Chatsworth, KwaZulu-Natal

Chatsworth
Chatsworth

 Chatsworth shown within KwaZulu-Natal

Coordinates: 29°54′36″S 30°53′06″E / 29.910°S 30.885°E / -29.910; 30.885Coordinates: 29°54′36″S 30°53′06″E / 29.910°S 30.885°E / -29.910; 30.885
Country South Africa
Province KwaZulu-Natal
Municipality eThekwini
Government
Area[1]
 • Total 42.73 km2 (16.50 sq mi)
Population (2011)[1]
 • Total 196,580
 • Density 4,600/km2 (12,000/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)[1]
 • Black African 38.2%
 • Coloured 1.2%
 • Indian/Asian 60.0%
 • White 0.1%
 • Other 0.5%
First languages (2011)[1]
 • English 62.6%
 • Zulu 26.2%
 • Xhosa 5.7%
 • Sotho 1.3%
 • Other 4.2%
Postal code (street) 4092
PO box 4030
Area code 031

Chatsworth, is a large suburb created in the 1960s to house the predominantly South Africa Indian population. The suburb is situated in South Durban basin in South Africa and is roughly bordered by the Umhlatuzana River in the North and Umlaas River in the South.

History

In the 1940s, The Pegging Acts and the Ghetto Act were passed. These acts gave the government the right to remove and destroy shacks and small self-made shelters, with the putative intention of improving sanitary conditions. This led to the Group Areas Act of June 1950, which designated certain areas for the Whites and other areas for Indians, Coloureds and Africans. Indians were removed from areas such as Mayville, Cato Manor, the Clairwood, Magazine Barracks, Bluff, Riverside, Prospect Hall, Duikerfontein and Sea Cow Lake. The moved into primarily the two large Indian suburbs of Phoenix, which is situated North of Durban, and Chatsworth in the South.kaffas were held where they

During the later 1940s and early 1950s, there were advertisements in the papers of an exclusively Indian suburb, Umhlatuzana. Then in the early 1960s Chatsworth was planned, opening in 1964 and consisting of eleven neighbourhood units. Modern day Chatsworth is spread over seven municipal wards which all fall roughly in the South Central municipal area. Chatsworth was deliberately built to act as buffer between white residential areas and the large African township of Umlazi.

Education

The South African Indian population has placed a lot of emphasis on education. As a result, the Indian population has excelled academically and have produced many academics hailing from Chatsworth. The community was so committed to education that one of the schools, Alençon Primary School which is situated in Woodhurst (Unit 10) was built by the community due to a lack of facilities in the community. Most secondary schools in Chatsworth boast pass rates above 90% for the Matric Examinations despite lacking resources and facilities. Kharwastan Secondary School and Wingen Heights Secondary School regularly produce learners that are placed in the provincial Top 30.

Public Secondary Schools

Current situation

Indian people in Chatsworth are from various religious groups. Many masjids, temples and churches are present. One of many famous masjids is Habibia Manzil in Shall Cross. As a consequence of its history, Chatsworth still has a predominantly Indian population. It is a centre of Indian culture, and holds the Temple of Understanding - a Hindu temple. Many Indians from Tamil and Telugu backgrounds are present. Such Indian languages are still spoken at home in many instances, with learning classes set up to aid in their development.

This area is now a fully fledged suburb of Durban and boasts industrial development with strong infrastructure and has contributed to the growing intellectual capital and business environment of Durban.


References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Main Place Chatsworth". Census 2011.

External links

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