Handbook of Internal Migration in India [1 ed.] 9353285607, 9789353285609

Table of contents :
Dedication
Contents
List of Figures
List of Tables
List of Abbreviations
Foreword • Vinod Mishra
Preface
About the Authors
Part I: Introduction
1 Migrant Odysseys • S. Irudaya Rajan and Sumeetha M.
Part II: Macro Perspectives
2 Employment, Urbanization and Education: Migration’s Mega-Challenges • Santosh Mehrotra
3 Rural Migrants with Urban Jobs • Arup Mitra
4 Labour Migration: Trends and Characteristics • M. Imran Khan
5 Internal Migration: Emerging Patterns • Sandhya R. Mahapatro
6 Domestic Remittances • Bhaswati Das and Rajni Singh
7 Associated Gains from Migration • Pinak Sarkar
Part III: State-Level Perspectives
8 Labour Casualization and Spatial Mobility • Floriane Bolazzi
9 Temporary Labour Migration • Kunal Keshri
10 Student Migration • S. Irudaya Rajan, K. C. Zachariah and S. Sunitha
11 Building Resilience: Compulsions and Challenges • Rukmini Thapa
12 Impact of Migration on the Local Labour Markets • Aijaz Ahmad Turrey and Tulika Tripathi
13 Demographic and Social Profile • S. Irudaya Rajan, Bernard D' Sami, S. Samuel Asir Raj and P. Sivakumar
14 Impact of Rural Out-Migration • S. Amuthan
15 Migration and Widening Labour Divide • M. S. Raunaq
16 Diversification of Household Labour • Nandan Kumar
17 Distress Migration • Manasi Mahanty
Part IV: Migration and Caste
18 Migration and Caste • Kalyani Vartak and Chinmay Tumbe
19 Migration Trends and Vulnerable Populations • Amitabh Kundu
20 Labour Process in Migration • Sumeetha M.
21 Nasrani Family Histories and Migration • Nidhin Donald
22 Tribal Migration • Bhagyoday Khandare, Himanshu Chaurasia and Sunil Sarode
23 The Saga of Tribal Livelihood Migration • Anjali Borhade, Milind Babar, Isha Jain, Vishika Yadav, Pallavi Joshi, Karthik Prabhu, Ajay Shekhawat and Subhojit Dey
Part V: Migration and Gender
24 Gendered Spatialities • Amrita Datta
25 Unexplored Facets of Female Migration • Jajati K. Parida and S. Madheswaran
26 Female Caste-based Labour Migration • Sonia Krishna Kurup
27 Women’s Economic Migration • Sunetra Ghatak
28 Middle Class Women’s Migration • Tina Dutta and Annapurna Shaw
29 Women Workers on the Move • S. Irudaya Rajan and Sumeetha M.
30 Narratives of Left-Behind Women • Neha Rai
Part VI: Migration and Urbanization
31 Urban Migration and Policy Issues • R. B. Bhagat
32 Migration and Urbanization • Jajati K. Parida and Ravi K. Raman
33 Circular Migration and Urban Housing • Renu Desai and Shachi Sanghvi
34 Occupational Mobility in Migrants • Arvind Pandey and Ajit Jha
35 Maternal Healthcare in Slums • Namrata Ahirwar and Kunal Keshri
Part VII: Migration and Politics
36 Displacement and the Biopolitics of Development • Samir Kumar Das
37 Migrant, City and Changing Lives • Ranabir Samaddar
38 Adverse Incorporations and Subnational Welfarism • M. Suresh Babu, Mansi Wadhwa and M. Vijayabaskar
39 Spaces of Alienation and Resistance • Charvaak Pati
40 Politics of Sons of Soil • Shahana Purveen
Part VIII: Emerging Issues
41 Nature of ‘Unfreedom’ among Migrants • Deepak K. Mishra
42 Climate Change and Migration Nexus • Avijit Mistri
43 Behind the Shining Brick and Mortar • Amrita Sharma and Divya Varma
44 Cyclical Mobility • Rabiul Ansary and Bhaswati Das
45 Migrant and Language • S. Irudaya Rajan, I. V. Prasad and Rinju
46 Family Migration • Madhusudan Nag
47 Precarious Employment in Power Looms • Divya Varma and Amrita Sharma
48 Economic Inequality and Migration • Rikil Chyrmang
49 Needs of Migrants • Helga Thomas and Govindappa Lakshmana
Part IX: Migration Policy
50 Migration Policy: Where Do We Stand? • Meera Sethi and Debolina Kundu
51 Integration Policies for Interstate Migrants • Varun Aggarwal and Saniya Singh
52 Vulnerability and Social Protection Access • Nabeela Ahmed
53 Access to Maternal Health Programme • Divya Ravindranath
54 Challenges to Stakeholders • Ansari P. A. and Caroline Osella
55 Exclusion of Migrants in Policy • Vicky Nandgaye
56 Migration and Financial Transfers • S. Irudaya Rajan and U. S. Mishra
Index

Citation preview

Handbook of INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Edited by

S. Irudaya Rajan • Sumeetha M.

Handbook of

Internal Migration in India

Handbook of

Internal Migration in India

Edited by

S. Irudaya Rajan Sumeetha M.

Copyright © S. Irudaya Rajan and Sumeetha M., 2020 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. First published in 2020 by SAGE Publications India Pvt Ltd B1/I-1 Mohan Cooperative Industrial Area Mathura Road, New Delhi 110 044, India www.sagepub.in SAGE Publications Inc 2455 Teller Road Thousand Oaks, California 91320, USA SAGE Publications Ltd 1 Oliver’s Yard, 55 City Road London EC1Y 1SP, United Kingdom SAGE Publications Asia-Pacific Pte Ltd 18 Cross Street #10-10/11/12 China Square Central Singapore 048423 Published by Vivek Mehra for SAGE Publications India Pvt Ltd. Typeset in 10/12 pt Times by Zaza Eunice, Hosur, Tamil Nadu, India. Library of Congress Control Number: 2019951351

ISBN: 978-93-532-8560-9 (HB) SAGE Team: Rajesh Dey, Vandana Gupta and Rajinder Kaur

Dedicated to the Godfather of migration studies, Professor K. C. Zachariah, on his 95th birthday (17 September 2019).

Thank you for choosing a SAGE product! If you have any comment, observation or feedback, I would like to personally hear from you. Please write to me at [email protected] Vivek Mehra, Managing Director and CEO, SAGE India.

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This book is also available as an e-book.

Contents

List of Figuresxiii List of Tablesxvii List of Abbreviationsxxvii Foreword by Vinod Mishra xxxi Prefacexxxiii About the Authorxxxvii PART I: INTRODUCTION   1

Migrant Odysseys S. Irudaya Rajan and Sumeetha M.

3

PART II: MACRO PERSPECTIVES   2

Employment, Urbanization and Education: Migration’s Mega-Challenges Santosh Mehrotra

33

  3

Rural Migrants with Urban Jobs Arup Mitra

40

  4

Labour Migration: Trends and Characteristics M. Imran Khan

51

  5

Internal Migration: Emerging Patterns Sandhya R. Mahapatro

80

  6

Domestic Remittances Bhaswati Das and Rajni Singh

93

  7

Associated Gains from Migration Pinak Sarkar

111

PART III: STATE-LEVEL PERSPECTIVES   8

Labour Casualization and Spatial Mobility Floriane Bolazzi

125

viii

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

  9

Temporary Labour Migration Kunal Keshri

140

10

Student Migration S. Irudaya Rajan, K. C. Zachariah and S. Sunitha

153

11

Building Resilience: Compulsions and Challenges Rukmini Thapa

164

12

Impact of Migration on the Local Labour Markets Aijaz Ahmad Turrey and Tulika Tripathi

178

13

Demographic and Social Profile S. Irudaya Rajan, Bernard D' Sami, S. Samuel Asir Raj and P. Sivakumar

186

14

Impact of Rural Out-Migration S. Amuthan

198

15

Migration and Widening Labour Divide M. S. Raunaq

208

16

Diversification of Household Labour Nandan Kumar

220

17

Distress Migration Manasi Mahanty

235

PART IV: MIGRATION AND CASTE 18

Migration and Caste Kalyani Vartak and Chinmay Tumbe

253

19

Migration Trends and Vulnerable Populations Amitabh Kundu

268

20

Labour Process in Migration Sumeetha M.

279

21

Nasrani Family Histories and Migration Nidhin Donald

290

22

Tribal Migration Bhagyoday Khandare, Himanshu Chaurasia and Sunil Sarode

303

23

The Saga of Tribal Livelihood Migration Anjali Borhade, Milind Babar, Isha Jain, Vishika Yadav, Pallavi Joshi, Karthik Prabhu, Ajay Shekhawat and Subhojit Dey

313

Contents

ix

PART V: MIGRATION AND GENDER 24

Gendered Spatialities Amrita Datta

331

25

Unexplored Facets of Female Migration Jajati K. Parida and S. Madheswaran

342

26

Female Caste-based Labour Migration Sonia Krishna Kurup

358

27

Women’s Economic Migration Sunetra Ghatak

372

28

Middle Class Women’s Migration Tina Dutta and Annapurna Shaw

385

29

Women Workers on the Move S. Irudaya Rajan and Sumeetha M.

408

30

Narratives of Left-Behind Women Neha Rai

415

PART VI: MIGRATION AND URBANIZATION 31

Urban Migration and Policy Issues R. B. Bhagat

429

32

Migration and Urbanization Jajati K. Parida and Ravi K. Raman

449

33

Circular Migration and Urban Housing Renu Desai and Shachi Sanghvi

462

34

Occupational Mobility in Migrants Arvind Pandey and Ajit Jha

476

35

Maternal Healthcare in Slums Namrata Ahirwar and Kunal Keshri

496

PART VII: MIGRATION AND POLITICS 36

Displacement and the Biopolitics of Development Samir Kumar Das

509

37

Migrant, City and Changing Lives Ranabir Samaddar

521

x

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

38

Adverse Incorporations and Subnational Welfarism M. Suresh Babu, Mansi Wadhwa and M. Vijayabaskar

530

39

Spaces of Alienation and Resistance Charvaak Pati

545

40

Politics of Sons of Soil Shahana Purveen

550

PART VIII: EMERGING ISSUES 41

Nature of ‘Unfreedom’ among Migrants Deepak K. Mishra

563

42

Climate Change and Migration Nexus Avijit Mistri

574

43

Behind the Shining Brick and Mortar Amrita Sharma and Divya Varma

592

44

Cyclical Mobility Rabiul Ansary and Bhaswati Das

605

45

Migrant and Language S. Irudaya Rajan, I. V. Prasad and Rinju

622

46

Family Migration Madhusudan Nag

629

47

Precarious Employment in Power Looms Divya Varma and Amrita Sharma

642

48

Economic Inequality and Migration Rikil Chyrmang

651

49

Needs of Migrants Helga Thomas and Govindappa Lakshmana

671

PART IX: MIGRATION POLICY 50

Migration Policy: Where Do We Stand? Meera Sethi and Debolina Kundu

685

51

Integration Policies for Interstate Migrants Varun Aggarwal and Saniya Singh

703

52

Vulnerability and Social Protection Access Nabeela Ahmed

720

Contents

xi

53

Access to Maternal Health Programme Divya Ravindranath

738

54

Challenges to Stakeholders Ansari P. A. and Caroline Osella

749

55

Exclusion of Migrants in Policy Vicky Nandgaye

767

56

Migration and Financial Transfers S. Irudaya Rajan and U. S. Mishra

780

Index791

List of Figures

4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5

Migration Rate: Consumption Quantile, Upper (Q5) and Lower (Q1) Change in Migration Rate (in %) from 1983 to 2007–2008 Change in Migration Rate (in %) from 1999–2000 to 2007–2008 Education Gap between Migrants and Non-Migrants in Rural Areas Education Gap between Migrants and Non-migrants in Urban Areas

5.1 5.2

Trends of Internal Migration in India, 1971–2011 (%) 81 Percentage Change in Streamwise of Migrants by Sex, 1999–2000 and 2007–200885 Rural–Urban Interstate Male Migration across Economic Class, 1999–2008 88

5.3 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 8.1 8.2 9.1 9.2

63 66 67 69 69

Pattern and Magnitude of Domestic Remittances in India (2007–2008) Volume of Remittances Against Employment-related Reasons for Migration Volume of Remittances Against ‘Other than Employment’ Reasons for Migration Scatter Plot of Mean Amount of Remittances Sent Against Mean Age of Out-migrants across States in India

99 100

Analytical Framework Relative Weighted Position of the Indian States Capturing Remittance Dependence across Migration-reporting Households in Rural Areas Relative Weighted Position of the Indian States Capturing Remittance Dependence across Migration-reporting Households in Urban Areas Odds Ratio for Expenditure Incurred on Consumption for Rural and Urban Households across MPCE Wealth Distribution Odds Ratios for Saving/Investment for Rural and Urban Households across MPCE Wealth Distribution

113

Percentage of Agriculture as a Primary Occupation in Palanpur in 1958–2014 (Male Population Aged 15+ Years) Palanpur and Towns in Moradabad District Temporary Labour Migration Rate (Migrants per 1,000) across the States in India, NSS, 2007–2008 Temporary Labour Migration Rate (Migrants per 1,000) across the NSS Regions in Uttar Pradesh, NSS, 2007–2008

101 102

116 117 120 121 128 134 142 147

xiv

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

10.1 10.2 10.3

Trends in Estimated Number of Out-Migrants, 1998–2018 Out-Migrants by Age and Sex, 2018 Age at Migration of Out-Migrants, 2018

13.1

Distribution of Out–Migrants per 1,000 HH across Districts in Tamil Nadu, 2015 Distribution of Return Out–Migrants per 1,000 HH across Districts in Tamil Nadu, 2015

13.2

155 158 159 188 189

16.2 16.3

Out-Migration Propensity from States Compared with the National Average Structure of Migrant and Non-Migrant Workforce Mean and Median Income of Households by Occupation Categories

226 228 231

18.1

Framework to Understand the Relationship between Migration and Caste

263

20.1

Structure of the Gold Jewellery-Making Industry

284

22.1 22.2 22.3 22.4 22.5

District-wise Percentage of Tribal Population of Maharashtra Division-wise Tribal Population of Maharashtra Literacy and Educational Level Regression Analysis of Tribal Literacy Rate of Maharashtra District-wise Sex Ratio among the ST Population in Maharashtra

306 306 308 308 309

23.1

Number of Migrant Households per 1,000 Households in Each Social Group during NSS 49th (1993) and 64th (2007–2008) Rounds Distribution of Households in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Age–Sex Distribution of Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Caste Profile of Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Occupation of Individuals Aged 18 Years and Above in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Education Levels of Individuals between 6 and 30 Years in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Family Occupations in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Family Annual Incomes in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Family Landownership in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Size of Landholdings among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Source of Water for Farming among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Measures Taken by Population in Case of Insufficient Capital in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Methods of Cultivation among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats Ownership of Livestock among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats

16.1

23.2 23.3 23.4 23.5 23.6 23.7 23.8 23.9 23.10 23.11 23.12 23.13 23.14

314 316 316 317 317 317 318 318 318 319 319 320 320 320

List of Figures

23.15 Distance of Primary Healthcare Centre from Villages for Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.16 Regular Source of Medical Care Availed among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.17 Types of Residences among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.18 Awareness about Navsanjeevani Yojana among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.19 Availed Nutritional Diet Programme among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.20 Frequency of Ration Benefit Utilization among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.21 Awareness about MGNREGA Scheme among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.22 Reasons for No Benefits Availed from Social Schemes among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.23 Season-wise Migration Rate among the Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.24 Reasons for Migration among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.25 Migration Destinations of Out-migrants from Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.26 Problems Faced by Migrants at Destination Regions in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.27 Income from Migration among Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats 23.28 Remittance Utilization Pattern in Population in Peint and Trimbakeshwar Block Panchayats

xv

320 321 321 322 322 322 323 323 323 324 324 325 325 326

25.1 25.2

Migration Trends in India, 1983–2008 Reasons for Female Migration in India (Figures in %)

344 346

31.1 31.2

435

31.3 31.4 31.5

Net Interstate Migration in India, 2007–2008 Contribution of Net Rural-to-Urban Migration in Urban Population Growth (Percentage) Migration Rate by MPCE Decile Class, 2007–2008 Million-Plus Cities in India, 2011 Percentage of Migrants in Selected Million-Plus Urban Agglomerations

32.1 32.2 32.3 32.4

Internal Migration Trends by Sectors in India, 1971–2011 Migrants as Percentage of Total Population by Sectors in India, 1971–2011 Annual Growth Rate of Internal Migration by Sectors in India, 1971–2011 Sectoral Flow of Internal Migration by Sex in India, 1971–2011

451 452 453 453

35.1

Location of Slums in Prayagraj City

499

42.1

Sustainable Livelihoods Framework 

576

437 439 440 441

xvi

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

42.2 42.3 42.4 42.5

Schematic Plan of Sampling, Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve Migrants’ Places of Destination Environmental Risk Perception in Farming Environmental Risk Perception in Fishing

578 579 581 582

44.1 44.2

Age Distribution of the Sampled Respondents Occupational Shift Based on Type of Occupation between Origins and Destinations

610

45.1 45.2

Percentage of Hindi Speakers in India, 1971–2011 Percentage of Non-native Speakers in South Indian States, 1991–2011

624 625

48.1 48.2 48.3 48.4 48.5 48.6 48.7 48.8 48.9 48.10 48.11

Percentage Distribution of Remittances from Out-Migrants The Lorenz Curve and Gini Coefficient MPCE Lorenz Curve on Food Items MPCE Lorenz Curve on Non-food Items MPCE Lorenz Curve on Combined Food and Non-food Items MPCE Lorenz Curve on Education Household MPCE Lorenz Curve on Health Lorenz Curve on per Capita Saving Lorenz Curve on Investment per Annum Lorenz Curve on Land Possession Overall LC MPCE

658 664 664 665 665 666 666 667 667 667 668

50.1

Intradistrict, Interdistrict and Interstate Migration

691

51.1 51.2

617

IPEX 2018 Overall Score for Kerala, Delhi and Maharashtra IPEX 2018 Policy Areas Score for Identity and Registration and Political Participation 51.3 IPEX 2018 Policy Areas Score for Labour Market, Education and Children’s Rights 51.4 IPEX 2018 Policy Areas Score for Social Benefits, Housing and Health & Sanitation 51A.1 IPEX Scoring Schematic

710

54.1

Movement of Migrant Workers from Northern India towards Kerala

752

56.1

Percentage Distribution of Lifetime Migrants by Stream of Migration in India, 1981–2001 Percentage of Lifetime Interstate Migrants of Major States of India, 1971–2001

56.2

711 712 712 717

782 785

List of Tables

1.1 1.2

Workforce and Migration for Economic Reasons, Based on the 1991–2011 Census Duration of Residence and Migration

2.1

Occupational Structure of Short- and Long-term Male Migrants

36

3.1 3.2

Probability to Migrate (Binomial Logit) with Marginal Effects Factor Analysis: Migration, Urban Informal Sector and Other Rural and Urban Labour Market Characteristics Distribution of Workers by Occupation and Networks (%)

43

Internal Labour Migration in India (in %) State-wise Labour Migration Rate and Distribution in India (in %) Percentage Distribution of Labour Migrants by Sector, Sex and PLR Labour Migration Streams across States (Rural) (in %) Labour Migration Streams across States (Urban) (in %) Migration Rate (%) by Economic Class Migration Rate (%) by Socio-religious Group Percentage Distribution of Different Levels of Education by Migrant Status Employment and Unemployment Rates (%) of Migrants and Non-migrants in the Age Group 15–60 Years Nature and Type of Employment of Migrant and Non-Migrant Workers (in %) Industrial Distribution of Migrants and Non-Migrants (in %) Real Daily Wages in Rupees (1999–2000 Constant Prices)

54 55 57 58 60 62 65 68

Migration Rates by Sex and Place of Residence, NSS, 1983–2008 (%) Reasons for Migration by Sex, Place of Residence (Duration of Residence < 5 Years), 1999–2000 and 2007–2008 Distance-wise Distribution of Migrants (Duration of Residence < 5 Years) Interstate Net Migration Rate (Duration of Residence < 5 Years), 1999–2008 Economic Characteristics of Migrants by MPCE Class (Duration < 5 Years), 1999–2000 and 2007–2008 Industrial Classifications of Migrant Workers (UPS) (Duration of Residence < 5 Years), 2007–2008 (%) Factors Associated with Migration to Urban Areas (Duration < 5 Years), 2007–2008

82

3.3 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 4.8 4.9 4.10 4.11 4.12 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 5.7

6 7

44 46

71 72 74 77

83 84 86 87 89 90

xviii

6.1 6.2 6.3 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5

8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 9.7 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 10.5

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

State-wise (interstate) Amount of Remittances as a Percentage Share of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at Constant (2004–2005) Prices for 2007–2008 98 States and UTs with Difference in Male and Female per Capita Remittances Sent in 2007–2008 103 Multiple Classification Analysis of Total Amount of Remittances Sent by the Out-migrants by Background Characteristics of the Migrants, 2007–2008 104 Share of Households Reporting Out-migration in Rural and Urban Areas across Indian States Share of Households Reporting Out-migration across Economic Classes Methodological Illustration Gap in Consumption Expenditure between Remittance-receiving and Non-Remittance-receiving Households in Rural Areas across Indian States (in Rupees) Gap in Consumption Expenditure between Remittance-receiving and Non-Remittance-receiving Households in Urban Areas across Indian States (in Rupees)

114 114 115 118 119

Occupational Structure in Palanpur, 1958–2014 (Primary Occupation, Adult Male 15+)130 Occupational Status of Commuters, 1983–2015 (Adult Male 15+)133 Primary and Secondary Occupations of Migrants and Commuters in 2015 (Adult Male 15+)133 Workplace of Migrants and Commuters in 2015 (Adult Male 15+)134 Fares and Time Taken for Travel to Main Towns by Different Means of Transport Available from Palanpur in 2014 135 Comparison of Estimated Number of Temporary and Permanent Migrants from Different States of India (in 1,000), NSS, 2007–2008 Estimated Number of Permanent Migrants (Lifetime) from Uttar Pradesh to the Different States of India, NSS, 2007–2008 Temporary Labour Migration Rate (%) (Migrants per 1,000) by Place of Residence across the NSS Regions in Uttar Pradesh, NSS, 2007–2008 Temporary Labour Migration Rate (%) (Migrants per 1,000) by Caste across the NSS Regions in Uttar Pradesh, NSS, 2007–2008 Streams of Temporary Labour Migration across the NSS Regions in Uttar Pradesh, NSS, 2007–2008 Intrastate and Interstate Streams of Temporary Labour Migration across the NSS Regions in Uttar Pradesh, NSS, 2007–2008 Results of Logistic Regression Analysis for Determinants of Temporary Labour Migration of Uttar Pradesh (Age Group 15–64 Years), NSS, 2007–2008 Estimated Number of Out-Migrants by Districts, Kerala, 1998–2018 Percentage of Out-Migrants by Gender and Place of Origin, 2018 Percentage of Out-Migrants by Educational Level and Place of Origin, 2018 Percentage of Out-Migrants by Marital Status and Place of Origin, 2018 Percentage of Out-Migrants by Economic Activity and Place of Origin, 2018

145 146 147 147 148 148 149 154 155 156 156 157

List of Tables

10.6 10.7 10.8 10.9 10.10 10.11 10.12 10.13

Ten Taluks with the Highest Number of Out-Migrants (OMI), 2018 Ten Taluks with the Lowest Number of Out-Migrants (OMI), 2018 Out-Migrants by Religion and Districts, 2018 Educational Level of Out-Migrants by Sex, 2018 Economic Activity of Out-Migrants by Sex, 2018 Students and Job Seekers among Out-Migrants, 2018 Education Level of Student Out-Migrants, 2018 Reason for Migration of Out-Migrants, 2018

11.1 Characteristics of Households in Study Villages 11A.1 Major Migration Streams in Study Villages 12.1 12.2 12.3 12.4

In-migrant Workers Classified by Locality, Sex and All Durations of Residence in Place of Enumeration Percentage Distribution of In-migrant Workers in the Valley Classified by Age and Duration of Residence, 0–9 Years Percentage Distribution of In-migrant Workers in the Valley Classified by Marital Status and Duration of Residence, 0–9 Years In-migrant Workers Classified by All Durations of Residence and Reasons for Migration

13.1 13.2 13.3 13.4 13.5 13.6 13.7 13.8 13.9 13.10

Districts with Most Number of OMIs and ROMs Taluks with Most Number of OMIs and ROMs Taluks with Most Number of OMIs per 100 HH and ROMs per 100 HH States Receiving OMIs and ROMs from Tamil Nadu Reasons for Migration among OMIs and ROMs, 2015 Age Composition of Out-Migrants, 2015 Age Composition of Return Out-Migrants, 2015 Distribution of Out-Migrants across Religions in Tamil Nadu Educational Status of Out-Migrants, 2015 Rates of Employment Before and After Migration among ROMs and OMIs, 2015 13.11 Occupations of Out-Migrants After Migration, 2015 13A.1 Destination between OMIs and ROMs in Tamil Nadu, 2015 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 14.6 14.7 14.8 14.9

Structural Changes of Economy in Tamil Nadu Percentage Share of Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) at Factor Cost by Industry of Origin in Tamil Nadu, 1980–1981 to 2014–2015 (Prediction through 2019–2020) Total Main Workforces in TN, 1981–2011 Trends of Main Workforce by Sex in TN (Rural) Background Information of Migrants Motivation and Causes of Out-Migration from Rural Tamil Nadu Mean Difference in Working and Financial Condition of First Migrants During, Before and After Migration Paired Samples t-Test Dependent Variable: Migrants’ Household Assets

xix

157 157 160 161 161 161 162 162 167 176 179 180 181 183 190 190 190 191 192 193 193 194 194 195 195 196 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 205 206

xx

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

15.1 15.2

Actual Wages and Relative Wages across States (in `)212 Average Wages of Migrant and Malayali Workers in Kerala 212

16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 16.5 16.6 16.7 16.8 16.9 16.10 16.11 16.12

Socio-economic Background of Out-Migrant Households Share of States/Union Territories in Out-Migrant Population in India (%) Types of Destination by States Types of Destination by Area Employment Status of Out-Migrants Occupational Status of Employed Out-Migrants (Whose Occupation Is Known) Age Structure of Migrant and Non-Migrant Workers Educational Status of Migrant and Non-Migrant Workers Number of Activities Taken Up by the Households Diversification of Household Livelihood in Different Sectors Matrix of Combination of Activities Taken Up by the Household Inequality by Occupation Categories

224 225 226 226 227 227 229 229 229 230 230 232

17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 17.5

Trade: Sewing Machine Operation, Batch Summary, IIS, Rayagada Sewing Machine Operations, Batch Summary, IIS, Rayagada Sewing Machine Operations, Trade-wise Report, IIS, Rayagada OSDA Training Status of IIS, Rayagada, for Financial Year (FY) 2017–2018 OSDA Training Status of IIS, Rayagada, for Financial Year (FY) 2018–2019

240 241 241 242 243

18.1

Out-Migration for Work in India by Social Group and Religion, 2007–2008

254

19.1 19.2

Percentage of Migrants in the Population as per Decennial Censuses Percentage of Total Migrants in Different NSS Rounds in Rural and Urban IndiaRound (year) Percentage of Decadal Migrants and Those Not Reporting Duration to Total Migrants Percentage of Decadal Migrants with Different Durations of Stay to the Total Migrants Reporting Duration Decadal Growth of Net Rural Urban Migrants with Less and More Than 10 Years of Stay at the Place of Enumeration Percentage of Population for Different Socio-Religious Groups in Rural and Urban Areas Percentage of Population for Different Socio-religious Groups in Rural and Urban Areas in Various NSS Rounds Percentage of Total Muslim Population to Total Population in Urban Areas Distribution of Population by Sectors of Residence across Different Socio-religious Groups in 2011–2012 (%) Distribution of Population by Sectors of Residence across Different Socio-religious Groups in 2004–2005 (%) Growth Rates of Population for Different Socio-religious Groups in Rural and Urban Areas and the Urban-to-Rural Growth Differential (%) Migration Rates (Migrants per 1,000 Population) for Major Religious Groups

269

19.3 19.4 19.5 19.6 19.7 19.8 19.9a 19.9b 19.10 19.11

270 271 271 272 273 274 274 274 275 276 277

List of Tables

22.1 22.2 22.3 22.4 22.5

Maharashtra Scheduled Tribe Population in 2001 305 Scheduled Tribe Migrants within the State 306 Percentage Distribution of Duration-wise Tribal Migration in Maharashtra307 Percentage Distribution of Reasons for Scheduled Tribes’ Migration by the Last Residence 307 Socio-economic and Migration Variables for Districts of Maharashtra, India 310

24.1 24.2

Distribution of Six Typologies of Workers by Sex (%), Age 15–64 Years Distribution of Primary Work Status by Sex for RI Workers (%), Age 15–64 Years 24.3 Distribution of Primary Work Status by Sex for RII Workers (%), Age 15–64 Years 24.4 Distribution of Secondary Work Status by Sex for RII Workers (%), Age 15–64 Years 24.5 Distribution of Primary Work Status by Sex for MI Workers (%), Age 15–64 Years 24.6 Distribution of Secondary Work Status by Sex for MI Workers (%), Age 15–64 Years 24.7 Distribution of Primary Work Status by Sex for MII Workers (%), Age 15–64 Years 24.8 Distribution of Secondary Work Status by Sex for MII Workers (%), Age 15–64 Years 24.9 Distribution of Primary Work Status by Sex for MIII Workers (%), Age 15–64 Years 24.10 Distribution of Secondary Work Status by Sex for MIII Workers (%), Age 15–64 Years 24.11 Distribution of Primary Work Status by Sex for MIV Workers (%), Age 15–64 Years 25.1 25.2 25.3 25.4 25.5 25.6 25.7 25.8

xxi

Employment Status of Women Migrants Who Reported Marriage Migration, 1983–2008 Labour Force Participation Rate of Female Migrants by Duration of Migration, 1983–2008 Females Reporting Marriage-Migration by Their Duration of Migration and Employment Status, 1999–2008 Labour Force Participation Rate of Female Migrants by Their Age Group, 1983–2008 Labour Force Participation Rate of Female Migrants by Their Social Group, 1983–2008 Trends of Labour Force Participation Rate of Female Migrants by Their Economic Group, 1983–2008 Labour Force Participation Rate of Female Migrants by Their Level of Education, 1983–2008 Probit Estimates for Labour Force Participation Decision of Female Migrants in India

333 334 336 336 337 337 337 338 338 338 339 347 348 349 351 352 353 354 355

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27.1 27.2 27.3 27.4 27.5 27.6 27.7

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Total Internal Migration in India by Sex and Residence (Figures in %) Reasons for Migration (Figures in %) Reasons for Migration by Last Place of Residence (Figures in %) Activity Status of Women Migrants in India (Figures in %) Naming of Components Factor Loadings from the Significant Factors Results of the Probit Model to Identify the Role of Network on the Skilled and Unskilled Migrants Estimated Marginal Effects of the Explanatory Variables of the Probit Model of Skilled and Unskilled Migrants

374 375 375 377 378 379

28.1 28.2

Types of Service-Sector Jobs Basic Demographic Profile of the Respondents

388 389

29.1 29.2 29.3 29.4 29.5

Average Age of Female Migrants in Kerala Average Wages, Remittance and Savings with Female and Employment Sector Possession of Bank Account Daily Wages with Sex and Employment Sector Mode of Remittance by Sex and Employment Sector

410 411 411 412 413

31.1

Trends in Migration Rates in Urban Areas, 1981–2008 (Migrants per 100 Persons) Distribution of Migrants in India by Streams of Migration (Percentage) Migration by Streams and Administrative Locations (Percentage) Migration by Administrative Locations in Rural and Urban Areas (Percentage) Reasons of Migration to Urban Areas

432 433 434 434 438

27.8

31.2 31.3 31.4 31.5 32.1 32.2 32.3 32.4 32.5 32.6 33.1 33.2 33.3 33.4 33.5 33.6 33.7 33.8 33.9 33.10

