We have been able to trace Fifteen generations of our Ancestors.
The immediate Ancestors were Jata Shanker - Dossa - Harji - Jadavji - Parmanand - Pragji - Ranchod - Gokal - Nanji - Bhuderji and Chancha. We don't really have details of the previous generations. About five to six generations earlier were Chachaji, son of Bhuder. It is supposed that Chachaji migrated to Kutch. His progeny are Chanchani's.
The history we have been able to document goes back three generations and begins from Jatashanker Dossa, my Great grandfather, who was fondly called Bapu.
Bapu's rise from a petty earth-digging contractor to coalmine owner is a story of hard work, honesty and loyalty to partners & of course, luck to some extent.
He started his career in Bombay as a shop assistant to a Kutchi businessman. He had to work day and night in the shop as well in his employers home to look after his children. He was paid Rs 60/- (about US$ 1.30) per year.
Getting tired of this drudgery he migrated to a place in Madhya Pradesh & started as a very small sub-contractor in various places in Madhya Pradesh, Orissa etc. Then he started on his own as earth digging contractor under railways. He was digging earth & leveling the ground for laying railway lines at various places the last of which was at Bermo.
When this contract was completed he was again out of job. He went to Anjar and started planning to migrate to South Africa where many Indians were migrating. But before he act on this he received a telegram from his railway officer, an Englishman, asking him to proceed to Bermo immediately for urgent work.
When Bapu reached Bermo the officer asked him to start the work as a coal-raising contractor. Bapu pleaded his inability telling his boss that he was only a earth worker & had no experience in coal mining, further he had no capital to invest in this big job.
The officer told him that because of the 1st world war the government was in great need of coal & the place he was digging to lay rail lines had huge quantity of coal underneath the surface & required no experience as the work was just to dig the earth and expose the coal 30-50 feet underneath.
He also advanced him money to carry on the work. Bapu got financial help from Mayashanker Bhagwanji & collected some person he knew who could help. This was a turning point in Bapu's life.
It was the biggest coal-producing centre in the country. He took into his partnership Mayashanker Bhagwanji as financial partner & Ramji Dahya as working partner. He continued with this till the end of his working life.
He invested the profits in buying coal-mines in Jharia field and also huge amount in purchasing land in Mulund, a suburb 30 km from Bombay.
Bapu had nine sons and one daughter.
Bapu | Bhagwanlal | Harilal | Amritlal | Dhirajlal | Himmatlal | Dalpat | Jayantilal | Kantilal | Jagdish | Mukta.
Our Roots: Nandwana Community History
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This would not have been possible without Jagruti, and I thank all those who have contributed to it. Please do e-mail me for any updates, I will try and add them here. I would like to thank Kantilal J. Chanchani for his contribution on Bapu's history and Dev Chanchani for hosting this site on his server.