Re: Indian Sindhis are forgetting Sindhi
Sindh and Sindhis
By Amar Jaleel
IT is generally lamented that the Sindhis in Sindh are living a miserable life. Part-time and full-time politicians have cried themselves hoarse in telling the world, if things did not improve the Sindhis will turn into Red Indians in their own province. However, they refrain from revealing the ‘things’ they desire to see improved in Sindh.
Save for Karachi the rest of the province is under the domination of the Waderas, Khans, Sardars, Syeds, and the Jagirdars who are the sole entrepreneurs of political manoeuvrings in Sindh. With guaranteed reserved seats in national and provincial assemblies they have ruled over Sindh since 1947. What improvement have they brought about within the jurisdiction of their constituencies? Who do they expect to improve the things they often talk about? And, what do they mean by ‘things’? Educational institutions, community health centres, maternity homes, telecommunication systems, provision of roads, water, electricity, and gas? Should I include in the inventory of the ‘things’ an acute sense of insecurity among the rural people? By the way, who harbours the savage Dharels? If not landed elites, then who — the writers, poets, scholars, educationists, sportsmen, publishers, printers, artists, scientists?
This article deals with the social, cultural, economic, and political condition of the Sindhis and Sindh. By the Sindhis I mean ethnic Sindhis, having their family tree planted in the soil of Sindh for at least a few generations. In this article we will discuss the issues of the Sindhis whose mother tongue happens to be Sindhi. The majority of them live ignoble lives in the interior parts of the province. They are subjected to a three-prong censure from Sardars and Waderas and their kith and kin, Dharels (dreaded criminals harboured by the influential), and the police. They live a life devoid of basic needs. Who is responsible for their plight?
Except for landed aristocrats, the Zamindars, Jagirdars, Waderas, and Sardars, by and large, an overwhelming majority of the rural Sindhis survives under pathetic conditions.
The Sindhis in government service live a content life. A few of them are working with private and multinational companies and institutions. Their outlook on, and approach to, tackling the problems in life is realistic. This article views the life of the rural Sindhis, and the Sindhis who have migrated from the interior to villages, towns, and cities in the province in search of food, shelter, and employment.
Prior to partition of the subcontinent Sindh was a happy and a wealthy province of India. Karachi being a seaport city was the hub of economic activity. It was a multilingual and multicultural city that belonged to the followers of different religions. Diverse communities with different faiths and beliefs, different languages and culture had lived in peace and harmony in Karachi. They participated in each other’s joys and sorrows. They did not kill each other in the name of religion. They did not usurp each other’s properties. They had regard for each another’s customs and traditions. The Sufi mood of the capital city prevailed upon the mood in Hyderabad, Larkano, Rohri, Sukkur, Shikarpur, Jacobabad, and smaller towns of Tando Allahyar, Kandiaro, Shahdadpur, Nawabshah, Dadu, Badin, and the rest of the province.
Sindhi Hindus had maintained an excellent network of trade and commerce all over Sindh. They had the knack for managing and multiplying finances. The markets owned by the Hindus were stuffed with fancy merchandize, crockery, cutlery, cloth, linen, cosmetics, confectionery, instruments, implements, medicines, books, stationary, and for that matter anything that was available elsewhere in India. They had established trade centres in Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, London, East Africa, and other parts of the world. They were philanthropists. They founded and maintained Nari Shalas, Ashrams, community development centres, free dispensaries and hospitals, charitable and educational institutions, schools and colleges, libraries, theatres, and gardens all over urban Sindh. They had kept towns and cities of Sindh neat and clean.
The rural areas of Sindh as usual were under the domination of landed aristocrats. The British did not let them interfere in the affairs of the urban Sindh. It doesn’t suggest that the urban Sindh by proxy was in the hands of the enterprising and hard working Hindus. Affluent and educated Muslim families had a definitive role in the affairs of the urban Sindh. Mohammed Ali Jinnah, Sir Abdullah Haroon, Sir Ghulam Hussain Hidayatullah, Sir Sultan Aga Khan, Khan Bahadur M A Khohro, Peerzada Abdul Sattar, Hassan Ali Affandi, and Pir Illahi Buksh — to name a few — were celebrated scions of such Muslim families of Sindh.
During the massive exodus of 1947-48, Sindhi Hindus migrated to India. They left behind beautiful buildings, mansions, shops, markets, cooperatives, schools, colleges, libraries, gardens, and numerous charitable hospitals, clinics, shrines, temples, and social welfare institutions. Sindh’s urban areas experienced the worst kind of social and economic void in its history. The Sardars, Jagirdars, and Waderas along with their henchmen pounced on the opportunity, and seized the control of the towns and smaller cities of Sindh. They became chief ministers, ministers (and now nazims) of Sindh. Lacking competence they miserably failed in maintaining the image of a splendid Sindh. It began crumbling. Its gardens turned into garbage dumps. The exquisite buildings were defaced. Elegant mansions were devastated. Institutions were erased. Libraries were left to the care of rats. The Sindh of today is a pillaged one. Who the incompetent intend to hold responsible for the ruination of Sindh and the Sindhis?
http://www.dawn.com/weekly/dmag/dmag3.htm
) and in the end everyone starts hatin on each other and they all go home and swear to not meet up ever but then they do the same thing all over again next year. What a sad bunch 