382 382

Sectoral Employment Trends in India, 1994–2012 451 Rural-to-Urban Migrants by Age, Sex and Socio-economic Groups in India (in Percentage) 455 Level of Education and Rural-to-Urban Migration in India (Figures in Percentage) 456 Growth of Rural-to-Urban Migration and Urban Population in India, 2001–2011457 State-wise Employment Patterns of Migrants in Urban India 459 Rural–Urban Migrants by Their Industry of Employment in Urban India (Figures in Percentage) 460 Housing Typologies of the Survey Respondents Quality of Shelter in Squatter Settlements Source of Water in Squatter Settlements Access to Toilets in Squatter Settlements Source of Water in Homeless Settlements in Public Spaces Access to Toilets in Homeless Settlements in Public Spaces Rent Levels for the Rental Rooms/Units Source of Water in Rental Rooms/Units Access to Toilets in Rental Rooms/Units Rental Costs Incurred in Rental Spots on Land/Rooftop

465 465 466 466 467 468 469 469 469 470

List of Tables

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33.11 Source of Water in Rental Spots on Land/Rooftop 33.12 Access to Toilets in Rental Spots on Land/Rooftop

471 471

34.1 34.2

Background Characteristics of Migrant Workers Employment Status of Migrant Workers before Migration to Delhi (Pre-Migration Employment Status) (in Percentage) Pre-Migration Employment Status of the Migrant Workers across Social Groups and by Landholding Size at Place of Origin (in Percentage) Post-Migration Employment Status (First Job in Delhi) of the Migrant Workers (in Percentage) Post-Migration Employment Status of Migrant Workers According to Industrial Categories (NIC-2008) Current Employment Status of the Migrant Workers (in Percentage) Current Employment Status of Migrant Workers According to Industrial Categories (NIC-2008) Post-Migration Employment Status and Current Employment Status across Social Groups (in Percentage) Sectoral Distribution of Post-Migration Employment Status and Current Employment Status across Social Groups

481

35.1 35.2 35.3

Socio-demographic Characteristics of the Sample Utilization of Antenatal Care among Pregnant Women Delivery and Postnatal Care among Woman Who Recently Delivered

500 500 503

38.1 38.2

Percentage of Interstate Migrants in Successive Rounds of NSSO Surveys Rate of Net Interstate Migration (Intercensal) in Some Major States during 1961, 1971 and 1981

532

41.1

Migration Processes in the Study Region: Sources of Advance Payment

571

42.1 42.2 42.3

Work Status of Respondents during the Last 365 Days Sources to Find Jobs Sustainable Livelihood Model by Binary Logistic Regression

580 584 587

43.1

Daily Wage Rates, Labour Nakas and Work Sites

595

44.1 44.2 44.3 44.4 44.5 44.6 44.7

Demographic Characteristic of the Study Population Respondents’ Family Size and Family Type Religion and Social Groups of the Respondents Debt of the Households and Type of Mobility Multiple Sources of Debt by Type of Mobility Households’ Living Characteristics by Type of Mobility Household Assets’ Possession by Type of Mobility

610 612 613 614 615 618 619

45.1

Top 10 Languages with Speakers’ Strength of 10,000 and Above at the National Level and Percentage of These Speakers to the Total Population of India, 2011

624

34.3 34.4 34.5 34.6 34.7 34.8 34.9

483 485 486 487 489 490 491 492

533

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45.2 45.3 45.4 45.5

46.1 46.2 46.3 46.4 46.5 46.6 46.7 46.8 46.9 46.10 46.11 46.12 46.13

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Growth of Hindi Language Speakers in South Indian States, 1991–2011 625 List of Non-native Languages Spoken in South Indian States, 2011 626 Percentage Share of Selected Language Speakers in South Indian States, 1991–2011626 Selected Language Speakers (in Thousands) and Their Decadal Growth (in Per Cent) in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, 1991–2011 626 Decomposing Migrant Status of Households According to Rural/Urban Region in India (in Millions) Distribution of Migrant Household According to Rural/Urban Region in India (Per thousand) Proportion of Short-term Migrant Family According to Origin and Destination Place in India Proportion of Short-term Migrant Family and Place of Migration According to Origin and Destination Place in India Proportion of Short-term Migrant Family According to Duration at Destination in India Proportion of Short-term Migrant Families According to Means of Migration in India Distribution of Short-term Migrant Family across the States in India Short-term Migrant Family and Monthly Per Capita Consumption in India (in migration rate) Short-term Migrant Family and Usual Principal Activity Status in India (in migration rate) Short-term Migrant Family and General Education Level of Head Member of the Household in India (in migration rate) Short-term Migrant Family and Social Croups in India (in migration rate) Short-term Migrant Family and Religious Groups in India (in migration rate) Short-term Family Migration Rate (Migrants per 1,000) According to Religion for All India

633 633 633 634 634 635 636 636 637 637 638 638 638

47.1

Monthly Wages of Power Loom Workers

645

48.1 48.2 48.3 48.4 48.5 48.6 48.7 48.8 48.9 48.10 48.11 48.12 48.13

Percentage Distribution of Household-Heads and Respondents by Gender Percentage Distribution of Native and Non-native Settlers by Gender Percentage Distribution of Relationship to Household-Head Percentage Distribution of Marital Status Percentage Distribution of Religion by Gender Percentage Distribution of Language by Gender Percentage Distribution of Social Groups by Gender Percentage Distribution of Educational Status by Gender Percentage Distribution of Usual Activity by Gender Percentage Distribution of Household Member’s Occupation by Gender Duration of Stay of the Migrants Out-Migration by Destination Percentage of Use of Remittances

653 654 654 655 655 655 655 656 656 657 657 658 658

List of Tables

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48.14 48.15 48.16 48.17 48.18 48.19 48.20 48.21 48A.1 48A.2

MPCE on Food and Non-food Items 659 MPCE on Education 660 MPCE on Healthcare 660 Average Monthly per Capita Savings 661 Average Investment per Annum (in `)662 Per Capita Land Possession (in Acres) 662 Overall MPCE 663 The Gini Index 668 Monthly per Capita Consumption Expenditure Items 669 Cumulative Frequency and Lorenz Curve of the Natives and Non-natives 670

49.1

Background Details

50.1

50.3

Internal Lifetime Migrants in India by Gender and Residence (in Percentage), 1971–2011 Total Internal Migration in India by Gender and Residence (in Percentage) International Migrants from India (1990–2017)

51.1 51.2 51.3 51.4 51A.1 51A.2

Sources Referred for Deriving IPEX Policy Areas and Dimensions IPEX Policy Indicators on Education An Illustration of How IPEX Policy Indicators Are Scored Policies Relevant for IPEX at the Central Level IPEX 2018 List of Policy Indicators IPEX 2018 Final Results

707 707 708 709 716 718

53.1 53.2

Key Maternal Health Programs in India Knowledge of Maternal Health Programmes among Female Workers (n = 55)

740 741

54.1 54.2 54.3 54.4 54.5 54.6

Profile of Government Officials Reasons for Migration Barriers Faced by Government Officials and Migrants Challenges Faced by Migrant Workers Measures and Suggestions for Inclusiveness (of Migrants) ILO Convention and Rights (for Migrant Workers)

759 759 760 760 761 762

55.1

Total Cess Amount Collection, Expenditure and Other Expenses at the End of June 2015 Total Number of Registered Beneficiaries, Registered Workers and Other Accident-related Information at the End of October 2015

50.2

55.2 56.1 56.2 56.3

Percentage Distribution of Lifetime Migrants by Type of Migration, 1971–2011 Percentage Distribution of Lifetime Migrants by Stream of Migration, 1981–2001 Percentage Distribution of Lifetime Migrants by Reasons for Migration, 1981–2001

673 688 689 689

772 773 782 783 783

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56.4 56.5 56.6 56.7 56.8

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Percentage of Lifetime Interstate Migrants, 1971–2001 Percentage of Lifetime Migrants by Their Educational Level and Stream of Migration, 2001 Percentage of Interstate Migrants and Their Migration from Rural to Urban Areas, 2001 Percentage Share of Interstate Migrants with Duration of 0–9 Years Who Stated Their Reason for Migration as ‘Work/Employment’, by Place of Origin and Educational Levels, 2001 Percentage of Decadal Growth Rate, Natural Growth Rate and Migration Rates in India, 1971–2001

784 785 786 786 788

List of Abbreviations

A&N ADB ADML AFMC ALO AMC AMP ANC APL AWC AWW BHU BOCW BPL CA CAD CDS CPI CSR CTs CWC D&D D&N DDA DISH DLO DML DOTS DUSIB EAG EI ESI EU EXIM FERA FGDs

Andaman and Nicobar Islands Asian Development Bank Average dependency on mobile labour Armed Forces Medical College Assistant Labour Officer Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation Automotive Mission Plan Antenatal care Above poverty line Anganwadi centres Anganwadi worker Banaras Hindu University Building and other construction workers Below poverty line Chartered accountancy Current Account Deficit Centre for Development Studies Consumer price index Corporate social responsibility Census Towns Child Welfare Committee Daman and Diu Dadra and Nagar Haveli Delhi Development Authority Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health District Labour Officer Domestic migrant labour Directly Observed Treatment, Short Course Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board Empowered Action Group Expert interview Employee State Insurance European Union Export Import Bank Foreign Exchange Regulation Act Focus group discussions

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FY GCA GDP GI GOI GRP GSDP GST GVT HDI HH HP ICDS ICTs IDIs IFA IHDS IIP IIS ILO IOM IPEX ISMW ISMWRA IT J&K JJ Clusters JSY KBK KCHR KI KII KMS KMSS LC LFP LFPR LPI MAO MBP MCA MCD MEA MGI MGNREGA MGNREGS MI MII

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Financial year Gross cropped area Gross domestic product Gini index Government of India Government Railway Police Gross state domestic product Goods and Services Tax Grameen Vikas Trust Human Development Index Household Himachal Pradesh Integrated Child Development Services Information and communication technologies In-depth interviews Iron folic acid India Human Development Survey Index number of industrial production IL&FS Institute of Skills International Labour Organization International Organization for Migration India Migration Policy Index Interstate Migrant Workmen Act Inter-state Migrant Workmen Regulation Act Information technology Jammu and Kashmir Jhuggi-Jhopri clusters Janani Suraksha Yojana Koraput, Balangir and Kalahandi Kerala Council of Historical Research Key informants Key informant interview Kerala Migration Survey Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti Lorenz curve Labour force participation Labour force participation rate Livelihood promotional index Military Accounts Office Maternity Benefits Programme Multiple classification analysis Municipal Corporation of Delhi Ministry of External Affairs Migration Governance Index Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme Migrant I Migrant II

List of Abbreviations

MIII MIPEX MiRC MIV MNCs MORD MOSPI MOT MP MPCE MSIL MSME MSWU NCAER NCEUS NCT NELM NFHS NGOs NIC NIHL NITI NM NRIs NSDC NSS NSSO NTFPs NTs OBC OEPA OMI ORGI ORs OSDA OSEM PARI PCA PDS PF PO POE POLR PSU QR RBI RI RIGA

Migrant III Migrant Integration Policy Index Migration Information Resource Centre Migrant IV Multinational corporations Ministry of Rural Development Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation Ministry of Textiles Madhya Pradesh Monthly per capita consumer expenditure Maruti Suzuki India Limited Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Maruti Suzuki Workers’ Union National Council of Applied Economic Research National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganised Sector National Capital Territory New Economics of Labour Migration National Family Health Survey Non-governmental organizations National Industrial Classification Noise-induced hearing loss National Institution for Transforming India Non-migrant Non-resident Indians National Skill Development Council National Sample Survey National Sample Survey Office Non-timber forest products Notified Tribes Other Backward Category Overseas Employment Promotion Agency Out-migrants Office of the Registrar General, India Odds ratios Odisha Skill Development Authority Odisha State Employment Mission People’s Archive of India Principal Component Analysis Public distribution system Provident Fund Probationary Officers place of enumeration Place of last residence Public Sector Unit Quintile regression Reserve Bank of India Resident I Rural Income Generating Activities

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xxx

RII ROM RTO SAG SBR SC SCS SDG SEWA SEZ SHGs SID SLA SLM ST SUH TFO TFR TMC TMS TN TNHDR TOT UA UCH ULBs UNDP UP UPR UR URGD UTs WB WCT WGC WPR

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Resident II Return out-migrants Regional Transport Office Socially advantageous group Sundarban Biosphere Reserve Scheduled Caste Severe cyclonic storm Sustainable Development Agenda Self-Employed Women’s Association Special economic zone Self-help groups Social integrationist discourse Sustainable livelihood approach Sustainable livelihood model Scheduled Tribe Shelters for the Urban Homeless Two for One Total fertility rate Trinamool Congress Tamil Nadu Migration Survey Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu Human Development Report Trainer of trainers Urban agglomeration Upper Caste Hindu Urban local bodies United Nations Development Programme Uttar Pradesh Usual place of residence Unemployment rate Urban rural growth differential Union territories West Bengal Works Contract Taxes World Gold Council Workforce participation rate

Foreword

I was delighted for two reasons when I received a request from Professor Rajan to write a foreword for this book. First, I have known and admired Rajan’s work for many years, and second, he is the protégé of the great statistician and demographer Professor K. C. Zachariah, who turns 95 this year. It was Professor Zachariah who was tasked with preparing the first United Nations Manual on Internal Migration in 1965, and as Chief of Migration and Urbanization at the United Nations, I feel a sense of pride and joy that his ideas and teachings have contributed to this handbook more than 50 years later. The idea for this handbook was conceived during the 90th birthday celebrations of Professor Zachariah, when the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, hosted the International Seminar on Migration, Care Economy and Development. While various other publication ideas emerged from the conference, this handbook deserves special attention due to the increasing relevance of internal migration and the range of issues covered. Internal migration is a massive phenomenon. Globally, there are more than four times as many internal migrants as there are international migrants. In recent decades, internal migration has been rising rapidly in terms of both volume and growth, especially in developing economies. In India, for example, between 2001 and 2011, the number of internal migrants rose from 314 million to 454 million. Assuming this trajectory, there are currently an estimated 600 million internal migrants in the country. As India and other developing nations across the world urbanize, the intricate relationship between migration and cities has become increasingly important for planning and policymaking. More than half of the world’s population today lives in urban areas. By 2050, two-thirds of our planet’s population will reside in urban areas. Almost all of the future growth of the global human population in the coming decades will be accounted for by the growing number of city dwellers. Cities throughout the world are contributing significantly to economic growth, and migrants gravitate towards them in search of better life opportunities. In developing economies, internal migration, which is predominantly spurred by employment and marriage, is a vital force behind economic, social and political changes. The interplay between migration and urbanization poses both challenges and opportunities for the concerned migrants, communities, cities and governments. To harness the developmental impacts of migration and address its challenges, national and local governments need to plan and coordinate their activities for the benefit of all. People migrating in millions should be provided work and shelter and assisted in obtaining access to essential services. These are some of the main issues that this handbook discusses with the utmost academic rigour. The handbook is divided into eight sections—macro perspectives, state-level perspectives, migration and caste, migration and gender, migration and urbanization, migration and politics, emerging issues and migration policy. The editors have brought together some of the leading

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

experts in the field to create a comprehensive work on all major views and issues related to internal migration. I am certain that this handbook will serve as a valuable reference for researchers, an essential read for students, a resource for planners and policymakers, as well as an important source of information for the general public. I congratulate and express my best wishes to the editors, Professor S. Irudaya Rajan and Dr Sumeetha M., along with all the authors, for their outstanding contributions. I hope to see this handbook kick off discussions and debates that will contribute to the effective management of internal migration and maximize its contributions to development. Vinod Mishra, PhD Chief, Migration and Urbanization United Nations Population Division New York, United States of America

Preface

Completion of this handbook has been an eventful journey. The development of an idea and transforming it into something concrete has not been an easy task. As editors of the volume, the process of identifying relevant themes, choosing chapters, reworking them and organizing them was time consuming but a thoroughly fulfilling task. Our passion to promote and strengthen migration research is reflected in the shaping of this book. The idea of this book was conceived at the International Seminar on Migration, Care Economy and Development held at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, during 17–19 September 2014, organized to felicitate Professor K. C. Zachariah, a doyen of migration studies, on the occasion of his 90th birthday. The three-day seminar, with numerous sessions, was packed with papers on migration and development, remittances, gender and migration, tribal migration, student migration, climate change, social networks, growth of the diaspora and social costs of migration. The senior editor, S. Irudaya Rajan, who also organized the conference, requested Sumeetha M. to join him and develop a volume on internal migration. Though other topics, such as Gulf migration, climate change and migration, displacement and forced migration, migration and gender soon took shape to emerge as another volume, we are particularly excited about this book on internal migration. Internal migration is not a topic that has gained overwhelming global focus, although discourses are changing. This book is a comprehensive collection of chapters authored by leading experts in the field. It was Rajesh Dey, Managing Editor, SAGE Publications, who suggested the idea of converting the edited book into a handbook on internal migration. The journey, which started with just five chapters, went on to become a sound collection of 56 chapters in 2018. The senior editor, who has over 35 years of research experience on population and development issues, was instrumental in bringing scholars working in different areas of research in internal migration together to shape this handbook. For the junior editor, the journey has been an invaluable learning experience. As editors, we were entrusted with a huge responsibility to bring out this new idea of a handbook. What had begun as a small concept took the shape of a dream project in a span of three years. Bringing out this handbook has had its challenges, constraints and limitations. But despite all the hurdles we faced, we are glad that we could put forth one of the best works on internal migration. Internal migration as a phenomenon has started drawing attention among policymakers, academicians and researchers. We take this opportunity to thank Dr Arvind Subramanian, the Chief Economic Advisor to the Government of India, who wrote a chapter on internal migration titled ‘India on the Move and Churning: New Evidence in the Economic Survey 2016–17’. It is this contemporary relevance of the subject that prompted us to compile a work on internal migration. Since migration studies can be analysed from different thematic perspectives, in this

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

work, we adopted an interdisciplinary perspective. The voices that echo through these chapters provide a fresh perspective on the dynamics of internal migration in India. The chapters in this handbook cover almost all states in India and comprehensively deal with internal migration. The final part of the book discusses nuances of migration policymaking, which is sure to have widespread implications. Post-liberal Indian economy has seen an uneven growth of cities and urban areas. The development process has been skewed in India, attracting labour from underdeveloped regions to production hubs. This leads to increasing urbanization coupled with increasing internal migration, which has now spread to all parts of India. We observe flow of migrant workers from the northeastern parts of India to the far south, workers from eastern parts of India migrating to Maharashtra and so on. This unabated flow of migrant workers has not been adequately captured by the Census or National Sample Survey data, as they often tend to ignore short-term or circular migrants. Although policies for migrant workers have featured in plan documents of some states, for most states, migrant workers seem to be non-existent. Migration changes the socio-cultural dynamics of a region and offers a new set of issues to be explored. A thorough analysis of labour migration in India can help us examine the functioning of social networks and also analyse the flow of domestic remittances. These remittances not only fuel migration but also act as an important source of survival for workers at the places of origin. As labour markets in the country are transforming themselves, with more and more workers joining the informal labour force, the pattern and nature of migration need to be scrutinized to comprehend the development process itself. This handbook is an attempt in this direction, and it tries to bring a host of factors for migration analysis, questioning the undercurrents of the present development process. The handbook is organized into eight broad themes, with 56 chapters, including an introduction by the editors. They are: ‘Macro Perspectives’ (6 chapters), ‘State-Level Perspectives’ (10 chapters), ‘Migration and Caste’ (6 chapters), ‘Migration and Gender’ (7 chapters), ‘Migration and Urbanization’ (5 chapters), ‘Migration and Politics’ (5 chapters), ‘Emerging Issues’ (9 chapters) and ‘Migration Policy’ (7 chapters). We plan to update the handbook every 3 years with new themes or existing themes with additional chapters by replacing some of the published papers. Readers are requested to write to the editors for any missing themes or if they are interested in contributing towards future editions of the handbook. We would like to wholeheartedly thank all the contributors of this book—Santosh Mehrotra, Arup Mitra, M. Imran Khan, Sandhya R. Mahapatro, Bhaswati Das, Rajni Singh, Pinak Sarkar, Floriane Bolazzi, Kunal Keshri, K. C. Zachariah, S. Sunitha, Rukmini Thapa, Aijaz Ahmad Turrey, Tulika Tripathi, Bernard D' Sami, S. Samuel Asir Raj, P. Sivakumar, S. Amuthan, M. S. Raunaq, Nandan Kumar, Manasi Mahanty, Kalyani Vartak, Chinmay Tumbe, Amitabh Kundu, Nidhin Donald, Bhagyoday Khandare, Himanshu Chaurasia, Sunil Sarode, Anjali Borhade, Milind Babar, Isha Jain, Vishika Yadav, Pallavi Joshi, Karthik Prabhu, Ajay Shekhawat, Subhojit Dey, Amrita Datta, Jajati K. Parida, S. Madheswaran, Sonia Krishna Kurup, Sunetra Ghatak, Tina Dutta, Annapurna Shaw, Neha Rai, R. B. Bhagat, Jajati K. Parida, Ravi K. Raman, Renu Desai, Shachi Sanghvi, Arvind Pandey, Ajit Jha, Namrata Ahirwar, Samir Kumar Das, Ranabir Samaddar, M. Suresh Babu, Mansi Wadhwa, M. Vijayabaskar, Charvaak Pati, Shahana Purveen, Deepak K. Mishra, Avijit Mistri, Amrita Sharma, Divya Varma, Rabiul Ansary, I. V. Prasad, Rinju, Madhusudan Nag, Rikil Chyrmang, Helga Thomas, Govindappa Lakshmana, Meera Sethi, Debolina Kundu, Varun Aggarwal, Saniya Singh, Nabeela Ahmed, Divya Ravindranath, Ansari P. A., Caroline Osella, Vicky Nandgaye and U. S. Mishra. We are grateful to all of them for their scholarly contributions to this book.

Preface

xxxv

Rajesh Dey, SAGE Publications, deserves special thanks, and his suggestions and ­comments have been invaluable at every stage of creation of this book. We would also like to thank V. Sriram, Librarian, Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, and the library staff for all resources that they provided us with. Last but not the least, we would like to thank our family members for their sustained support throughout so that we could do our best in editing this topical and relevant book. S. Irudaya Rajan Sumeetha M.

About the Authors

Varun Aggarwal is Founder and Lead at India Migration Now, a migration research agency working to ensure that India grabs the opportunities migration has to offer. His past research has focused on remittances, the integration of asylum-seekers in the European Union (EU), digital financial inclusion in India, and nutrition and obesity in Mexico. Namrata Ahirwar is a doctoral student at the Govind Ballabh Pant Social Science Institute (GBPSSI), Prayagraj, Allahabad. She is also a Junior Research Fellow of UGC (University Grants Commission), Government of India. Her research areas include population geography, migration, slums and maternal health. Nabeela Ahmed is an interdisciplinary researcher at King’s College London, with a background in critical geography. Her work focuses on social exclusion, migration and state–citizen relations in post-colonial urban contexts and uses participatory qualitative methods to understand these areas. She has completed her doctorate at the University of Sussex, on urban migrants’ access to welfare entitlements. S. Amuthan is a faculty member of Economics at DMI – St. Eugene University, Lusaka, Zambia. He has worked as a Research Associate at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. He has completed PhD in the field of internal migration from the Department of Economics, Madras Christian College, affiliated to the University of Madras, and has been awarded the prestigious ICSSR Fellowship and has also been awarded for a minor research project funded by the Malcolm & Elizabeth Adiseshiah Trust, Chennai. Rabiul Ansary is working as an Assistant Professor (guest faculty) in Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India. Before joining Utkal University, he worked as an Assistant Professor of Geography (contract) in Regional Institute of Education (RIE) (NCERT), Bhubaneswar. He has completed his MPhil and PhD in the field of migration from Centre of the Study of Regional Development (CSRD), Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi. His research interests include, but are not limited to, migration, livelihood, gender, public health and finance, local economy and sanitation. Milind Babar is a professional with more than 25 years of experience in the development and livelihood sector. He is also involved in various legal aid and support activities for migrants. He has completed Master’s in law and social work. He has been involved in Disha’s activities since its inception and is working as the Head of Operations in Nashik.

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M. Suresh Babu currently teaches economics at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences at IIT Madras. He works on the issues related to the Indian economy, mainly the industrial sector and development policy. His latest book is Hastening Slowly: India’s Industrial Growth in the Era of Economic Reforms. R. B. Bhagat is Professor and Head, Department of Migration and Urban Studies, International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. He has served as Consultant to the UNESCO–UNICEF India Initiative on migration and to the International Organization of Migration (IOM), and Advisor to theYale University Project on Climate Change and Communication. His research interests include population, urbanization, environment and migration issues. Floriane Bolazzi is a PhD candidate in Economic Sociology and Labour Studies at Università degli Studi di Milano and Université Paris Diderot. She is also affiliated to the Centre for Social Sciences and Humanities (CSH), New Delhi, where she collaborates in the programme ‘Palanpur: India’s Economic “Revolution”: A Perspective from Six Decades of Economic Development in a North Indian Village’. Anjali Borhade is Founder Director of Disha Foundation. She has a PhD from the University of Oxford in Population Health. As a public health professional, she has expertise in and is passionate about urbanization, migration, livelihood, urban health and development issues. Himanshu Chaurasia is a Scientist-B (statistician) at the National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Parel, Mumbai. He has Master’s and MPhil degrees in Population Studies from the IIPS. He has experience and knowledge of research using statistical modelling, structured and unstructured data analysis and software packages, such as SPSS, Stata, Epi Info, SPECTRUM, ArcGIS and MortPak. Rikil Chyrmang is an Assistant Professor (Economics) in the Department of Economic Studies and Policy, School of Social Science and Policy, Central University of South Bihar, Gaya. His broad research interests are migration issues, economics of conflicts and development, Northeast economic development and local government finance. Bhaswati Das is a Faculty of Population Studies at the Centre for the Study of Regional Development, School of Social Sciences, JNU, New Delhi. She completed graduation from the Presidency College, Kolkata, and continued higher education at the JNU. Her area of research is population and development. Migration being one of the most complex human responses of development, she has published several research papers in peer-reviewed national and international journals. She has also served as a member for different consultative bodies. Samir Kumar Das is a Professor of Political Science at the University of Calcutta, India. Previously the Vice-Chancellor of the University of North Bengal, he served as an Adjunct Professor of Government at the Georgetown University (2014), a Visiting Professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (2015) and Universite Paris 13 (2016), among many of his recent assignments. Amrita Datta is an Assistant Professor of Development Studies at the Department of Liberal Arts, Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, and a Visiting Fellow at the Institute for Human Development, New Delhi. Amrita’s research interests are in the areas of rural–urban migration, gender and development, and village and longitudinal studies. Her research has been published

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in several edited volumes and journals such as the Journal of Development Studies, Children’s Geographies, Indian Journal of Labour Economics and the Economic and Political Weekly. Renu Desai is an independent scholar based in Ahmedabad. She was Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Urban Equity, CEPT University, during 2013–2018. Her research examines urban transformation, urban informality and housing in Indian cities, with a focus on equitable development and urban citizenship. She has published numerous journal articles and book chapters and is a co-editor of Urbanising Citizenship: Contested Spaces in Indian Cities (SAGE, 2012). Subhojit Dey is a medical practitioner with a PhD in Epidemiology from the School of Public Health, University of Michigan. He is also Executive Director-Health at Disha Foundation. He has opened new frontiers of public health by creating sustainable and scalable enterprises. Nidhin Donald is a doctoral student at the Centre for Study of Social Exclusion and Inclusive Policy, JNU. His MPhil dissertation was a sociological study of printed and archived Syrian Christian family histories of Kerala. His present work deals with family websites and social reproduction of caste on new media platforms. Tina Dutta holds a PhD in Regional Development from the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, an MPhil in Population Studies and an MSc in Statistics. She currently works as Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Management at the Marwadi University, Rajkot, Gujarat. Her research interests include migration, gender, public health and mathematical demography. Sunetra Ghatak is a Consultant at the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, New Delhi. She has completed MPhil and submitted her PhD thesis in Economics at the JNU. Sunetra has 10 years of experience in the field of socio-economic and development research. She has contributed several research papers on development economics in various prominent national and international journals. Her specializations include labour, gender, education and trade-­related issues. Isha Jain has completed graduation in dental surgery (BDS) and post-graduation from International Institute of Health Management Research (IIHMR), New Delhi, with specialization in public health and working in public health for around 6 years. Over the years, she had the opportunity of working with reputed organizations such as Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI), National Institute of Health and Family Welfare (NIHFW) and Disha Foundation. Ajit Jha is an Assistant Professor at the Institute for Studies in Industrial Development, New Delhi. He has completed his PhD (Economics) from the JNU. His research interest is in applied macroeconomics and development economics. He is specifically working in the areas of informal labour market, industrial organization and productivity estimation. Pallavi Joshi is a doctoral research scholar at the Centre for Study of Regional Development, JNU. She holds Master’s and MPhil in Geography from the centre. She is a social geographer with a special research interest in labour health issues. This work was undertaken as a part of her research internship at Disha Foundation. Kunal Keshri, a PhD from the IIPS, Mumbai, is an Assistant Professor at the GBPSSI, Allahabad. His research areas include migration and development, urbanization, environment,

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maternal and child nutrition, urban health and population ageing. He has written several research papers on these areas. M. Imran Khan has completed PhD (Economics) from the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, which is affiliated to the JNU. His primary interests are labour and development economics. Specific topics of interests include labour migration, labour markets in developing countries, education, healthcare, social and economic inequality, housing, employment and programme evaluation. Bhagyoday Khandare is a Project Officer with the National Aids Control Organization, Mumbai. He also has Master’s and MPhil degrees in Population Studies from IIPS. He has experience and knowledge of research using statistical modelling, structured and unstructured data analysis and software packages such as SPSS, Stata, Epi Info, SPECTRUM and ArcGIS. Nandan Kumar is a Programme Officer at the National CSR Hub, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai. He is a geographer cum demographer and has completed PhD from the IIPS, Mumbai. As part of his dissertation, he has worked on rural distress migration and livelihood diversification. Amitabh Kundu is Distinguished Fellow at the Research and Information System for Developing Countries. He has been the Regional Advisor on Poverty at UNESCWA, Beirut; Consultant to the Government of Sri Lanka on urban issues; and member of the National Statistical Commission. He has been Professor and Dean at the School of Social Sciences, JNU. Debolina Kundu is an Associate Professor at the National Institute of Urban Affairs, India, with over 20 years of professional experience in the field of development studies. She has worked as a consultant with ADB, LSE, IIDS, UNDP, UNFPA, UNESCAP, KfW, GIZ, Urban Institute and East-West Centre on urbanization, migration, urban policies, municipal finance, governance and exclusion. Sonia Krishna Kurup is a research scholar at the Krantijyoti Savitribai Phule Women’s Studies Centre, Savitribai Phule Pune University. She has obtained her MA from the Centre for Historical Studies, JNU, New Delhi. She is currently researching the historical specificities of internal labour migration in India from a feminist perspective. Govindappa Lakshmana is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work, Central University of Karnataka. Sumeetha M. is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the School of Social Sciences and Business Studies, Christ University, BGR Campus, Bengaluru. She was awarded a PhD in Economics by the JNU, in December 2015. Her doctoral work at the CDS, Thiruvananthapuram, focused on migrant workers and the changing labour process in the gold jewellery-making industry in Kerala, India. Her research interests include migration, labour process, traditional industries and globalization studies. She has over 10 years of research experience in migration studies and has a number of publications to her credit. She has also presented her work in national and international conferences.

