What is the history of Sethna's 18th West Bombay Scout Group?

Sethna's 18th West Bombay Scout Group is a Mumbai-based Scout group founded in 1914 by Scouter Rustomji Edulji Sethna, making it — per its own site — India's oldest Scout group. Its Sea Scout Troop was added in 1962. The group marked its centenary in 2014 and the Sea Scout Troop's golden jubilee in 2012. This page covers the group's origins, its name changes, and the milestones documented on sethnas.org.

Founding and the 18-19 name

According to the group's official press release posted on sethnas.org, the group was founded in 1914 by Scouter Rustomji Edulji Sethna. Over the years it became widely known as the 18-19 Scout Group before consolidating into the name it carries today: the 18th West Bombay Scout Group.

The group is conducted by Sethna's Scouting Society, which the site describes as India's oldest Scout group.

The Sea Scout Troop (1962)

The Sea Scout Troop was started in 1962 by Scouter S.R. Daroona — roughly half a century after the group itself. Its 50th anniversary, the Golden Jubilee, was celebrated in 2012.

Milestones at a glance

How the anniversaries were marked

The Golden Jubilee of the Sea Scout Troop was celebrated with a formal function, entertainment show, and dinner on Sunday, October 21, 2012, at Albless Baug, Mumbai. Photographs from the event were taken by Homz Prints, a rover of the Troop, and posted to the site on October 24, 2012.

The group's centenary was noted in a post titled "A 100 Years Ago Today," dated August 14, 2014, which opens with "The troop began…" — framing the group's origin a century earlier.

Service activity documented on the site

Beyond ceremonial milestones, sethnas.org records the group's community service. One example is a Rover Service Activity on Sunday, April 8, 2012, described by Homiar Hathiram.

Rovers were called in — reportedly the night before — to help move a 50-foot, 4-storey scaffolding at Kappawala Agiary. The scaffolding had been built around the eastern side of the agiary to clean the facade and needed to be shifted across the entrance to clean the western frontal facade. Dismantling and rebuilding it would have taken considerable time and effort, so a six-member Rover team was assembled via a "Service" SMS/Facebook update and completed the move the following morning.

What sethnas.org covers

The site functions as the group's blog and record. Its posts include:

• "A 100 Years Ago Today" (August 14, 2014) — centenary reflection
• "The Sea Scout Troop Golden Jubilee Celebrations" (October 24, 2012) — event photos and write-up
• "Golden Jubilee of Sea Scout Troop" (October 18, 2012) — official press release
• "Rovers Offer Service At Kappawala Agiary" (April 9, 2012) — service activity report

The blog is paginated across five pages, with the earliest posts appearing on later pages.