HE was restless, unsteady and unable to settle down peacefully in the first few weeks after he arrived in Fiji from India about six decades ago.
It was a new country, with new people and a strange environment for him compared with what it was back home.
The condition for him then was “like a fish out of water”, as stated in the essay on his life, My Roots.
Jogindar Singh Kanwal, however, made Fiji his home and contributed immensely in the fields of education, literature, culture and many other things.
Mr Kanwal passed away on July 17 after a short illness and his funeral was held on Wednesday.
Today, we pay tribute to an educationist, an author and a great family man who had made many friends from the day he arrived in Fiji until his demise.
He was born in a village called Ladhana Jhikka in the state of Punjab in India on December 1, 1927.
His father Sardar Chanan Singh migrated to Fiji, leaving Mr Kanwal, his elder brother and mother in the village when he was still in primary school.
When there were religious riots during the partition of India in 1947, Mr Kanwal helped in the refugee camps doing social service while still studying.
He majored in economics and political science in his Bachelor of Arts and then did Master of Arts in Amritsar, Punjab.
In 1955, Mr Kanwal enrolled at Post Graduate Teachers Training College in Chandigarh and in the same year, he got a job as the principal at a newly-established teacher training college.
Three years later, he arrived in Fiji, where he settled down and started a new life.
Mr Kanwal received various awards and honours in Fiji, India and New York for his contribution in the field of education, language and literature.
He was also the principal of Khalsa College in Ba from 1960-1987, lecturer in English for Business Communication at Fiji Institute of Technology from 1987-1991, Fiji Indian Cultural Centre administrator from 1993-2003, former chairperson of the Multi-ethnic Cultural Council in Ba, and a Justice of the Peace.
The novels he wrote include Savera, Dharti Mere Mata, Saat Samundar Paar, Karvat, The Morning, The New Migrant and A Love Story: 1920.
His non-fiction works are Mera Desh, Mere Log; A Hundred Years of Hindi in Fiji; Walking.
Mr Kanwal also wrote Hindi poems such as Yaddon ki Khushboo, Kuch Pattey Kuch Panchurian, Dard Apne Apne, An Anthology of Hindi Poets of Fiji, Many Rainbows of Love.
The short stories he wrote are Hum Log and An Anthology of Hindi Short Stories from Fiji.
Apart from all these, he contributed articles regularly to The Fiji Times and the vernacular newspaper Shanti Dut.
Mr Kanwal was at one time the president and also the secretary of Fiji Principals Association, member of the Fiji Teachers Union, member of the Commonwealth Council for Educational Administration, and past president and trustee of Sikh Educational Society of Fiji.
He was also associated with various literary organisations.
He leaves behind his wife Amarjit Kaur, four children — Diljeet, Harpreet, Sarbjit and Satpreet; son-in-law Baldeo; daughters-in-law Ranjini and Sharmila; seven grandchildren — Pawan, Aman, Simran, Anu, Prashant, Vikrant and Navpreet; and one great-grandchild, Zain.
According to Mr Kanwal’s family, his dwelling Ashiana in Varadoli, Ba will never be the same again.
“His collection of books in his library reflected his insatiable passion to read and write in English, Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu,” the family said.
“The sacrifices he made to get Khalsa College established and help it grow as a successful college reflects his dedication and belief in educating and shaping young minds. He never stopped learning and teaching.
“He was a willful man with strong values and beliefs. He had a heart of gold and a great sense of humour.
“Some of us will always remember the scent of his turban while others will hear his laughter.
“For some, the image of a tall lean man doing long brisk walks will enkindle fond memories.
“And for almost everyone flipping through a book will bring back a flashback of Mr Kanwal.”
The family says they will remember the man who honoured the sacrifices of his mother and eldest brother through his achievements.
“We will remember a man who strongly believed in creating his own destiny and was a mentor to many.
“Retirement, for him, never meant stop working. It just meant pursuing his passion for writing.
“In retrospect, each one of us has persevered and achieved through self-determination, grit and a strong sense of self because through his actions, his choices and his conversations, he gave us a blueprint of his values and principles.
“We have all been blessed to learn from his life and we will honour his memory through the values he ingrained in us,” said Mr Kanwal’s family.
