Abbotsford Council this week unanimously decided “to create a commemorative renaming of South Fraser Way to ‘Komagata Maru Way’” between Fairlane Street and Ware Street.
The decision comes Raj Singh Toor, the grandson of one of the passengers on the Komagata Maru, and Vice President for the Descendants of the Komagata Maru Society, requested an earlier council to commemorate the humanitarian role played by Abbotsford’s South Asian community at the time.
The council has also directed staff “to create an interpretive plaque at the Heritage Sikh Temple Historic Site in partnership with the South Asian Studies Institute that focuses on the “Abbotsford story” of the Komagata Maru incident, along with education kits to enhance learning.”
The recommendations were presented by Terra Dickinson, Manager, Culture Services, and Susan Federspiel, Manager, Community Services.
The Komagata Maru arrived in Vancouver on May 23, 1914 with 376 passengers including two women and five children. “One of which was my grandfather. His name was Baba Puran Singh Janetpura,” said Toor.
He thanked Mayor Ross Siemens the Councillors and the City of Abbotsford staff for their work.
The plaque, according to Toor, will help educate the community and remind us of Abbotsford’s diverse makeup. “The City of Abbotsford has a direct connection to the Komagata Maru incident. The Sikhs were some of the early pioneers of Abbotsford making important contributions to the labour pool for the lumber mills, railway projects, and industries of the area. Support of the passengers of the Komagata Maru was a very pressing concern for all Sikhs in BC during the summer of 1914. Some Sikhs lived in Abbotsford Summer of 1914 as well and they generously responded with donations of food, water, money, and medicine.”
He hopes that it will help in connecting British Columbians, Canadians and Abbotsford residents with their past, in order to build a more peaceful and tolerant tomorrow.
“We can’t undo the past, but we can move forward and leave a legacy for future generations by educating them about the past,” he said.
