India-Trinidad archival pact to help diaspora trace roots: Jaishankar
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said an archival cooperation agreement between India and Trinidad and Tobago would help members of the Indian diaspora trace their ancestral roots and reconnect with families, as he underlined New Delhi’s efforts to preserve the legacy of the Girmitya community.
Girmitya refers to Indian indentured labourers transported by the British to colonies in Fiji, South Africa, Mauritius, and the Caribbean between the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Addressing a gathering at the historic Nelson Island on Saturday, Jaishankar recalled the arrival of the first Indian indentured labourers in Trinidad and Tobago 180 years ago and paid tribute to their “fortitude, determination and resolve” in building new lives under difficult circumstances.
He said the immigrants had carried with them their traditions, faith and way of life, adding that it was fitting for such history to be preserved as a heritage site.
Jaishankar said Prime Minister Narendra Modi attached high importance to creating a database of the Girmitya community and conducting research on its legacy.
He said India was working towards establishing a dedicated Girmitya Studies Centre on Modi’s directions.
Referring to an MoU signed between the National Archives of India and Trinidad and Tobago, Jaishankar said he hoped the agreement would help many people in the Caribbean nation in “tracing their ancestral roots and reconnecting with their families in India”.
He also noted that the Indian High Commission in Trinidad and Tobago was receiving a growing number of applications for Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) cards after Modi announced the extension of OCI eligibility up to the sixth generation during his visit to the country.
“The number of OCI applications received by the High Commission is growing, and we will endeavour to facilitate others who may not necessarily have access to the required paperwork,” the minister said.
Jaishankar joined the launch of a Quick Impact Project for the upgradation of cultural heritage facilities at Nelson Island with grant assistance from India. The project includes a memorial monument, creation of a digital hub of historical data from the national archives and a digital audio-visual experience.
According to the website of the Indian High Commission here, approximately 143,000 indentured workers from the Indian subcontinent migrated to Trinidad between 1845 and 1917. A vast majority of these Indian emigrants came from northern India and Bihar. The descendants of those indentured workers, now in their fifth or sixth generation, form nearly 40-45 per cent of the total population of 1.36 million (as of 2024), constituting an integral part of the country’s economic, political, and social fabric, it states.
Jaishankar concluded his visit to Trinidad and Tobago on Saturday. He was in Port of Spain on the concluding leg of his three-nation tour of Jamaica, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago, aimed at deepening India’s engagement with the Caribbean nations.
India signs 8 MoUs with Trinidad, Tobago
Port of Spain: India and Trinidad and Tobago have signed eight agreements in sectors including tourism, healthcare, infrastructure and Ayurveda during External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s two-day visit to the Caribbean nation, according to an official statement. Jaishankar, who visited the Caribbean nation on May 8-9, held talks with Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and other senior leaders on expanding bilateral cooperation and reviewed progress on announcements made during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Trinidad and Tobago last year, India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in its statement on Sunday. “A total of 8 MoUs were signed between the two sides in the areas of tourism, solarisation of T&T’s Ministry of Foreign and CARICOM Affairs building, vector control, infrastructure upgrade of Nelson Island where the Indian immigrants stayed initially, and for setting up of an Indian Chair on Ayurveda at the University of the West Indies,” it said.
In the presence of Persad-Bissessar, Jaishankar handed over the first batch of 2,000 laptops to selected schoolchildren and inaugurated an agro-processing facility for which machinery worth USD 1 million was provided by India last year. Persad-Bissessar and Jaishankar jointly inaugurated Trinidad and Tobago’s National Prosthetics Centre in Penal. According to the MEA statement, discussions also covered cooperation in infrastructure, security, forensics, healthcare and capacity building.
The two sides reaffirmed coordination in regional and multilateral forums, including on issues concerning the Global South. The MEA said the visit gave “fresh impetus” to India’s ties with Trinidad and Tobago.
Jaishankar concluded his visit to Trinidad and Tobago on Saturday. He was in Port of Spain on the concluding leg of his three-nation tour of Jamaica, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago, aimed at deepening India’s engagement with the Caribbean nations.