By Adit Kumar
The Nirvana Drama Group of New York on Saturday evening held captive the capacity audience at the Vedic Cultural Centre (VCC) with its presentation of the play “Rupo’s Agony” at the VCC’s observance of the 180th Anniversary of the Arrival of Indians in Guyana and the West Indies. It was the highlight of the evening’s multi layered program.
Those in attendance were taken on an emotional roller coaster ride when the actors in the play presented the harsh realities of the livelihood of canecutters facing closure of the sugar estates in Guyana, the mainstay of their existence.
Written by Ramesh Deochand, the play featured a core group of actors from New York – Radhika Olarte, Parbaty Tejsingh, Ervin Appadu, Avinash Jeewaram and Angeli Jeewaram – along with a supporting cast from Toronto. Deochand also played the role of the main character Rupo, a canecutter whose life was devastated by the closure of the sugar estates.
The play was part of the VCC’s presentation in what was its 20th annual celebration of the “Arrival of Indians” event. The inaugural program which took place in 1999 at the same venue was hosted by the now defunct Guyana East Indian Association of Canada. After two successful events, the celebration continued under the aegis of the VCC.
Saturday’s presentation also included the premiere screening of the movie “Echos from the Plantation”, especially created for the 180th Anniversary observance.
The movie was introduced by its local coordinator Sunanda Dhanna who informed the audience that its producer, Kishore Seunarine of New York got his inspiration for the movie from his interactions with the audience after the staging of the dance drama “Dancing Bells of Rekha” at the VCC in 2015.

Shot in Guyana, “Echos from the Plantation” tells of the resilience and fortitude of the indentured labourers who first arrived in Guyana on May 5, 1838.
Dr Ganraj Kumar delivered the keynote address while veteran poet Peter Jailall read from his works adding his characteristically Guyanese flavour. Incidentally, both Dr Kumar and Jailall were presenters at the inaugural program in 1999.
On the musical front, Bollywood songs were rendered by Kishan Alimchandani while Mary Sarju and Jewan Persaud contributed chutney and folk items. Raymond Sarju provided accompaniment on the tablas and dholak. An engrossing dance item was done by Sukriti Sharma, a professionally trained kathak dancer.
Aditya Prashad presented an elaborate exhibition of our Indian ancestry alongside a display of artefacts and a logie. A food bar featuring tantalizing Indo Caribbean cuisine was part of the menu of items.
In an invited comment recently appointed Consul General of Guyana Ms Anyin Choo described the movie as “realistic”, that “depicts the history, culture and strong family ties and Indian identity which have been kept alive throughout the years.” As for the exhibition, Ms Choo said “it was awesome. It looked at the history of Indians in Guyana and their contribution to Guyanese society” adding, “it was a genuine piece of history which is remarkable.”
Among the other attendees were the Acting Consul General of China; Cliff Rajkumar, President of the Indian Diaspora Council of Canada and the Mayor and Councillors of the City of Markham.
In recognition of the event, Mayor of Markham, Frank Scarpitti, presented a plaque to the organizing committee.
The objective of this series of programs is to raise awareness of the significance of the 5th May, 1838, the date that the first East Indian migrants arrived in Guyana. The organizers are confident that over the years the programs have helped in fulfilling this objective and have sensitized their audiences to the fact that the sacrifices of our forebears have been towards uplifting the stature of succeeding generations.
The organizers feel that the series of programs over the years are an “education with a dash of entertainment”. During the first five years the focus was on Indo Caribbean heritage but since then it was broadened to include South Asian heritage in general.

By Abena Rockcliffe-Campbell (Kaieteur News)
While government continues to give the nation the impression as if it will be benefitting from an equal share of profit oil, the truth is, Guyana will be getting much less.
The nation will be made to pay ExxonMobil’s Corporate Income Tax (CIT) to the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA). This money will come from Guyana’s share of profit oil.
In a technical assistance report that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) handed to the Government of Guyana last year, the regulatory body noted that according to the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission’s published minimum terms, the contractor’s CIT liability is paid out of the government share (also known as pay-on-behalf system). In other words, the government share of profit oil/gas is inclusive of CIT and, therefore, the contractor (ExxonMobil) does not have to make separate CIT payments.
IMF said that since the CIT is included in the government share of profit oil, “this implies a ring-fence around the contract area for CIT purposes.”
The IMF said that while this arrangement is not unique to Guyana, 50 percent is a low share to be given to a government that still has to pay taxes on behalf of the company.
“This type of arrangement is also called post-tax production sharing, as the profit oil sharing is inclusive of CIT. An advantage of this approach is that it provides a measure of fiscal stability for companies, while protecting the government from abusive CIT planning as companies do not gain from engaging in such activities.”
However, the IMF said that “When this type of production sharing is used, usually the government share of profit oil/gas is higher than what the share would be if the contractor were separately liable for CIT. In the case of Guyana, this implies that the fixed 50 percent share is relatively low.” That type of “pay on behalf” arrangement is employed in countries such as Egypt, Qatar, Sudan, Libya and Trinidad and Tobago.
The Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) signed in 2016 between Guyana, ExxonMobil and its partners says, “The Contractor shall provide the Minister with the Contractor’s Income Tax returns to be submitted by the Minister to the Commissioner General, Guyana Revenue Authority so the Minister can pay income tax on behalf of the Contractor as provided under Article 15.4 (a).”
It continued, “On such returns, the Minister shall note that he is paying the income taxes on behalf of the Contractor, so that the Commissioner General, Guyana Revenue Authority can properly prepare the receipts required under this Article 15.5. Within one hundred and eighty (I80) days following the end of each year of assessment, the Minister shall furnish to the Contractor proper tax certificates in Contractor’s name from the Commissioner General, Guyana Revenue Authority evidencing the payment of the Contractor’s income tax.”