to the Covid-19 lockdown regulations, but we were grateful that the South African government eased it to Level 1 so that we could host it again in this special anniversary year, Ranjan said. All these projects have generated greater interest in India by South Africans across the board, and we are hopeful that besides learning more about our largest democracy in the world and its founders, it will also boost tourism to India when things return to normal after the pandemic, Ranjan concluded.
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