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S. Madheswaran is a Professor at Centre for Economic studies and Policy, Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC), Bangalore. He has been engaging in teaching and researching Applied Econometrics for the past 20 years. He has worked as an adviser to the Government of Karnataka (India) and also as Chief Evaluation Officer at the Karnataka Evaluation Authority, which is an independent evaluation body of the Government of Karnataka. Manasi Mahanty is a Lecturer in the P. G. Department of Political Science at Rayagada Autonomous College, Odisha. She is a recipient of the Indian Council for Social Science Research (ICSSR) Postdoctoral Fellowship Programme on Labour Migration from University of Hyderabad. She has been involved with numerous research projects on issues of migration and gender over the last one decade. Sandhya R. Mahapatro is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the A N Sinha Institute of Social Studies, Patna. She has completed PhD from ISEC, Bangalore, and postdoctorate from the University of Groningen, the Netherlands. Her areas of work are mainly related to population and development issues with a focus on migration, health and labour. Santosh Mehrotra is a Professor of Economics at the Centre for Informal Sector and Labour Studies, JNU. After an MA in Economics from the New School for Social Research, New York, and a PhD from the Cambridge University (1985), Mehrotra was Associate Professor of Economics at JNU (1988–1991). He spent 15 years with the UN in research positions, heading UNICEF’s global research programme at Innocenti Research Centre, Florence, and as Chief Economist, Global Human Development Report, New York. He returned to India to head the Development Policy Division of Planning Commission, Government of India. He was also the Director General (2009–2014) of the National Institute of Labour Economics Research, Planning Commission. See www.wikipedia/santoshmehrotra Deepak K. Mishra is a Professor of Economics at the Centre for the Study of Regional Development, School of Social Sciences, JNU, New Delhi. His research interests are political economy of agrarian change, rural livelihoods and agrarian institutions, migration, gender and human development. He co-authored The Unfolding Crisis in Assam’s Tea Plantations: Employment and Occupational Mobility (2012) and edited Internal Migration in Contemporary India (SAGE, 2016). Recently, he has co-edited Rethinking Economic Development in Northeast India: The Emerging Dynamics (2017). U. S. Mishra is a statistician/demographer and Professor at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvanthapuram, Kerala, India. He is engaged in research and teaching on population and development issues and has a number of national and international publications to his credit. In recent times, he has served in various capacities in guiding scientific research in social sciences. During the two-and-a-half decades of his teaching and research experience, he has contributed research to the areas of ageing, health, nutrition as well as population policy and programme evaluation. Avijit Mistri is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography, Nistarini Women’s College, Purulia, and a guest lecturer at the Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata. He has done extensive work on climate change and migration, especially on the Sundarban Biosphere Reserve of India, environmental legislation and livelihood conflicts, Environmental Kuznets Curve and water sustainability.

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Arup Mitra is a Professor of Economics at the Institute of Economic Growth, Delhi, and is currently the Director General, National Institute of Labour Economics Research and Development. His research interests include development studies, urban economics, labour and welfare, industrial growth and productivity and gender inequality—areas in which he has several publications. He has been a consultant to a number of international organizations and has worked as a senior researcher at the ILO. He held the Indian Economy Chair at Sciences Po, Paris, in 2010. He has also been a visiting scholar at the Institute of Developing Economies, Japan, and visiting Professor at the Nagoya University, Japan. He was awarded the Mahalanobis Gold Medal by the Indian Econometric Society for his outstanding contribution to quantitative economics. Madhusudan Nag is a PhD scholar at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, which is affiliated to the JNU, New Delhi. He is currently working on the political economy of labour migration in India for his PhD thesis. He has completed MA in Economics from the School of Economics, University of Hyderabad. Vicky Nandgaye is doctoral research scholar at the School of Management and Labour Studies, TISS, Mumbai. His field of research includes informal labour market, decent work, migration and e-commerce. He has published papers on ‘Mathadi Workers in Maharashtra’ and ‘Decent Work and Informal Labour Market’. Caroline Osella taught social anthropology at SOAS, London, for 20 years and has recently shifted to the University of Sussex Global Studies. She not only continues to research about Kerala migrants to the Gulf but is also moving towards broader questions around identities and belongings in coastal towns. Caroline also writes fiction and is an active blogger at: https:// blogs.soas.ac.uk/osella-realm/en/, https://worthingethnographic.com/ Ansari P. A. is a doctoral fellow (Human Rights) in the Department of Political Science, Aligarh Muslim University, India. His topic of research is socio-economic rights and challenges of migrants in Kerala, India. His areas of interest are social and economic rights and internal migration. Arvind Pandey is a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute of Urban Affairs, New Delhi. He is part of the GCRF Centre for Sustainable, Healthy and Learning Cities and Neighbourhoods— an international consortium of nine research partners, based at University of Glasgow, UK. His research interest lies in the dynamics of internal and international migrations, urban policies and social protection. Jajati K. Parida is an Assistant Professor at the Centre for Economic Studies, Central University of Punjab, India. He has also worked at the National Institute of Labour Economics Research and Development and at the College of Vocational Studies, University of Delhi. His research areas include migration, employment, regional development, poverty and human development. Charvaak Pati is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Geography at York University, Toronto. His research interests are labour geography, trade union movement, migration and development studies. Shahana Purveen is an ICDD doctoral researcher at the School of Social Sciences, TISS, Mumbai. As a part of her PhD, she visited COMPAS, University of Oxford, United Kingdom.

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Karthik Prabhu is Managing Director at Anugraha Clinical Care and Foundation, Kerala. He is a medical practitioner and post-graduated from the School of Public Health, SRM Institute of Science and Technology (formerly known as SRM University), Chennai. He has 7 years of clinical experience in medicine and 2 years of research experience in community participation, mobilization and research. He has worked with Disha Foundation as a Research Coordinator. I. V. Prasad holds an MPhil in Population Sciences from IIPS, Mumbai, and is currently working as a Junior Research Fellow at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. He has worked on issues related to migration, urbanization, gender, health and ageing. S. Samuel Asir Raj is the Head of Department of Sociology at the Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu. He has the distinction of having created the first Centre for International and Diaspora Studies in Tamil Nadu to study the Tamil diaspora. He is actively involved in the human rights issues in Tamil Nadu, and is presently involved in studying child health and nutrition issues in anganwadis, the problems of the differently abled in obtaining education and the complex issues faced by the pastoral communities—a study funded by the ICSSR, New Delhi. S. Irudaya Rajan is Professor at Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. With more than three decades of research experience at the CDS, Kerala, he has coordinated eight major migration surveys in Kerala since 1998 (with Professor K. C. Zachariah); conducted migration surveys in Goa (2008) and Tamil Nadu (2015); and provided technical support to the Gujarat Migration Survey (2010) and the Punjab Migration Survey (2011). He has published extensively in national and international journals on social, economic, demographic, psychological and political implications of migration. Professor Rajan is currently engaged in several projects on international migration with the European Union, the World Bank and the UAE Exchange Centre, Abu Dhabi. He works closely with the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India; the Department of Non-Resident Keralite Affairs, Government of Kerala; and the Kerala State Planning Board. He is editor of the annual series India Migration Report since 2010 and the founder editor-in-chief of the journal Migration and Development since 2012. Neha Rai is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the S. S. Khanna Girls Degree College, University of Allahabad. She is pursuing PhD on ‘Women in Homeland: Socio-cultural Impact of Male Migration on Left-behind Women of Jaunpur District’ at GBPSSI. Her research interests include gender and its stereotypes, life world of women, their struggles and vulnerability during migration. Ravi K. Raman is a member of the State Planning Board, Government of Kerala. Until recently, he was Senior Fellow at the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, New Delhi. He has been a visiting Fellow at Oxford, Cambridge, and Manchester for various periods. He is also an Honorary Research Fellow in the Department of Development Studies, SOAS, London, and an affiliated researcher on Egalitarianism at the University of Bergen and a visiting Research Fellow at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram. He is the author of Global Capital and Peripheral Labour (2010, 2012, 2015), editor of Development, Democracy and the State (2010) and Corporate Social Responsibility (with Ronnie Lipschutz) (2010) and has contributed to journals such as Review of International Political Economy, Review of Radical

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Political Economics, Cambridge Journal of Regions, Economy and Society, Nature and Culture, Social Analysis, Sociology and Business History Review. M. S. Raunaq is a PhD scholar and UGC-Junior Research Fellow at the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, JNU. Divya Ravindranath is a post-doctoral researcher at the Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS), Bangalore, Karnataka, India. Her dissertation work is focused on maternal health and child malnutrition among households engaged in construction work (Washington University in St Louis). On completion of Master’s degree from TISS, Mumbai, Divya worked with several not-for-profit organisations in various parts of urban and rural India. She has recently been a visiting faculty at CEPT, Ahmedabad, where she taught qualitative research methods to masters and doctoral students. Rinju is a research scholar at the IIPS, Mumbai, and is currently working as a Junior Research Fellow at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. She works on migration, women and child health issues. Ranabir Samaddar is currently the Distinguished Chair in Migration and Forced Migration Studies, Calcutta Research Group, Kolkata, India. He belongs to the critical school of thinking and is considered one of the foremost theorists in the field of migration and forced migration studies. His writings on nation-state, migration, labour and urbanization have signalled a new turn in critical postcolonial thinking. Among his influential works are Memory, Identity, Power: Politics in the Junglemahals, 1890–1950 (1998), The Marginal Nation: Transborder Migration from Bangladesh to West Bengal (1999) and Beyond Kolkata: Rajarhat and the Dystopia of Urban Imagination (co-authored) (2014). His latest work is Karl Marx and the Postcolonial Age (2017). Bernard D' Sami is a Senior Fellow at the Loyola Institute of Social Science Training and Research, Loyola College, Chennai. He served as an Associate Professor (1984–2015) and Head of the Department of History and Politics at Loyola College, Chennai. He is a Guest faculty at IIT Madras. He is also a media commentator and a columnist. Shachi Sanghvi is a Research Associate at the Centre for Urban Equity, CEPT University. The studies she has worked on explore the relationship of the urban poor with the city. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from St Xavier’s College, Mumbai, and a Master’s in Habitat Policy and Practice from TISS. Pinak Sarkar is an Assistant Professor at the Centre for Development Practice and Research, TISS, Patna. He has completed PhD in Economics at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, and has worked extensively on issues of internal migration in India, health economics and health technology assessment. Sunil Sarode is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Migration and Urban Studies at IIPS, Mumbai. He is pursuing a PhD on Barriers to Healthcare and Treatment for Nepali Migrants Living with HIV/AIDS from TISS. His area of research is migration and health. Meera Sethi is an International Consultant on migration policy and development with 35 years of experience managing humanitarian, development and migration-related programmes in various regions, such as Africa, Europe, the Middle East and South Asia. She retired in 2017 from

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the UN International Organization for Migration as the Director General’s Special Envoy to India, having served previously in senior positions in Geneva, Turkey and Ethiopia. She made significant contributions to high-level policy dialogues, academic seminars, training events and technical reports/publications in the area of migration. Amrita Sharma leads the Centre for Migration and Labour Solutions, a knowledge institution specializing in seasonal labour migration and informality studies, set up by Aajeevika Bureau. She has published on changes in India’s agricultural demography, political economy of internal migration in India and creative practices and policies on reducing the associated vulnerabilities. Annapurna Shaw is a recently retired Professor of Public Policy and Management Group, Indian Institute of Management Calcutta. She has worked in areas of urban policy and planning, sustainable cities, informal economy and economic development. Her books include The Making of Navi Mumbai, Indian Cities in Transition and Indian Cities. Ajay Shekhawat has been working in public health for around 6 years. He has completed post-graduation from IIHMR, New Delhi, with specialization in public health. He has worked with Disha Foundation on a study on livelihood migration and health issues of migrants. Rajni Singh is a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Regional Development, School of Social Sciences, JNU. She has completed MPhil in Population Studies and is pursuing PhD on Socio-Economic Implications of International Migration from Uttar Pradesh from JNU. She has presented several papers on migration issues in national and international conferences. Saniya Singh is a Commonwealth Scholar with a Master’s in Global Politics from the London School of Economics. She is currently working at UNODC in Vienna as a Youth Advocate for the Sustainable Development Goals. She is also an Associate Member with India Migration Now, where she contributes towards establishing an inclusive and effective policy regime for migrants in India. P. Sivakumar is a Faculty in the Department of Development Studies at Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development (RGNIYD), Tamil Nadu, India. He has completed Post-Doctoral Fellowship from IIT Delhi (ICPR Fellowship) and PhD from University of Kerala. S. Sunitha is a Research Associate at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. She has completed PhD in Demography from the University of Kerala. She has been part of various research projects and has presented various research papers nationally and internationally. She has a research experience of over 10 years. She has published her works in various journals on different demographic aspects. Rukmini Thapa is an independent researcher. She has completed PhD in Economics from the Centre for the Study of Regional Development, JNU. Her research interests are linkages between labour migration and the agrarian question in India and the political economy of uneven development. Helga Thomas is a PhD Scholar in the Department of Social Work, Central University of Karnataka, Karnataka.

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Tulika Tripathi has a PhD in Economics from the Banaras Hindu University and a postdoctorate from the University of Chicago, USA. She is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the Central University of Gujarat, Gandhinagar. Dr Tripathi has presented more than 10 research papers in internationally reputed journals, published one book and two research project reports on issues of health, gender, labour, migration, rural transformation and informal sector, apart from supervising research students in a teaching and research career of seven years. Chinmay Tumbe is a faculty member at the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, with research interests in migration studies, urban economics and business and economic history. He is the author of India Moving: A History of Migration. Aijaz Ahmad Turrey is a PhD candidate at the Centre for Studies in Economics and Planning at Central University of Gujarat (CUG). He completed MPhil from CUG and Masters in Economics from the University of Kashmir. His areas of interest are labour, migration and economic growth. Divya Varma anchors the Policy and Partnerships work at Aajeevika Bureau and has led diverse partnerships with a range of stakeholders in the labour and migration policy ecosystem. A Fulbright Scholar, Divya holds a degree in Public Administration from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government and a postgraduate diploma from the Institute of Rural Management Anand. Kalyani Vartak is a doctoral candidate at TISS, Mumbai. Her research interests include migration, urban development and women’s studies. M. Vijayabaskar is a Professor at the Madras Institute of Development Studies, Chennai. His research centers on political economy of regional development with a research focus on labour and land markets, industrial dynamics and rural–urban transformations as they are shaped by social institutions, processes of marketization and other policy interventions. He has published in numerous scholarly journals and media outlets, including the Indian Express, Economic Times and the Financial Express. Mansi Wadhwa is pursuing PhD in Public Policy at the George Washington University, Washington, DC. She has completed Master of Public Policy (MPP) from the Hertie School of Governance, Berlin. Her research interests include social and labor policy, gender, microfinance and migration. Vishika Yadav is a trained medical doctor (Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery) and Masters in Public Health (MPH). She has been working with Disha Foundation for last 4 years handling projects on migration, public health, livelihood and women empowerment. K. C. Zachariah is an Honorary Professor at the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. He was a Senior Demographer at the World Bank from 1971 to 1989, Washington, DC; the United Nations expert on demography at the Cairo Demographic Centre (1966–1970) and Deputy Director at the International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai (1957–1966). He has coordinated migration surveys in Kerala since 1998 and has published extensively in national and international journals on social, economic and demographic implications of international migration.

PART I

Introduction

1 Migrant Odysseys S. Irudaya Rajan Sumeetha M.

Internal migration is often associated with the urbanization, modernization and industrialization debate in India. The trajectory of migration has taken an interesting turn in the present economy because urban growth is considered as development and the country is promoting urbanization in the form of the ‘smart cities’ project. In addition, migration is gendered and also segmented depending on various caste/ tribe, religious and regional identities. The structural changes in the Indian economy post liberalization made the labour market more informal and accentuated internal migration. Migrant workers often find it difficult to enter the formal labour market as their network is constrained and they have limited bargaining power. Migrant organizations and collectives are important to assess how migrants perceive themselves in the labour market and in the new society. Despite migration being visualized as a crucial strategy to eradicate poverty among poor households, migrant groups may be forced into neo-bondage and precarious employment because of continuous debt and brokerage at different phases of migration. Though there are sections of workers who are tied to a workplace, such as brick-kiln workers,

sugarcane workers in small industry and hotel workers, there are a few workers who occupy higher positions in the labour hierarchy. In the context of migration, state policies and politics become a determining factor. One of the single most important economic reasons that fuels migration is the remittances transferred by migrants to their family members back home. The general trend of internal migration reflects that migrants are mostly youth, indicating the role of demographic dividend in accelerating the patterns of migration in India. It is easier for young, single male migrants to find work and undertake long journeys to diverse work locations—from the Northeast to Kerala (Rajan and Chyrmang, 2016). The debate on gender and migration is also relevant as feminization of labour continues. Gender identities and livelihood strategies are in a flux because of the accentuating internal migration. Social networks play a crucial role in enabling and sustaining migration to new locations. The movement of people across national boundaries has received some attention as it directly relates to remittances, and therefore, resonates with the growth of nations that send migrants.

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Internal migration on the other hand is perceived as a relatively easier movement of labour because internal boundaries are porous. Certain glaring concerns related to internal migration, such as wages, labour conditions, identity issues, worker organizations, poverty and remittances, are often ignored from the policy perspective. In fact, in the Indian economy, migrants are invisible in the policy debate. The post-liberal Indian economy has seen an uneven growth of cities. The developed areas are hubs of capital growth and expansive activities that attract and/or forcibly pull labour force from underdeveloped areas, thereby creating the phenomenon of migration. Urbanization, growth of service sector, infrastructure development and growth of informal employment require abundant cheap labour in the cities and migrants are the only source. Neoliberal policies pursued in India have accelerated the pace of internal migration (Moses and Rajan, 2012). We cannot separate labour migration from the broader social relations of production both at the source and destination areas. The internal migration phenomenon creates a classic relationship between labour and capital at both the source and destination areas. In the course of this relationship, the labour undergoes marginalization, fragmentation, violence, vulnerabilities, lack of adequate access to social services, various levels of exploitation, exclusion and lack of bargaining power. The insecure condition of poor urban migrants is immensely influenced by the social structure and production relations at the source areas. Circular migrants are those who are involved in seasonal occupations at the ­destination. Caste and class hierarchies, landlessness, meagre wages, lack of adequate work, lack of ‘skills’, partial mechanization of farm production and debt shape their socio-­ economic and political position, status and power in the source areas. These structural conditions accompany the rural migrants, intertwined with the socio-economic and

political hierarchies in the cities. This in turn tends to replicate the position, status and power of the migrants at the destination (Mahanirban Policy Briefs, 2016). Thus, the migration outcomes link the source and destination areas to form a vicious circle. Often, upward mobility is very difficult for marginalized groups as they have limited access to better jobs in the destination areas. Only few who settle down in the city are able to marginally improve their situation and perhaps create better scope for their children. Migration from one area to another in search of improved livelihoods is a key feature of human history. While some regions and sectors fall behind in their capacity to support populations, others move ahead and people migrate there to access these emerging opportunities. Industrialization widens the gap between rural and urban areas, inducing a shift of the workforce towards industrialized areas. There is extensive debate on the factors that cause populations to shift, from those that emphasize individual rationality and household behaviour to those that cite the structural logic of capitalist development (de Haan & Rogaly, 2002). Moreover, numerous studies show that the process of migration is influenced by social, cultural and economic factors and the outcomes can be vastly different for men and women, for different groups and different locations (ibid.). There was a quantum leap in the growth rate of female migrants from 0.4 per cent in 1991 to 7.5 per cent in 2011. This rate was twice that of male migration. Thus, female migration for work and study is on the rise (Rajan & Srinivasan, 2018). In the past few decades, new patterns have emerged challenging old paradigms. First, there has been a shift of the workforce towards the service sector in both developed and developing countries, as there has been job creation in this sector. In developing countries, the majority of the labour force shift towards the secondary/tertiary sector has been slow and has been dominated by an expansion

Migrant Odysseys

of the ‘informal’ sector. This has expanded over time. In countries like India, permanent shifts of population and workforce exist side by side with the ‘circulatory’ flow of population between lagging and developed regions and between rural and urban areas, mostly in the unorganized sector of the economy. These movements show little sign of abating with development. The introduction has been organized into two broad sections. The first section ‘Migrant Odysseys’ is divided into four subsections. The first subsection deals with the macro perspectives of internal migration, the second looks at how micro studies are relevant to the question of internal migration and the third subsection explores the concepts of urbanization, smart cities and growing migration. It also reviews the state policy in the liberalized Indian economy and how it can be made more inclusive to bring migrants into its ambit. The second section is devoted to the organization of the chapters in the handbook.

MIGRANT ODYSSEYS Macro View of Internal Migration The UNDP Human Development Report 2009 states that there are four times as many internal migrants in the world as there are international migrants (UNDP, 2009, p. 22). The ultimate decisions that enable mobility of people as well as their direction of movement are complex and involve a number of factors in different ways. The 2001 Census of India reported that there are 309 million internal migrants. Of these, nearly 70.7 per cent are female migrants. Two-thirds of migrants are rural (67.2%) and only 32.7 per cent are urban. At the time of finalizing the introduction for the handbook, only one table on migration based on the 2011 census was released and available at public domain. This is an indication of how data-producing organizations give importance to the subject of migration—one of the

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dynamic components of population growth in the modern world. The Census of India is the single largest source of data on migration characteristics of the people of India. Migration in the Census of India is of two types—migration by place of birth and by place of last residence. When a person is enumerated in the Census at a place, that is, a village or town, different from her/ his place of birth, she/he would be considered a migrant by place of birth. A person would be considered a migrant by place of last residence, if she/he had last resided at a place other than her/his place of enumeration. In 2001, 309 million persons were migrants based on place of last residence, which constituted about 30 per cent of the total population of the country (Table 1.1). This figure indicates an increase of around 37 per cent from the 1991 Census that recorded 226 million migrants. Thus, migrants constitute around 30 per cent of the total population, with male and female migrants constituting 18 per cent and 45 per cent of their populations, respectively. Of the total migrants, 87 per cent were migrants within the state of enumeration while 13 per cent were interstate migrants. Among the male migrants, 79 per cent moved within the state of enumeration while 21 per cent moved between states. Among female migrants, 90 per cent were intrastate migrants and 10 per cent were interstate migrants. In all the censuses, rural to rural migration stream has been the most important. Female migrants constitute a significantly higher proportion of rural migrants mainly on account of marriage. As regards to long distance (interstate) movement in India, a clear sex differential is observed from the 2001 Census. Among the male interstate migrants, the rural-to-urban stream emerged as the most prominent accounting for 47 per cent of the total number. On the other hand, rural to rural migration has remained the major pattern of female movement, with 36 per cent of them migrating from rural to rural areas. When interstate migration is taken into account, employment emerges as the main reason for migration.

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Table 1.1  Workforce and Migration for Economic Reasons, Based on the 1991–2011 Census Indicators

1991

2001

2011

Total

317

402

482

1.8

Male

227

275

332

1.9

Female

90

127

150

1.7

Total

26

33

51

4.5

Male

22

29

42

4.0

Female

4

4

8

7.5

Migrants stating economic reasons for migration as a share of workforce (%)

Total

8.1

8.1

10.5

NA

Male

9.6

10.4

12.7

NA

Female

4.4

3.2

5.7

NA

Migrants who moved within last one year, stating economic reasons for migration (in millions)

Total

1.4

2.2

3.5

59

Male

1.1

1.7

2.8

65

Female

0.3

0.5

0.7

40

Flow/Stock ratio (%) among migrants who moved for economic reasons

Total

5.4

6.7

6.9

NA

Male

5.0

5.9

6.6

NA

Female

7.6

12.1

8.2

NA

Workforce (in millions)

Migrants stating economic reasons for migration (in millions)

2001–2011

Source: Ministry of Finance (2017).

Nearly 32 per cent of all interstate migrants during the intercensal period migrated for the reason of employment. According to the Economic Survey 2016–17, the interstate labour mobility ­ between 2001 and 2011 was at an average of 5–6 million, which resulted in an interstate migrant population of 60 million and an interdistrict migrant population as high as 80 million. Labour mobility in India cuts across language and regional barriers and the Economic Survey highlights the need for more robust policies to ensure social protection. The growth rate of migrants between 1991 and 2001 (4.5% per annum) was much higher than the workforce growth rate (1.8% per annum). In the period 2001–2011, according to census estimates, the annual rate of growth of labour migrants nearly doubled relative to the previous decade, rising to 4.5 per cent per annum in 2001–2011 from 2.4 per cent in 1991–2011 (Ministry of Finance, 2017). Various surveys conducted by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) are also important sources of migration data. To assess the volume and structure of migration in India, starting from the ninth round

(May–September 1955), NSSO conducted a number of surveys to collect data on migration as part of its employment and unemployment enquiries. Prior to the 55th round survey, data on migration was collected during the 49th round survey through Schedule 1.2 which had a comprehensive coverage, including, inter alia, housing conditions and migration in India. Migration to large metropolises was significant in 1991–2001 with the Greater Mumbai Urban Agglomeration (UA) accounting for 2.49 million migrants, Delhi UA accounting for 2.11 million migrants, Chennai UA accounting for 0.43 million migrants, to name the three largest urban destinations. As the trend in migration to large UAs continued, the 2011 Census showed a growth in population in these places. The estimate from NSSO figures reveals a steady increase in internal migration from 24.8 per cent in 1992–1993 to 28.5 per cent in 2007–2008, which is also supported by the census figures. According to the 2011 Census, there are 454 million Indians who are migrants based on the place of residence. In other words, 37 per cent of Indians are internal migrants. Let

Migrant Odysseys

Table 1.2  Duration of Residence and Migration Duration of Residence Less than one year

Percentage of Migrants to the Total Migrants in India 4.6

1–4 years

15.8

5–9 years

15.2

10 years and above

64.4

Source: Calculated from the 2011 Census, Migration Tables.

us review the status of internal migrants by the duration of residence (Table 1.2). On the one hand, short-term migration is a rising phenomenon in India. About 5 per cent of the total migrants are short-term migrants who have been residing in the new place for less than a year. Increasing manufacturing output with campaigns like Skill India and Make in India demands an increase in employment opportunities, which further requires employment of migrant workers. On the other hand, long-term migration is on the increase as 64 per cent of the migrants have moved to their residence for more than 10 years and are staying there even now. One of the main lacunae of both the census and NSSO surveys is their failure to adequately capture seasonal, short-term and circular migration, and their coverage is best suited for permanent migrants and only reasonably adequate for semi-permanent migrants (National Workshop on Internal Migration and Human Development in India: Workshop Compendium, 2012). However, while the census has confined itself to the two definitions of a migrant (place of birth and last residence) over the last 50 years, the NSSO has tried to collect information on migration flows from different perspectives. The 64th round of the NSSO, which is the recent and most comprehensive round on migration, collects data on (i) migrants as per the usual place of residence (UPR) approach; (ii) migrant households; (iii) out-migrating individuals; (iv) seasonal or short-term migrants, that is, those who have out-migrated for a period

7

of more than one month but not exceeding six months for employment; and (v) return migrants. However, except in the case of UPR migrants, strictly comparable estimates are not available from the earlier rounds. Despite improvement in coverage of seasonal/circular migrants, NSSO estimates are still inadequate for such migrants because of two major reasons. First, in many cases, the seasonal/circular migration cycle is longer than six months. Second, quite often, entire households and not just individuals participate in seasonal migration. According to the 64th round of NSSO, about 43 per cent of Delhi’s population are migrants with over half coming from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Internal migration has dipped in Maharashtra and surged in Tamil Nadu and Kerala reflecting a growing pull of southern states in India’s migration (Economic Review, 2016). The youth in India first undertake ruralto-urban or urban-to-urban migration within the country to find lucrative employment or intermediary services to support international migration in the near future (MOSPI, 2017). Another source to understand internal migration and remittances and their economic and social implications is the Indian Human Development Survey (IHDS). The IHDS conducted the first round of a nationally representative survey of 41,554 households encompassing 1,503 villages and 971 urban neighbourhoods in 2004–2005 and the second round of almost 42,152 households in 2011– 2012. Like other surveys, we cannot estimate internal migration from the IHDS because of its small sample size. The Centre for Development Studies, Kerala has conducted migration surveys since 1998 in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Goa and Gujarat, and they provide reliable estimates for both internal and international migrations. However, it is not available at an all-India level to examine internal migration by states and union territories. One of the solutions to this problem is to conduct an India Migration Survey every five years (in the pattern of

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

the National Family Health Survey) so that migrants are more visible in India’s economy and society.

The Relevance of Micro Studies in Internal Migration The official data sources in India, Census of India and NSSO, focus more on long-term migration. In 1999–2000, the 55th round of NSSO made an attempt to assess temporary migration and reported gross figures of temporary migration for work in India (only 1% of the total population). However, it is in this context that micro-level studies help us understand the extent and volume of internal migration in the country. Mobility need not always be linear and it depends on various socio-economic conditions. Patterns of movement are determined by context-specific and complex dynamics, mediated by social networks, gender relations and household structures (De Haan et al., 2002). Migration literatures, especially those pertaining to internal migration, have discussed circular migration (Standing, 1989), distress migration and other forms of temporary migration. Circular movement from rural areas is now an important livelihood strategy and is emerging as a dominant form of movement amongst poorer sections in India. About 10 million poor people move away from their usual places of residence to find work for short periods ranging from a few weeks to months (Deshingkar & Grimm, 2005). The village-level studies in major states of India, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, documented vast and growing numbers of short-term internal out-migrants accounting for nearly 30 million or more migrants (Deshingkar, 2006). Standing’s (1985) analysis of migration visualizes the migratory process in India as a new form of proletarianization and as a disciplining mechanism and focuses on the importance of remittances. Recent research on internal migration

relies on a series of micro studies that deal with seasonal migration in West Bengal, Bihar, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand (Breman, 1996, 2003; De Haan, 2003; De Haan & Rogaly, 2002; Deshingkar & Akter, 2007; Deshingkar & Farrington, 2009; Rajan, 2011, 2016a, 2016b; Rao & Mitra, 2013). These works stress the importance of remittances and view migration within India to be extremely gendered. Lerche (2009) views migration as a part of the development process in India where most of the poor persons used migration as a path for social and economic mobility. This involves using powerless, extremely poor and vulnerable groups, who are easily incorporated into informal industries as workers in all parts of the country. This is extremely significant in understanding the spread and extent of the phenomenon of migration in India. Guerin and Venkatasubramanian (2009) look into the working lives of migrant brick-kiln workers in Thiruvalluvar district of Tamil Nadu, whereas Craswell and DeNeeve (2014) probe into the workplace dynamics among Gounders and Matharis in Tiruppur knitwear industry in Tamil Nadu. An estimated 0.3 million labourers migrate for work from the drought-prone Balangir district in western Odisha every year (Deshingkar, 2003). The studies of Srivastava (1998) and Byres (1999) also found that seasonal migration from rural areas for manual work has increased dramatically in India since the 1960s. Rogaly et al. (2001) estimated that over 0.5 million people, parents and children, migrate seasonally in the rice-producing district of Bardhaman in West Bengal each year from the surrounding districts and the neighbouring Jharkhand state, erstwhile south Bihar. Most studies stress the importance of social networks (Massey et al., 1993; Rogaly et al., 2001) and question the inability of migrants to find a path towards upward mobility. The lack of proper wages and employment opportunities in the native place are considered as the problems leading to migration (Breman

Migrant Odysseys

& Guerin, 2009). Breman’s (1996) work on migrants in Gujarat’s sugarcane cutting industry demonstrates the enormous extent of a footloose labour force with complete lack of social protection mechanisms. Social security provisions, and health and safety issues for migrants in the workplace are highlighted in literature. Neo-bondage of migrants arising from monetary advances from their employers and the extremely crucial role that ‘Mukadam’ or middlemen play in recruiting migrants are widely discussed in literature. Thus, objective conditions of work and structural constraints that workplaces impose on migrants become crucial components of internal migration in India. These studies successfully capture the drudgery of migrants in new destinations, and in some sense understand the ways in which they try to minimize their hardships (Rajan, Korra & Chyrmang, 2011, 2016a, 2016b; Rajan & Mishra, 2011). The NSSO report estimates that the total remittances by out-migrants amounted to `493.5 billion in 2007–2008, of which internal migrants contributed the lion’s share—about two-thirds—while the remaining came from international out-migrants (National Workshop on Internal Migration and Human Development in India: Workshop Compendium, 2012). Given that these figures do not include all savings, as well as savings/ remittances made by seasonal migrants, the impact of migration on the living conditions of the poor migrant workers in India could be quite considerable. Remittances and savings are primary channels through which migrant workers are able to stabilize or improve their living conditions. Remittances also influence intra- and inter-household relations and the pattern of growth and development in the source areas. It has been the focus of several studies recently, especially by the World Bank, but the focus has been on international remittances. Other important channels through which migration affects workers and influences the source and destination areas are the nature of their

9

involvement in labour markets and changes in workers’ tastes, perceptions and attitudes. The latter are less tangible but nonetheless of great significance. The impact on gender relations as a result of migration is complex. Sometimes single women or widows accompany other family workers or kinsfolk in a migration stream (National Workshop on Internal Migration and Human Development in India: Workshop Compendium, 2012). Migration can lead to greater freedom, cash incomes and change in attitudes among the migrating women (Shah, 2006), but may also expose them to exploitation and sexual harassment at the workplace (Sardamoni, 1995). Except in such cases, women have been generally known to participate in the migration streams along with male members of their households. It is usual in such cases for younger siblings and older children to accompany their parents and work along with them. This negatively affects the participation of these children in education. At the destinations, the women and the girl child also have to cope with household work and sibling care, and there is little change in gender relations as a result of migration (Gartaula, Niehof & Visser, 2011; Mosse et al., 2002). Most micro studies give us an idea of labour conditions, working hours, wages, remittances, social networks and worker resistance, which helps us understand the nuances of internal migration. This further allows policymakers to frame policies in a more comprehensive manner.

