Jetpur in 2005 by BY: HAJI ALI MUHAMMAD ALI TABBA

Just recently, I got an opportunity to visit our home town Jetpur (Gujrat State – India)

We reached Jetpur on 29^th March, 2005 and spent there five days enjoying re-union with friends and folks, feeling the damply fragrant soil and bracing air and sharing the sweet memories of earlier days. During our stay, frequent meetings were organized in which local Community’s problems were discussed, personal plights of many families were narrated and arrangements were made to solve most of them.

 

Before partition, the population of Jetpur was 40,000 people out of which 50% were Muslims and about 10,000 belonged to Memon community. After partition, some of members of Memon Community migrated to Pakistan and some of them shifted their families to Surat & Bombay. At present, there are 249 Memon families settled in Jetpur, consisting of 892 adult and 214 minor members. Thus, all together there is a total population of 1106 Memons in Jetpur.

 

Among these 249 families, some 135 are original Jetpurians. Other 114 families are the Memons who have migrated from nearby areas mostly to seek jobs in textile dying and printing industry of Jetpur. Original Jetpurians fully cooperated with migrated Memons in settling down in the Town and today, all the new and old Memon families are living happily with each other, enjoying reciprocal cooperation in all spheres of human life. This way, all together a total of 249 Memon families have become Pucka Jetpurians. Some 25 to 30 Memon families get regular monthly aid (in shape of cash, ration etc) from Jetpur Anjuman Memon Jamat, while needy families are also provided with Shaadi Madad and other such assistance at the time of their need. In recent past, some 25 to 30 families were facing severe hardship in earning their livelihood, but today 10 to 15 out of them are happily self reliant and getting their incomes in satisfactory way. Present population of Jetpur is 150,000 which includes about 20,000 Muslims.

 

DYING INDUSTRY

 

Jetpur is famous for its textile dying and printing industry, but there is an acute slump in this business now-a-days. There is no other means of earning worth mentioning. The gravity of the situation is that almost all the Memon families of Jetpur are hand-to-mouth and there is no such caretaking rich class in the local community who can shelter them.

 

However, Jetpurians are fortunate enough have Mr. Abdur Razzak Kapadiya, who is well-settled in Mumbai & who rushes to look after them. Under his personal care and Presidentship, Mr. Kapadiya is actively sharing the grievances of Jetpurians and serving the Community with body, soul and wealth. He has also contributed towards rehabilitation of Jetpurians and have build a whole residential project in Jetpur. He provided 54 flats to deserving needy families and is also taking care of maintenance of this project. For all these humanitarian activities, Mr. Kapadiya takes trouble to personally visit Jetpur frequently.

 

Apart from Mr. Abdul Razzak Kapadiya, other Jetpurians from Mumbai also provide financial assistance to their fellow beings at Jetpur, according  to their own resources. Moreover, some philanthropist patrons from Karachi keep remembrance of their brethren at Jetpur and send every possible help to them.

 

MOSQUES

 

There are a total of six mosques in today’s Jetpur. Four of them, namely (1) Jumma Masjid (2) Bahar Pura Masjid (3) Saami Shah Masjid and (4) Khand Pura Masjid, are run under the proficient administration of Jetpur Anjuman Memon Jamat. Anjuman have recently completed the renovation work at all these four mosques with an expenditure of over One Million Rupees. They have provided all the modern facilities for Namazees and is running all the four mosques in commendable manners.

 

The other two mosques of the Town, Nagina Masjid and Madina Masjid at Gondal Darvaja, are run under the control of Muslims living in surrounding areas. These two mosques lack the basic facilities and are in severe need of renovation work. They are in deficient condition due to shortage of funds.

 

OTHER SERVICES

 

The readers may like to know about some important aspects of present day Jetpur:

 

  1. Haji Dawood Hospital has been completely demolished and now there is only ground.

  2. Adamjee School has been sold out  after partition.

  3. A Colony for rehabilitation is under consideration at Tabba seri plot of 900 Yards.

 

POPULATION & DEVELOPMENTS

 

The roads and streets of the Town have improved and every house has been provided its individual water connection. Supply of drinking water has improved due to the construction of a dam on river Bhadar. Thanks to regular rains plus BHADAR DAM, citizens of Jetpur get drinking water round the clock. Hindus and Muslims are living in Jetpur with peace and harmony. Ofcourse, the dignity and the magnificence which Memons possessed in old days are missing.

 

In short, Jetpur, being our native town where we have been born and brought up and which is the peculiar land belonging to our great fore fathers, has still not lost its charm to us. Our passion towards our motherland should not diminish, we must apprehend it in our soul and by paying tribute to the sweet memories of our Jetpur, we would be getting divine pleasure as well as the satisfaction of fulfilling our obligations towards our ancestors.

Article republished with permission of Mr Abdur Razzak Thaplawala