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The city of Amritsar stands on the volatile border between India and Pakistan. It has been a focus for political and religious conflict since the partition of 1947. "Amritsar" brings together 25 first-hand accounts of life in a city at the epicentre of one of the largest and bloodiest forced migrations in history.
The interviews explore experiences from the time of partition: from the suddenness of uprooting and the belief that the migration was only to be temporary to the enduring sense that the violence was politically and not culturally or religiously motivated. Issues raised include: the abduction and rehabilitation of women and children; the differing experiences of elite and subaltern classes; the memories of refugee convoys and camps; the hazards of border crossing; and the nostalgia for pre-Partition bonds between Muslims, Sikhs, and Hindus.
List of contents
Introduction Interviews1. The Abduction and Rehabilitation of Women and Children, and Related Issues, Mrs Anant Kaur 2. An Aristocratic Family's Experience of Partition and the Arya Samaj, Sardar Aridaman Singh Dhillon 3. Migration from the Last Sikh Village in the Chenab Canal Colony, Sardar Bhagwant Singh Khaira 4. The Experiences of a Ninety-three-year-old Man from Sialkot, Sardar Charan Singh 5. A Clerk Flees Lahore Under Gurkha Escort, Sardar Dalip Singh 6. From D.A.V. College, Lahore, to Khalsa College, Amritsar, Sardar Gurbachan Singh Bhatti 7. Strong Bonds Between Sikh and Muslim Villagers in District Sialkot, Sardar Gurcharan Singh Bhatia 8. On Sikhs, Muslims, and Hindu 'Imperialism', Sardar Gurdeep Singh Bhatia 9. The Experience of Forced Migration for the Rich and the Influential, Dr Harcharan Singh 10. A 1948 Sikh Migrant from Jammu & Kashmir, Sardar Inderjit Singh 11. The Partition Memories of an Eminent Educationist from the Ramgarhia Sikh Community, Sardar Jagdish Singh 12. Radical Dislocation from Muzaffargarh and Relative Poverty in Amritsar, Mr K.B. Lal 13. The Massacre of Sikh Women by Their Own Families, Mrs Kartar Kaur 14. Escape Without Injury from the NWFP to Amritsar, Sardar Kuljit Singh Khurana 15. Memories of Life in a Refugee Camp, Mrs Kuljeet Kaur 16. A Haveli Becomes a Sikh Fortress, Mr M.S. Chawla 17. A Granthi Narrates Exactly What Happened in a Refugee Convoy, Sardar Mohan Singh 18. A Lahore Sikh Delegation Meets Sardar Patel in August 1947, Sardar Mohinder Singh 19. A Rare, Uneventful Crossing from Pakistan to India, Mrs Nirmala Devi 20. A Christian Preacher's Experience of Partition, Peter Sadiq 21. An Upper-class Army Doctor's Recollections of Partition, Dr Ranbir Singh 22. A Secular Schoolteacher and Educationist's Nostalgia for His Pre-Partition Homeland, Mr Roshan Lal 23. From Prosperity to Destitution: A Village Woman's Nightmare Journey Through the Partition Riots, Mrs Satya Vanti 19924. A Landed Farmer, Wounded and Reduced to Penury by Partition, Sardar Tirath Singh 25. An Arya Samaji Philanthropist and Original Amritsar Resident's Memories of 1947, Vaid Vidya Sagar A Select Annotated Bibliography
About the author
Ian Talbot is Director of the Centre for South Asian Studies at Coventry University. His most recent books include Pakistan: A Modern History and Khizr Tiwana, the Punjab Unionist Party and the Partition of India. Darshan Singh Tatla has been an honorary research fellow at the Centre for South Asian Studies, Coventry University and is co-author of Punjab.
Summary
The city of Amritsar has been a focus for political and religious conflict since the partition of 1947. This work brings together 25 first-hand accounts of life in a city at the epicentre of one of the largest and bloodiest forced migrations in history. It explores experiences from the time of partition.