Urbanization, Smart Cities, Informalization of Labour: A Steady Growth of Internal Migration? With increasing urbanization and pressure on land in rural areas, the Indian government has now realized the need for cities that can cope with the inherent challenges of urban living. Cities are seen as engines of growth and as

10

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

potential investment hubs. The announcement of ‘100 smart cities’ adheres to this vision. A ‘smart city’ is an urban region that is highly advanced in terms of overall infrastructure, sustainable real estate, high density of communication network and a wider market (Gandhi, 2018). It is a city with information technology as its principal infrastructure and the very basis for providing essential services to its residents. There are many technological platforms involved, but not limited to automated sensor networks and data centres. A smart city is thus a concept to make rapid strides in the economic development of regions by focusing on improving the living standard of people. Over 34 per cent of India’s current population lives in urban areas, increasing by 3 per cent since 2001. More importantly, while existing large UAs, those with a population above 5 million, have remained mostly constant in numbers since 2005, smaller clusters have increased significantly from 34 to 50 clusters with a population of 1–5 million. By some estimates, India’s urban population could increase to 814 million by 2050. In India, even today cities lack urban planning, but are the centres of urbanization and attract a number of migrants thereby putting more pressure on urban infrastructure. With an increase in urban population will come rising demands for basic services, such as clean water, public transportation, sewage treatment and housing. Meanwhile, on the ‘smart city’ front, while over 90 ‘smart cities’ have identified 2,864 projects, India lags in implementation, with about 148 projects completed and over 70 per cent still at various stages of preparation. Urban migration is not viewed positively in India, with policies often bluntly seeking to reduce rural-to-urban migration. Policies are framed in such a manner so as to reduce labour movement, for example the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme. But unprecedented flow of migrants into the city should force urban planners to rethink migration policies, and urban policies should be structured in

such a way as to make it more inclusive for the migrants. The state can play an important role in migration as it can help migrants lower the cost of migration, ensuring that rules and regulations are in place while employing migrants and also reduce the antagonism that locals have at times towards migrant workers. Delhi can be seen as an example where historically urban migration was actively discouraged through policymaking but this is now changing with a focus on revitalizing nearby cities, such as Meerut, and building transport links and connectivity (Bhagat, 2011). Also, the National Capital Region surrounding Delhi is a nodal point where migration has recently increased. Gurgaon and Noida are now centres of many export-processing companies and therefore attract migrants in large numbers. It is yet to be seen if the workers in these areas are provided basic facilities even as they contribute to the country’s economic growth. The government has a long way to go in addressing concerns of circular migration. It is imperative that the process of migration is facilitated with a focus on ease of movement and better returns from labour. Policies such as the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation will make the process of urbanization smooth. Furthermore, smart cities should be designed and run in a way that provides equal opportunities to women migrants (George and Rajan, 2015; Rajan & Sivakumar, 2018). Intra-rural mobility is quite significant, no doubt, but the main emphasis is now on the transition from rural to urban destinations. It needs to be stated at the outset that although the pace of urbanization has accelerated, it is generally not accompanied by a rapid expansion in industrial employment. Migrants who settle down in the urban fringes fail, to a large extent, to secure steady jobs in factories, mills or even small-scale sweatshops (Breman, 2009). Instead, they find a niche in the service sector as waged workers or remain self-­employed. They get stuck in the informal sector economy, the defining features of

Migrant Odysseys

which are low wages, payment by piece rate or job work, low- or unskilled work, casual and intermittent employment, erratic working hours, no written labour contracts and an absence of institutional representation (Breman, 2009). These features are dominant in the slum habitats where most newcomers from the hinterland congregate. For many of them, migration is bound to remain circular in nature because of the dearth of physical and social capital to settle down elsewhere. The decision to remain is also not based on the exercise of free will but of forced choice imposed by the need to sell one’s labour power in advance and thus become entrapped in a relationship of debt bondage (Breman & Guerin, 2009). Development strategies often intend to reduce the number of migrants, neglecting the central role migration plays in the livelihoods of people (McDowell & de Haan, 1997). Differentials are most likely because of a combination of several barriers to the mobility of labour: strong local workers’ unions that act to keep out competing employees; rigidities in nominal wages (Joshi & Little, 1994); lack of housing in fast-­growing urban areas; and, most importantly, social, cultural and linguistic barriers to the cross-­ regional substitutability of labour (Cashin & Sahay, 1996, p. 162). There is little consensus in the literature about the relationship between migration and development. This is partly due to the theoretical complexity of the question, but it is also related to the variety of forms of migration that exist (De Haan, 1999). Different migratory opportunities attract different groups of people, with varying social relations that structure their movements, ­possibly having different consequences.

State and Migrants The state can play an important role in redirecting resources for migrant workers, this includes entry channels for more workers, especially those with low skills, ensuring the

11

protection of human rights of migrants, access to social services, protection from discrimination and lowering the cost of migration. On the matter of internal migration, whether it is providing basic services to the poor migrants or protecting them from chauvinist violence, the state’s record has been rather poor. Strong political pressure for development initiatives combined with fully thought-out development policies will have an impact on migrants’ living and working conditions. Effective state action can be possible only by understanding the issues of local governance and local relationships, thereby ensuring a better labour market and better working conditions for migrants. This handbook is an attempt to address the lacunae of internal migration research in India and also make migrants more visible for their role in accelerating economic development. It has 55 chapters that focus on various facets of internal migration and is organized into eight themes—macro perspectives, statelevel ­perspectives, migration and caste, migration and gender, migration and urbanization, migration and politics, emerging issues and migration policy. In addition, the chapters in the ­handbook cover most of the states from Kerala to Jammu and Kashmir.

ORGANIZATION OF THE HANDBOOK Macro Perspectives There are six chapters included in this section. The lead chapter, by Santosh Mehrotra on Employment, Urbanization and Education: Migration’s Mega-Challenges, examines the structural transformation and its implications and presents policymakers with three mega-challenges—migration of agricultural workers seeking non-farm employment, growing urbanization and need to ensure better education and vocational training for increasing entrants into the labour force. If planners and policymakers want to reap the benefits

12

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

of demographic dividend, then they should pay attention to these challenges and frame suitable policies. The increase in social conflict is already evident: the agitation by some caste groups for reservation in government jobs—the Patels in Gujarat, the Marathas in Maharashtra, the Jats in Haryana and the Kapus in Andhra Pradesh—is only the tip of the iceberg. India’s migration rate has already increased and will only go on increasing. Arup Mitra draws information from both primary and secondary sources, such as the NSSO and the population census, and reveals that migration takes place in search of better jobs and regular employment, compared with self-employment, which in the Indian context is mostly of a residual type. Among various caste categories, those with a relatively higher social status seem to have a higher probability of migrating compared to those who belong to socially disadvantaged classes and are also economically worse off. The survey-based analysis also brings out evidence in favour of limited mobility within the informal sector. Through various social networks, the rural migrants pursue their job search in the urban labour market and subsequently migrate to the urban areas. There are 714 million internal migrants globally, which is four times more than the international migrants (UNDP, 2009). Onethird of India’s population is defined as internal migrants but not all internal migrants are labour migrants. In this context, Imran Khan examines the trends and patterns of internal labour migration in India from 1983 to 2007–2008. The trends show that there is an increase in female labour migration and a decline in male migration, irrespective of socio-­economic groups, whereas the migration rate, on the whole, has remained more or less stable over the period of time constituting one-third of the labour force. The labour market outcomes show that there is a significant gender difference in the labour market characteristics of migrants. The male migrants have higher employment rates as they are

better educated and, therefore, are more likely to get regular jobs in non-agricultural sectors migrant with higher daily wages than non-­ workers. By contrast, female migrants, unlike non-migrant female workers, generally are less educated and are mostly employed in casual and unpaid family work. The socio-economic transformation is under way in the process of development in India, and it has significant implications on migration trends and patterns. Given this, Sandhya Mahapatro provides a perspective on the current pattern of internal migration in India and examines its correlates. The study uses data from different rounds of the NSSO and the Census. To understand the current patterns of migration and their implications, the recent migrants, ‘those who migrated prior to the five-year period of the survey’, have been analysed. The findings reveal that while migration among men arises both out of poverty and for better employment, the likelihood to migrate among women was higher than the better-off group. Appropriate policy measures are needed to provide a decent standard of living to the urban poor migrants through economically sustainable employment opportunities and social security measures because majority of them have no access to appropriate housing, sanitation and healthcare, and they also face wage discrimination at workplace. Domestic migration has been important in sustaining local economies across the globe, and in the case of India, it is currently estimated at around 453 million, or nearly 37 per cent of the total population as per the 2011 Census. Financial remittances remain a primary source of external flow of fund to the receiving areas. Thus, the need of the hour is to study the dynamics and determinants of domestic remittances flow in the country both at the aggregate and household levels. Bhaswati Das and Rajni Singh attempt to analyse the dynamics of domestic remittances using unit level data from the 64th round National Sample Sample Survey Office (NSSO, 2007–2008) on migration. Contribution of the domestic remittances

Migrant Odysseys

in the Indian economy is estimated to be `127–198 billion at the intra- and interstate levels, respectively, which is brought into transaction by around 22 million migrants across the country. Age of the migrant has been a major factor influencing the remitting behaviour of the out-migrants. Grossly, it was found that around 25–60 per cent of the remittances were sent by those in the age group of 15–45 years, but the net effect of the age and amount of remittance indicates at a significantly increasing share of remittances by the increasing age of the out-migrant. Tumbe (2011) shows that India’s domestic remittance market was around $10 billion in 2007–2008, 60 per cent of which was received through interstate transfers. It was also observed that 80 per cent of the total remittances were directed towards rural households. Are there any associated gains from migration? Pinak Sarkar underlies the importance of remittances and points out that households are endowed with different characteristics, and therefore, the gains from migration vary across migrant sending households. One important observation is that the flow of remittances across sectors—rural or urban economic communities—has drastically improved the economic well-being. Consumption expenditure of the remittance receiving households is much higher compared with non-remittance receiving households.

State-level Perspectives Mobility—spatial and occupational—has become the hallmark of Indian labour dynamics over the last three decades, with a remarkable increase of rural-to-urban streams of labourers (Eric& Zérah, 2017), and a significant shift of the rural working population from agriculture to the secondary and the tertiary sectors of the economy (Lerche, Guérin & Srivastava, 2012; Srivastava, 1998). Through a case study of the Palanpur village in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, Floriane Bolazzi

13

examines the spread of temporary forms of mobility from rural areas to urban centres along with the diffusion of employment structure from irregular and non-contractual forms of non-farm jobs over the last half-century. The spread of casual and non-contractual jobs in a more flexible labour framework and the partial conversion of the labour force in the secondary and tertiary sectors of the economy is a peculiar trait of the structural transformation in India. The prevalence of commuting over migration is partly the result of the fluctuations of the labour markets and the difficulty in access to regular employments, but it might also be preferred in order to benefit from the vicinity with the village which is the locus of strong ties. In his eminent mobility transition theory, Zelinsky (1971) tried to explain temporary or circular migration and stated that all shortterm movements, repetitive or cyclic, having the common motive of a temporary change of residence, are circular in nature. Generally, it is a short-term move with the intention to return to the place of usual residence. Kunal Keshri, utilizing the most recent available data of the 64th round of NSSO, attempts to explore the regional pattern of temporary labour migration within and from Uttar Pradesh. The study also attempts to assess the determining factors of temporary labour migration, particularly the economic factors, such as monthly per capita consumer expenditure and educational attainment. Uttar Pradesh has the second highest number of registered temporary labour migrants at the national level after Bihar, and more than three-fourths of the temporary labour migrants move out of the state seasonally. Interestingly, more than 80 per cent of the temporary labour migrants move from rural to urban areas. Temporary labour migration is found to be very high in the southern region (Bundelkhand), followed by eastern Uttar Pradesh. In a nutshell, it could be argued that temporary labour migration in the state is mostly distress-driven, as socio-economically deprived groups, such as

14

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

scheduled tribes, scheduled castes, less educated, poorest of the poor and landless, are more likely to migrate temporarily. Kerala Migration Survey, one of the oldest migration surveys conducted in India, started in 1998 and has completed eight rounds of migration surveys in Kerala since. One of the objectives of the survey is to estimate the trends, levels and differentials of internal migration. Using data from the Kerala Migration Survey 2018, S. Irudaya Rajan, K. C. Zachariah and S. Sunitha explored the trends in internal migration from Kerala over the last 20 years. The number of out-migrants in 2018 was estimated to be 0.524 million and has declined gradually over the years since 1998, partly because of the changing demographic structure of Kerala. About one-fifth of the employed out-migrants have higher educational qualifications at the professional level and among them, female out-migrants are more than their male counterparts. The out-migration of students is increasing over the years, but that of job seekers is decreasing. Kerala is also likely to witness a large inflow of migrants from other states of India. Labour migration among the rural poor requires to be linked to the upsurge of uneven development (Wise & Veltmeyer, 1998). While in the pre-reforms period, the government intervened to balance regional disparity, this role has been lost after neoliberalization. Trade policies rather facilitate export-­oriented industrialization that vests far-reaching autonomy on industries in choosing cost-­ effective locations. Bihar and West Bengal have witnessed the highest percentage of short-term migration among major states in India as per data from the 64th NSSO survey of 2007–2008. Using primary data collected from two backward districts—Kochbehar and Malda—of north Bengal region, Rukmini Thapa re-established the links between migration and regional economic backwardness and declining viability of agriculture at a time when global capital is flowing to remote areas to absorb cheap labour. The low route

to development offers resistance to the swelling reserves of cheap migrant labour under varying degrees of ‘unfreedom’ at work and adjustments at home. Not all migrants viewed themselves as unfree workers but agreed that the prevailing economic circumstances and dearth of local alternatives in the village had subjected them to an inferior position in the power relations, where resistance at the individual level was easily crushed and scope of collective action was weak. The Kashmir Valley is experiencing seasonal and short-term in-migration of labourers from the other states of India, such as Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Punjab, in huge numbers. As statistics are sparse, Aijaz Ahmad and Tulika Tripathi analyse in detail about an underresearched region. These in-migrants have not been covered in earlier studies and state statistics are also not available about them. This makes the Kashmir Valley a peculiar area to stay. These in-migrant workers are seasonal in character because most of them stay for summers only and leave the valley in winter. This process of in-migration in the valley shows that rural in-migrants prefer to stay in rural areas while urban in-migrants prefer cities. It is also evident that the entire in-migration in the valley has been dominated by female in-migrant workers. The main reason for in-migrant pull in the valley is shortage of local labour, higher wages and more employment opportunities. Using the Kerala model of migration survey, Tamil Nadu has completed largescale migration survey among 20,000 households. S. Irudaya Rajan, Bernard D' Sami, S. Samuel Asir Raj and P. Sivakumar examine the dynamics of the internal migration with all its complexities. The number of out-migrants (OMI) from and return out-migrants (ROM) to Tamil Nadu is estimated at 1.02 million and 0.91 million, respectively. The total number of interstate out-migrants (OMI and ROM together) is 1.93 million. The state of Karnataka receives the most OMI from Tamil Nadu (Rajan, Sami & Raj, 2017). It has 43.1

Migrant Odysseys

per cent of total OMI as of 2015 and 38.8 per cent of the total ROM. Hindus are the dominant out-migrant population in Tamil Nadu, with 88.2 per cent share of OMI and 91.9 per cent of ROM. Christians share 7.6 per cent of the OMI population and 4.2 per cent of the ROM population, and Muslims share around 4 per cent of both. In addition, Tamil Nadu is home to more than a million migrant workers from other states of India. One of the highest out-migrant districts in Tamil Nadu is the Tirunelveli district. Based on a small micro survey among migrant households, S. Amuthan examines structural economic change and rural out-migration, its impact on migrants and their income contribution to household assets. The study runs a regression model and concludes by viewing migration as an important accelerator to improve the household conditions and a salient factor to eradicate poverty. While S. Irudaya Rajan, K. C. Zachariah and S. Sunitha examine out-migration from Kerala, M. S. Raunaq discusses the working and living conditions of long distance in-­ migrants to Kerala and focuses on the implications of this recent trend (Rajan & Sumeetha, 2015). It is observed that there exists a labour divide between the migrants and the native Malayali workers. The migrant workers have different systems of accessing work compared with the Malayali workers, and they often face exploitation at the hands of the agents/contractors/employers. They face exclusion and alienation not just in their workplace but also at their places of residence. Despite the valuable contributions of the migrants to Kerala’s economy, they are often forced to live in inhuman conditions and are blamed for everything that is wrong in the society. Nandan Kumar discusses out-migration as a process of livelihood diversification in the Indian context. When agriculture cannot promise a stable and adequate remuneration and casualization of employment is rampant, a household has to diversify its livelihood portfolio and supplement its sources

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of income. The chapter conceives migration as the deployment of the household labour force at distant locations and supplementing the livelihood basket through remittance earnings. By using income, workforce and migration data from IHDS-II (2011–2012), it shows how a household employs its members at distant places and activities and what they get as a result. The findings show that in very few circumstances migration is taken up in isolation, and in most cases, it is combined with other activities. There is a dynamic trade-off between migration and remittance earnings in a household. The income from remittance is higher than the income from agriculture. It shows that at a macro level at least, remittance is not inducing inequality in the society and migration remains an opportunity for all. Distress-driven migration occurs every year from different parts of Odisha, especially from the KBK region—the undivided districts of Koraput, Balangir and Kalahandi. Over the last few decades, people from these areas mostly migrate to the southern states of India in search of employment. Rayagada, a significant part of the erstwhile undivided Koraput district, is endowed with rich mineral resources, covered by dense forest and hills. It has attracted investment in mining and mineral processing industries in the name of development. This has displaced a large number of people from their habitats and traditional livelihoods, which has emerged as a push factor for migration (Rajan, 2018). Using the available data, Manasi Mahanty examines the problem and process of labour migration of Rayagada district in Odisha. People of this district are mostly migrating to other states, particularly in the southern part of India after a lean harvesting season to earn higher wages as there is not enough work in the source areas. The rescue of child migrants of Rayagada district reveals the involvement of labour brokers who promise families to engage their minor children in more or less paid work in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. It draws attention to the issue of child trafficking. Even the death

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

reports of migrant workers of Rayagada at the destination sites of Kerala and Karnataka raise the issue of labour exploitation.

Migration and Caste Most studies that deal with caste and migration focus on the migration of a single caste (Tumbe, 2012). The first piece of evidence on caste selectivity and migration can be gleaned from the urbanization rates of the four social groups. While the all-India urbanization rate as per the NSSO survey of 2007–2008 was around 28 per cent, it was nearly 43 per cent for the General Category, 26 per cent for Other Backward Classes (OBCs), 21 per cent for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and 9 per cent for Scheduled Tribes (STs). A virtually identical distribution is obtained from the IHDS 2004– 2005 data, where additional information is obtained for Brahmins, among whom the urbanization rate was noted to be 46 per cent (Desai & Dubey, 2011). Kalyani Vartak and Chinmay Tumbe review the evidence on caste selectivity and migration and in turn the effects of migration on caste practices and related issues. Macro-level evidence suggests that the upper castes are usually the first to move out of the villages and for longer durations and distances. Micro-level evidence based on their re-study of a Konkan village known for mass migration over five decades shows a more variegated picture of both change and continuity in caste demography and practices. They also provide a framework in which the relationships between migration and caste can be analysed and highlight the importance of economic and social remittances in the source region, anonymity in the destination region and ‘migration as resistance’ strategies as factors that challenge caste practices. Amitabh Kundu discusses the broad trends and pattern of migration in India and enquires if there has been a significant departure in the last decade’s Census from the past, highlighting certain methodological and data-related

issues. In addition, he examines the migration patterns of vulnerable sections of the population, that is, Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and Muslims (Das & Bhushan, 2014). Among the major religious groups, the Muslims generally have the lowest percentage of migrants in their population, both in rural and urban areas, for men as well as women. The highest percentage was reported among the Buddhists in urban areas at two time points, 1999–2000 and 2007–2008. During this period, the percentage of migrants among rural males in the country declined at a national level—for all socio-­ religious groups except Jains—but remained constant for urban males. This is a matter of serious concern for the Muslims because their share of migrants is the lowest across communities. The sluggish pace of urbanization of the Muslim, SC and ST populations over the course of time, in particular, must be an item of concern and policy intervention. This calls for focused empirical studies to identify the factors behind their low and declining access to urban and metropolitan space, resulting in what may be called urban exclusion. However, one important fact that emerges clearly, notwithstanding the anomalies in the data, is that Indian women are travelling much more than they did in the past. Marriage mobility of women is determined by socio-cultural factors that change slowly over the course of time. The spurt in their migration must, therefore, be attributed to economic factors. The growth in the number of women migrants for employment during 2001–2011 was very high. The gold jewellery industry has burgeoned in Kerala and has expanded to other states and even outside national ­boundaries. Sumeetha M. examines the labour process in migration and looks at the changing role of the state, when there are different players in the industry, through her five-year fieldwork data (2010– 2015) in the gold jewellery industry and a larger data set on interstate migrant workers survey conducted by the Centre for Development Studies in 2012. Kerala’s migration experience reveals that gold has been one of the most

Migrant Odysseys

favoured investment avenues for the migrants. The changes in the production regime are associated with the expansion of local markets and the integration of the Indian economy with the world economy. State policies are observed to have a direct bearing on the labour market, especially altering labour use and intake in this industry. The deregulation of the gold industry in the post 1990s has resulted in increasing investment into the sector, which also fuelled intense competition. The traditional ‘Thattan’, the goldsmith, has given way to new workers from all castes and communities working in informal workshops from elsewhere in India and mostly from West Bengal. Nidhin Donald provides an interesting glimpse into the textual strategies of a highly mobile community, namely Syrian Christians in Kerala, by analysing select themes from their family histories. This chapter is an outcome of sociological engagement with Syrian Christian identity formation and social reproduction, especially through printed, published and archived family histories or kudumba charitrams. The author argues that migration has been a crucial process that has both sponsored family history projects and informed their consent. As an ongoing dynamic social process, migration has led to numerous jaati anxieties among Syrian Christians. Bhagyoday Khandare, Himanshu Chaurasia and Sunil Sarode examine the socio-­demographic characteristics with interdistrict flow of tribal migration in Maharashtra based on the 2001 Census data. Findings reveal that men migrate for employment whereas women migrate because of marriage. Few districts in Maharashtra have shown significant results regarding in-migration as well as out-­ migration. The total tribal population showed a negative relationship with tribal literacy rate. However, recognition of the barriers to and within the migrants is needed to frame subsequent policy discussions and development planning for tribal migrants. Based on a survey among 20 tribal villages in Peint and Trimbakeshwar blocks (talukas)

17

of Nashik district of northern Maharashtra, Anjali Borhade, Milind Babar, Isha Jain, Vishika Yadav, Pallavi Joshi, Karthik Prabhu, Ajay Shekhawat and Subhojit Dey examine the saga of tribal livelihood migration. The study is one of the first to explore the socio-­ economic and socio-demographic characteristics in migration-prone tribal areas and issues in the destination area. While migration appears to provide marginal financial benefits, there is a great deal of social isolation and marginalization. The majority of migrants are not aware of their welfare rights and are unable to access social security schemes. Even basic access to benefits from possessing a ration card are either not known or not accessed because of a range of barriers. Multiple problems and barriers are faced by migrants at the destination, the commonest being inadequate and irregular wages and unsuitable and substandard accommodation. The study suggests ways and means to facilitate tribal migration and contain distress-driven migration.

Migration and Gender In the present Indian context, understanding the role of women as economic migrants is significant. The following section precisely analyses gender and migration dynamics. There has been a rapid increase in labour mobility in contemporary India. Large-scale surveys as well as village studies across the country report an upsurge in the incidence of out-migration from rural areas (Coffey, Papp & Spears, 2015; Datta, 2018; Himanshu & Rodgers, 2016; Rajan et al., 2017; Roy, 2016; Schenk-Sandbergen, 2018; Vartak, Tumbe & Bhide, 2019; Zachariah & Rajan, 2016). These accounts reveal that while migration streams may be differentiated by their historical origins, regional, caste, class and gender attributes, there has been a spatial reconfiguration of work and employment in rural India. In particular, migration has emerged as a significant livelihood strategy among

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

rural households. The New Economics of Labour Migration suggests that migration decisions are jointly made by family members and are mediated by remittances (Stark, 1991). Livelihood approaches emphasize on migration as a household strategy of rural livelihood diversification (Ellis, 1998). The migration project is also a gendered project. Recently released census data on migration shows that female migration for work has rapidly increased between 2001 and 2011. Using preliminary results of new data collected in 2016, Amrita Datta maps gendered spatialities of work in rural Bihar. The study covers 12 representative villages in seven districts and draws on a long-term study on social and economic change in rural Bihar (Rodgers, Datta, Rodgers, Mishra & Sharma, 2013). Datta formulates six typologies of workers based on an individual’s location of work. By focusing foremost on the location of work, that is, the space and place where work is done, for both primary and secondary work statuses, the chapter is able to capture worker mobilities that are often excluded from large-scale survey exercises. In addition, a disaggregated analysis of worker mobility by sex contributes to an understanding of the gendered economic geography of work. The findings from this work have implications beyond Bihar and India. Studies on female migration in India, by and large, conclude that women migration is driven by marriage and associated reasons (Kundu & Gupta, 1996; Mitra & Murayama, 2009; Parida & Madheswaran, 2011; Premi, 1980; Singh, 1986; Srivastava, 1998, 2011; Srivastava & Sasikumar, 2003). But most recently, a few other studies (Mahapatro, 2010; Mazumdar, Neetha & Agnihotri, 2013; Shanti, 2006; Sundari, 2005) have highlighted the issue of employment-driven female migration. Jajati K. Parida and S. Madheswaran examine the unexplored facets of female migration—post-marriage employment status of migrant women—and explore the factors that determine their post-migration (in the

post-marriage period) labour force participation decision. The major findings of the study suggest that about 50 per cent of the women migrants, those that reported marriage as the reason for their migration, are found in the labour market, performing low-quality informal sector jobs based on both censuses and NSSO surveys. It can be stated that migrant women in India normally do not participate in the labour market immediately in the post-marriage period because of existing socio-cultural constraints. However, with increasing duration of migration, they tend to participate in wage employment in increasing numbers. Household poverty and low standard of living are the major determining factors behind their decision to participate in the labour market. Many historical studies on migrant women from Kerala have challenged the significance placed on women’s associational migration by exploring their early work-based migration in professions such as nursing and teaching (Gallo & Hornberger, 2017; George, 2005; Joseph, 2000). Sonia Krishna Kurup focuses on women’s work-based movement for clerical, secretarial and administrative jobs within the country. Specifically, the chapter studies the experiences of educated middle class women from Nair and Christian communities, who migrated from Kerala between the late 1960s and early 1980s to work in the civilian section of the defence establishments in Pune in the pre-liberalization era. The study shows that a combination of factors enabled single women from upper caste and upper class families to find employment in pensionable, salaried jobs with the central government after migration to Pune. Higher educational attainment and unmarried status were contributing factors that enabled upper caste, highly educated women to find attractive salaried jobs after migration. Earlier studies on migration focused only on male migration, assuming that female migration would not have many social and economic implications (Neetha, 2004). The

Migrant Odysseys

existing theories based on the social, cultural and economic factors are also male-centric and consider female migration by two ­factors— marriage and dependency on the principal bread-earner of the family (Premi, 1980; Srivastava & Sasikumar, 2003). However, in the recent times, because of change in gender-­ specific demand of labour and increased educational attainment of women in almost all parts of the world, women have a chance to participate in activities outside their home boundaries. This change can also be noted from the change in roles, patterns and causes of female migration in the developing countries. Sunetra Ghatak explains two related processes in the Indian economy, the feminization of labour and the role of social networks in women’s migration. To identify the presence of ‘feminization of migration’ in internal migration in India, the study has used data from the 55th and 64th surveys conducted by NSSO and Census of India’s provisional D-5 table. For the role of networks, a primary survey was conducted in Delhi from January to April 2016. Very little research has been directed to grasp the economically viable migration trend of middle class women. Drawing on qualitative data on migration collected through fieldwork in the city of Kolkata and using the theoretical lens of structuralism, Tina Dutta and Annapurna Shaw attempt to unravel the nuances of middle class women’s migration to Indian cities. The field data further shows that migration of women seems to be boosting women’s agency. All migrant women under the study acknowledge that physical distance from home and economic self-reliance have somehow relieved them from patriarchal control and increased their bargaining power in their family to varying degrees, whether it is for marriage with a partner of their choice, working in night-shift jobs or living a lifestyle of their own choice, migration of women appears to be smoothing the negotiation process. S. Irudaya Rajan and Sumeetha M. explore the in-migration of women workers into

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Kerala, India. Wage differentials and skill are discussed with respect to women workers on the basis of primary data collected from a survey on Interstate Migrant Workers, Kerala 2012, conducted by the Centre for Development Studies, Trivandrum. Women migrants, and most of all, circular women labour migrants, are highly vulnerable. They tend to gain entry to labour markets only by taking the most precarious jobs and have little prospect of upward mobility. Despite locating to a different labour market, women migrants in Kerala face formidable challenges. Whenever migration data is documented or analysed, the reports cover only the people who have migrated. Neha Rai closely looks at the migration dynamics from a gender perspective through an extensive primary survey conducted in Uttar Pradesh. In social sciences, scholars ignore women’s roles, aspirations and experiences and make them invisible in migration, especially women who are left behind. Migration discourse should be investigated in a gendered context to analyse gender as a system of power relations that permeates every aspect of the migration experience. Not only migrants but also lives of women left behind should be examined.

Migration and Urbanization Migration policy should not be viewed merely as part of labour policy, but needs to be actively incorporated in urban development policy and planning as rural-to-urban migration is the predominant form of migration. R. B. Bhagat examines both migration and urbanization in India with the help of secondary data and points out that inclusive policies alone can make migration a better option for all. In India, all migrants are not equally vulnerable. On the one hand, permanent and semi-permanent migrants with higher education and skills can withstand the challenges and succeed in becoming members of the urban citizenship. On the other hand, migrants with low education

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

and skills, combined with the seasonal and temporary nature of their employment, are more vulnerable and are prone to various kinds of exclusions in urban areas. These categories of migrants are excluded from social security programmes, such as public distribution of food, access to education and health care and, most importantly, entitlement to housing at the place of destination, owing to the absence of identity and residential proof. Social security programmes are place-bound and implementation of the programmes falls under the purview of the state governments. The interstate migrants incur more hardships as the portability of social security programmes is not possible; they also face hostility from native residents instilled with the ideology of the sons of the soil. The Indian economy is in a transition phase. It has moved up in the income ladder and has become a lower middle income country since 2007–2008 (World Bank, 2015). Because of a sustained growth rate of gross domestic product (GDP) (about 7% per annum) since 2002–2003, the incidence of poverty has reduced substantially (Chauhan et al., 2014). More importantly, a structural transformation is taking place with a falling share of employment in agriculture and a corresponding rise of employment in the non-farm sectors (Mehrotra & Parida, 2017). With growing mechanization in agriculture (Himanshu, 2011; Mehrotra, Parida, Sinha & Gandhi, 2014), for the first time in Indian economic history, the absolute number of workers in agriculture declined (5 million per annum) massively between 2004– 2005 and 2011–2012 (Mehrotra et al., 2014; Parida, 2015). Moreover, it is important to note that rural-to-urban migration in India also increased by 3 million per annum between 2001 and 2011, as per census migration data. Jajati K. Parida and Ravi K. Raman explore the trends and patterns of rural-to-urban migration and in turn study the employment patterns in urban India using both Census and NSSO data. During the period of high economic growth and structural transformation, a

‘Lewisian transition’ is taking place in India, with a large number of persons migrating from rural to urban areas to take up urban employment. Because migrants find employment in manufacturing and service sectors, it is expected that their labour productivity may have increased. Consequently, the incidence of poverty has declined substantially. There is increasing recognition that circular and seasonal migrants in cities remain on the extreme margins in their urban work destinations, facing layers of social, economic and political vulnerabilities, although they contribute significantly to the economy (Deshingkar & Akter, 2009). In Ahmedabad, migrants work in construction, factories, small hotels, restaurants and food stalls, as domestic help, in head-loading and load cart pulling, scrap recycling and vegetable vending (Aajeevika, 2007). A large number of them work as construction labour, migrating from other districts of Gujarat as well as Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and other states. Renu Desai and Shachi Sanghvi examine, in depth, the spaces inhabited by migrant construction workers in Ahmedabad by developing a typology of their housing, describing the conditions and migrants’ experiences in each housing type and outlining the policy and governance issues shaping these conditions. Housing and basic services for migrant construction workers in their urban work destinations continue to be inadequate for majority of both the floating migrant workers who migrate directly to construction sites, do regular work for a significant duration and are provided a place to stay by the employer or contractor as well as the migrant naka workers who are engaged in irregular daily wage work and arrange for their own housing in the city. Furthermore, little is being done at present to seriously address this inadequacy, which is particularly striking in the context of the Government of India’s (GoI) ‘Housing for All by 2022’ slogan. Arvind Pandey and Ajit Jha document employment patterns and occupational

Migrant Odysseys

mobility of migrant workers living in selected slums of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. This study closely analyses occupational and employment mobility among migrant workers across social groups. Construction and manufacturing are seen as two important sectors where migrants find work. An analysis of the pre-migration employment status of the migrant workers indicates that before migration to Delhi, majority of the migrant workers were agricultural labourers and cultivators. In contrast, a high percentage of SC and OBC migrants were agricultural labourers before migrating to Delhi owing to landlessness or limited landholdings. Recent growth of Indian urbanization has the peculiar characteristic of lopsidedness towards megacities, that is, Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata (Registrar General of India, 2005). In addition, the latest population census results suggest that a majority of the urban population is residing in the 53 million plus cities. There was an increment of 18 such cities from the year 2001 to 2011 (Registrar General of India, 2001, 2011). These cities are facing the predicament of mushrooming of slums. Apart from problems such as inadequate housing, lack of basic utilities and affordable transportation, Indian slum dwellers are facing immense problems of meagre public health infrastructure which tends to increase gradually in the near future. Namrata Ahirwar and Kunal Keshri look into the utilization of maternal healthcare services by migrants in the slums of Prayagraj city, Uttar Pradesh. They also aim to identify major determinants of the utilization of maternal healthcare services. Migration has been found to be a significant factor in the utilization of maternal healthcare services and most of the migrant women lag in the utilization of antenatal and postnatal care. Duration of migration, however, has a positive relationship with the utilization of maternal healthcare services. Utilization of maternal healthcare is better among non-migrants than among migrant women.

