Carterpuri residents fondly recall Jimmy Carter’s visit which gave the village its name

Villagers in Haryana remember their encounter with former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, cherishing the connection for decades.

When Atar Singh, a 71-year-old resident of Carterpuri in Haryana, heard the news of the demise of former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, it reminded him of his elder brother Kartar Singh who passed away about two months ago. The two had met the U.S. President about 46 years ago in 1978 when Mr. Carter had visited India during the term of then Prime Minister Morarji Desai.

During the trip, Carter visited the otherwise non-descript village, then known as ‘Daulatpur-Nasirabad’, on January 3, 1978, and it made a permanent mark on the village which was named after him following his visit.

The villagers since then have declared January 3 a holiday and have celebrated every pivotal moment in his life, including his winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002, with grandeur. They are now mourning Carter. A chowk on the outskirts of the village with a signed photo of Carter is decorated with yellow marigold flowers, and a banner reads, “Heartfelt tribute, may god grant peace to his soul.”

Even as their memories fade away, many elders in Carterpuri have made sure that the story of the connection between the village and Mr. Carter does not die with them. Mr. Singh says, “When my brother Kartar Singh, who was the village postmaster, was alive, he made a file with pictures of the visit and every article written about the trip. I will continue the tradition for him until I live and later our children will.”

Carter’s office continued to write letters back to the village for a long time after his visit.

Arjun Singh and his elder brother Surjan Singh were college students when the U.S. President visited. Now in their 70s, they recall how their parents told them stories of the visit of Carter’s mother to the village as a volunteer for the peace corp.

Bansari Devi, 67, says her eldest son, who is aged 50 now, was in her arms the day Carter and his wife Rosalynn Carter visited. She remembers that the villagers had borrowed one of her dupattas to present to Ms. Carter but it never came back. She jokes, “My old dupatta must have travelled more than I did.”