Where neighbours are your friends
GREYTOWN in central KwaZuluNatal is known for its quiet residential roads, tree-lined verges and a small, but bustling central business district.
A close-knit community atmosphere is evident in the town, which has developed over the years and now has its own mall, Mavundla Square on Oak Street.
A favourite recreational spot among familes is Merthley Lake, where they enjoy picnics.
Pioneering Indian families have set up and sustained successful businesses in the town which have helped ease the unemployment.
One such family is the Aheers. Their ancestors came from India in 1893 as indentured labourers.
Patriarch Dhayaram Ramharack Aheer, 75, said his father, Ramharack, grew fresh produce to sell at the market.
The Group Areas Act in 1950 saw them move to York Street.
“We grew up with donkeycarts and horse-drawn wagons. Life was hard. We had no shoes. A cow gave us milk and mielie rice was our staple food.”
The family’s fortunes improved in the late 1950s when they set up a wood and coal supply outfit, a driving school and a taxi service.
The Aheers battled to get a hawker’s licence and eventually in 1963 secured a licence to run their fresh produce business using a vehicle.
Aheer has fond memories of using his 1963 Chevrolet C30 to hawk his vegetables. The vehicle is now his pride and joy and has been on display at car shows in Pietermaritzburg.
After the death of his father in 1963, Aheer and his two brothers, Lalthapersad and Bughotiepersad, continued to run the business and when the brothers died, Aheer got his seven nephews on board, formed a close corporation and opened Aheers Supermarket in 1993. In 2006 Aheers Powertrade Cash and Carry opened.
Soccer and cricket at Lakhi’s Sports Field kept residents entertained. Two halls were used as makeshift cinemas to screen the latest Indian movies every week.
Three generations of the Moolla family have kept to the family tradition of trading as general dealers in the town.
Abdulhaq Moolla, who was born in the town, said it was the best place to grow up.
“It was a beautiful town with pleasant people. The community shared a bond and we enjoyed a good social life. We played sports, including cricket, soccer and tennis.
Moolla entered politics in the pre-1994 years and in 1996 became deputy mayor. He is now concerned by the town’s drug and alcohol problems.
Among Indian business pioneers were: the Larkhi family, who set up supermarkets, the Oris, who were the only tailors and owned the old Umvoti and Plough hotels, and the Maharaj family, who were known for their garage and service station businesses.
Greytown is home to one Hindu temple, the Shree Vishnu Mandhir on Cathcart Street which dates to 1910.
The 105-year-old temple was upgraded in 1980.
The president of the temple, Radhika Aheer, said her organisation was concerned about the lack of youth involvement in cultural and religious activities.
Child Welfare South Africa, led by Rajendra “Hitler” Maharaj, sees to child welfare in the area.
He lives in nearby Kranzkop but travels daily to work at the organisation and as a councillor for the Umvoti Municipality.
Maharaj says it was a challenge to set up premises for child welfare – it was run from the library and a doctor’s surgery in the 1980s.
He secured funding from the House of Delegates’ Welfare Department, which saw the R2.1 million offices built in 1993.
The organisation sees to a range of social matters, including adoption, foster care, child neglect and abandonment, family conflict and drug abuse.
He described Greytown as a lovely town, but with many social problems, especially poverty and unemployment.
Pastor Nathan Naidoo, 62, formerly of Pietermaritzburg has spent 40 years serving the community. He set up the Assemblies of God Fellowship in 1975, the only church in the town that met the needs of the Indian community. It’s now open to all races.
“It is challenging living here,” said Naidoo. There are no factories – many have closed. The farming community that was once vibrant no longer exists.”
The oldest school in Greytown, built primarily for Indian education in 1928, is Greytown Primary, which is now run by acting principal Anand Kumar Ramsamoojh. It has about 900 pupils.
Ramsamoojh, who was a pupil at the school, has been an educator there for 41 years.
He said he chose teaching because it was considered a noble profession.
“I’ve enjoyed my years of teaching here. The greatest satisfaction is meeting former pupils who have succeeded in their careers,” he said.
He and the former principal, Mark Anthony, who retired two weeks ago, consider the school “their own place” and worked effortlessly to maintain its academic standards.
A school hall was built through fundraising and Ramsamoojh said it had proved invaluable for meetings, classes and workshops.