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Migration and Politics Samir Kumar Das seeks to find out how development impinges on body—the living human body of those who are displaced by it—and vice versa and most importantly, with what effects. In the existing literature still dominated by a high developmentalist streak, development is viewed as one that not only calls for the production of a docile body of the displaced persons—a body that is not invested with an insatiable desire for development— but also strives for honing and chiselling it in ways that are considered conducive to development. Through his work, the author highlights how easily vulnerable sections of the population, such as migrants, are chiselled to meet the needs of development and how in the process they turn into docile beings. The body is cultivated and perfected, honed and chiselled so that it becomes productive, makes itself available for the productive use of development and in the process turns what Foucault calls ‘docile’. Development targets the already vulnerable bodies and makes them further vulnerable to serial displacement (Indu & Rajan, 2016). Ranabir Samaddar views migrant labour as a critical element in the transformation of a city to a rental outlet and at the same time a site of extraction. He highlights in his work that infrastructural growth in the world of cities has now produced the urban in which migrant labour remains a hidden, subaltern figure. In short, infrastructure and logistics of supply—of commodities, human beings, money, information and waste—do not make labour flow homogenous, even and standard, but heterogeneous. Postcolonial capitalism is a confirmed evidence of this law of mobility. Based on a micro-level study of interstate migrant workers in the state of Tamil Nadu, Suresh Babu, Mansi Wadhwa and M. Vijayabaskar point to the emerging inadequacy of social protection for migrant workers and to the pathways of exclusion and marginalization of migrant workers. Through this, they also show the lacunae in distributional

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

framework of welfare entitlements in India. The discussion on migration, labour and citizenship in academic literature has largely revolved around international migrant workers, who are subject to restrictions and discriminations in their country of employment, by virtue of absence of citizenship. However, the authors point out in the chapter that internal migration in multi-ethnic countries like India, marked by different levels of political commitment to social protection across regions, can also generate exclusions and adverse incorporations that are similar in some ways to that observed in the case of international migration. The automobile industry in India has grown enormously in recent decades. India is the sixth largest producer of automobiles. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government in India has declared the industry as the foremost driver of its ambitious ‘Make in India’ programme to turn India into a manufacturing powerhouse with an ostensible goal to compete with China. The Automotive Mission Plan (AMP) 2016–2026, prepared jointly by the GOI and the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers, predicts that the industry will contribute over 12 per cent to the country’s GDP and will constitute 40 per cent of the manufacturing sector and add 60 million jobs (AMP 2016–2026, 2017). Charvaak Pati narrates the experience of migrant workers in the automobile industry with a specific focus on workers working in the Manesar plant of Maruti Suzuki. The experiences of migrants are more or less similar to experiences of other workers but the way they differentiate their experiences from others is revealed by their status as migrant workers which actually reflects in production, reproduction and resistance on the shop floor. Mumbai is known for its ‘cult of violence’ against migrants that came into prominence in the 1960s with the rise of Shiv Sena and its leader Bal Thackeray. Shiv Sena played the politics of regionalism or sons of soil for political mileage against South Indian

migrants. In the 2000s, same politics was played by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray against migrants from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar—commonly called migrants from Bhaiya land—to find a foothold in state politics. Shahana Purveen explores how taxi drivers from Uttar Pradesh relate to their role and work when their situation and identity as migrants is uncertain and accompanied by suspicion in Mumbai. The work makes us grasp various expressions of urban realities in driving work and the ways in which they coalesce with established discourses on taxi driving, identity and migration.

Emerging Issues The virtuous cycles of growth underpinning the ‘migrating-out-of-poverty’ discourse are generally based on the notions that increasing levels of migration from relatively less developed areas to the pockets of growth would necessarily result in the counterflow of remittances, technology and information. However, in large developing countries like India, despite the increase in mobility in a period of relatively robust growth, the outcomes of migration are highly uneven among different sections of the migrants. While migration to relatively fast-growing metropolitan areas and regions has opened up new possibilities for social and economic mobility for a section of workers, the bulk of them is employed in the informal economy with low wages and virtually no social security. Drawing upon insights from a field survey in the KBK region of Odisha, Deepak K. Mishra attempts to analyse the ways through which the livelihood diversification of seasonal migrants is constrained both at the origin and the destination. Seasonal migration started as a response to food and employment insecurity in this rainfed belt and was largely distress-driven. However, over a period of time, both the nature and the outcomes of such migration showed remarkable variations. Yet, the economically and socially

Migrant Odysseys

marginalized groups continue to face lack of freedom during and after the episodes of migration. Environmental migration is becoming a growing concern, particularly in low-lying areas and islands. Nearly 300 million people with an average density of 500 people per square kilometre inhabit 40 deltas globally, including all the mega deltas (Ericson & Haggerty, 2006). The most populated delta is the Ganges–Brahmaputra delta and the delta with highest density is the Nile delta. Using the coarse digital terrain model and global population distribution data, Ericson and Haggerty (2006) estimated that more than one million people would be directly affected by sea-level rise in 2050 in each of the three mega deltas, namely the Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna delta in Bangladesh and West Bengal, the Mekong delta in Vietnam and the Nile delta in Egypt. Avijit Mistri provides more insight into the nexus between livelihood issues and migration from Sundarbans where the environment has been given special consideration, through a comparative study between migrants (exposed group) and non-migrants (control group). The study thoroughly reminds us that migration and climate change do not have a linear relationship but have numerous factors and subfactors affecting them. Environmental stressors can be considered as an additional push factor along with the socio-economic factors that play a major role in migration from Sundarbans. Construction is one of the fastest growing work sectors in India. It accounts for 8 per cent of India’s GDP and is projected to grow at an annual rate of 7.6 per cent between 2015 and 2020, making India the world’s third largest construction market by the year 2020. A highly labour-intensive sector, it is the second largest employer of labour force in the country and the single largest employer of migrant workers, nearly 92.4 per cent of the labour input in the construction sector is in the unorganized sector (2004–2005). Amrita Sharma and Divya Varma attempt to characterize

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the streams of migrants coming to work in the construction industry of Ahmedabad and describe their living and working conditions and the challenges they endure as temporary footloose workers, outside the purview of state social protection mechanisms. The evidence presented in the chapter builds a case for immediate policy attention to the tens of thousands of workers coming to Ahmedabad every year and contributing to its prosperity. The government, in partnership with the industry, should introduce low-cost rental accommodation for migrant workers on a sharing basis in high migrant density centres. Furthermore, worker hostels that are available for short periods could be created in the city. Migration, much of it as cyclic mobility, is now an integral part of the alternative livelihood strategies pursued by a large number of poor people living in destitute conditions in rural areas (Deshingkar & Farrington, 2009). Rabiul Ansary and Bhaswati Das made an attempt to distinguish the socio-economic and demographic characteristics of the respondents who have opted for cyclic mobility and migration from the primary data collected from the Murshidabad district of West Bengal. The study concludes by observing that migration helped the households to come out of indebtedness and mobility helped them to come out of poverty. Existing migrants in any destination will influence the pattern and volume of migration to that destination. Literature suggests that earlier migrants and their linguistic composition are crucial factors in the migration pattern rather than physical distance between place of origin and destination. Individuals perceive themselves and their place in the world through their language and culture. Therefore, people speaking a particular language tend to move to areas where groups of people who speak the same language have migrated and settled. S. Irudaya Rajan, I. V. Prasad and Rinju attempt to understand interstate migration through the lens of language data provided by the decennial censuses of 1991–2011. Currently, 43.63

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per cent of Indians speak in Hindi. It is also found that there is an increasing presence of Hindi speakers in non-Hindi speaking states, especially in South Indian states. For instance, Hindi speakers in Kerala and Tamil Nadu recorded a growth rate of 97 per cent and 108 per cent, respectively, over the last decade, 2001–2011. Hindi and Bengali speakers in two South Indian states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu together registered a positive growth rate of 118 per cent, whereas Tamil and Malayalam speakers in Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh together recorded a negative growth rate of 5 per cent in the same decade of 2001–2011. These changing non-native speakers are an indication of growing migration from North to South Indian states. Although seasonal and short-term migration has often been distress-driven, it contributes to the economy through different channels (Breman, 1996; Deshingkar & Akhter, 2009). Most studies on seasonal migration report that this type of migration often leads to family migration (couple with children). Notwithstanding, family migration in India has ‘gone up from 1.539 million in 1993 to 2.351 million in 2008’, which accounts for nearly 53 per cent of total migration (Jayaraj, 2013, p. 49). Madhusudan Nag discusses various aspects of family migration at the macro level in the Indian context. He also looks into characteristics of family migration in India, destination choices of families, occupational patterns and their socio-­ economic backgrounds, based on round II of the IHDS (2011–2012). There are approximately more than 2 million households that migrate as family, either with children or without children. This finding of the study suggests that short-term family migration rates from rural areas are predominantly higher than urban areas and equal in both rural and urban destinations. Further, a higher percentage of families are migrating within the same state as intrastate migration rather than interstate for periods of three to six months. The study also found that a majority of families migrate to

destinations through a contractor for construction and non-agricultural work. Surat, a prominent poster child of the ‘Gujarat model’ of development, is one of the fastest growing cities in India. It boasts of a thriving diamond and textile industry, both of which have together contributed to its growth as an economic powerhouse of India. It is also home to several of India’s major processing and manufacturing facilities in sectors such as zari, chemicals, petrochemicals and natural gas. Surat’s textile sector fulfils 40 per cent of the demand for man-made fabric in India. The city houses over 65,000 power looms in 450 textile processing units that manufacture around 30 million metres of raw fabric and 25 million metres of processed fabric on a daily basis. It is the largest manufacturer of clothes in India and notably accounts for 90 per cent of polyester and 10 per cent of synthetic sarees produced in the country. It employs close to 1.2 million workers and has an annual turnover of `30–35 billion. Divya Varma and Amrita Sharma highlight the working and living conditions of Odiya migrants in the power loom sector of Surat. They also attempt to outline a few policy recommendations that can potentially bring about a change in the socio-­economic status of this vast invisible population. Assam was considered one of the most backward states in India (Rajan, 2013). Rikil Chyrmang examines the socio-economic characteristics between the native and non-native settlers in Assam and analyses the extent of their economic inequality. The study is based on survey data collected through interviews with a structured questionnaire that consisted of 300 households of the 784 households in two villages, with 150 households each from Kathalguri in the Udalguri district and Kharupetia in the Darrang district. The distribution of household resources for the natives and non-natives shows a significant difference within the ‘poorest’ and ‘richest’ quintiles as regards to the monthly per capita expenditure (MPCE) on food and non-food items, education and health care, per capita

Migrant Odysseys

saving and investment and land possession. The non-­ natives’ Gini index of MPCE for food, non-food, food and non-food combined, investment and land possession shows less inequality than the natives. Helga Thomas and Govindappa Lakshmana explore the needs of the migrant workers in the brick-kiln industry of Odisha through qualitative research. The needs discussed were concerning living conditions, psychological, social, healthcare and work aspects of the migrants.

Migration Policy Meera Sethi and Debolina Kundu argue that international migration has been the subject of far more research and writing, attracting more political and media attention in public discourse, than internal migration. There has been little recognition in the recent policy debate on international migration about the significance of internal migration even though in many countries internal migration is far more important not only in terms of numbers but given its impact on shifting demographics and reduction of poverty. The case of India is significant, being the only country in South Asia that has a distinct legislation on internal migration to protect its interstate migrant workers (Srivastava & Pandey, 2017). Drawing on the provisional 2011 Census data, which provides new evidence on the magnitude and most recent mobility trends, the authors argue that despite laws and varied schemes to protect rights of migrant workers, they suffer from lack of implementation and limited impact. Moreover, there is no comprehensive migration policy till date. The authors call for an integrated rights-based policy approach as India embarks upon the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which for the first time includes references to mobility and offers an overarching framework for mainstreaming migration into national development policies. In keeping with the SDG spirit of ‘leaving no one behind’, the

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chapter recommends that India could draw immense benefits if it was to integrate internal and international population movements within a single mobility framework. One of the abiding characteristics of post1991 India has been the ready availability of cheap and (largely) informal labour. This informal labour force built the urban infrastructure that powers India’s economy. Its members worked in abysmal conditions for less than the minimum wage—to keep domestic industries competitive and investment-friendly—as well as provided flexible and cheap services that preserved the position of the urban affluent class. In the absence of a migrant labour workforce, the Indian economy would come to a standstill (Rajappa, 2017). Interstate migration is a key income generating strategy for low-­ income households in India. It also allows for the allocation of labour to higher productive parts of the economy. But, despite the prevalence and importance of migration between states in India, migrants continue to face significant barriers in their destination states. The impact of state borders is significant on migration levels within India. This study attempts to compare the major destination states of India based on their policy frameworks relevant for the integration of out-of-state migrants. Using a variation of the Migrant Integration Policy Index (MIPEX), we measure state-level policies to integrate migrants using a large basket of indicators. The exercise allows for the evaluation and comparison of which state governments are promoting policies for integration of migrants in Kerala, Maharashtra and Delhi. Nabeela Ahmed compares the experiences of internal migrants engaged in low and unskilled labour with their local non-migrant counterparts in urban India to explore patterns and structures of access to the state’s social protection. While Indians are constitutionally permitted to work anywhere within the country, migrants face a range of barriers in accessing the state’s social protection, in terms of policy and implementation. Using the example of the public distribution system—a universal

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food subsidy scheme and India’s largest social protection programme—this chapter offers insights into the role of governance in impacting how social protection access is experienced by diverse types of labour migrants, compared with local labourers living in the same city. The chapter presents evidence gathered through qualitative methods and a survey conducted in the fast-growing metropolitan city of Nashik in western Maharashtra. The empirical findings show that both migrants and local labourers face a range of significant barriers to access, though to varying degrees. While a strong dichotomy between their experiences is not observed, their diverse experiences can be represented as a ‘spectrum’ of vulnerabilities, where local labourers face relatively fewer barriers and migrants—varied in terms of spatial and temporal factors—face distinctly intense barriers. The findings also highlight the role of dissonances within government policy at the central and state levels, regarding migration, development and social protection in further shaping the experiences of precariousness among labour migrants. Though rural-to-urban mobility transition has been largely viewed to be necessary and an inevitable part of a country’s development trajectory (Todaro, 1969), there is growing recognition today that migration can also have undesired effects, especially for poor migrant households who live and work on the geographic, economic, social and political periphery of cities (Betancourt, Shaahinfar, Kellner, Dhavan & Williams, 2013; Desai, Soni, Vaid & Mevada, 2014). Such forms of marginalization expose migrant households to various forms of vulnerabilities with multiple and complex implications. These are accentuated by the absence of migrant-friendly policy frameworks that further alienate households from basic access to services such as healthcare and education among others (Borhade, 2011; Deshingkar, 2006). Divya Ravindranath specifically focuses on migrant women engaged in the construction sector in the city of Ahmedabad, looking at the health

and nutritional well-being of migrant women and children. This chapter is part of a larger ethnographic study that looked at the health and nutritional well-being of migrant women and children. Rajan (2013) claims that three out of ten Indians are moving across the state for livelihood, which is more than 400 million people. This movement has impacted as population shift, a rural–urban developmental divide and an unequal modes of development in the southern and northern parts of India. A recent trend is the shifting of the labour force from rural areas of the northern states into the comparatively more developed parts of the southern state of Kerala. Kerala itself is noted for high out-migration overseas to the Gulf and other developed nations, as well as for high education and skill levels and reluctance among youth to take up non-white collar work. This leaves gaps in the state in unskilled and manual labouring sectors and in the unorganized economy. Internal migrants from north India are filling these gaps and Kerala is becoming the ‘new Gulf of India’, with a population of 3–4 million interstate migrant workers. Ansari P. A. and Caroline Osella explore these changing trends through interviews, with a focus on the attitude and perception of government stakeholders and migrant workers in the state. The chapter contributes new understandings to public debates about migration and emphasizes the need for shifts in roles and attitudes among government stakeholders and internal migrants. Vicky Nadgaye’s chapter is based on primary data gathered in Mumbai city and its suburbs related to life and health conditions of migrant construction workers, comparing with the existing labour policy provisions, such as wages, healthcare and social security, meant for such workers. Understanding the trends and patterns of interstate migration justifies the role of migration in shaping the compositional features of population in various states. S. Irudaya Rajan and U. S. Mishra argue for the need for

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recognition of migration flows within the calculus of assigning population-based weights in determining federal transfer of resources. Who loses and who gains will perhaps be conditioned by migration that will shape the size and composition of the population in future.

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Deshingkar, P. & Farrington, J. (2009). Circular migration and multi-locational livelihood strategies in rural India. New Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. Deshingkar, P. & Grimm, S. (2005). Internal migration and development: A global perspective (Vol. 19, IOM, Migration Research Series). Overseas Development Institute. Retrieved from http://www.odi. org.uk/publications/briefing/bp_internal_migration_oct06.pdf Deshingkar, P., & Akter, S. (2009). ‘Migration and Human Development in India’. Human Development Research Paper 2009/13, April. Ellis, F. (1998). Household strategies and rural Livelihood diversification. The Journal of Development Studies, 35(1), 1–38. Retrieved from https://doi. org/10.1080/00220389808422553 Eric, D. & Marie, Z. (Eds.). (2017). Subaltern urbanization in India: An introduction to the dynamics of ordinary towns, exploring urban changes in South Asia. New Delhi, India: Springer India. Ericson, R. V. & Haggerty, K. D. (Eds.). (2006). The new politics of surveillance and visibility. Toronto, Canada: University of Toronto Press. Gallo, S. & Hornberger, N. H. (2017). Immigration policy as family language policy: Mexican immigrant children and families in search of biliteracy. International Journal of Bilingualism. Retrieved from https://doi. org/10.1177/1367006916684908 Gandhi, F. (2018, July 25). India needs Smart urbanization. Retrieved from www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/ india-needs smart-urbanisation/article24506037.ece. Retrieved 16 November 2018. Gartaula, H. N., Niehof, A., & Visser, L. (2011). Socio-­ cultural dispositions and wellbeing of the women left behind: A case study of migrant households in Nepal. Social indicator of Research, 108, 401–420. George, A. T. (2005). Good health at low cost: How good and how low? Economic and Political Weekly, 40(25), 2488–2491. George, A. & Rajan, S. I. (2015). Changing cities and changing lives: Development induced displacement in Kochi, Kerala. Cities, People, Places – International Journal on Urban Environments, 1(1), 1–18. Guerin, I. & Venkatasubramanian, G. (2009). Corridors of migration and chains of dependence: Brick-Kiln Moulders in Tamil Nadu. In J. Breman, I. Guerin & A. Prakash (Eds.), India’s unfree workforce: Of bondage old and new (pp. 170–198). New Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. Himanshu. (2011). Employment trends in India: A re-­ examination. Economic & Political Weekly 46(37), 43–59.

Himanshu, J. P. & Rodgers, G. (Eds.). (2016). The changing village in India: Insights from longitudinal research (p. 592). New Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. Indu, K. & Rajan, S. I. (2016). Contested urban landscapes: Development-induced displacement, involuntary resettlement and state violence in Kochi, Kerala. In S. I. Rajan (Ed.), India migration report 2016: Gulf migration (chapter 17, pp. 255–261). Routledge. Internal Migrants and Social Protection in India: The Missing Link. (2012). National workshop on internal migration and human development: Workshop compendium (Vol. 2, Workshop Papers, pp. 166–193). New Delhi, India: UNESCO and UNICEF. Jayaraj, D. (2013). Family migration in India. Economic & Political Weekly, 48(42), 45. Joseph, K. V. (2000). Migration from Kerala 1920–1960. Thiruvananthapuram, India: Centre for Development Studies. Joshi, Vijay, & Little, I. M. D. (1994). India: Macroeconomics and Political Economy, 1964–91. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. Kundu, A. & Gupta, S. (1996). Migration, urbanisation and regional inequality. Economic and Political Weekly, 31(52), 3391–3393, 3395–3398. Lerche, J. (2009). A global alliance against forced labour? Unfree labour, neoliberal globalisation and the ILO. In J. Breman, I. Guerin & A. Prakash (Eds.), India’s unfree workforce: Of bondage old and new (pp. 352–378). New Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. Lerche, J., Guérin, I., & Srivastava, R. (2012). Introduction, labour standards in India. Global Labour Journal, 3(1), 1–14. Mahanirban Calcutta Research Group. (2016). Cities, rural migrants and urban poor: Issues of violence and social justice. Kolkata, India: MCRG Group. Mahapatro, S. R. (2010). Patterns and determinants of female migration in India: Insights from census (Working Papers 246). Bangalore, India: Institute for Social and Economic Change. Massey, D. S., Arango, J., Hugo, G., Kouaouchi, A., Pellegrino, A., & Taylor, J. E. (1993). Theories of international migration: A review and appraisal. Population and Development Review, 19(3), 431–466. Mazumdar, I., Neetha, N., & Agnihotri, I. (2013). Migration and gender in India. Economic and Political Weekly, 48(10), 54–64. McDowell, C. & de Haan, A. (1997). Migration and sustainable livelihoods, a critical review of the literature (IDS Working Paper, No. 65). Brighton: IDS. Mehrotra, S. & Parida, J. K. (2017). Why is the labour force participation of women declining in India? World Development, 98, 360–380.

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Mehrotra, S., Parida, J., Sinha, S., & Gandhi, A. (2014). Explaining employment trends in the Indian economy: 1993–1994 to 2011–2012. Economic and Political Weekly, 49(32), 49–57. Ministry of Finance. (2017). Economic survey 2016–17. New Delhi, India: Government of India. Mitra, A. & Murayama, M. (2009). Rural to urban migration: A district‐level analysis for India. International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, 5(2), 35–52. Retrieved from https://doi. org/10.1108/17479894200900011 Moses, J. W. & Rajan, S. I. (2012). Labour migration and integration in Kerala. Journal of Labour & Development, 19(1), 1–18. Mosse, D., Gupta, S., Mehta, M., Shah, V., & Rees, J.; the KRIBP Team. (2002). Brokered livelihoods: Debt, labour migration and development in tribal Western India. In A. De Haan & B. Rogaly (Eds.), Labour mobility and rural society (pp. 59–88). London: Frank Cass Publishers. National Sample Survey Office. (2007–2008). Migration in India (Report No. 470). NSSO 64th Round, Government of India: Ministry of Programme Implementation. Neetha, N. (2004). Making of female breadwinners: Migration and social networking of women domestics in Delhi. Economic and Political Weekly, 39, 1681– 1688. Parida, J. K. (2015). Growth and prospects of non-farm employment in India: Reference from NSSO data. Journal of Industrial Statistics, 4(2), 154–168. Parida, J. K. & Madheswaran, S. (2011).  Determinants of migration and remittance in India: Empirical evidence. The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, 54(3), 561–578. Premi, M. K. (1980). Aspects of female migration in India. Economic and Political Weekly, 15(15), 714–720. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/4368564 Rajan, S. I. (Ed.). (2011). India migration report 2011: Migration, identity and conflict. New Delhi, India: Routledge. Rajan, S. I. (2013a). Internal migration and youth in India: Main features, trends and emerging challenges (Discussion Paper). New Delhi, India: UNESCO. Rajan, S. I. (Ed.). (2013b). India migration report 2013: Social costs of migration. New Delhi, India: Routledge. Rajan, S. I. (2016a). The changing faces of Indian migration: Introduction. In S. I. Rajan (Ed.), India migrations reader (pp. 1–15). New Delhi, India: Routledge. Rajan, S. I. (Ed.). (2016b). India migrations reader. New Delhi, India: Routledge.

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Rajan, S. I. (Ed.). (2018). India migration report 2017: Forced migration. New Delhi, India: Routledge. Rajan, S. I. & Chyrmang, R. (2016). Labour migration in the North East. In D. K. Mishra (Ed.), Internal migration in contemporary India (chapter 5, pp. 96–153). New Delhi, India: SAGE Publications. Rajan, S. I. & Mishra, U. S. (2011). Facets of Indian mobility: An update. In S. I. Rajan (Ed.), Migration, identity and conflict: India migration report 2011 (chapter 1, pp. 1–6). New Delhi, India: Routledge. Rajan, S. I., Korra, V., & Chyrmang, R. (2011). Politics of conflict and migration. In S. I. Rajan (Ed.), Migration, identity and conflict: India migration report 2011 (chapter 6, pp. 95–101). New Delhi, India: Routledge. ———. (2016a). Internal migration in India: Dealing with the political and administrative organization. In F. Padovani & M. M. Cernea (Eds.), Development-­ induced displacement in India and china: A comparative look at the burdens of growth (chapter 4, pp. 65–88). USA: Lexington Books. ———. (2016b). Politics of conflict and migration. In S. I. Rajan (Ed.), India migrations reader (chapter 8, pp. 141–147). New Delhi, India: Routledge. Rajan, S. I., Sami, B. D., & Raj, S. A. (2017). Tamil Nadu migration survey 2015. Economic and Political Weekly, 52(21), 85–94. Rajan, S. I. & Sivakumar, P. (Eds.). (2018). Youth migration in emerging India. New Delhi, India: Orient Blackswan. Rajan, S. I. & Sumeetha, M. (2015). Survival, struggle and the promise of a new future: Living and working conditions of migrant workers in Kerala. In S. I. Rajan (Ed.), India migration report 2015: Gender and migration (chapter 16, pp. 240–255). New Delhi, India: Routledge. Rajappa, A. (2017, 18 December). 1 in 3 Indians is a migrant, yet why are their stories conveniently ignored? Retrieved September 12, 2018, from https:// yourstory.com/2017/12/internal-migrantsindia/ Rao, N. & Mitra, A. (2013). Migration, representations and social relations: Experiences of Jharkhand labour to Western Uttar Pradesh migration. The Journal of Development Studies, 49(6), 37–41. Registrar General. (2011). Census of India, primary census abstract data highlights—India, executive summary. Delhi: Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner. Rodgers, G., Datta, A., Rodgers, J., Mishra, S. K., & Sharma, A. N. (2013). The challenge of inclusive development in rural Bihar. New Delhi, India: IHD and Manak Publications.

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Rogaly, Ben Jhuma Biswas, Coppard, D., Rafique, A., Rana, K., & Sengupta, A. (2001). Seasonal migration, social change and migrants’ rights: Lessons from West Bengal. Economic and Political Weekly, 36(49), 4547–4559. Roy, I. (2016, January 8). Labour migration from (and in) Bihar continuities and change (IGC Working Paper). University of Oxford. Sardamoni, K. (1995). Crisis in the fishing industry and women’s migration: The case of Kerala. In L. S. Sandbergen (Ed.), Women and seasonal labour migration. New Delhi, India: SAGE Publications. Schenk-Sandbergen, L. (2018). De-feminisation of agricultural wage labour in Jalpaiguri, West Bengal. Economic and Political Weekly, 53(25), 46–53. Shah, A. (2006). The labour of love: Seasonal migration from Jharkhand to the brick-kilns of other states in India. Contributions to Indian Sociology, 40(1), 91–118. Shanthi, K. (2006). Female labour migration in India: Insights from NSSO Data. Working Paper No.4. Madras School of Economics, Chennai. Singh, J. P. (1986). Patterns of rural-urban migration in India. New Delhi, India: Inter-India Publications. Srivastava, R. (1998). Migration and labour market in India. Indian Journal of Labour Economics, 41(4), 583–616. ———. (2011). Internal migration in India: An overview of its features, trends and policy challenges. Paper presented at UNESCO-UNICEF National Workshop on Internal Migration and Human Development in India, 6–7 December 2011, ICSSR, New Delhi. Srivastava, R. & Battacharya, S. (2003). Globalisation, reforms and internal labour mobility, an analysis of recent Indian trends. Labour and Development, 9(2), 31–55. Srivastava, R. & Pandey, A. (2017). Internal and international migration in South Asia: Drives, interlinkages

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PART II

Macro Perspectives

2 Employment, Urbanization and Education: Migration’s Mega-Challenges Santosh Mehrotra

India’s demographic dividend cannot be realized if young entrants to the labour force and potential migrants from agriculture do not gain new livelihoods. Structural transformation requires that people migrate from labour surplus sectors (e.g. agriculture) to sectors where output/demand is growing faster (industry and modern services) and from regions with total fertility rates (TFRs) higher than 2.1 to other regions where the TFRs are less than 2.1. That is exactly what has been happening in India, but data suggests that this process was relatively slow until 2004–2005. Structural transformation gathered momentum after 2004–2005 as the gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate sharply picked up. This hastening of the structural transformation brings with it three mega-challenges for policymakers: the migration of erstwhile agricultural workers on a vast scale seeking non-agricultural work, growing urbanization and the need to ensure better education and vocational training for increasing entrants into the labour force (as the demographic structure

by age turns more cylindrical than pyramidical). India’s planners will need to manage these three processes much better than ever before over the next two decades, as India’s demographic dividend draws to a close by 2040. We will discuss each of these challenges in turn in this short chapter.

MIGRATION: ITS SCALE, SECTORAL DISTRIBUTION AND GEOGRAPHY Lewis (1954) posited a two-sector model, the ‘capitalist’ and the ‘subsistence’, in which the transition of ‘unlimited supplies of labour’ from the latter to the former would lead to the final absorption of excess labour into the capitalist (read the industrial and services) sectors during economic development. Migration was inevitable. However, in India, this structural transformation has been so slow (and population growth fast) in the first half-century of its development that while the share of

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agriculture in the total workforce was falling, the absolute number of workers in agriculture was increasing—until 2004–2005. Never in India’s post-independence history till 2004– 2005 has the absolute number of workers in agriculture fallen; the Lewisian turning point took over a half-century to arrive. The share of workers in agriculture fell to 57 per cent by 2004–2005. However, since then, it fell so sharply, as non-agricultural output and employment growth picked up, that the share of agriculture in employment fell to 49 per cent in seven years by 2011–2012, and the absolute number of agricultural workers fell on average by 5 million per annum over the same period (Mehrotra, Parida, Gandhi & Sinha, 2014). During 2004–2005 and 2011–2012, non-agricultural job growth was as high as 7.5 million per annum. At the same time, the number of young entrants into the labour force was only about 2 million per annum. The remaining 5 million plus workers were migrants from agriculture and were mostly absorbed in construction activity, which was booming as both public and private infrastructure and private real estate investment grew at unprecedented rates (Chand, 2018; Mehrotra, 2018a). As these workers were mostly poorly educated, they could only be absorbed in manual work in construction (or in traditional services) in rural or urban areas. Meanwhile, after 2004–2005, the youth were getting much better educated than ever before in India’s history, and therefore, the rise in the labour force of these youth remained limited. While 12 million annually joined the labour force during 1999–2000 to 2004–2005, that number fell sharply to merely 2 million per annum over the next seven years, because secondary school enrolment jumped from 58 per cent in 2010 to over 80 per cent in 2016 (Mehrotra, 2018a). The youth are potential entrants to the labour force; however, they would prefer urban jobs in industry and services to agricultural jobs. However, for that to happen,

non-agricultural jobs must grow fast enough to absorb these youth as well as the older marginal farmers and rural landless—all of whom need non-agricultural jobs.

