Indian High Commissioner donates murti to Tobago Hindu Society

Indian High Commissioner to TT Arun Kumar Sahu on Saturday donated a Ganesh murti, harmonium and dholak to the Tobago Hindu Society in a gesture meant to expedite the construction of the organisation’s first temple on the island at Signal Hill.

The sod for the temple was turned on February 12, some eight years after the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) gave the society four lots of land to construct their own place of worship.

Delivering brief remarks at Phagwa observances on the site for the temple, Sahu said he hoped it would be completed soon to properly host the celebration and wished the members of Tobago’s Hindu community the best of luck during its construction.

“On behalf of the High Commission, I will be gifting a small brass idol of Ganesh, a dholak and a harmonium for the youths of the community. Of, course this is symbolic. Hindus always invoke Lord Ganesh for any noble work to progress smoothly. I hope the temple goes on without much hardship,” he told the small audience, before presenting the gifts to Tobago Hindu Society president Pulwaty Beepath and vice-president Regina Sammy-Baynes.

Beepath said the Tobago Hindu Society has been in existence for the past 30 years, hosting Indian Arrival Day and Divali celebrations at various locations on the island.

She said the organisation is grateful to former chief secretary Orville London, who was instrumental in granting them the four lots of land to construct the Hindu temple in 2014.

Saying the society has been hosting fundraising ventures in both Tobago and Trinidad to build the temple, Beepath also thanked the National Commission for Self-Help for the funding to begin construction. The temple is expected to be completed in 2023.

She added the organisation also distributed food hampers during the covid19 pandemic in collaboration with Office of the Prime Minister and the Office of the Indian High Commissioner.

THA Chief Secretary Farley Augustine was invited to the event but could not attend. His remarks were delivered by Assistant Secretary in the Division of Community Development, Youth Development and Sport and area representative for Lambeau/Lowlands Wane Clarke.

In the statement Augustine said it is critical that citizens appreciate the country’s various cultures in order to broaden their perspectives and connect with their fellow men with a greater level of respect and understanding.

He said although he had researched the festival “the best way to experience anything is to get in there and be a part of it. I am actually obeying that line.”

Augustine said Phagwa, the festival of colours, celebrates the triumph of good over evil, light, health, bountiful harvest and fertility.

Assistant Secretary in the Division of Tourism, Culture, Antiquities and Transportation Megan Morrison also spoke.

After the formal part of the event, which included several cultural performances, devotees pasted abeer on one-another in a spirit of goodwill and togetherness.