Fig 2: Belle Rive Estate Camp where Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam was born on 18 September 1900
(Source: Carnegie Library of Curepipe (CLC)/
Courtesy of Satyendra Peerthum)
Humble Beginnings
Seewoosagur Ramgoolam was born in Belle Rive in 1900. He was the son of parents descended from indentured labourers. His childhood was marked by hardship. At the age of five, he lost his mother, at seven, his father, and at twelve, he suffered an accident in a cowshed that cost him his left eye. Despite these challenges, he was determined to learn, to overcome poverty, and to emerge from being a poor, uneducated youth into a brilliant medical specialist who would dedicate his life to public service and helping the poor and downtrodden—as a man of the people.
This resilience shaped his character and instilled in him the conviction that knowledge was the key to progress. His family, particularly his elder brother, supported his ambitions at the price of great sacrifices, eventually enabling him to pursue higher studies abroad. From these early struggles, he developed resilience, discipline, and empathy—qualities that would later define his leadership. Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam’s early struggles mirrored those of his island: both began with limited resources yet aspired to something far greater.