The Scale and Geography Net migrant flows at the all-India level averaged close to 9 million annually (between 2011–2012 and 2016–2017), peaking around 2013–2014, considerably above levels suggested by the census (of 6.9 million in 2011, see Table in Ministry of Finance, Economic Survey, 2017). The largest recipient was the Delhi region which accounted for more than half of the migration in 2015–2016, while Uttar Pradesh (UP) and Bihar taken together accounted for half of total out-migrants. This is consistent with our finding that of the 5 million leaving agriculture per annum, there were 3.5 million from UP and Bihar alone (Mehrotra, 2018a). Maharashtra, Goa and Tamil Nadu had major net in-migration, while Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh had major net out-migration. States such as Delhi, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat were recipients of migrants from UP, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh. Kolkata in West Bengal attracts migrants from nearby states of Jharkhand, UP and Odisha consistent with the laws of migration whereby people immediately surrounding a rapidly growing town move into it and the gaps they leave are filled by migrants from more distant areas. Thus, Surat (in Gujarat) has been a counter-­magnet region to Mumbai and attracts migrants from the neighbouring districts of Maharashtra. Other counter-magnet region dynamics exist in Jaipur and Chandigarh (to Delhi). The report by the Working Group on Migration (GoI, 2017) identified 54 districts with a high level of interstate out-migration intensity. These districts account for half the male interstate out-migration in the country.

Employment, Urbanization and Education

Of these, 36 districts are concentrated in eastern UP and Bihar, with certain districts in other states like Nadia and Midnapore (West Bengal), Ganjam (Odisha), Gulbarga (Karnataka), Jalgaon (Maharashtra) and Pali (Rajasthan) and a few in western UP (Working Group on Migration, 2017). Over the course of time, there has been a shift towards the southern states, suggesting the emergence of new migration corridors. So, language is not a barrier to the migration of people. The Economic Survey (2017) predicted an increasing rate of growth of migrants over the years. Internal migration has been rising over time, nearly doubling in the 2000s relative to the 1990s. This suggests that the rewards (prospective income and employment opportunities, a la Harris–Todaro model, 1970) have become greater than the costs and risks that migration entails. Higher growth has triggered this acceleration of migration. This acceleration has not been discouraged by disincentives such as domicile provisions for working in different states, lack of portability of benefits, legal and other entitlements upon relocation.

THE EMPLOYMENT CHALLENGE The job challenge created by migration will be monumental in scope. After a dramatic fall in the entrants into the labour force from 2004–2005 to 2011–2012 due to the increase in educational enrolment, there should have been a sharp rise in the entrants to the labour force, post-2012 to at least 5 million per annum. However, that did not happen as job growth fell sharply. I have noted elsewhere (Mehrotra, 2018a) that the number of entrants merely increased to 2.5 million per annum between 2011–2012 and 2015–2016, primarily because non-agricultural job growth itself fell. Also, while 5 million agricultural labourers per annum left agriculture between 2004–2005 and 2011–2012, that number fell

35

to merely 1 million per annum, thereafter, as construction jobs collapsed. Just as the youth were getting better educated, non-agricultural job growth collapsing had the effect of stalling the structural transformation process. While the number of youth (aged 15–29 years) leaving agriculture was at a rate of 4 million per annum from 2004–2005 to 2011–2012, the number of youth in agriculture fell only by about 3.5 million per annum from 2011–2012 to 2017–2018, a sharp slowing of the process of structural transformation (Mehrotra, 2018a). In manufacturing, in urban areas, 38 per cent of the male workforce is composed of migrant workers, with a similar share in modern services (Working Group on Migration, 2017). However, one difficulty is that historically, less than 5 per cent of India’s workforce has acquired vocational skills formally. With low levels of general academic education of the workforce (see the section ‘The Education Challenge’), the extremely low share of the workforce with any formally acquired vocational skills is a mega-challenge if the manufacturing share of GDP is to rise above 17 per cent, where it is stuck for the past quarter century (since 1991). In contrast, with the stereotype of migrants being largely in low-income occupations such as street vending, they are employed across all sectors and are essential for manufacturing growth (Working Group on Migration, 2017). It is also an important contributory factor underlying the very high share of informality among the workforce. Although the census does not capture short-term flows, there is a high likelihood that because of the sharp increase in construction (especially in urban areas) work-­related migration is turning more short term. ‘If indeed work-related migration is becoming more short-term, given the growing number of urban centres and their increased accessibility, it could also be just the nature of migration that is changing—and becoming blurred with

36

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Table 2.1  Occupational Structure of Short- and Long-term Male Migrants Rural Origin

Urban Origin

Short term (%)

Long term (%)

Short term (%)

Long term (%)

Primary

24.9

59.5

13.2

14.7

Manufacturing

16.8

13.1

26.0

19.9

Construction

41.6

5.3

25.2

5.3

Traditional services

13.0

11.3

23.0

25.0

3.7

10.7

12.6

Others Total

100

100

100

35.1 100

Source: Working Group on Migration (2017).

commuting—and not the extent of migration’ (Working Group on Migration, 2017). Though the proportion of short-term migrants is much lower than long-term migrants, they are definitely drawn from the lower consumption quintiles. Most short-term migrants are of rural origins and males. Of the estimated 13.6 million short-term migrants from the National Sample Survey Organization round of 2007–2008, 12.6 million were of rural origins, of which only 1.9 million were female. There is a certain concentration of migrants in specific sectors that is noticeable in Table 2.1. Moreover, in construction, the concentration of Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Scheduled Caste (SC) categories is rather high. The SCs tend to be landless, poorer and with the least education. Hence, it is not surprising that they are found to engage in manual work in construction.

THE URBANIZATION CHALLENGE This migration has been, and will be to a greater extent than before, accompanied by faster urbanization in India. Asia is going through a historic demographic transformation

from being a rural society to an urban society that is far larger than any transformation seen in the past, in any part of the globe (Asian Development Bank [ADB], 2011). By 2025, the majority of Asia’s population will be urban. By 2050, there will be approximately 3.2 billion urban inhabitants in Asia which will double the current Asian urban population of 1.6 billion people. India’s urban population is expected to grow from 410 million in 2014 to 814 million by 2050.1 Rapidly growing cities, increasing slum populations, disputed land tenure and corrupt officials combined with high open unemployment among educated youth and underemployment among less educated adults can lead to violent social conflict. Latin America’s wave of urbanization was roughly 65 years ahead of Asia’s (ADB, 2011). Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Venezuela were unable to manage the rapid growth of illegal and unserviced settlements and failed to provide adequate services. Slums and urban peripheries can become the hub of drug trafficking. In many cases, urban gangs filled a gap left by weak local governments. Delayed action to improve living conditions of the poor in Asian cities could lead to Latin American-style

India, China and Nigeria—will account for 37 per cent of the projected growth of the world’s urban population between 2014 and 2050. India will add 404 million urban dwellers, China will add 292 million and Nigeria will add 212 million (UN DESA, 2014). By 2025, 46 per cent Indians will live in cities with more than 1 million people. By 2030, cities with populations of more than 1 million will grow from 42 to 68 (McKinsey, 2010). Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad with currently 5 to 10 million inhabitants are projected to become megacities in the coming years, for a total of seven megacities projected in the country by 2030 (UN DESA, 2014).

1

Employment, Urbanization and Education

development—characterized by great inequalities. The difference in the Indian case is that the total population involved will be much larger, given that India is slated to become the world’s most populous country and also already has a much higher density of population. This combination can be explosive. Already, poor services and squalor are ubiquitous in Indian cities today. More than half the world’s slum population currently resides in Asia—some 490 million people in 2005, according to UN Habitat. Poor power supplies, intermittent water availability, insufficient treatment of wastewater, flooding due to poor drainage and uncollected garbage, combined with poor sanitation in low-income areas, lead to poor health conditions. What is most unfortunate is that contrary to successful cities in the world, India has been locking itself into more dispersed patterns of urbanization. Compact, higher density cities like Singapore, London, Seoul and Tokyo encourage a high percentage of walking and public transport trips and have lower per capita CO2 emissions than lower density cities (ADB, 2011). However, urban densities in Asia are decreasing while the growth in car ownership is increasing so fast that carbon emissions could increase by 2.5 times over current levels in China and by four times in India by 2035 (ADB, 2011). Public transport is experiencing a significant loss of transport mode share. Lower densities are leading to sprawl which is leading to higher rates of motorization, leading to more sprawl in a vicious cycle. High-density cities are less expensive on a per capita basis than low-density cities (witness Tokyo, Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Berlin, Paris, London, San Francisco and New York). ‘While a few cities have adopted a formal vision for a sustainable future, most cities in Asia are moving in the wrong direction. They face the danger of being locked into an irreversible, high cost, high energy land use and infrastructure pattern’ (ADB, 2011). Clearly, the country needs a far more sophisticated planning framework, to imagine and

37

implement a new urban vision to ensure that India prepares to receive migrants in its burgeoning cities. However, this too would require a reinstatement of a much more powerful planning commission for India—and vastly more competent than the National Institution for Transforming India—and institutions that can undertake urban planning in each state. Urban planning on a national scale is essential because the challenge of generating decent work for rural migrants and for the growing and more educated workforce cannot be met by megacities. India’s urbanization challenge is made clear by comparing it with China’s urbanization pattern. Only 27 per cent of India’s urban population lives in tier 2 cities (the ones with populations between 0.5 million and 4 million), while only 28 per cent of the urban population is found in small (0.5–1 million) and medium (1–4 million) cities. Comparatively, almost 50 per cent of urban citizens in China live in tier 2 cities (1–4 million) (Mckinsey Global Institute, 2014). While most new industrial and service sector jobs will be created in urban locations, it will be expensive to accommodate such jobs in the megacities. Rather, what governments, both union and state, will have to focus on is infrastructure for tier 2 cities because it will be much too expensive to invest in the 193 tiny towns with populations below half a million, but at present, these tiny towns are home to half of India’s urban residents (as against a quarter of China’s urban residents). In other words, the missing middle in respect of urban India will need to be filled to attract the migrant population to tier 2 cities.

THE EDUCATION CHALLENGE Major rural-to-urban migration went hand in hand with the economic growth of the 19th to mid-20th centuries in today’s high-income countries. As high-income countries transition to urbanized, ageing societies, these

38

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

movements have subsided (Champion, Cooke & Shuttleworth, 2017). Today, the largest internal population movement occurs in lowand middle-income countries, particularly in China and India. In 2016, about 77 million Chinese migrant workers moved to find work in another province and 93 million moved within their province (UNESCO, 2018). In India, interstate migration rates doubled between 2001 and 2011. The education level of India’s workforce is extremely poor (Mehrotra, 2018a). When male migrants move, they leave behind their children who go to school. If families migrate together, children must then enrol in schools in urban locales. If the state and union governments were serious about the well-being of migrants and the quality and productivity of enterprises employing these migrants, there would have been concentrated efforts to skill these workers at both source and destination. However, there is no evidence that India’s fragmented skills ecosystem is prepared to deliver on this urgent requirement (Mehrotra, 2014, 2018b; Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, 2016). In India, 10.7 million children between 6 and 14 years of age lived in rural households with a seasonal migrant in 2013. About 28 per cent of youth aged 15–19 years in these households were illiterate or had not completed primary school, compared with 18 per cent of the cohort overall (Chandrasekhar & Bhattacharya, 2018). We noted above that the construction sector absorbs majority of shortterm migrants. Between 65 per cent and 80 per cent of all children aged 5–14 years living at the kilns worked there from 7–9 hours per day. About 77 per cent of kiln workers lack access to early childhood or primary education for their children (Anti-Slavery International and Volunteers for Social Justice, 2017). Under the Right to Education Act, 2009, local authorities are legally obliged to admit migrant children. It recommends to allow flexible admission, develop seasonal hostels,

provide transport and mobile education volunteers and improve coordination between sending and receiving from states and districts (Chandrasekhar & Bhattacharya, 2018). However, implementation challenges remain. Vocation education and training (VET) can also help the poor and disadvantaged, and those who have dropped out of school and thus promote inclusion and equity. The percentage of secondary students enrolled in VET programmes in Asia (13%) is low relative compared with Europe (24%) and particularly low in South Asia (Lee & Mehrotra, 2017). Children will need to be diverted to vocational schooling/training between the age of 15 and 18 years, instead of allowing them into an aimless general academic tertiary education, where too rapid massification from 2006 to 2016 has already resulted in a dramatic decline in the quality of education.

CONCLUDING REMARKS Clearly, without a visionary planning framework that deals with each of these mega-­ challenges—employment, urbanization and education/skills—that increasing growth in internal migration will entail, India risks experiencing growing social conflicts. The increase in social conflict has already been evidenced: the agitation by some caste groups for reservation in government jobs (the Patels in Gujarat, the Marathas in Maharashtra, the Jats in Haryana and the Kapus in Andhra Pradesh) is only the tip of the iceberg. India’s migration rate has already increased and will continue to increase. The three mega-challenges will be hard enough to handle even with a synergy among employment policies, sophisticated urban planning on a national scale and a far greater focus on diverting youth towards occupational trades where labour market demand is growing. Absent this synergetic effort, India’s demographic dividend could become a nightmare.

Employment, Urbanization and Education

REFERENCES Anti-Slavery International and Volunteers for Social Justice. (2017). Slavery in India’s brick-kilns and the payment system: Way forward in the fight for fair wages, decent work and eradication of slavery. London: Anti-Slavery International/Volunteers for Social Justice. Asian Development Bank. (2011). Realizing the Asian century. Manila, Philippines: Asian Development Bank. Champion, T., Cooke, T., & Shuttleworth, I. (2017). Internal migration in the developed world: Are we becoming less mobile? New York, NY: Routledge. Chand, R. (2018). The changing structure of the rural economy (NITI Aayog Working Paper). New Delhi, India: National Institution for Transforming India, Government of India. Retrieved from https://niti.gov. in/writereaddata/files/document.../Rural_Economy_ DP_final.pdf Chandrasekhar, S. & Bhattacharya, L. (2018). Understanding the scope of the challenge, and moving towards a coherent policy framework for education for seasonal migrants at the state level in India (Background paper for Global Education Monitoring Report 2019). Paris: UNESCO. Harris, J. & Todaro, M. (1970). Migration, unemployment and development: A two-sector analysis. American Economic Review, 60(1), 126–142. Lee, J.-W. & Mehrotra, S. (2017). Human capital development in South Asia. Manila, Philippines: Asian Development Bank. Retrieved from https://www.adb.org/ sites/default/files/publication/385696/hcd-sa.pdf Lewis, W. A. (1954). Economic development with unlimited supplies of labour. The Manchester School, 22(2), 139–191. McKinsey Global Institute. (2014). From poverty to empowerment: India’s imperative for jobs, growth,

39

and effective basic services. New York, NY: McKinsey and Company. Mehrotra, S. (2014). India’s skills challenge: Reforming vocational education and training to harness the demographic dividend. Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. ———. (2018a). India’s labour market: A fallacy, two looming crises and an impending tragedy (State of Working India Working Paper). Bangalore, India: Azim Premji University. Retrieved from https://cse. azimpremjiuniversity.edu.in/.../2018/.../Mehrotra_ Labour_Market_Myth ———. (2018b). From the informal to the formal economy: Skills initiatives in India. In A. Sakamoto & J. Sung (Eds.), Skills and the future of work: Strategies for inclusive growth in Asia and the Pacific. Bangkok: International Labour Organization. Mehrotra, S., Parida, J., Gandhi, A., & Sinha, S. (2014). Explaining employment trends in India, 1993–2012. Economic and Political Weekly, 49(32), 49–57. Ministry of Finance. (2017). Economic Survey 2017 (Vol. 1). New Delhi, India: Government of India (Chapter 12, pp. 264–284: ‘India on the Move and Churning: New Evidence’). MSDE (Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship). (2016). Report on the committee for rationalization & optimisation of SSCs. Retrieved from msde. gov.in/report-ssc.html UNESCO. (2018). Global monitoring report. Migration, displacement and education: Building bridges, not walls. Paris,: UNESCO. United Nations. (2014). 2014 Revision of the World Urbanization Prospects. United Nations: Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Working Group on Migration. (2017). Report of the working group on migration. New Delhi, India: Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty, Government of India.

3 Rural Migrants with Urban Jobs Arup Mitra

INTRODUCTION A huge body of literature exists in the area of migration and urban poverty arguing that the disadvantaged (social) classes usually get uprooted from the rural areas and strive hard in an alien urban situation to access sources of livelihood. In this sense, urban poverty is a reflection of rural poverty (Dandekar & Rath, 1971; Singh & D'Souza, 1980). A deterioration in the land–man ratio in agriculture and the sluggish growth of the rural non-farm sector, on the one hand, and the rapid industrialization in the urban space or the lack of it with an expanding informal sector and the political support to low-income households, who are used as ‘vote banks’, on the other hand, explains the growth of slums in the process of urbanization. In an anonymous urban space, the caste factor is usually expected to get blurred and, hence, caste-based occupations which might have been pursued in the rural setup prior to migration may change significantly, implying availability of jobs in the urban labour market being independent of caste. Similarly, non-availability of jobs may

also cut across castes. But, in such a situation, what individuals from different caste backgrounds pursue is an important line of research. Do they then return to their caste-based activities in the urban setup in an attempt to earn a livelihood, or the residual (supply-push) absorption of labour becomes a completely random phenomenon, suggesting equal probability of locating individuals of every caste background in a given set of activities? From another angle, even within the informal sector, some of the activities may require certain specific types of skills or experiences, and thus, the concentration of certain castes in certain activities needs not be interpreted always as a phenomenon of social discrimination. The literature on caste and occupations is vast and varied (Kannapan, 1985). While one class of studies tends to suggest erosion of the caste base in the process of development both in rural and urban areas, the other line of research exemplifies the dominance of caste factor in every sphere. Thus, human capital formation, sources of livelihood and well-being may be expected to move along the caste lines. It is often argued that in India,

Rural Migrants with Urban Jobs

the underemployed and poor mostly belong to the lower castes—scheduled castes (SCs) and scheduled tribes (STs). Social seclusion is said to have led to economic deprivation. Hence, the essence of the government policy in an attempt to reduce poverty and rehabilitate the poor rested on the reservation policy since independence. Social integration was to be achieved through the availability of education and employment opportunities to people belonging to lower castes. The Mandal Commission (1990) reinforced this objective by including other backward classes (OBCs) as beneficiaries. However, even after pursuing the reservation policy for more than five decades, the percentage of population below and marginally above the poverty line is not negligible (Thorat, 1993). Is it not then unrealistic to assume that higher castes cannot be poor, and that economic upliftment can be attained purely on the basis of caste? The functioning of the rural labour market is largely castebased, but that is expected to get blurred in the context of an urban job market (Mitra, 2006). In other words, urbanization follows and results in commercialization, which in turn is likely to erode the influence of the caste factor in the job market, although the job seekers may access jobs in the urban labour market on the basis of caste and kinship bonds (Banerjee, 1986; Desai, 1984; Mitra, 2003). If the urbanization process is ‘generative’, urban areas are expected to offer employment opportunities to low-income households who migrate in search of jobs from the rural areas. Information, skill formation and experience then facilitate the process of upward income mobility. However, given the diverse nature of the city’s economic structure and variations in economic activities conducted across space, individual preferences for occupations— given their social and economic asset base and their urge to reside near the workplace—often accentuate the pressure on land and housing. Hence, slums and squatters are an inevitable 1

For details, see Mitra (1990, 1994).

41

part of the urbanization process. The sluggish growth of employment in the high-productivity sector and subsequently the residual absorption of labour in low-productivity urban informal sector activities with meagre earnings (in the face of escalating land and housing prices) are seen as the prime causes of urban poverty and slum dwelling.1 Even when rural-to-urban migration is not rapid, excess supply of labour relative to demand in the high-productivity sector may exist in urban areas because of a high natural growth of population and this can lead to the growth in informal sector activities and slums (Mitra, 1994). Since slum demolition is not the right solution either from the feasibility angle or from the point of view of human rights, the need for appropriate policy formulation to tackle these issues has become an integral part of urban planning and urban development. Some questions that are worth posing are: What is the scope for the informal sector workers to experience upward mobility, how do the poor cope with uncertainties they face in the labour market, and above all, what positive role does urbanization play in the process of development by helping rural migrants to improve their standard of living? There is a need to study issues that relate the micro responses to macroeconomic changes in explaining the growth of city-slums and highlight efforts made by their inhabitants to escape poverty. The interplay between indivisibilities, infrastructure and concentration of activities on the one hand and individual preferences for occupations and locations and individual endowments such as education, asset and networks or social capital, on the other hand, is crucial to the understanding of urban poverty and growth of urban slums. Instead of succumbing to their poor socio-­ economic conditions, the strategies and informal security mechanisms that the low-income households develop to cope with uncertainties and to experience upward income mobility are

42

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

significant not only for analytical purposes but also for policy formulation. All these enable one to perceive measures that attribute merit to individual responses and complement them in attaining individual goals. Without a profound understanding of their behaviour, mere discussions on growth or anti-poverty measures at the level of the aggregate economy are bound to be futile.

FACTORS INFLUENCING MIGRATION: SURVEY RESULTS Based on the survey data, we have tried to capture in a logit framework the factors which induce or discourage the probability to migrate to the urban areas. The survey was carried out in the slums of four cities (Jaipur, Ludhiana, Mathura and Ujjain) in India in the year 2006–2007 under the GoI–UNDP project.2 Though the caste composition of migrants of different durations and origins and the livelihood patterns of migrants castewise were looked into in the past (Shah, 2007), within the universe of the low-income households whether caste factor matters or all social categories are equally vulnerable is an under-researched question. After controlling for relevant variables, we try to assess whether caste still matters within the broad context of slums, which are largely characterized by low-­ income households. The dependent variable is migrants—those who moved into the city over a period of  ¦z¦

-

0.845

0.435

1.91

0.057*

Age

Continuous

0.793

0.981

3.95

0.000***

Religion

Category

0.001

0.023

−3.08

Caste

Dummy

−0.021

0.810

2.59

0.023**

Years of education

Continuous

0.132

0.975

5.04

0.002***

Reasons for migration

Category

0.073

0.036

3.06

0.042**

Positive use of network

Dummy

0.274

0.170

1.52

0.015**

0.071

Notes: ***, ** and * indicate significance at 1 per cent, 5 per cent and 10 per cent probability levels, respectively. 1. Number of observations = 300, LR chi2 = 64.33, Prob > chi2 = 0.0000. Log likelihood = −144.96194, Pseudo-R2 = 0.1726. 2. SE = standard error, Z = Z-statistics, z = probability of Z-statistics denotes the level of significance.

Table 27.8  Estimated Marginal Effects of the Explanatory Variables of the Probit Model of Skilled and Unskilled Migrants Variable

df/dx

*

Age

0.049

Religion

0.038

Caste

SE

Z

P > z

0.012

3.95

0.000

5.302

0.072

0.53

0.599

0.358

−0.023

1.924

−2.42

0.015

Years of education*

0.296

1.421

−3.09

0.002

Reasons for migration

0.00005

0.00003

1.74

0.083

Positive use of network

0.106

0.069

1.52

0.128

x-bar

9,879.84 20,588.7 587.75 0.546

Note: * df/dx is for discrete change of dummy variable from 0 to 1. SE = standard error, Z = Z-statistics and z = probability of Z-statistics denotes the level of significance.

the data. The sign and value of the coefficient of the independent variables show how these variables influence migration decision with respect to unskilled migrants. The independent variables included in the equation, such as age, education and use of network, are expected to induce potential migrants for migration. The estimates suggest that a migrant is more likely to be a skilled migrant if she belongs to the upper caste and Hindu. Increasing levels of education increase the probability of being a skilled migrant. The coefficient of the reason for migration is also positive and less than one. This implies that the likelihood of being an unskilled migrant is more if the migrant has migrated due to employment and work-­ related reasons. Finally, the results suggest

that the likelihood of using a network is less in the case of skilled migrants compared with unskilled migrants. Therefore, the aforementioned regression estimates clearly show that the probability of using the social network for unskilled migrants was more compared with skilled migrants (Table 27.8). Moreover, the probability of being an unskilled migrant increased if a randomly chosen person belonged to a lower caste and was non-Hindu. Besides, the higher educational level of the migrant increased the probability of becoming a skilled migrant. The aforementioned results support the findings of other studies that have shown a bigger role of networks in the case of unskilled migrants (Banerjee, 1983; Mitra, 2010).

Women’s Economic Migration

CONCLUSION The study analysed two unexplored dimensions of the women economic migration in India. In the first part, the study identified, by using secondary data, whether the phenomenon of so-called ‘feminization of migration’ is observed in India. The second part tried to identify the role of networks for women’s economic migration through data collected by the primary survey in Delhi. The results obtained from the first part showed that while more women migrated than men in the country did, most of the female migration was due to either marriage or with family-members as associational migrants. Therefore, India is yet to experience the phenomenon of ‘feminization of migration’. However, while the percentage of employment-­oriented female migration is still very low, the trend is increasing. Majority of the employment-related women migrants were from urban areas. An analysis of workforce participation of female migrants revealed that in the post-migration period, workforce participation of women migrants increased sharply. The share of women engaged in self-­employed and casual activities escalated considerably, and the proportion of women who were engaged in domestic duties before migration entered labour market after migration. The results presented in the second part suggest that networks played an important role in women’s economic migration for both skilled and unskilled migrants. The use of social network was higher for unskilled migrants compared with skilled migrants. Interestingly, at the time of the survey, it was observed that unskilled migrants changed their location to pursue further education at the destination and got absorbed in the labour market after finishing studies. A large number of skilled migrants joined employment after finishing studies. This is called the education route, which is prevalent in the case of skilled migrants. Second, in contrast to the skilled job market, the unskilled labour market was more

383

regulated with the help of social contacts or network channels, and hence, unskilled migrants generally got employment using a reference from their family members, relatives, friends or contractors. This is because information in the job market is asymmetric and informal in nature, and therefore, the absence of social networks creates a barrier to entry. Therefore, networks in the form of employment channel or chain migration exist more in the case of unskilled women migration. Third, the positive network helps in determining destination and workplace for women migrants. This is because migration itself involves the cost of settlement. For woman migrants, safety and security are also important factors of consideration while migrating. These issues are more prominent in the case of uneducated single women migrants. The above discussion finally suggests that people take the decision to migrate based on either direct or indirect influence of their education and skill levels as well as monetary conditions. Overall findings suggest that other than social networks, family support and community support are very important for taking migration decisions for women migrants. The overall social network plays an important role in the case of women economic migration for both skilled and unskilled women migrants. Education and skill levels are the main determinants of differential use of social networks by different groups of migrants.

REFERENCES Banerjee, B. (1983). Social networks in the migration process: Empirical evidence on chain migration in India. The Journal of Developing Areas, 17, 185–196. Bertrand, M., Luttrmer, E. F. P., & Mullainathan, S. (2000). Network effects and welfare cultures. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 115, 1019–1055. de Haan, A. & Rogaly, B. (2002). Labor mobility and rural society. London: Frank Cass. Department of Economic and Social Information and Policy Analysis, Internal Migration of Women in

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Developing Countries (1993). Proceedings of the ­ United Nations Expert Meeting on the Feminization of Internal Migration. New York, NY: United Nations. Gulati, L. (1997). Asian women in international labour migration with special reference to domestic work. Economic & Political Weekly, 32(47), 3029–3189. Gupta, M. R. (1993). Rural-urban migration, informal sector and development policies: A theoretical analysis. Journal of Development Economics, 41(1993), 137–151. Kasturi, L. (1990). Poverty migration and women’s status. In Vina Mazurndar (Ed), Women workers in India. Delhi: Chanakya Publications. Kaur, R. (2006). Migrating for work: Rewriting gender relations. In S. Arya & A. Roy (Eds.), Poverty, gender and migration. New Delhi, Thousand Oaks and London: SAGE Publications. Manski, C. F. (1993). Identification of endogenous social effects: The reflection problem. Review of Economic Studies, 60, 531–542. ———. (2000). Economic analysis of social interactions. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 14(3), 115–136. Massey, D. (1999). Why does immigration occur? A theoretical synthesis. In C. Hirschman, P. Kasinitz, & J. DeWind (Eds.), The handbook of international migration: The American experience. New York, NY: Russell Sage Foundation. Meher, R. (1994). The migrant female breadwinners— Women in the informal secondary sector of Rourkela, Orissa. Indian Journal of Labour Economics, 37(3), 449–464

Mitra, A. (2010). Migration, livelihood and well-being: Evidence from Indian city-slums. Urban Studies, 47(7), 1–20. Mukherjee, N. (2001). Migrant women from West Bengal. Ill-being and well-being. Economic & Political Weekly, XXXVI(2), 1681–1688. Neetha, N. (2004). Making of female breadwinners: Migration and social networking of women domestics in Delhi. Economic & Political Weekly, XXXIX(17), 24–30. Prakash, B. A., Ashokan, V., & Rajive, P. V. (2002). Inter-regional migration of educated labour to Delhi. In B. A. Prakash (Ed.), Kerala’s economic development: Issues and problems (pp. 119–133). New Delhi, India: SAGE Publications. Premi, M. K. (1990). India. In C. B. Nam, W. J. Serow, & D. F. Sly (Eds.), International handbook on internal migration. New York, NY: Greenwood Press. ———. (2001). Who migrates to Delhi? Demography India, 30(1), 49–59. Shanti, K. (1991). Issues relating to economic migration of females. The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, 34(4), 335–346. ———. (2006). Female labour migration in India: Insights from NSSO data (Working Paper No. 4). Retrieved from http://www.mse.ac.in Srivastava, R. S. & Sasikumar, S. K. (2003, June 22–24). An overview of migration in India, its impacts and key issues. Paper presented in Regional Conference on Migration, Development and Pro-Poor Policy Choices in Asia, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

28 Middle Class Women’s Migration Tina Dutta Annapurna Shaw

INTRODUCTION As India underwent economic liberalization and globalization, the visibility of middle class women in the emergent new economy jobs in Indian cities increased considerably (Basi, 2009). A simultaneous socio-cultural transition in Indian middle class families was also marked. The value of daughters’ education increased substantially among urban middle class families. Nowadays, employment of the daughter is also perceived as a status symbol (Ganguly-Scrase, 2003). Dual-earner middle class families, where both the spouses are working, are increasingly becoming a common sight in metro cities in India. However, a somewhat less acknowledged but significant dimension of this socio-cultural–economic

transition process of Indian middle class women has been their migration dynamics in the post-liberalization period. As a matter of fact, a majority of new economy jobs have come up in large urban centres (Shaw, 2012) and educational avenues have also widened in big cities. Hence, it is reasonable to imagine that women from middle class families would undertake migration to cities and metro cities to fulfil their economic and educational aspirations. A preliminary analysis of NSS 2007– 2008 data confirms a remarkable increase in middle class women’s1 job- and education-­ related migration to cities from 1983 to 2007– 2008. However, very little research has been directed to understand this relatively novel and economically viable migration trend of middle class women. Drawing on the qualitative data

Middle class women for the quantitative analysis were defined as women whose daily per capita expenditure was $2–$13 at 2007–2008 PPP. The authors used unit-level migration data of NSS 2007–2008 to carry out the analysis.

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on migration collected through the fieldwork in the city of Kolkata and using the theoretical lens of structuration theory, the present study has attempted to unravel the nuances of middle class women’s migration to Indian cities.

