The first ship Atlas reached Mauritius from Calcutta on 2 November 1834. It mainly had people from Bihar, Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Bengal. In which a large population was of Dalit, backward and deprived castes. The Dalit communities that went from these areas mainly included Chamar, Dhobi, Dom, Pasi, Musahar, Kahar, Nai etc. castes.
It is about the year 2021. A man from Mauritius came to India in search of his roots. This search brought him to Purvanchal. This was surprising for him. Then a research started. What came out in this research started bringing out the story of the contribution of Dalits of Purvanchal in making Mauritius layer by layer.
BHU’s DN Scientist Professor Gyaneshwar Choubey, who did this research, has collected important information in four years of research. According to research, about 55% of the DNA of the total population of Indians living in Mauritius matches with the Bhojpuri speaking Dalit community of UP’s Purvanchal and Bihar. In this, the DNA of the Dalit community of Purvanchal, especially Buxar, Ara, Bhabua, Chhapra and Sasaram, has been matched. Currently, the population of Mauritius is 12 lakhs. That is, the Dalits have contributed the most in making the beauty of Mauritius, which is discussed all over the world today.
Mauritius was discovered in 1502. Africans were settled here in 1670. The British captured Mauritius in 1810. The first time Dalits went here also has its own story.
When did Dalits go to Mauritius for the first time?
- In 1834, the British government abolished slavery, but they needed laborers for sugarcane cultivation.
- After this, indentured laborers were taken from India. British agents used to take these labourers on a 5-year contract in the name of “Girmit” (agreement).
- The first ship Atlas reached Mauritius from Calcutta on 2 November 1834.
- It mainly had people from Bihar, Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Bengal. In which a large population was of Dalit, backward and deprived castes. The Dalit communities that went from these areas mainly included Chamar, Dhobi, Dom, Pasi, Musahar, Kahar, Nai etc. castes.
Role of Dalits in making Mauritius
- Sugarcane cultivation and sugar industry are the backbone of Mauritius’ economy. Most of the work of building it was done by Indian labourers, a large number of whom were Dalits.
- Dalit migrants were at the forefront in the construction of all these infrastructures – farms, factories, roads, railways and ports. Although they were assigned the most difficult and humiliating work, this labour became the economic foundation of Mauritius.
- Those who went to Mauritius included Dalit women, who worked equally with men in the fields, and also faced exploitation as domestic servants. The great novelist William has written that “these Bhojpuri speaking people of the weakest section of UP and Bihar used to cultivate sugarcane and cotton while tied in chains. This work was unbearably painful. But they endured that pain and established themselves in Mauritius.
The report shows that among the Indian population present in Mauritius, 55 percent of the people have DNA matching with the Bhojpuri speaking Dalit community. 35 percent of the DNA was of people coming from the Dravidian society while 4 percent of the DNA matches with the Brahmin and Kshatriya society.
The special thing is that despite being in Mauritius, this community has not forgotten its language and culture even today. Bhojpuri and Chhath still reside in the veins of the people here. That is, the Dalit community, which the Indian scriptures and society still consider the most incapable and small, has created a country like Mauritius.
Ashok Das
Ashok Das (Ashok Kumar) is the country’s first person to do journalism by keeping the Dalit-tribal society at the center. He is a well-known journalist. He is the founder and editor of ‘Dalit Dastak Media Sansthan’. His journalism has been appreciated in countries like America, Canada, Sweden and Dubai including India. He has also traveled to these countries. Features about Ashok Das’ journalism have been published in many newspapers and magazines of the country and abroad, including DW (Germany), The Asahi Shimbun (Japan), The Mainichi Newspaper (Japan), The Week Magazine (India) and Hindustan Times (India). Ashok has given a lecture at the world-renowned Harvard University in America in February 2020. He has received a fellowship from the world’s largest organization of investigative journalism, Global Investigation Journalism Network, for the conference organized in Gothenburg, Sweden in 2023.
Courtesy: Hindi News