Bihar Demographics

Bihar, India

Location: The state of Bihar lies between the states of Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, or between the major cities of Delhi and Calcutta. To reach Bihar's capitol city of Patna by train from Calcutta takes about six hours. From Delhi, the train trip takes about 12 hours. To the north it is bordered by the country of Nepal, and to the south it is bordered by the Indian states of Madhya Pradesh and Orissa. The Ganges River, a fertile area that draws great hosts of people, cuts directly across the northern part of Bihar, just north of Patna.

History: Bihar was the center of power and cultural influence in ancient India. Kingdoms could be found in Bihar in 1500 B.C. From 1200 to 1765 A.D., the Muslims ruled Bihar. Then the British combined the Bihar Plains and the Chota Nagpur Plateau and merged them with the state of Bengal. Bihar became a separate province in 1936. Mahatma Gandhi organized his first non-violent protest in Bihar. When India became independent in 1947, Bihar became a state. It is one of the most rural states in India.

Capitol: Patna, 1.5 million population

Government: The Indian government is patterned after the British parliamentary system. The president largely has ceremonial duties while the real national executive power is centered in the Council of Ministers led by the prime minister. Indian's bicameral parliament has the Council of States and the House of the People. Bihar has a bicameral legislature patterned after the federal government. A governor is the constitutional head of the state appointed by the president of India. Rural administration has a district, block, and village organization.

Judicial: The constitution provides for a high court with a chief justice and other judges. District courts, sub-divisional courts, lower courts, and village councils complete the judicial structure in Bihar.

Area: 173,877 square kilometers, the country's ninth largest state. If Bihar were a separate nation, it would be the 13th largest nation in the world.

Population: 95 million (June 1997), the country's second most populous state.

Seasons: There are three well-defined seasons -- the hot season from March to mid-June, the rainy season from mid-June to October, and the cold season from November to February.

Average Rainfall: 40 to 60 inches

Country and People Facts (statistics)

Socio-economic status: Bihar has been characterized as acutely underdeveloped and backward. It is a predominantly rural state known for its stagnation, and, at times, retrogression in economic development. The state has experienced limited development and there is an absence of the natural spreading of big industry that is found elsewhere in India. The production of necessary protein for the poor is not keeping up with population growth in India, and this is particularly true in Bihar. Due to acute economic backwardness, Bihar is one of the states where the percentage of population below the poverty line is the highest.

Social: Patriarchy is practiced in most of India today. Women often do not participate in conversation when outsiders visit the family. Many women do not attend social functions. At meal times, the men and children eat first, and the women eat later.

Food: Hindus do not eat beef, and Muslims do not eat pork. There is a long agricultural heritage. Though large amounts of vegetables and fruits are grown, the large population density makes feeding the people is difficult.

Shelter: Providing adequate housing is a serious dilemma because of the large population. Sanitation and drainage problems are the result, and these problems are exacerbated during times of flooding.

Health: Poor sanitation is the cause of almost half of all illnesses in India. In Bihar, health problems are caused by a lack of safe drinking water and inadequate sewage disposal. Bihar has benefited from the Indian government's emphasis on improving the overall health care of the nation, yet rural centers still fall far below the cities in available hospital facilities and other medical facilities.

Water: Erratic rainfall in South Bihar frequently leads to severe famines. Indigenous methods of irrigation have been used for centuries. Domestic water supplies are not potable. In northern areas, flooding often plagues the state.

Energy: Bihar leads all other states in the production of coal. Ninety percent of the power generated in Bihar is from coal-burning plants. One indicator of the poor living standards in the state of Bihar is only 2 percent of the electricity consumption is in households. Power fails often in both rural and urban areas.

Roadways: 69,035 kilometers

Railways: 4,000 kilometers

Number of Districts: 51

Per Capita Income: 2,122 Rs (1989-90), the equivalent of $60.63 U.S. dollars

Literacy Rate: 38 percent, the country's lowest.

Life Expectancy: 54 years old

Infant Mortality Rate: Double the country's rate.

Religion: Bihar is the birthplace of Buddhism and Jainism. The name. "Bihar" means "land of monasteries." Ironically, these two religious groups are the smallest in Bihar. Today Bihar is mostly Hindu with significant Muslim (12 million) and animistic minorities. Most Christians (about 2 percent of the population) live in the southern part of the state.

