Source: www.grenadabroadcast.com
[HPI note: Grenada is an island nation and sovereign state consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands in the southeastern Caribbean Sea. Grenada is located northwest of Trinidad and Tobago, which also has a significant Hindu population.]
ST. GEORGE’S, GRANADA, April 29, 2009: The Indo-Grenadian Heritage Foundation held a Memorial and Thanksgiving Service on Friday May 1st at the Samaritan Presbyterian Church to mark the arrival of the first batch of Indians to Grenada on 1st May, 1857.
On that date, the Maidstone landed 287 persons at Irwin’s Bay, St. Patrick’s. This was the first of several ships bringing a total of 3,200 indentured workers from India to Grenada, the seeds of today’s large Indo-Grenadian community.
The Prime Minister of Grenada, Hon. Tillman Thomas, and his cabinet have agreed that May 1st will be officially recognized as Indian Arrival Day, along with the already established Labour Day.
On Sunday May 3rd the celebrations continued on the grounds of the Belmont Estate, where Grenadians experienced a little bit of Indo-Grenadian Cuisine and culture.