UK “Indian” Prime Minister meets India’s Prime Minister
Who be the best living example of a UK Indian than incumbent UK Prime Minister, the Rt Hon Rishi Sunak third generation Indo-African migrant and the UK born second generation Indo British.
His grandparents, though not Girmityas but example of Indian migrants initially residents in a third world country, in this case in the East African region, then migrants to western democratic nation.
Also, unlike Girmityas mainly from West and Southern Indian, his grant parents were from Punjab in the North. A practicing Hindu though on few occasions as UK Prime Minister is required to participate in Judeo-Christian rituals as seen in His Majesty King Charle III coronation where he read a Biblical text; Colossians 1:9-17, which emphasises the love of Christ and the importance of service to others, aligns with the values of the British monarchy and the theme of the coronation liturgy, “Called to Serve”” In a future issue of your Brisbane Indian Times a more explicit and well researched commentary of the first British Prime Minister will be thoroughly expounded for your delight. That, we promise!
A major number of Indo Brits entered the UK in a rather ironic situation. These were descendants of Girmityas the British transported to the Caribbeans between 1838 and 1917.
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Nearly half-a-million Indians under contracts to work on Caribbean plantations under the then British colonial rulers.
Soon after the second world war the UK experienced imminent and urgent workers shortage needed to rebuild the British Iles after the ruthless devastation of London and other major centers.
So, in 1948 these people and their descendants were invited to take up jobs in struggling industries and municipalities in rebuilding for Britain.
Now, passionately known as the ‘Windrush generation’ whose numbers has exponential increased in this modern Britian.
In a future issue of your Brisbane Indian Times we will explore “Windrush scandal” and the, recognition or lack thereof of one group of Windrush migrants in the Indo-Caribbean community and Britain as a whole.
From the mainland India, however, the period of highest migration to England was 1955-1975. At one stage in the Bradford area alone numbered about 13,000 Indians. 46% were Punjabis and 43.3% were from Gujarat.
Modern day UK have Indo-Brits from nearly every corner of the Indian Diaspora Global community.
