Op­po­si­tion Leader Pen­ne­lope Beck­les, the Mem­ber of Par­lia­ment for Ari­ma, has ex­tend­ed greet­ings to the East In­di­an com­mu­ni­ty of Trinidad and To­ba­go as the coun­try marks In­di­an Ar­rival Day 2025.

This year com­mem­o­rates 180 years since the first East In­di­an im­mi­grants left their home­land, crossed the Kala Pani, and ar­rived in a for­eign land to work as in­den­tured labour­ers un­der harsh con­di­tions.

“On 30 May 1845, in­den­tured labour­ers from the moth­er­land of In­dia, on board the Fa­tel Raza­ck, first sight­ed the Port of Spain har­bour,” the Op­po­si­tion Leader re­called. “Those brave men and women, our fore­fa­thers, would go on to shape the de­vel­op­ment of our land­scape and re­de­fine the sto­ry of what we know as our beloved Trinidad and To­ba­go.”