Crops: Jute, millets, oilseeds, pulses, rice, sugarcane, tobacco, and wheat.

Minerals: Bauxite, clays, coal, copper, graphite, iron ore, lea, limestone, manganese, mica, and uranium.

Industries: Aluminum, cement, chemicals, electrical equipment, fertilizer, engineering, iron and steel, jute, liquor, paper, petroleum, silk, and sugar.

Primary religion: Hinduism with a focus on the "monkey god," Hanuman. About 81.5 percent of Bihar's population is Hindu.

Followers of Islam: 14.8 percent

Christians: 1.97 percent (Officially, 1.06 percent -- Catholic 1.64 percent, Protestant 0.33 percent).

Art: Biharis are famous for their oral folk literature. Some of the small-scale industries in Bihar include glass work, Madhubani, paintings that depict mythological stories on cloth, brassware, and pottery works.

Recreation: Movies are produced in India. Most areas have movie theaters. Folk songs and dance performances are popular. Cricket, rugby, and hockey can be found in urban areas near universities.

Trends

Economic: Because the Bihari Muslim struggles so financially, he always is looking for a better way of life. The state of Bihar, however, keeps losing its economic ground, and the future does not look to be promising. Projects that were started to improve the economy as well as the general living conditions in Bihar have been abandoned, often because of corruption and lack of governmental interest. Christians leading positive projects in the state can share a different sort of testimony.

Corruption: The president of World Bank announced in September 1997 that World Bank no longer will invest in countries where corruption is rampant. India is known for its corruption from top to bottom. Bribery is an everyday part of life. India has its hand out, and when the financial world stops dropping gifts into its hand, its people eventually may begin to take notice that much of the world holds a higher moral code.

Social: Because many Bihari Muslims have migrated elsewhere to search for work and left their families behind, the doors are open to share the Gospel with the women within this Unreached People Group. While a male always is left in charge of the home, the lack of men in the home forces the women out of the home to take care of every day tasks such as shopping for food. Gradually she becomes more independent and confident. As she does, the doorway for presenting the Gospel opens wider.

Language: While English teachers are widely accessible in most of India's urban areas, Bihar is not typically the place where English teachers go to make a living. In a Muslim school in Bihar-Sharif, the children know Hindi, Urdu, Persian, and Arabic. They have been unable to find an English teacher to educate them, however. India, unlike some Asian countries, has not yet shunned the English language as and educational medium but rather values it. This will only increase as students long to catch up with India's more cosmopolitan population.

Literacy: Because Bihar has the lowest literacy rate in the country, there is pressure to improve the numbers. Literacy programs will become increasingly more popular. The key will be to start young. The children likely will have to educate their parents, because most adults will see no need to make such a drastic change in their lives.

Health: Biharis are poor financially. They are unlikely to draw more doctors and nurses to their communities. At the same time, little is being done to improve the sanitation conditions throughout Bihar. The future does not look any more promising. Medical teams surely always will be welcomed to pick up those tasks for which the state government fails to care.

Disaster Relief: The fertile valley of Bihar routinely floods, destroying crops and dislocating families. Nothing is being done to halt this pattern. The opportunities will continue to be there to minister in the areas of flood relief and food distribution.

Infrastructure: During the rainy season, even the main streets of Patna are impassible because of high water. The situation seemingly is out of the government's control, possibly due to a lack of engineering knowledge, inadequate finances, or corruption. As the problem continues, the situation will worsen as the population increases and businesses lose money. A solution is desperately needed.

Tourism: As the popularity of Islam increases in India, Muslims will flock to Bihar in greater numbers to pay homage to the many Muslim shrines and tombs of saints scattered throughout the countryside. The sites are easily identifiable and can be targeted as locations at which the Gospel can be shares in creative ways.

Migration: As the economic situation in Bihar worsens, Bihari Muslims are likely to continue migrating to cities such as Calcutta and Delhi. Job training inside Bihar and in these urban areas will be desired. Housing in these areas also will be sought. Because the dislocated Bihari Muslim often is looked down upon, these men surely will want to gather with their own kind. Opportunities for ministering to the Bihari Muslims during these times of change will be abundant.

**The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly."** John 10:10 (NASB)

A Proclamation Media LLC Website