CONCEPTUALIZATION The theories and empirical studies on migration have been largely dominated by the neoclassical approach where an individual’s ‘agency’ and economic motive determine the migratory moves (Lewis, 1954; Ranis & Fei, 1961; Sjaastad, 1962; Todaro, 1969). However, these popular theories of migration fail to account for the role of socio-cultural factors, structures and institutions, apart from microeconomic factors, in mediating social behaviour. Hence, the neoclassical approach turns out to be insufficient in explaining female migration in developing countries (Wright, 1995). Structuralist theories, in contrast to neoclassical theories, deem migration to be an inescapable consequence of capitalist structure, and thus, refute the ability of an individual agency to maximize her/his returns from migration. With respect to gender, structuralist theories do not explain specific factors affecting the process of female migration, and hence, they fail to account for why women’s migration to South Africa was negligible at the time of capitalist expansion in the country and why it gradually picked up pace (Wright, 1995). Structuration theory as proposed by Anthony Giddens (1979, 1984) challenges the rigidity of structure and the dualism between structure and agency. The central idea of the structuration framework is that the social processes occur under the influence of various structures and human agency simultaneously. The agency mediates and arbitrates the structures, in its own capacity, to realize social outcomes. Following Giddens’ framework, middle class women’s contemporary migration is positioned amidst major structural

changes, such as economic reforms and globalization in the country, expansion of modern service sector, privatization and contractualization of jobs, revolutions in information and communication technologies (ICTs) and the changes in socio-cultural institutions of the middle class society. It is conceived that female migration takes place under these structural forces. Even under similar structural forces, the migration outcomes vary, that is, some women migrate and some do not. Giddens’ notion of agency can explain this variation. Broadly, agency relates to an individual’s capacity to perceive, arbitrate and manipulate the structural forces to one’s favour to achieve desired social outcomes. Thus, even under similar structural backdrops, different women may exercise their agency in their own capacity and may or may not materialize migration. Further, agency may draw upon various individual levels and family- or community-level factors. An educated woman might exercise her agency more emphatically than an uneducated woman might. However, an educated woman in a conservative family setting may not exert her agency as effectively as in a liberal family setting. Structures facilitate or constrain agency and agency in turn arbitrates structures and might alter structures in the long run. Following this ideology of Giddens’ structuration framework, and based on the field data on female migration, the present study has broadly two objectives: (i) to identify various structures and agency-­ related factors that are at play in the process of middle class women’s urban migration in contemporary post-liberalization India and (ii) to understand the aftermath or consequences of this migration, highlighting migrants’ issues and challenges at urban destinations.

RESEARCH DESIGN A multiple case study method (Yin, 2009) was adopted as a research strategy, where the units of analysis or the cases are middle class

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working female migrants, and the data is in the form of their life stories that are directly or indirectly related to their migration to the city and their post-migration life at the destination.

Data Collection and Identification of Respondents Data has been gathered in the form of semi-structured long interviews from female migrants working in white-collar jobs in the city of Kolkata through a field study carried out from December 2012 to March 2013. Migrants are identified as individuals residing in the city for a minimum of six months and having their last place of residence outside the metro core of the Kolkata Metropolitan Area.2 Occupational variation has been sought during the fieldwork to include women from low (but not poor) to high-income brackets. Close observation of the lifestyle of the women and self-declaration of their own economic status helped in identifying them as middle class. Respondents from different types of residential arrangements, that is, hostels, PG accommodation and rented flats were approached. The fieldwork started with a working women’s hostel chosen at random. One such working women’s hostel (hostel Asha) was identified in south Kolkata. The senior author spent considerable time with the hostellers to build rapport to gather research-related information. The information was collected through informal conversations and semi-structured open–ended face-to-face interviews. Migrants residing in PG accommodations or rented apartments were approached through the authors’ personal contacts. The contact information of some of the female migrants working in various service-sector jobs was obtained from the authors’ acquaintances. These female migrants are considered the primary contacts for the research. These

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contacts led to the authors obtaining the links to other working female migrants and they were considered as secondary contacts. The method resembles the snowball sampling method. However, in order to minimize bias in responses, a maximum of two secondary contacts were sought from one primary contact. Also, family members and relatives of the respondents were not been interviewed even though they qualified to be respondents for the study. The respondents were interviewed through face-to-face and telephonic interviews. The interviews were long and in-depth, carried out in multiple sittings. The final analysis of this research study is based on 25 detailed consolidated interviews. Out of these 25 interviews, 18 were collected through face-to-face conversations (informal chats and formal interviews) and seven through formal telephonic interviews.

Analytical Methods The analysis of qualitative data combines two methodological approaches as stated by Yin (2009, pp. 130–132), that is, relying on theoretical propositions and developing a case description. The former is to test and find evidence of the theoretical propositions set at the beginning of the study using the collected qualitative data. This approach is best suited to explain ‘how’ and ‘why’ certain social phenomena happen in the light of pre-established theoretical tenets. Based on the structuration theoretical framework, the present study attempted to collect evidence for our primary proposition: the process of middle class women’s migration to urban India after liberalization is a complex interplay between the structural changes in the contemporary economic, socio-cultural milieu and the mediating role of women’s agency. The aforementioned

The metro core of Kolkata is the twin city of Kolkata and Howrah with densely built surrounding areas spreading from Bally-Dakhineswar-Kamarhati to Andul-Garden Reach-Garia occupying about 34 per cent of the Kolkata metropolitan area (KMA) (http://jnnurmwestbengal.gov.in/HTM/CDP/Kolkata_CDP/ch-II.pdf).

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proposition can be simplified into the following sub-propositions: 1. The structures, as in the rules, resources, norms, values and culture, both facilitate and constrain middle class women’s migration. 2. Middle class women draw upon these structures but also exercise agency in their own capacities, in order to achieve desired outcomes, that is, their migration.

With the above propositions in mind, the primary purpose of this study was to utilize the field data to identify various forms of structures, structural influence and manifestations of agency in the process of migration of middle class women in contemporary urban India. The second methodological approach is about developing rich descriptions of the cases highlighting different aspects of the subject under study. It is useful in investigating exploratory research questions. In the present study, a comprehensive understanding of the migration process of urban middle class women cannot be achieved without getting deeper insights on these women’s post-migration life.

Information such as living and working in a new city, coping and adaptations and vulnerabilities and challenges has been collected through the current fieldwork. A descriptive presentation of the same has been done in the sixth section of the chapter. Owing to limited knowledge about the post-migration life of urban middle class women, the insights furnished in the study can be of great use for future policymaking.

BASIC PROFILE OF THE RESPONDENTS Female migrants from diverse service-­sector occupations were interviewed in the study. The industries or sectors and particulars of women’s professions are presented in Table 28.1. The research participants belong to the age group 17–40 years (median age 27 years). Variation in their educational profiles and incomes has also been maintained in the field data. The basic demographic profile of the respondents follows in Table 28.2.

Table 28.1  Types of Service-Sector Jobs Industry/Sectors

Particulars of Professions

Call centre

Customer representative

BPO

Technical support

Retail (shopping malls)

Customer representative

Software industry

Website developer, senior software engineer, SAP consultant

Telecommunications

Branch manager

Consultancy

VISA consultant

Beauty parlour

Beauticians

Media (print only)

Chief subeditor, senior copy editor

Education sector (teaching)

Part-time teacher, teaching assistant

Education sector (non-teaching)

Programme executive, programme associate

Nursing

Private nurse

Banking services

Officer, probationary officers

Social work (NGO)

Teacher, faculty trainer of trainers (TOT), senior project officer

Law

Legal advisor

Source: Summarized from the work done by the senior author.

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Table 28.2  Basic Demographic Profile of the Respondents Age profile (in years)

Minimum 17 years, maximum 40 years, median 27 years

Marital status

16 unmarried, 9 married (out of them, 4 had kids)

Place of birth

22 urban, 3 rural

Place of last residence

24 urban, 1 rural

Education profile

PhD/PhD pursuing/MPhil, 4 Masters/MBA, 10 Graduates/engineers, 6 Graduation pursuing, 2 12th grade passed, 1 10th grade passed, 2

Income/salary

`3,000 per month to more than `40,000 per month

Type of accommodation

Women’s hostel, 7 PG accommodations, 3 Rented room/flat (staying independently), 8 Rented/own flat (staying with husband), 7

Source: Summarized from the work done by the senior author.

UNDERSTANDING THE MIGRATION PROCESS: FIELD EVIDENCE

call centre in Kolkata was around `8,500 per month but she managed to draw `12,500 in her very first month with her zeal and hard work. She worked for two months and then left the Structures job, as she had to attempt her graduation first year exams. She was willing to join such call Macroeconomy: New Opportunities centre job again after her exams got over. for Women Priya (age 26 years), who currently works The strong role of macroeconomic structures as programme associate in an educational in determining middle class women’s labour institution at Kolkata, left her hometown migration emerges in the interview scripts. Kharagpur and started her career with BPO It becomes quite apparent that the post-­ jobs in Hyderabad and later in Kolkata. She liberalization proliferation of modern service-­ says that after coming to Kolkata, she regusector industries, such as BPOs and call larly visited the Salt Lake area where regular centres, MNCs, software, beauty and personal walk-in interviews for various BPOs were care and telecommunications, has played a conducted. After clearing one such interview, prominent role in employing educated middle she got into IBM as senior executive. class women in Indian metro cities. Macroeconomic recession also compels Ease of entry, ease of switching jobs, flex- even highly educated middle class women ible salary and the modern western working to go for BPO jobs to start a career. Many environments of BPOs and call centres tend perceive these jobs as a stepping-stone for a to attract many undergraduate and graduate future career. Raji, a postgraduate in bioinwomen who wish to start their career and formatics, got into a call centre job in order become self-dependent. to start her career in the time of recession For Sazia, an undergraduate student and a and no commensurate job placement at her former call centre employee, a job at the age college. Through college placements, she of 17 years was a great opportunity to earn got a job in a recognized US-based BPO extra money. Her fixed salary in a US-based company.

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I joined BPO1 as technical support. My salary was `12000 per month, including incentives it could reach up to 12500.... After one and a half years of job in BPO1, I joined BPO2. BPO2 was giving me more salary, more than double of my previous salary. I used to get between `25000–30000. My designation at BPO2 was senior technical support. Just after completion of my training over there, I appeared and qualified for the Probationary Officer exam of a Public Sector Unit (PSU) bank. I worked for 10 months in BPO2 and then joined the bank. I did not even forward my resignation to my boss. I just left my job [smiles]. (Raji, 27)

Although Raji currently has a public sector bank job, a much reputed and stable job, she misses the westernized working environment of her previous BPO job— My previous job was more fun. Team gathering used to be there. I worked in sales department and we used to get sales targets. If you fulfil the targets, there used to be parties every month … There I used to be engaged in work for a complete nine and a half hours. You need to attend calls, talk, do marketing, and find resolution and all. I liked doing that. I enjoyed working in pressure … I feel bored here. There is no pressure over here. Yes, my current job is more stable. It’s a permanent job. We get hikes in salary in every three months. That way it is good. (Raji, 27)

Macroeconomic restructuring, liberalization and globalization not only affected the information technology (IT) sector but also brought changes in other spheres of urban lifestyle. Ghosh (2011) points out that globalization redefined the meaning of fashion and body appearance in modern urban India, apart from its visible outcomes in the form of ‘mall culture’, ‘consumerism’ and IT boom. He notes, ‘Apart from imported dresses, today’s boys and girls also attach importance to body appearance by becoming regular customers of gyms or beauty parlours. Everybody seems to be more concerned now about his or her looks … it is not at all difficult to locate a gym, a beauty parlour or a health club in many semiurban localities of West Bengal’ (p. 169). The craze for beauty and fitness among youth in the metro cities can well be gauged through

the preponderance of beauty parlours and fitness centres, from branded to ordinary, in every corner in the cities. The popularization and phenomenal growth of this largely feminized sector of beauty and personal care has created demand for workers at various levels, from helpers to professionally qualified beauticians and hairdressers. During the field visit in Kolkata, many female migrants from the northeast regions of India, Nepal, Bhutan, and other districts of West Bengal were noticed. They worked as beauticians and helpers at many recognized beauty salons in the city. Many branded beauty and personal care salons/parlours, such as Jawed Habib, VLCC and Lakme, operate their academies and offer various beauty- and fitness-related short-term courses in metro cities and other urban centres. Neeta, a Gorkhali young woman from a well-to-do service family in Siliguri (West Bengal) quit her graduation studies in the final year to make a career in the beauty and personal care sector. Seeing an advertisement on nutrition training at VLCC—a recognized brand for beauty, health and fitness in India—she arrived in Kolkata. However, she ended up doing an eight-month course on hair and beauty that cost her `80,000 because of its greater demand and employability. Neeta recounts that post training, jobs were not readily available, but because of being a part of the professional network, one can find a job within a month or two. Unlike Neeta, Rinku came from a lower middle class family in Bhutan with no financial support from her father. Limited employment opportunities at Bhutan and ease of employment in the beauty care sector in India made her come to Kolkata. With her brother’s help, she managed to fund her six-month-long training on hair and beauty from Jawed Habib academy that cost her `65,000 and a three month course from VLCC academy that cost her `35,000. After my course in Jawed Habib, I went back home and stayed there for 2–3 months. Then I came back again and joined VLCC for training.

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But I could not complete that course as I got a job offer in AH Salon [a branded salon]. I joined AH Salon for `8000 per month. After one year my salary became `9000 per month. It is almost two years at AH now. My duration of stay in Kolkata will be around 3 years. (Rinku, 30)

uncertainty of employment, it has also made the entry to the labour force relatively easier.

A simultaneous expansion and informalization of many traditional feminized service sectors, such as education and nursing in the post-liberalization period, made the entry of women relatively easier in low- to medium-­ skilled jobs. Many organized units of educational centres and hospitals now hire a pool of employees on contract basis apart from their permanent staff. Priya and Nisha joined their respective educational institutions on contract basis as Programme Executive and Programme Associate, respectively, which basically involved the clerical work of database maintenance of students and associated responsibilities. Although the jobs are regular and salaried, the contracts terminate after a stipulated period, usually in two–three years and they need to reappear for an interview to get the same job. Priya says that such jobs were earlier done by permanent clerical staff who were on the payroll of the institute. Now, the institute employs contractual workers for these jobs and outsources the hiring process of the workers to some external agencies. These agencies act as an intermediary between the organization and the workers in matters of salary and terms of contract. The variation in the nature of these contractual jobs is, however, enormous. While Priya with a degree in commerce and Nisha with an MBA draw salaries between `20,000–25,000, Vandana, who had only passed the 10th grade and belonged to a lower middle class family, could earn only `3,000 per month by working as a ‘private nurse’ in a hospital in Kolkata. Vandana’s job was confirmed without any written contract about salary or tenure of her work. After joining the hospital, she received six months of training in care work from the hospital. While it is true that informalization of these jobs has increased volatility and

Family is the primary unit where an individual is exposed to structural factors, such as culture, religion, authority and division of labour, which enable or constrain individual behaviour. In India, as in most of south Asia, the traditional gendered division of labour in family bestows the primary responsibility of earning and outside work to husbands and adult sons and the duty of household chores and carework to wives and daughters (who would be future wives of someone) (Neetha, 2004). Thus, the household was the domain of women and the outside remained that of men. In this light, a job is seen as a necessity for men, not only to run a family but also to maintain authority in the family (Curtis, 1986). This smoothens men’s access to resources that are necessary to obtain a job, such as education, money and mobility. Inevitably, the migration of men is expected and mostly encouraged in a family. On the other hand, women’s traditionally assigned role of housework, reproduction and childcare, put them at a disadvantage in accessing family resources to secure jobs or build careers. As the mobility of women is culturally not celebrated in India (Basi, 2009), structural constraints in the way of women’s migration for a job, at the family level, are much higher than that for men. However, a family’s perception and practice of norms, values and beliefs determine its attitude towards women’s migration and employment. On women’s employment in India, Basi (2009) observes, ‘… the home can be constructed in three ways: as a site of oppression, a site for resistance and … a site for leisure’ (p. 135). In the field interviews, the role of family turned out to be very crucial for women’s employment and migration. Financial crisis at families sometimes leads to acceptance of

Family: Mediating between Community, Culture and Religion

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a daughter’s employment and mobility outside home. Vandana started working quite early because of monetary needs at home. She was the youngest unmarried daughter in the family with no brothers. When she got a job as a private nurse at a hospital in Kolkata, her father took her to the city from a village in the Barasat district of West Bengal and helped her to settle down. Her family had no objection with regard to her job or her staying alone outside home as economic necessity outweighed the socio-cultural norms that restrict or discourage women’s mobility. However, even economically disadvantaged families sometimes assume that earning is the son’s responsibility and daughters should be married off rather than sending them out for work. Rinku (age 30 years) from Bhutan was discouraged from migrating to Kolkata for her job despite monetary issues at home as her mother felt that it was her brothers’ responsibility and not hers to take care of family finances. Rinku’s situation was different from that of Vandana’s with respect to distance of migration as well. The fieldwork data clearly shows that irrespective of economic standing and community and religious affiliations, parents prefer daughter’s migration to a place close to the hometown than to a distant place. In moderate to well-off middle class families, where economic necessity is not an issue, a family’s perception towards a daughter’s education and career becomes critical for her migration. A family’s perception is again influenced by its cultural, religious and societal standing as Bourdieu (1996) distinguishes a family as an ‘objective social category (a structuring structure)’ as well as a ‘subjective social category (a structured structure)’ that maintains and reproduces the social order (p. 21). Deepika was raised in a well-off middle class family, yet her education, hobbies and career were never as prioritized as her brother’s were— I have seen abundance of food in my home. My father always ensured that we eat healthy. This is very peculiar in my family that if I have demanded something to eat, it has been brought just then.

But, when I have asked for even nominal money, say, `500, for my tuition or books, I have been denied on scarcity grounds. Or even if I managed to get that, I knew it was not my father’s priority. In fact it is in the Marwari community only that girls’ education and their job are treated with low priority. (Deepika, 28)

For women like Deepika, family has been a site of resistance despite economic affluence at home. Because of strong patriarchal norms and biased gender dynamics, education, job and migration become basic entitlements for sons but a matter of dispute and negotiation for daughters. Deepika presently has a successful career and an independent life, but that required enormous efforts, fights and negotiation on her part. Strict behavioural constraints at her home required her to exercise agency to arbitrate and mould the structures to her favour. Hence, for women, the role of agency is crucial for achievement of desired goals, especially if it requires challenging prevalent or traditional gender norms. The fieldwork also shows that a low priority of education and career is often taken for granted by daughters themselves. Priyanka and her elder brother were raised in a military family with good economic standing. While her brother’s relatively expensive higher education of chartered accountancy (CA) was fully funded by her father, Priyanka’s basic graduation was not even partially funded. Priyanka migrated from her hometown Durgapur (West Bengal) to Kolkata in the hope of a better education and a career. At a young age of 19 years, Priyanka worked hard as a part-time schoolteacher to fund her undergraduate studies, hostel fees and other daily expenses in Kolkata. Upon asking, she naively said, ‘karna padta hai didi … mummy papa agar padha sakte the to padhate’ (I have to do it didi. My parents would have educated me if they could afford it.’). If resources ‘appear’ to be limited in a family, daughters are likely to sacrifice their career aspirations for those of their male siblings. Such gender dynamics are so ingrained in most Indian families that women often do not realize that they are

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being discriminated against. Priyanka found it difficult to make ends meet with her nominal income from a part-time job. Yet she tried her best to manage as she felt bad asking money from home thinking that it would overburden her father. It is also important to note that family does not always reproduce the prevailing macrostructures, but sometimes mediates and alters them. Raji was raised in a Punjabi family and she expressed how her family, particularly her father, stood against the conservative community culture and promoted her education and career. In my community, girls are married off just after their graduation. Higher education among girls is not that common. In my extended family, it is only me and one of my cousin sisters, who are doing jobs and living outside home. Usually girls are not allowed to work far away from home…. When a girl is doing her graduation, a search for grooms gets started immediately so that by the time she completes her graduation, she is married off. But, my father always wanted me to get higher education…Had he not had that willingness to get me educated, I would not have reached this level. (Raji, 28, MSc Bioinformatics, PO at a PSU bank)

Shabana had a similar story to share. She expressed that despite being raised in a Muslim family, she got the opportunity to pursue higher studies (MBA) and to join a job far from her hometown. My religion is conservative about women’s going out and working outside home, but my father has been very much supportive in this regard. Even my grandfather wants me to continue the job post marriage. He insists on me to reject marriage proposals if my future husband and his family restrict me from working. (Shabana, 25, PO at a PSU bank)

Shabana is the only daughter among three other siblings in her family. Her father was a lecturer and mother was a housewife with a high school qualification. Her father wanted to get her well-educated though she admitted that a daughter’s job was not a priority in her family.

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After my MBA, when I was appearing for bank PO exams, my mother was worried that if I get a job then I would have to stay out of my home. It was just inconceivable for her to send me away from home, all alone. Incidentally at that time one of my cousin sisters got a job in Delhi and her father allowed her to go there to join her job. This worked positively for me. It brought a sense of acceptance to my family. My parents could now imagine that their daughter could also stay outside home for her job…. Now when I have been doing this job for quite some time, earning money, buying some gifts for them or contributing to the family, even trivially, they feel good about it and feel proud of me. They get reassured of their decision of sending me out. It is now going on in our region, where we live. (Shabana, 25)

Shabana’s story signifies that a family acts as an agent to mediate, alter and even produce alternate structures. Gidden’s concept of ‘structuration’ process becomes relevant in this context. Within the constraints of religious and cultural structures, Shabana’s uncle took the authority to allow his daughter’s migration and independent stay at a distant city, Delhi. Shabana’s father, himself being well-educated and liberal, appreciated and replicated such an initiative in his family. As Shabana points out, gradually many people at her place of origin have started to encourage their daughters’ careers and associated migrations, the emergence of a counter structure can be conceived. This wave of change, though still weak, is noteworthy in anticipation of a much greater workforce participation and labour migration of women in the future. In the field sample, girls from upper middle class educated families with relatively liberal cultural and religious background had the fortune to get a very supportive and gender-­ neutral environment for their education and career. In fact, the interview questions on family support and gender discrimination probably surprised some of the respondents. Siddhi, now married with a daughter and pursuing her doctorate at a premier business school in Kolkata, has an upper middle class family background. Her father was chairman

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of a holding company with substantial monthly income. Having graduated from one of the top business schools in India and worked in a high profile consulting job, Siddhi attributes her educational and career success to her father. My father has been very ambitious about our education …. He wanted us to rank well in studies, clear competitive exams. His expectations were very high and that always put us under pressure …. We all three sisters have been working. In fact I feel that my elder sisters have done much better than me. (Siddhi, 35)

Before getting married, Siddhi migrated to multiple cities, such as Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai and Ahmedabad, independently for her education and job. Her father ensured that all his three daughters received a good education and had a good career. Hence, for him, daughters’ migration and independent stay at distant places away from home have not been an issue. Undoubtedly, the family was a facilitating agent in Siddhi’s independent migration. Sarita had a similar supportive environment in her family despite being raised with two brothers and another sister. Unlike in Priyanka’s case, presence of male siblings in the family did not deprive her from family resources for her own education and in building a career. Sarita is from an upper middle class business family based in Cuttack, Odisha. She has a master’s degree in law and works as a legal advisor at an MNC in Kolkata. Sarita proudly says— One of the reasons I went for a job is because of my father. He has always encouraged us for our education and job. All my siblings have been working…. My brothers are doctor and engineer. My sister is also working. I was not that ambitious but my father’s encouragement made me career-aspirant…. During my Masters I had some financial crisis. I told my father and he said that he would arrange money in two days. I then realized that he does so much for me and so I should now be working and earning money. (Sarita, 27)

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Marriage: Limiting the Choices The dynamics of women’s migration are quite complex and unique compared with that of men’s because of the critical role played not only by their natal family but also by their marital family. Because of the traditional patriarchal marriage system and post-marriage patrilocal3 housing arrangements in India, the in-laws have a significant role in influencing a married woman’s employment and migration. The role of family differs quite significantly in case of a daughter’s career and migration and that of a daughter-in-law’s. Vijaya’s experience as a daughter and then as a daughter-in-law highlights these contrasts. Having been raised in an upper middle class educated family, she got great encouragement and support for her higher studies. Vijaya completed her master’s degree from Varanasi and then a PhD from a reputed institute at Dhanbad (Jharkhand), her hometown. Despite being highly qualified, she had to compromise with her career choice after marriage. Marriage, post-marriage family responsibilities and power dynamics within the husband’s family compelled Vijaya to settle on a relatively low-profile career. Before marriage, she was free to migrate to any place for better career prospects, but post-marriage she became confined. Vijaya’s disappointment is revealed from the following excerpts of her interview— My migration to Kolkata is solely driven by my marriage as otherwise I would not have migrated to a place where there are no or limited job opportunities for me. In fact I am staying here because my husband and in-laws stay here and I am not allowed to go to other places for my job. I can work, but in Kolkata only. They allowed me to finish my PhD because that was a precondition of my marriage. I stay with my husband and parents-in-law. They approve of my job as long as I do all the required household chores…. There are other good institutions where I can apply such as NITs, IITs and all. But you know options just get limited when you are confined to one place. I have an offer from

A pattern of marriage in which the couple settles in the husband’s home or community (Oxford dictionary).

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my home institute, ISM Dhanbad, but cannot join as I am not supposed to leave Kolkata. (Vijaya, 30)

Even though Vijaya’s in-laws are well educated and economically better-off and she herself is educationally qualified and economically active, she is not spared from typical gender roles after marriage. She mentioned that at her marital home, women are supposed to do all the household chores and men are supposed to do only outside work, even if both women and men are working. This double burden of work leaves her little time and energy for future career planning and other activities. Many professional and educated Indian women face a similar situation after marriage and this greatly affects women’s job participation and labour migration. For those few married women who are able to retain a desirable job or undertake migration to a preferred destination, cooperation and support from their marital family, especially from their husbands have been crucial. Manya from Malda (West Bengal) works as a senior copy editor in a leading Bengali newspaper in Kolkata. Her husband recently moved to Malda from Kolkata to join his new job. Manya did not have to leave her job to accompany her husband to Malda— I have been staying in Kolkata alone and my husband visits me in the weekends. There has never been any pressure from my husband or from my in-laws for quitting my job in order to accompany my husband to Malda. My husband and in-laws are very understanding and supportive… [Being in media sector] sometimes I return home at around 2:30 am…. It is a fact that because of my husband’s support I am able to manage this tough work-life balance. (Manya, 30)

For Disha, her husband’s support helped her negotiate with her in-laws in retaining her job. Disha has a PhD from a recognized university from Baroda, Gujarat. She got married during the final year of PhD and then moved with her husband to multiple places such as Delhi, Bangalore, Chicago and Kolkata. Although every time she has sought her own job possibilities before migration, her aim

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has been to stay with her husband rather than to have a great career of her own. After coming to Kolkata, Disha found a job commensurate with her academic qualifications in a renowned NGO at Kolkata. She joined as Project Technical Support, a position with a good profile, exposure and salary. Her husband again had to move to San Fransico, USA, for his job. This time, Disha chose not to leave her job and stayed back in Kolkata instead of migrating with her husband. It is not always that men should have their desired job and women can adjust with their career and accompany their husband all the time. Earlier I used to accompany my husband everywhere because I wished to do so.... This time I am in a good profile job and I did not want to lose this job. My husband is now on deputation in San Francisco, USA. He will return to Kolkata as soon as his deputation gets over…. Yes, my in-laws would have been happier if I would have gone with my husband and stayed with him. But, my husband is considerate and he backs my decision of staying here. (Disha, 32)

Field data also suggests that for married women’s job and migration, family becomes more of a constraining structure than an enabling one. Post-marriage reproductive responsibilities seem to hinder the career of every working mother interviewed during the fieldwork. Nisha got married in Kolkata just after her MBA. Her father expected her to get a good job in a metro city like Kolkata rather than in their hometown of Jodhpur, Rajasthan. However, Nisha states that after marriage, she got occupied with family responsibilities and hardly found any time to look for jobs. … Meanwhile I conceived so I needed to stay back at home. When my son became three years old, I again searched for jobs and got to work at a private concern, MI, as an administrative officer. I got the link of this job from my relatives’ connections. As there was a gap of around 4 years in my career, [and so] getting a job became quite difficult. I worked there for two and a half years and used to get `12,000 per month. (Nisha, 32)

Siddhi (35) had to compromise with her job profile after marriage and childbirth. Having an MBA from one of India’s premier

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B-schools and having worked as a consultant at a reputed private firm, Siddhi’s educational qualifications and pre-marriage professional achievements are commendable. However, just after her marriage she had to accompany her husband to the USA and this move cost her consultancy job. Because of the career break, she had to settle with an IT-based consultancy job which was neither high-paying nor flexible enough to allow her to balance work and family. When her daughter was born, it became difficult for her to continue even with that job. She had to work as a freelancer on contractual pay leaving her full-time regular job. For a highly qualified and career-aspirant woman like Siddhi, this phase of four years of contractual low-paying work was quite distressful. Post-marriage reproductive responsibilities and carework remain inevitable bottlenecks for a married woman’s career. Jobs and job linked migration become challenging for even well-qualified women. However, it is true that more than the biological functions of childbearing and reproduction, it is the traditional mindset of a patriarchal society that considers childcare and household chores as sole responsibilities of women in the family that confine and limit women’s careers. Field data shows that a supporting family environment helps married women in continuing their jobs. Working mothers also reported that the employing organization’s facilitating role in providing a flexible job environment and maternity leave help them in sustaining the job and balancing work and life. Chandra (age 30 years) was able to continue her job after her son was born because of extensive support from her husband and other family members. She mentions that her employing organization, an NGO in Kolkata, was flexible and facilitating too.

Social Capital: Filling the Lacuna of Financial and Human Capital Apart from the aforementioned structural factors, migrant women’s social capital turns out

to be vital in promoting their migration and employment. Social capital, as explained by Bourdieu is ‘the sum of the resources, actual or virtual, that accrue to an individual or a group by virtue of possessing a durable network of more or less institutionalized relationships of mutual acquaintance and recognition’ (Bourdieu & Wacquant, 1992, cf. Palloni, Massey, Ceballos, Espinosa & Spittel, 2001, p. 1262). The structural aspect of social capital lies in the fact that social relationships between the members of a network are governed by general norms of trust and reciprocity and are well beyond an individual’s domain. However, there remains scope of individual manoeuvring in reaping benefits from one’s social network. It is interesting to note that every female migrant in the field data acknowledged direct or indirect contribution of her social network, comprising her relatives, friends and acquaintances, in the process of obtaining a job or settling in the new city. The social capital of these women largely facilitated information about available jobs and career opportunities at the destination, exposure about career options for enhancing human capital and material as well as moral support that smoothened their stay at the destination. Much of the migration literature highlights the direct influence of an individual’s social capital on his/her migration through facilitation of information about jobs and help with settling down at the destination. However, a much broader aspect of social capital comes to the fore in the present field data analysis. For example, in the pre-migration stage, many women got career exposure about higher studies and competitive exams from their friend circle in their hometowns. Such information might not have led to migration directly but helped them in enhancing their human capital. Employment and migration avenues widen for women with better human capital. Vijaya (age 30 years) admits, ‘I came to know about BHU [Banaras Hindu University] from my friend circle in Dhanbad. BHU is very popular in Dhanbad.’ Vijaya completed her master’s degree from BHU and then pursued PhD

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from Dhanbad. Her higher education helped her in obtaining a job in the education sector in Kolkata, where she migrated to after she got married. Shabana was raised in a Muslim family in Patna where a daughter’s education is supported but not with the aim of building a career. Shabana’s source of career exposure was her friend circle in Patna. Many of Shabana’s friends went out of Patna to pursue an MBA. She also pursued MBA, but in Patna, due to financial constraints. Her friends suggested her to appear for bank Probationary Officers (PO) examinations as the job market for MBAs was grim at that time. Upon qualifying the PO exam of a nationalized bank, Shabana migrated to Kolkata to join her job. It appears that for women in a relatively confined cultural setting, social capital networks are vital in career building and consequent migration. Field data shows that social capital has been a prominent source of information and knowledge about job and career opportunities at destinations and help in migration of many women. Rinku’s migration from Bhutan to Kolkata and her employment as a beautician in the city can partially be attributed to her social capital. Her migrant friend let her know about career opportunities in the beauty and personal-care sector in Kolkata. She acknowledged her friend’s help in giving her a direction in life as until then she was unsure about her future. Sazia and Priya got job links in the BPO sector from their friends’ network. Rashi from Dhanbad (Jharkhand) came to know about a job vacancy in a telecommunications start-up from her friends. Many vacancies in service-sector jobs in private firms are communicated among internal employees only, and so, job information becomes a scarce resource. For example, both Aisha and Manya admitted that job information in the media sector is obtained primarily through professional contacts. Manya has worked in three newspaper dailies until now and every job link was obtained through her contacts. Discontinuity in a professional career reduces one’s marketability in the job market.

