Kher Jagatsingh
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix = Sir
| name = Keharsingh Jagatsingh
| image =
| order = Minister of Education
| president =
| primeminister =
| term_start = 1977
| term_end = 1982
| predecessor =
| successor =
| order1 = Minister of Planning & Economic Development
| president1 =
| primeminister1 =
| term_start1 = 1967
| term_end1 = 1975
| predecessor1 =
| successor1 =
| order2 = Member of Parliament
| president2 =
| primeminister2 =
| term_start2 = 1959
| term_end2 = 1963
| predecessor2 =
| successor2 =
| birth_date = {{birth date |1931|7|23|df=y}}
| birth_place = Punjab, British India
| death_date = {{death date and age|1985|7|19|1931|7|23|df=y}}
| death_place = England
| spouse =
| children =
| party = Mauritian Labour Party
|
| occupation = Journalist
|
}}
{{short description|Mauritian politician}}
Keharsingh Jagatsingh, more commonly known as Sir Kher Jagatsingh (23 July 1931 – 19 July 1985) was a Mauritian politician and Labour Party (Mauritius) minister.{{cite web |title=Il y a 41 ans, le 15 janvier 1977: Kher Jagatsingh remplace Heeralall Bhugaloo comme ministre de l'Education |url=https://www.lexpress.mu/article/324639/il-y-41-ans-15-janvier-1977-kher-jagatsingh-remplace-heeralall-bhugaloo-comme |website=www.lexpress.mu |publisher=L'Express |accessdate=15 January 2018}}
Early life
Keharsingh was born in India, the 14th child of a family of 16 children.{{cite web |last1=Gordon-Gentil |first1=Alain |title=Le mauricianisme selon Kher Jagatsingh (2006) |url=https://www.lexpress.mu/article/le-mauricianisme-selon-kher-jagatsingh |publisher=L'Express |accessdate=12 July 2020}} The family migrated to Mauritius and his father was a prison warden at Beau Bassin who retired in 1940. Although he did not attend secondary school Keharsingh joined the Teachers Training College in 1950, but left for the Civil Service where he worked as clerk in the Ministry of Health before starting a newspaper.{{cite web |last1=Kalla |first1=Abdool Cader |title=Mauritius:Curriculum Reform in the Process of Decolonisation |url=https://www.academia.edu/37296864 |website=www.academia.edu |accessdate=1 December 2017}}
Political career
As a young journalist of Mauritius Times Jagatsingh was mentored by social worker Bikramsingh Ramlallah who was also later elected to parliament in 1959. At the 1959 elections Jagatsingh was elected in Constituency No.40 Petite Rivière.{{cite web |title=Results of 1959 elections |url=http://electoral.govmu.org/English/electionresult/nasselec/Pages/Results-1959.aspx |website=Office of Electoral Commissioner |publisher=Government of Mauritius |accessdate=2020-07-18}}{{cite web |title=Results of 1959 elections |url=http://electoral.govmu.org/English/electionresult/nasselec/Pages/Results-1959.aspx |website=Office of Electoral Commissioner |accessdate=12 July 2020}} Labourite Guy Forget (Mauritius) encouraged Jagatsingh to join politics.{{cite web |last1=Gordon-Gentil |first1=Alain |title=Le mauricianisme selon Kher Jagatsingh (2006) |url=https://www.lexpress.mu/article/le-mauricianisme-selon-kher-jagatsingh |publisher=L'Express |accessdate=12 July 2020}} However at the October 1963 general elections Jagatsingh was not elected to Legislative Council as he was defeated by his rival Noutun Parsad Puduruth at Constituency No.40 Petite Rivière.{{cite web |title=Results of 1963 General Elections |url=http://electoral.govmu.org/English/electionresult/nasselec/Pages/Results-1963.aspx |website=Office of the Electoral Commissioner |publisher=Government of Mauritius |accessdate=2020-07-18}} At the General Elections held on 7 August 1967 Kher Jagatsingh was elected to Parliament in Constituency No.10 Montagne Blanche-Grand Rivière Sud Est (GRSE). In 1967 he campaigned under the banner of the Independence Party(coalition of IFB-Labour-CAM) with his running mates Satcam Boolell and Abdool Wahab Foondun within Constituency No.10.{{cite web |title=Results of 1967 elections |url=http://electoral.govmu.org/English/electionresult/nasselec/Pages/1967/Elected-Members-67.aspx |website=Office of Electoral Commissioner |accessdate=10 July 2020}} He became Minister of Planning & Economic Development until 1976. He was not elected at the 1976 General Elections although his running mate Satcam Boolell and rivals Ramduth Jadoo and Jagdish Goburdhun were elected in Constituency No.10.{{cite web |title=Results of 1976 elections at Constituency No.10 |url=http://electoral.govmu.org/English/electionresult/nasselec/Pages/1976/cons/10.aspx |website=Office of Electoral Commissioner |accessdate=10 July 2020}} But in 1977 he became Member of Parliament without any elections following the resignation of Heeralall Bhugaloo, the Minister of Education under the Labour government.
From 1977 to 1982 Jagatsingh was Minister of Education and during his term in office major reforms to the educational sector occurred. Such reforms followed Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam's electoral promises in response to the major disturbance caused by the 1975 Mauritian student protests. As a result, school fees were abolished for all secondary schools and the quality of education was improved. However following the electoral defeat at the 1982 General Elections Sir Kher Jagatsingh retired from politics. He died on 19 July 1985 in England.{{cite web |title=Il y a 33 ans: un dernier hommage à Sir Kher Jagatsingh |url=https://www.lexpress.mu/article/335928/il-y-33-ans-un-dernier-hommage-sir-kher-jagatsingh |website=lexpress.mu |publisher=L'Express |accessdate=24 July 2018}}
Publications
In 1954 Kher Jagatsingh was a co-founder of the weekly newspaper Mauritius Times.{{cite web |last1=KALLA |first1=Abdool Cader |title=Mauritius:Curriculum Reform in the Process of Decolonisation |url=https://www.academia.edu/37296864 |publisher=www.academia.edu |accessdate=12 March 2018}} Jagatsingh wrote a book titled "Petals of dust" which was published in Mauritius in 1981.{{cite web |last1=Jagatsingh |first1=Kher |title=Petals of dust |year=1981 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=klIwAAAAYAAJ&q=kher+jagatsingh}}{{cite web |title=Le mauricianisme selon Kher Jagatsingh (2006) |url=https://www.lexpress.mu/article/le-mauricianisme-selon-kher-jagatsingh |website=lexpress.mu |publisher=L'Express |accessdate=12 July 2020}}
Recognition
Kher Jagatsingh was knighted in December 1980. Other Mauritians who received the same title in 1980 were Gaetan Duval and Rabindranath Ghurburrun.{{cite web |title=The London Gazette 30 December 1980 |url=https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/48470/supplement/45/data.pdf |website=www.thegazette.co.uk}} In 1967 the Sir Kher Jagatsing Training Centre (SKJTC) was established in the town of Beau Bassin. The technical institution offers training programmes to develop skilled tradesmen for the construction sector such as electricians, plumbers, welders, masons, scaffolders and wood workers.{{cite web |title=Sir Kher Jagatsingh Air Training Centre |url=http://www.mitd.mu/centres.php?tc=skjtc |website=www.mitd.mu |accessdate=10 July 2020}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.facebook.com/Sir-Kher-Jagatsingh-110898549187/ Remembrance page]
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Category:Members of the National Assembly (Mauritius)
Category:Mauritian people of Indian descent
Category:People from Plaines Wilhems District
Category:Labour Party (Mauritius) politicians