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Partition survivor recalls traveling to Pakistan by ship

Partition survivor recalls traveling to Pakistan by ship

In this special video series, Sugrah Kazmi speaks about her journey to Pakistan
05 Aug, 2018

The Port of Karachi is one of South Asia's largest and busiest deep-water seaports. At the time of Partition a large number of refugees arrived from India to Pakistan via ships.

Partition survivor Sugrah Kazmi recalls her journey to Pakistan via ship.

Says Kazmi, "In those days there was no airplane service; only ships. We found vacancy on the Dumra Ship, we were allotted space in the basement of the ship."

"When we disembarked on the shores of Karachi, everyone went wherever they found space. Some went into hotels, some with their relatives. We also stayed with one of our relative's for a few days."

The trip was not without hardships as Kazmi adds, "On the way the camels carrying our luggage were also lost."


This article is part of a week-long series on achieving independence and the early years of Pakistan, run collaboratively by Images and The Citizens Archive of Pakistan (CAP).

CAP is a non-profit organization dedicated to cultural and historic preservation. It seeks to educate the community, foster an awareness of our nation’s history and instill pride in Pakistani citizens about their heritage.

Comments

uaa Aug 05, 2018 01:06pm
I have written memoirs of my grandfather, he also arrived via ferry service to karachi
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AK Aug 05, 2018 05:15pm
Partition was unnecessary. Mahatma Gandhi was against partition.
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ak4pk Aug 06, 2018 02:09am
I too remember my journey to Pakistan by boat. I was only six and it was very scary. We moved from Calcutta to Dhaka via the fishing port ‘Chandpur’. After about two months stay in Dhaka we went on to settle in Chittagong. With no electricity and no water connection, water had to be fetched from a 1/4 of a mile away, and what with never ending monsoon rains, life was extremely difficult. With time things got better. But then came the Bangladesh’s war of independence and we had to leave for Karachi in 1970. One day about half a dozen Mukti Bahinis stormed into our house and lined us up at the barrel of several guns. Luckily a couple of my very close childhood friends who were also Mukti Bahinis, popped in for a cup of tea as they always did. That saved our lives, it was a close shave as the saying goes.
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MAK Aug 06, 2018 02:54am
I have sailed on SS Dumra from Karachi to Bombay in late fifties before my teen years along with my mother and returned on the sister ship SS Dwarka. Even though we had a cabin but the people traveling on the deck were in bad shape. Those two ships were nothing more than a rust bucket.
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Veer36 Aug 06, 2018 07:34am
Nearly seventy one years ago people like me became faceless Destitutes, with no place to call Home. Did any of the leaders who negotiated Azadi care about the consequences of what would happen after partition. The animosity between the two countries continues even today, WHY ?.
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riz1 Aug 06, 2018 10:10am
So sad and unfortunate. Let's be honest to ourselves before jumping with ultra-nationalism. Are we happier and really better off today and awaiting a prosperous future filled with hope for our next generations? The writing is on the wall, take it or leave it.
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