Dear Editor,
The state of Bihar in India holds elections in six phases over the next month. Elections are usually held every five years unless the government loses its majority before its term expires. Bihar is one of the states to which many Indian-Guyanese trace their roots – with the second largest contingent of indentured laborers sent to Guyana between 1838 and 1917. It is the poorest and most underdeveloped state in India. One of my eight great grandparents came from Bihar (others are from the state of Uttar Pradesh) and I visited twice this year to do research on tracing Guyanese roots returning with a lifetime of experience on village life.
The Bihar government is very friendly to foreigners. The state government encourages Guyanese and others to trace their roots and some have done so recently, while other Guyanese in NY have planned trips to their ancestral homeland. The incumbent Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar, seeking another five year term in office, has issued an open welcome to Biharis to visit and invest in their home state and has even established a programme to assist people to trace their roots. Some Guyanese have taken advantage of the programme and found their ancestral relatives. One female Guyanese (from Berbice) with roots in Bihar recently got married to a Bihari after a few visits to her ancestral village. Although very poor, one can’t help but fall in love with the people and the villages, which are somewhat similar to village life prior to the 1970s in Guyana. The people of Bihar and UP are very warm, loving and friendly and they go out of their way to host guests, in much the same way as we do in Guyana when outsiders visit our homes. The place is worth a visit and I went to India repeatedly since 1985 almost annually on research studies as well as to find my ancestors.
Regardless of the outcome of the current elections, the programme to encourage Biharis to trace their roots and reconnect with ancestral families will continue as the government is benefiting from roots tourism. As for the outcome of the elections, most people I spoke with favour the current Chief Minister (from the JDU-BJP combined parties) to hold on to power for another term, describing him as honest, unlike his predecessors who have been tarred with the corruption brush. Even supporters of other candidates and parties say Nitish Kumar has been the best Chief Minister the state has had in decades. But the central government has tried to undermine him and withheld funds for development. In recent informal surveys I have done around India, Kumar is the only politician who seems to be gaining support, as opposed to all others (including the communists in Bengal state) who have been losing ground and are almost certain to lose power whenever elections are held. Some Guyanese also trace their roots to Bengal and Tamil Nadu (Madrasis) and these states which hold elections soon will see the incumbents losing support.
I urge Guyanese, who can afford it, to take advantage of the Bihar ‘tracing roots’ programme and experience the hospitality of villagers. The Indian government also has a tracing roots programme helping ‘overseas’ Indians to find their ancestral relatives (anywhere in India) and some NY and Toronto-based Guyanese have taken advantage of it to connect with their ancestors.
Yours faithfully,
Vishnu Bisram
