By Dr. Sohail Ansari

Gokuldas S. Ahuja was born in 1915. He was interested in sailing in Karachi. While working with an American company, with the assistance of number of ex-pats living in Karachi, he built a wooden sailing boat. The group enjoyed recreational and challenging aspects of sailing. This is how the Karachi Sea Scout Group was formed on 13 May 1938, at Chinna Creek with the support of Lt E W Oakley.

An old bus, donated by the tram company, provided its accommodation. In 1939, Sea Scout Council was formed with the Mayor of Karachi as its President and Dinshaw Avari its secretary. On 5 July 1942 the scouts saw a capsized boat in Chinna Creek and men drowning. They rescued and saved the men. Appreciating the courage of those scouts, the Commanding Officer provided them the needful equipment and place to carry out their training at HMIS Dilawar. Soon following that, in other incidences at Manora, the Karachi Sea Scouts rescued yet another group of RAF men and at Sandspit, the Royal Indian Navy trainees.

In view of their meritorious services 1939-1945 during the War, the Karachi Sea Scouts were awarded a couple of boats, Kandahar and Scrapper by Francis Mudie in 1946. Gokaldas Ahuja was granted honorary commission in the Royal Indian Navy Volunteer Reserve and later became Honorary Commodore. Jamshed Nusserwanjee supported the Sea Scouts.

By mid 1947, Mr Ahuja raised a large fund through the assistance of Karachi Port Trust, Jamshed Mehta Committee and public donations that led to establishing its headquarters in a ship that could not float, since it was made of concrete in the shape of a ship, a stone frigate. That was inaugurated by Jamshed Nusserwanji. After partition, Ahuja migrated to Bombay and Karachi Sea Scouts continued.