Mauritius and UNESCO

From Our Archives: A Glimpse into 1960

By Economist

Mr Aunauth Beejadhur has certainly earned himself a niche in Mauritian history. When he was appointed Minister of Education, many people frowned and many others wondered whether the death knell of Education had not been sounded. But fortunately for us, all things have worked out in such a way that Mr Beejadhur is regarded as one of the most active ministers of the Labour Party. Even the Opposition, including Mr S. Bissoondoyal, who has never spared his wrath against Mr Beejadhur, had to stand in Council and say that Mr Beejadhur has been doing very good work.

At the present juncture, it is difficult to assess the work of Mr Beejadhur. He has done a lot and he knows that there is much more to be done. But two of his achievements stand out: (a) his participation in the Oxford Education Conference, and (b) his efforts to get Mauritius admitted into UNESCO, which were crowned with success only recently. Mauritius owes to Mr Beejadhur that today it forms part of such a distinguished organisation as UNESCO. And the great benefits Mauritius has started deriving from the Commonwealth Educational Organisation is another feather in Mr Beejadhur’s cap.

Now that we are part of UNESCO, it is but fitting that we try to find out how and to what extent we can be helped. It is felt that our educational system must be reoriented and it must be given a sense of direction. We cannot go on producing clerks or half-baked intellectuals who are neither fit to hold the pen or the hoe. We must shift from mere academic education to technical education. In this, UNESCO can help us considerably. We need both teachers in various fields of technology and also the necessary equipment. It is difficult to say how much we contribute to such a scheme, but it seems to be an accepted fact that much will have to be got from UNESCO itself.

UNESCO can help us to come nearer the big centres of the world — intellectually. Mauritian intellectuals who are trained abroad do not have enough opportunities for intellectual activity once they return home. There are no facilities, and the result is that they have to live in a sort of intellectual vacuum. UNESCO may perhaps make available books and documents which can help towards intellectual advancement, and at the same time keeping the intellectuals abreast of all the latest discoveries and ideas.

There is a third way in which UNESCO can help Mauritius, and it is this: in view of the complexity of all our problems — social, economic, political and even communal — UNESCO, which stands for unity in diversity, can organise a comprehensive study of all our problems. The situation in Mauritius is a unique one, and it differs by much from the other types of plural societies. This correspondent hopes that Mr Beejadhur might take up this idea someday.

When we consider our admission to UNESCO, we fail to understand why, so far, we have been unable to knock at the door of the United Nations Technical Assistance Board and why we have not been admitted to FAO — the Food and Agriculture Organisation. It is high time the Minister of Agriculture did something to make Mauritius avail itself of the facilities offered by the FAO. In connection with the development of the fishing industry, Mr Boolell should contact the FAO and see to what extent we can be helped. If all this is done, then we shall be in a position to boast that other factors besides cyclones have put us on the world map.

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Quenching the Thirst of Port Louis

On Wednesday, the Mayor of Port Louis, Mr Changkye, gave a press conference in order to inform the inhabitants of Port Louis about the laying of a third pipe which is nearing completion and which will supply to the town an additional three million gallons of water per day. That will ensure a regular supply of twenty-four hours; indeed, a very remarkable progress will be achieved in the field of amenities provided to the inhabitants of Port Louis.

The water supply of the town of Port Louis was always defective. Water was released for not more than eight hours per day. That has been causing a lot of hardships to the inhabitants. In compounds where there are several tenants and where there is only one tap, lack of water has been the source of constant friction between tenants. In spite of the limitation of water supply, the present consumption is 60 gallons per capita. That figure is far in excess of what is consumed in some great centres of the world. We are told that in certain villages of England, the consumption is not more than 20 gallons per capita.

With the new pipe on, the consumption per capita will reach from 90 to 95 gallons. This is an extremely high figure for even the most prosperous country. Wastage of food, water, or any useful commodity by one person deprives his less fortunate neighbour of something which he probably badly needs. Further, it ultimately tells on the economy of the country. It is the duty of all responsible citizens to watch that water is not wasted.

We should like to warmly congratulate the Municipal Councillors, especially the outgoing Mayor, Mr Forget, and Mr Changkye on their initiative and the great effort they have made to ensure that plenty of water is supplied to Port Louis in such a short delay.

The history of water supply to Port Louis is of some interest. Prior to 1860, the town’s water was obtained by two gravity flow canals — the Canal Dayot, built by the French, and the Canal Bathurst, built in the early days of the British occupation. These two canals supplied the town with approximately one million gallons of water per day.

By the middle of the 19th century, this was not sufficient to meet the demands, and in 1856, the Mayor invited suggestions from all comers to help to solve the problem. The winning design was that of the then Town Architect, and this was to bring water from the Grand River North West by means of an 18-inch diameter cast iron pipe.

The work was completed in 1860 and supplied the Town with two-and-a-half million gallons per day. In 1871, a further 19-inch diameter cast iron pipe was added, bringing the supply up to five million gallons per day.

For many years the Town has been short of water, and in June 1959, a contract was signed to provide for replacement of the existing two pipes and at the same time to provide an additional three million gallons per day.

The present scheme was designed and executed by the Mauritius Building Co. Ltd in association with the Hume Pipe Co. Ltd and has been supervised by Messrs E. R. Collister & Associates on behalf of the Municipality.

This work involves over six miles of pipeline, together with additional filter beds at Pailles, and two reinforced concrete bridges across the Grand River Northwest, including many other works. Over twenty thousand cubic yards of earth and rock have had to be excavated, and over two thousand cubic yards of concrete have gone into the construction. Cyclone “Carol” severely damaged the works under construction; but despite this, work was pushed ahead with the object of bringing the Town water as quickly as possible.

Many difficulties and problems have had to be overcome during the course of the works, and it is to the credit of the main contractor and his sub-contractors that these problems were met and overcome with the minimum of delay, thus enabling the major part of the works to be completed within the next few days.

7th Year – No 327
Friday 2^nd December, 1960

Mauritius Times ePaper Friday 6 February 2026