Indentured Labouers

The first group of Indians arrived in the British colony of Natal in 1860. About 150 indentured labourers arrived at Port Natal on board the ship Truro. When the sugar industry was established in Natal the local Zulu labourers were recruited to work on the sugar plantations. However, the Natal colonial authorities were not initially aware that Zulu males regarded agricultural work as a female activity. Traditionally, the Zulu males were involved in grazing cattle and defending the tribe against foreign attack. The high labour turnover forced the colonial authorities to seek Indian labour that was already successfully employed in other British colonies.

The indentured labourers were given a monthly stipend of two British pounds. They were also given provisions and their health needs were catered for. Their earnings as indentured labourers were considerably higher than they could earn in India. Therefore, future shipments of indentured labourers were highly successful. At the end of the initial three year contract the indentured labourers were given a free passage back to India or given agricultural land equivalent to the value of a passage back to India. Owning their own land was an unlikely event in their homeland of India and it is understandable that the majority preferred to remain in South Africa.

The working conditions of the indentured labourers were harsh. The plantation owners demanded long hours of work in the oppressive humid climate of Natal. Harsh punishment was meted out on labourers who could not keep up with the heavy workload. Their problems were compounded by the fact that they were living in a foreign land with a foreign culture and they also had to contend with many foreign languages. Not everyone could cope with the severe demands. But those who did became land-owning free Indians, considered to be wealthy by the standards of their former homeland.