Socio-Cultural Study of a Minority Linguistic Group (Bengalees in Bihar 1858-1912)

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Minority groups based on language, race or religion have acted as agents or catalysts of change in the society under specified historical conditions. This has been true in our country during the preceding two centuries. The present study delineates the socio-cultural role of the Bengalees in Bihar and the impact they made on the local scene in various walks of life during an important period, 1858-1912. The study ends at 1912 when Bihar was separated from Bengal and the contact of the Bengalees with this province gradually declined. The study also attempts an analysis of the factors to show how, in spite of the pioneering work of the Bengalees, the spirit of the 19th century 'awakening' eluded the people of Bihar and how the interaction between the two peoples in different fields, and in diverse ways, determined the nature of Bihar's regional consciousness. The study is based on primary and secondary sources, questionnaires and replies and extensive interviews with the members of old Bengali families of Patna and the districts of Bihar.

Mrs. Sudeshna Basak (nee Das Gupta) was educated in Calcutta at Lady Brabourne College and University of Calcutta. After obtaining M.A. degree in History she taught in a Calcutta College for a few years. After her marriage she shifted to Bihar. She also taught in Patna for some time.

This book has developed out of my thesis for Ph.D and is concerned with the part played by the Bengalees in the political, social and cultural fields in Bihar between 1858, when the power to govern India was transferred from the East India Company to the British Crown, and 1912, when Bihar was separated from Bengal. The justification of choosing 1858 is that besides being a landmark in Indian history, by this time Bengal had completed the most brilliant phase of the Renaissance and the Bengalee migrant community now carried this torch to other parts of India. My interest in the topic 'Bengalees in Bihar' began a few years ago while I was studying the lives and achievements of Pandita Ramabai, Mrs. Aghore Kamini Devi, Sakharam Ganesh Deuskar and some leading Bengali writers based in Bihar. It was, however, Dr. Surendra Gopal, Professor of History, Patna University and author of a pioneering work on Patna in the 19th century and Brahmo movement in Bihar, who greatly encouraged me to explore and develop the subject further. I am deeply grateful to him for kindly agreeing to guide me in my research work. His advice on the source material, suggestions at each stage of my work and correction of draft have immensely helped in the formulation and sharpening of my ideas. No word of thanks is adequate for his invaluable guidance. I have collected new information through various sources and have tried to synthesise it with the available information. The information was gleaned from English, Bengali and Hindi language- sources. Additional data were collected through inter views and questionnaires from individuals spread all over Bihar. I do not claim to propound any theme or present a new point of view in this study. It seems to me, however, that in no linguistic state the majority group alone can boast of achievements. In a multi-linguistic, multi- cultural and pluralistic society of urs, minority groups, based on race, language or religion, have very often played a crucial role in shaping the course of events. That also explains the uniqueness of the unity of India. The research work was done mainly in Patna and other districts of Bihar. Information was collected either through direct interviews or through questionnaires from knowledgeable per sons. I also worked in libraries in Calcutta and Delhi. I am grate ful to the members of the staff of Sinha Library, Patna University Library, Secretariat Library and Hemchandra Pathagar for providing all facilities. I had also a profitable time at the Na tional Library, Calcutta. I am also thankful to the staff of the Indian Council of Historical Research and the English and In dian Languages Sections of the Central Secretariat Library, New Delhi. To late Shri P.C. Roy Choudhury, a former Editor of Bihar Gazetteers, I owe special gratitude for his guidance, suggestions and ideas. Even at an old age his interest in works of scholarship remained undiminished. I should also thank Sri Nabi Nath Jha, retired Deputy Collector, Darbhanga, for providing valuable information on my subject, especially on Bengal's relations with Mithila segment of Bihar in the medieval period. Thanks are also due to innumerable individuals who took considerable pains to answer my questionnaires and provide valuable information. I am also grateful to the distinguished representatives of some old Bengali families who, in the course of interviews, not only gave me facts and their socio-economic background, but added dimension to the local history. The responsibility for mistakes and errors is entirely mine.

The process of social and cultural changes in the developing countries, which has been evident during the period of European colonial expansion and dominance, did not simultaneously influence and penetrate all social groups. This change was brought about and its pace was quickened by economic, scientific and technological structure, politico-administrative systems and values of the western countries. Initially it affected only small groups often standing on the periphery of society who acted as catalysts and pace-setters of change and helped in mobilising traditional social and political structures and cultural values.

This role of pace-setter is frequently taken over by dominant minority groups, based on race, language or religion, under specified historical conditions. These groups, due to their far-sightedness, adaptability and innovative qualities become initiators of socio-cultural changes and without whom the exogenous mobilising elements would have to wait for long for influencing the new society. "Creative minorities"² of this type who have played such parts are the Chinese in South-east Asia, Indians in East Africa and the Armenians and Levantines in the Mediterranean region. This has also been true of our country during the two preceding centuries when indigenous groups like Parsees, Bengalees and Tamils have played catalytic roles in the socio-cultural changes in the western, eastern and southern regions of India respectively.

In the present study an attempt has been made to examine the role of minority linguistic group of the Bengalees in the socio-cultural field of Bihar and the impact they made on the local scene in various walks of life. The Bengalees, 'originally coming of an ethnic stock that was different from the stock from which the Vedic Aryans originated' and fused together with the Aryan immigrants from the Midlands over a period of few centuries, have gone through a remarkable process of group internal change and have, in turn, influenced the process of social and cultural changes in the Indian society.

The contacts between Bengal and Bihar which may be traced to the days of Periplus of the Erythraeid Sea are the inevitable consequences of their close association "due to political reasons and geographical contiguity". The intensity of relationship and interaction between the people of these two States varied due to the exigency of political situations. They were close during the rule of Palas and Senas (c. 770 A.D. to 12th century A.D.), Alauddin Hussain Shah (1493-1519), the reign of Akbar (1555 to 1605) and especially under the later Mughals, mainly due to increased trade contacts. Since the year 1733 A.D., when Bihar was added to Bengal by the Delhi Emperor, the two States were under one political master from Alivardi Khan as the Nawab of Bengal (1740-1755) to the East India Company and then under the Imperial Crown of Britain.