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Unfortunately, most working women experience discontinuity in their career after marriage and childbirth. In such circumstances, references of friends, relatives and other professional contacts help in getting jobs or of at least being considered for interviews. For even highly qualified women like Nisha (MBA, age 32 years) and Siddhi (MBA, age 35 years), returning to the job market after a gap in their careers became very tough. Nisha was able to join a private firm because of her relative’s connections, after being out of the labour force for four years. Siddhi had to quit her high-profile consultancy job to accompany her husband to the USA and that curtailed her career choices. Her friend circle helped her get back into the job market and she migrated to Kolkata. For women like Nisha and Siddhi, social capital turned out to be an asset when their human capital got devalued. Social capital also becomes an indispensable resource for women in gaining access to other resources. For example, having been denied of family resources for college education, Priyanka could only continue her education in a reputed college in Kolkata because of her local acquaintances. She learned about her present college, available courses and parttime job opportunity in Kolkata from her local network of friends in her hometown. Fieldwork data reveals that social capital not only facilitates migration but also helps in sustenance at the destination. Many women found accommodation in the city through their personal and professional contacts. Vandana, a private nurse in Kolkata, had to relocate her residence several times in the city for reasons such as bad landlord, unsafe accommodation and sudden evacuation. Her stay in the city was very tough until one of her nurse colleagues shared with her the link of her present residence, a working women’s hostel. Social capital often becomes a cushion in times of emergency for single migrant women. Neeta remembers one such instance when she got severely ill as she had to eat three-day stale food because she had neither money nor a job in hand. She suffered from severe

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stomach ache and vomiting that night and was not in a position to even walk in the morning. In such a critical situation, one of her friends in the city helped her out with food, medicine and money. Cases of Deepika, Shobhna and Sara suggest that even normal day-to-day life becomes tough without a friend circle in a new city. Shobhna had never been outside north India before she came to Kolkata. Being away from her hometown Pilani, Rajasthan and having no friends in Kolkata, she found it difficult to adjust in the city. Sometimes I feel out of place. Most of my friends are settled in Delhi. Delhi is also near my hometown. So if I were in Delhi I could have joined all the gatherings of my friends and also I could go home very frequently. Here I feel as if I am staying in an isolated island. (Shobhna, 25, Teaching Assistant)

Deepika’s first job posting in a software company was at Chennai. She then took a preferential job transfer to Kolkata in order to stay near her hometown, Baharampur, West Bengal. Moreover, she was familiar with Kolkata as she completed her bachelor’s in engineering from Kolkata. Deepika remembers that her transition from Baharampur to Chennai was much tougher than that of Baharampur to Kolkata, primarily because of lack of friends in Chennai. I realized that in a strange city, where you do not have friends and all, staying alone is worse. You feel lonely, and negative thoughts creep into your mind. You miss your family even more. So, I joined a gym to keep myself occupied. I used to listen to songs and all. But all these could not help for long. I wanted to come back to Kolkata so that I could at least stay near my family. (Deepika, 28, Senior Software Engineer)

Sara’s stay in Kolkata was also filled with solitude. She migrated from her hometown of Tura, a small town in Meghalaya, to Kolkata due to a job transfer. In her early forties, Sara was unmarried and far from her parents. Her only support in Kolkata was her friend circle from the northeast region of India. She

visited Meghalaya House in the city almost every weekend, where other migrants from Meghalaya and other northeast regions gathered and resided. Social capital also acts as a safety net and source of support for outstation women. Parents also prefer to send their daughters to places where their relatives or friends are present. Rupa’s father supported her migration from Kanthi, West Bengal to Kolkata as he was reassured about her safety because of the presence of Rupa’s aunt in the city.

Information and Communication Technology: The Catalysts Information is a key element in the process of migration. Advancements in telecommunications, internet and software industry in the last two and a half decades have completely revolutionized the quantum and process of information and knowledge sharing in India. The educated middle class of modern India has utilized this dynamic change to a great extent. Field data shows that all female migrants have at least one cell phone and majority of them access the internet in their day-to-day lives. The revolution in telecommunications has not only redefined information sharing but also made round-the-clock connectivity between people possible. As a result, now, people are able to inform about their whereabouts instantly through one phone call, instant messaging and online chatting. This has widened women’s mobility considerably as even being physically away from family, their virtual connectivity with family and friends reduces their perceived vulnerability. An analysis of the field data reveals that middle class female migrants have utilized IT in multiple ways. IT has become a source of information, knowledge and exposure, a medium of earning and spending and a platform for social networking and entertainment. Numerous free and paid e-job portals facilitate round-the-clock information about job

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vacancies in diverse fields in different locations of the country. Soma found her first regular job through one such e-job portal. When she was home in Durgapur, she got information about a job in a software company, IBM, through bulk email postings. She came down to Kolkata for her interview, got the job and joined IBM as a (trainee) customer care executive. For Soma, IT was not only a channel of information that facilitated her migration but also a parcel of multiple opportunities. Before coming to Kolkata, she used to earn money by writing online articles for a blog. During her job in BPOs and consultancy firms in Kolkata, she learned about online trade and started a blog to sell branded cosmetics and accessories. Whatever marginal profit she earned through online trade contributed towards meeting her daily expenses. IT-based job portals have become a preferred option for job search rather than regular consultancies for educated middle class women because of the greater intensity of information and ease of access. Majority of the respondents were registered on one or other e-job portal. Vijaya from Dhanbad and Nisha from Jodhpur did not have any job in hand when they migrated to Kolkata after getting married. Both of them were educationally well qualified, Vijaya had a PhD and Nisha had an MBA degree. Vijaya continued searching jobs online and after four months of her migration, she got a job as teaching assistant in a business school. Nisha had to work hard to find a job as she had a career break of four years after her son was born. She then got a job link from an online job portal and joined an educational institute as a programme associate. For many off-stream occupations, where there is a dearth of regular consultancies, the internet has become a major source of job information. Disha and Chandra worked in an NGO in Kolkata and both of them found their jobs independently through an e-job portal, devnetjobs.in, a dedicated portal for development-sector jobs. Disha remarked

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that regular consultancies do not provide information about jobs in the development sector. Free-flowing information in this digital era has made the long-distance migration of middle class women feasible. Not only job links and career options, but all sorts of useful information can be obtained through the internet. After her engineering degree, Rupa (from Kanthi, West Bengal) got a job offer through campus selection in a software company in Kolkata. Her father’s primary concern was to find safe accommodation for her in the city at a reasonable rate. He resorted to the internet to search for accommodation in Kolkata and identified the hostel Asha. Siddhi’s first job posting was in Mumbai. She had migrated earlier to Delhi and Bangalore for educational purposes and so had stayed in secure hostels inside college campuses. As this was her first time staying in the city all alone, she was cautious about selecting accommodation. For the initial living arrangement, she screened women’s hostels through the internet and shifted to one near the Juhu area of Mumbai. After staying around six months in the hostel, she shifted to a rented apartment, which she found through a broker. IT has also facilitated the means for building social capital through social networking websites such as Facebook and Twitter. A majority of the research participants use these virtual social networking sites in their day-today life. The feeling of staying connected to a larger group of people is quite comforting for single outstation women in a new city. For many single women, these social networking sites are also a means to fight their solitude. Through online chatting, image/video sharing and other group activities, they entertain themselves after a long hectic workday. Besides, these social networking sites are an important channel for sharing information and knowledge. Instant information from friends about job vacancies, rented rooms, educational courses and health facilities in a new location turn out to be very helpful for migrant

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women. Overall, developments in ICTs have made migrant women’s stay smoother, besides inducing migration.

woman that she is today. It is not that she does not realize her responsibilities towards her parents. She says that she in fact wanted to become a support for her family like a son, as she did not have any brother. Later, Priya moved to Kolkata in order to stay close to her Agency: Mediating the Structures family. She has worked in Kolkata for the last In a patriarchal society like India, restrictions four years and is able to look after her parents and control over women’s lives can be very whenever needed. Soma’s case is a good example to show intense. Discussions in the previous sections how a simple middle-class woman exercises (Macroeconomy: New Opportunities for her agency to rise above disturbed family Women and Information and Communication environment, financial and emotional strain Technology: The Catalysts) make it clear that and make her own way. In spite of being while economic liberalization has brought raised in an economically sound family, Soma opportunities for educated middle class was deprived of resources because of trouwomen, deep-rooted patriarchal structures bled family circumstances. Her father withat family and society still constrain their drew from all responsibility of her when she freedom. If these women have been able to was in high school. In addition to the finanmigrate to a distant place away from their cial crunch, she had to fight with emotional home, it is because they have fought for it. shock. Soma started taking tuitions to contribLeaving home, migrating to a new city, manute to her school education. She also utilized aging a job, living an independent life, choosonline earning opportunities to fund her coling a life partner and balancing job and family, lege education. After completing graduation, everything involved great efforts on their part. The efforts and negotiations that helped them she registered her CV in various consultancies achieve their desired outcomes against all and e-job portals. She found a job in a BPO odds are conceived as agency here. During the in Kolkata and despite having no relatives or interviews with middle class women migrants, friends in the city, she migrated and joined the multiple instances emerged that showed that job. Soma fought structural constraints at the they exercised agency to alter structural con- family end and harnessed recent economic straints and harness structural opportunities opportunities in the IT sector that made her migration and employment possible. A BPO for their gain. When Priya found her first job in Hyderabad job was just a stepping-stone for her to enter (then in Andhra Pradesh), her father did not the formal job market. She worked in two want her to move out of home and stay in a BPOs and then joined a consulting firm as a city where there were no relatives. Her father visa consultant. She talked about her dreams of was concerned about her safety and well-­ travelling abroad and working at an embassy. Sometimes, migration is not out of matebeing, and a daughter’s job was not a priority rial necessity, but a way of getting out of one’s in the family. However, Priya always wanted cocoon to have an independent life. Men can to be self-dependent, and hence, she did not smoothly make such a move but women in want to let go the opportunity. When her parIndia face various restrictions from family and ents stuck to their decision, she even stopped society. Neeta from Darjeeling had to put up eating at home. Finally, she was allowed to enormous effort while negotiating with her migrate to Hyderabad and join her job. Had father for her migration to Kolkata. Neeta is Priya not exercised her agency to overpower an adventure-loving woman. She says that familial constraints to her migration, she as her father and elder sister have a military would have still been at home or been marbackground, everything from morning to ried off rather than becoming the independent

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night happens according to a strict timetable and with discipline in her home. Her mother is a retired school teacher and on pension. She has three earning members and an abundance of resources in her family and yet she wanted to leave home and do something on her own. I did not want to do that course [beautician course] at Siliguri [West Bengal] because I had been staying with my parents for 20 long years. Now, I wanted to see the outside world and wanted to be on my own. I wanted to get out of this support system of home. My father was dead against this beauty parlour course as he is from an army background and does not feel these jobs to be respectable. He was also worried about my stay in Kolkata as I did not have any relatives over here. But I convinced him and got here. (Neeta, 25)

For Aisha, being the only child in her family posed challenges for her migration. Till she completed her masters in philosophy, she stayed with her parents in her hometown, Cuttack, Odisha. After that, she undertook intrastate migration for her job and further education, but convincing her parents for moving to Kolkata was very tough. A good profile job in a leading newspaper company helped her in negotiating with her parents for her migration. The task of negotiation and persuasion becomes even more difficult for married women because of societal prioritization of the husband’s job and migration over that of the wife’s. However, field data shows that many middle class women have been able to negotiate their own job prospects while migrating with their husbands to new cities. Some women like Disha and Manya have even exercised their agency to avert associational migration and stayed back in the city for continuing their jobs. While agency counters and mediates structural constraints to make migration happen, migration in turn helps in enhancing the agency of women. Female migrants in the field data mentioned that physical distance from home loosened familial control over their life to a great extent. It helped them in negotiating

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with their family in important matters, such as in choosing a life partner, in carrying out unconventional jobs and maintaining an urban lifestyle. It is interesting to note that while most educated middle class families have encouraged their daughters for higher studies and employment, almost all the families had reservations about their daughter’s love marriages. Interestingly, almost all the middle class women migrants in the sample had been in love relationships and many had love marriages despite the objection of their parents. Raji admits that her father had been very supportive of her education and job but was very strict about intercaste marriage. Because I was away and my parents had less control over me, I could manage to pursue my wish [of inter-caste marriage]. In fact I changed my city from Kolkata to Gurgaon because my father was putting pressure on me to get married. I did not discuss my plans of changing city and job with him. When I reached Delhi, I informed him that I was in a different city. My father came down to Gurgaon fearing that I might be staying with my boyfriend. When he saw that I was staying in a PG room, away from my boyfriend, he was relieved. (Raji, 27)

Rashi, branch manager of a telecommunications start-up in Kolkata, also had a tough time persuading her parents to accept her inter-­ religion intercaste marriage. She acknowledges that having been away from her home for several years and leading an independent life helped her in negotiating her marriage. Sazia’s physical distance from her hometown gave her liberty to continue her night shift at her call centre job at Kolkata. She narrates how her father reacted when she just talked about her plans to do night shift work— My father does not even know that I was in a call centre job. I never told him as he would not have allowed me to do that. Just to know his views on call centre jobs, I once asked him if I could work in night shifts. He did not like the idea and shouted ‘What rubbish are you talking? You are being deviated from the righteous path. How can you think about night shift work being a Muslim girl? You should rather learn “adab,

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hijab” [manners, veils]. You should learn from our culture’. (Sazia, 19)

Sazia acknowledges that migration has given her knowledge and exposure and enhanced her agency substantially. She states enthusiastically— Now when I am outside my home and leading my life independently, I have more exposure and knowledge. Now I have my own opinion. Even I can persuade my father on certain things just because I am staying independently. (Sazia, 19)

Somi from Assam is associated with an NGO in Kolkata and works as a spiritual teacher for children from the slums. Her job requires lots of travelling and staying out late in the evening. Travelling alone and working in slums used to be challenging for her initially, but now she feels very confident. She says that her father would not have let her do this field-based job had he known about her job profile— My father actually does not know what I am doing. He just knows that I am working. But, he does not know that I have to move here and there alone ... Back at home, girls are supposed to stay at home after 5 o’clock. It is not that usual for us to be outside home in the night. Here, in course of my job, sometimes I need to stay out till 8, 9 or 10 o’clock in the night. It used to be very difficult for me earlier. But now I can manage things well. (Somi, 23)

Field data shows that migration and economic independence have provided many women, especially unmarried women, a sense of freedom from patriarchal control, which they have harnessed to carry out their desired lifestyle at the destination cities. Though married women migrants do not enjoy such freedom as they are staying with their husbands or in-laws, they too feel a sense of autonomy being economically independent. A job with a good profile may help them negotiate with their marital family on certain things.

LIVING IN A NEW DESTINATION Opportunities and Challenges Post-migration life brings an altogether different experience for migrants. The big city facilitates a wide variety of job options, career opportunities, urban amenities, knowledge and exposure. However, staying alone in a new city brings forth a myriad of problems for migrants, especially for single women. The economic standing of middle class women migrants may be better than their poorer counterparts, but that does not necessarily smoothen their living in an unfamiliar city. Talking to the research participants revealed a range of problems that they had to deal with in their day-to-day life. Unfortunately, their issues and challenges go unrecognized in policy documents even though middle class women constitute a substantial workforce in Indian cities. With the rising incidents of gender-based crimes in the cities of India, the safety and security of women in the cities has become a matter of grave concern. Migrant women bear a higher risk of becoming soft targets because of their greater presence in the public sphere due to their jobs/education and due to lack of a local support base. It is unsurprising to hear from the research participants that they feel a sense of vulnerability all the time and everywhere in the city. It is not that avoiding a particular site, time or attire would prevent something undesirable from happening, as the threat for women is omnipresent. Sarita, a legal advisor at a private firm, expresses the vulnerability of single female migrants, ‘… being a single girl staying out of home … there is always a risk factor ... you never know what will come next to you’ (Sarita, 27). Instances of verbal and physical abuse in crowded public transport have become a part of the daily life of every working woman in the cities. Neeta’s following statement expresses her and other women’s disgust and agony—

Middle Class Women’s Migration

I needed to take the metro [underground train] from Tollyganj to Girish Park. There was not a single day when I had not been touched here and there by men. It felt as if I was being raped every day. In auto rickshaws from Tollyganj to Jadavpur, if I sit beside the driver, he would try to touch me with his elbow. Whenever we girls use public transport, some degree of molestation we have to experience every day. (Neeta, 25)

The risk factor increases for female migrants, as often they are unaware of roads and routes in a new city. Rinku remembers once she had to go to the New Market area and as she was new to the city, she preferred to take a shared auto rickshaw to a cab. However, the auto-rickshaw driver sensed her unfamiliarity with the city and tried to take advantage of her. As other passengers got down, he started taking her to far interior areas. Luckily, she saw a traffic police on the way and shouted for help. She had a narrow escape that day. If such incidents can happen during the day and in crowded public places, it can well be imagined that nights would be terrifying for working women. Rupa says that returning to her hostel from her office becomes a nightmare whenever she gets late— At times I left my office at 9:15–9:20 PM, stood all alone at the bus stand and faced men’s staring and nasty teasing. It was so awkward and scary when in public buses some drunk sat beside me … The risk points are everywhere—streets, busstand, bus, taxi, everywhere. Recently a lady has been raped beside the street near this hostel. (Rupa, 23)

Such instances highlights not only a lacuna in the city’s law and order but also the wicked mindset of a major portion of the masculine society of the country. Women’s modern lifestyle and increasing share of public space seems to threaten the dominance of the male gender. For single female migrants, home and outside are equally risky. After a long hectic day at work and a battle-like journey in public transport, returning home may not always be relaxing for female migrants. Many of the respondents raised their concerns over serious

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safety and security issues in their accommodation, such as PG accommodation and rented rooms/apartments. Deepika says that PG accommodation in Chennai are professionally managed and on an average much better than those in Kolkata in terms of safety, security and logistics. She points out that the PGs in Kolkata are mostly unregistered, involve no written contract between the owner and the resident, and hence, the landlords can easily do away with their responsibilities. She narrated a recent encounter in her present PG room that kept her sleepless for long time— The Salt Lake area becomes quite deserted in the night. There was a time when all women’s PGs in this area had experienced some odd incidents.... Even in my PG one such incident happened. Some odd guy peeped into my window at around 1:30–2’oclock in the night. When I noticed and shouted, all the PG girls gathered and saw that guy making lewd symbols and spluttering abusive words for almost half an hour.... I called up the police and even when the police came, our landlady did not show up. If something happens to any girl over here, she would not take any responsibility. (Deepika, 28)

Deepika was still residing in that PG room because of lack of choice. She mentioned that there is an acute infrastructural shortage in Kolkata. Even having a good salary and a higher affordability capacity, she finds it difficult to get a safe and well-furnished PG accommodation in the city. Knowing that most single migrant women have no local support system in the cities, often PG landlords try to take advantage of their situation. Instances of theft, robbery, verbal and even physical assaults in PG accommodations were cited by many respondents. Soma got her cell phone and some other belongings stolen by her PG owner. Manya had to leave her previous PG room in Lake Town area as the landlord’s intention and behaviour with her was not proper. When Raji was in Gurgaon for her job, she had a bad fight with her PG landlord. The owner wanted her to evacuate the PG room suddenly and even refused to pay

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back her advance rent. On resisting, she was verbally abused and shoved away by the PG owner. Proper accommodation turns out to be a critical issue for women migrants in Indian cities. Working women’s hostels are adjudged to be somewhat safer than unregistered PG accommodation and rented rooms, but hostels are the least utilized by a majority of middle class women migrants. Shortage of rooms, inadequate infrastructure, lack of basic amenities, inflexibility in timings and procedural complications are some of the major problems that deter well-earning middle class women migrants from availing hostel facilities. The hostel Asha studied in the fieldwork did not even have electricity points in the rooms. Girls were observed crowding and queueing up in the morning and night in the dining hall to charge their phones and laptops. Chandra, who had stayed in another women’s hostel in the Behala area, also mentioned the same problem in the hostel. In terms of furniture, only one bed and a small locker were given in the hostel. There were no cupboards to keep luggage and that increased the possibility of theft. Limited number of toilets and bathrooms created a huge delay in the morning when everyone had to rush for office or college. Even room-­ cleaning service was not there. Strict entry and exit timings in hostels also discourage women working in rotational shifts or unconventional hours to seek hostel facilities in the city. Sazia said that a few months ago her hostel banned night-shift working boarders in the light of some incidents of girls eloping in the night. This move hampered the jobs of many women working in call centres residing in the hostel, including that of Sazia. The rule was reversed soon probably realizing the demands of modern service-sector jobs. Many hostels mandate the presence of a local guardian for female migrants for getting an accommodation. During a visit to the working women’s hostel, Asha, readmission of all hostellers was in process. All women needed to submit requisite documents and bring

their local guardians to the hostel. Many of them were completely annoyed by this local guardian matter. Vijeta, a software developer in a private firm in Kolkata, had come from the Chittaranjan district of West Bengal and stayed in the hostel for the last six months. At that time, she had her cousin who was working in Kolkata as her local guardian. Now, she had no one to complete the formalities. Above all, there are a limited number of proper registered women’s hostels in the city. Because of absence of any housing contract in unregistered accommodation, the migrant residents always face the risk of sudden eviction. They often succumb to frequent and undue rise in room rents to avoid hassles of finding a new accommodation. Rinku said that she not only had to evacuate her PG room on a short notice but was also forfeited her advance rent. For affluent middle class women who own private vehicles and work in established organizations, the day-to-day struggle for shelter and commutation is minimal. Tripti, an SAP consultant in a big private firm in Kolkata, has been to several metro cities during her job. About problems faced being a female migrant in the city, Tripti comments— I honestly did not face any problem. In Delhi, TCS has such portals which give you links of accommodation where its employees have stayed or have been staying … In ITC Infotech, I stayed in company quarters. I did not even have to search for accommodation. Also I had my vehicle in all the cities. So I did not have to use local transportation much. (Tripti, 33)

However, for a larger mass of female migrants, the basic minimum arrangement for accommodation in the city is dismal and sometimes exploitative. In the absence of proper regulations and institutional support, the situation can become worse in coming days.

Living and Coping An important aspect of migration is adaptation to the new environment and circumstances at the destination. Adaptations might be positive

Middle Class Women’s Migration

and desirable. For example, Vandana feels happy to be able to adapt to the city lifestyle that is quite in contrast to her earlier village life. She mentioned that now western attire, personal beautification, leisure time and shopping have become a part of her city life that she never had in her village. Sometimes, post-­ migration adjustments are tough and demanding, but she realized that they could be helpful in the long run. Chandra recalled her rough time in adjusting to her prior social-sector job that required her to deal with truck drivers and to educate them about safe sex methods. Initially she used to be afraid, nervous and often disgusted with teasing and taunts from the drivers. She took it as a challenge and learnt to tackle every situation with confidence and boldness. Somi also feels confident to be able to adapt to her field-based social-sector job that requires extensive travelling and staying out late in the night. Sometimes a new environment brings in differences and then adjustments seem to be undesirable. Often, perceived cultural differences in the destination become a barrier in smooth adaptation. For example, Shobhna from Rajasthan feels uncomfortable with the relatively ‘open and friendly’ culture of Bengal. Sarita having worked in Delhi finds the work environment in Kolkata to be ‘uncompetitive’, Bengali people to be orthodox and Bengali landlords to be ‘money minded’. On the other hand, Deepika, having been raised in West Bengal and educated in Kolkata, feels at home in the city. She found it difficult to adjust in Chennai because of language, cultural differences and physical distance from her home. Shobhna and Sarita had plans to leave Kolkata in the near future. Deepika had already left Chennai and was settled in Kolkata at the time of the interview. For those with no alternatives in hand, coping with the circumstances remains the only option. Neeta from Darjeeling and Rinku from Bhutan, lament about being discriminated and stereotyped in the city because of their ethnicity and ‘different’ looks—

405

For us people who are of different looks [Mongolian], our vulnerabilities are even more. Verbal teasing is part of our daily life. Some call us Chinese, China, Nepalese, Chinki and so on…. People are always suspicious about our work also. They think that we do body massage only. (Rinku, 30, Beautician)

Single women migrants often come under moral scepticisms from their kith and kin and even from neighbours at the destination. A woman’s character is always being evaluated through her attire, friends and lifestyle. Neeta felt very bad about being doubted by her relatives at home. Sometimes she needed to reassure her father about her choices and decisions. Many relatives and friends at my hometown say so many things about me to my father … they doubt what kind of work I do or lifestyle I maintain. But I assure my father that I shall always do right things. (Neeta, 25, Beautician)

Manya, being in the media sector, works in the office till late at night and returns home in the middle of the night. This makes her neighbours sceptical about her profession. Some even make derogatory remarks about her character— I have huge problems staying in my flat … People have such a narrow mentality here. They think that I am an alien or something as I do not fall into their ‘conventional type’ working girl. As I return home quite late in the night … they are sceptical about my job and my character. (Manya, 30, Senior Copy Editor in a Bengali daily)

Coping with and adjusting to the circumstances sometimes become a mental game when actions seem to be futile. Disha thought that it is better to take certain things for granted than to ponder over them.

DISCUSSION Field data provided evidence to support the conceptual framework of the research study that the migration of middle class women to

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

contemporary urban India is an outcome of complex interplay between macrostructures and human agency. The vital role of various structures, such as the macroeconomy, family, marriage, social capital and technological innovation, comes to the fore in the migration process of middle class women. Field data shows that the proliferation of IT as well as non-IT-based service-sector industries and the informalization and subcontracting of many jobs opened up employment opportunities for educated middle class women in the megacities and large urban centres of the country. On the other hand, family and marriage as social structures turned out to be critical in determining the supply of female labour to the emergent urban job market. In the field data, the role of family as a structural force was revealed to be both facilitating and constraining with respect to women’s labour migration depending upon the economic standing,4 religious, cultural and educational background of a family. Material necessity in lower middle class families was observed to outweigh the gender restrictive norms to facilitate women’s employment and consequent migration. In moderate- to high-income families, where pecuniary issues do not feature, a family’s perception towards women’s career and mobility become important. In certain instances, it was seen that even in affluent families, ingrained gender restrictive cultural and/or religious values confined and discouraged a daughter’s work outside the house and consequently her mobility. In other instances, a family appeared to mediate the cultural/religious norms in order to promote women’s labour migration. In educated welloff families with a relatively liberal cultural/ religious background, a daughter’s career and migration was treated with as much ease and normalcy as that of a son’s. Marriage as an institution comes out to be largely restrictive with respect to women’s labour migration in the field data. Apart from the household and reproductive responsibilities of a married woman that often cause a 4

Such as lower middle class or upper middle class.

career break or withdrawal from the labour force, the prevailing patriarchal mindset in Indian society that considers a wife’s career to be subordinate to that of her husband’s (Neetha, 2004), confine women’s career choices and related migration. On occasions where a married woman was able to carry out her preferred migration or job, the support from her husband and in-laws was crucial. The social capital of a woman in terms of her extended network of friends and acquaintances in both origin and destination turned out to be a facilitator for her employment and migration. Besides being a channel for information and knowledge about job vacancies, educational opportunities, available accommodation and other amenities at destination cities, social capital also acted as an important support system (both moral as well as material) for female migrants staying alone in a distant city. In the field data, each middle class female migrant acknowledged the contribution of her social capital networks towards her migration or sustenance in the city. Advancements in ICTs have facilitated the means for round-the-clock connectivity of women migrants with their families and friends. It has turned out to be a boon for women migrants and their families at origin. The internet has become an important resource of incessant information that has been harnessed by educated middle class women for their employment, migration and independent stay at the destination. Field data shows that ICTs have not only become a channel of knowledge and information for them but also a means for earning, shopping, entertainment and social networking that in many ways smoothen and facilitate their stay in a new city. Although the aforementioned structures have an influential role in shaping female migration, the role of agency remains central to the process. An analysis of the field data shows that irrespective of their backgrounds, all the research participants mediated the structural constraints and harnessed the

Middle Class Women’s Migration

structural opportunities through their efforts and negotiations, at some point or other, in the process and aftermath of their migration. They have been actively involved in what Kandiyoti (1988) calls ‘patriarchal bargain’5 for carrying out migration, getting a job or an independent life, which seem to be mundane for boys and men in a family. The field data also shows that women migration seems to be further boosting women’s agency. All the women migrants under study acknowledged that their physical distance from home and their economic self-reliance have somehow relieved them from patriarchal control and increased their bargaining power at their family at varying degrees. Whether it is for marriage with a partner of their choice, working in night shift jobs or living a lifestyle of own choice, female migration appeared to be smoothing the negotiation process. The study unveils how living at a new destination remains quite challenging for middle class women migrants despite her relatively better economic standing compared to her poorer counterparts. The issues related to safety and security in the city and hassles in finding proper accommodation turn out to be the major challenges faced by the women migrants of the field sample. Infrastructural lacuna and poor safety and security arrangements in Indian cities make post-migration life of middle class women highly challenging. However, these women are observed to fight hard to cope and adapt to their new surroundings despite all the odds.

REFERENCES Basi, J. T. (2009). Women, identity and India’s call centre industry. Oxon: Routledge. Bourdieu, P., & Wacquant, L. (1992). An invitation to reflexive sociology. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

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Bourdieu, P. (1996). On the family as a realized category. Theory, Culture and Society, 13(3), 19–26. Curtis, R. F. (1986). Household and family in theory on inequality. American Sociological Review, 51(2), 168–183. Ganguly-Scrase, R. (2003). Paradoxes of globalization, liberalization, and gender equality: The worldviews of the lower middle class in West Bengal, India. Gender & Society, 17(4), 544–566. Giddens, A. (1979). Central problems in social theory: Action, structure and contradiction in social analysis. Reprint, Hong Kong: Macmillan Education Ltd., 1990. ———. (1984). The constitution of society: Outline of the theory of structuration. Cambridge, Malden: Polity Press in association with Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Kandiyoti, D. (1988). Bargaining with patriarchy. Gender and Society, 2(3), 274–290. Lewis, A. W. (1954). Economic development with unlimited supplies of labor. The Manchester School of Economic and Social Studies, 22, 139–191. Neetha, N. (2004, April 24). Making female breadwinners: Migration and social networking of women domestics in Delhi. Economic & Political Weekly, 39, 1681–1688. Palloni, A., Massey, D. S., Ceballos, M., Espinosa, K., & Spittel, M. (2001). Social capital and international migration: A test using information on family networks. American Journal of Sociology, 106(5), 1262– 1298. Ranis, G. & Fei, J. C. (1961). A theory of economic development. The American Economic Review, 51, 533– 565. Shaw, A. (2012). Indian cities. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. Sjaastad, L. (1962). The costs and returns of human migration. Journal of Political Economy, 70S, 80–93. Todaro, M. P. (1969). A model of labor migration and urban unemployment in less developed countries. The American Economic Review, 59, 138–148. Wright, C. (1995). Gender awareness in migration theory: Synthesizing actor and structure in Southern Africa. Development and Change, 26, 771– 791. Yin, R. K. (2009). Case study research: Design and methods (Applied Social Research Methods Series Vol. 5, 4th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE P­ ublications.

‘Patriarchal bargain’ indicates ‘the existence of set rules and scripts regulating gender relations, to which both genders accommodate and acquiesce, yet which may nonetheless be contested, redefined, and renegotiated’ (Kandiyoti, 1988).

5

29 Women Workers on the Move S. Irudaya Rajan Sumeetha M.

INTRODUCTION

internal migrants in developing countries; in some regions, they even outnumber the men Migration in India is often seen as a male-­ (Shanti, 2006). According to the 2001 Census, 42.4 milcentric phenomenon, as it is largely men who migrate in search of employment. Women lion migrants, out of the total 65.4 million who migrate are just seen to be accompany- female migrants in India, mentioned marriage ing their spouses and not directly contributing as the main reason to migrate within the counto the labour force. However, of late, labour try. As associated migrants, women suffer migration is getting feminized, especially in greater vulnerability due to reduced economic developing countries (UN, 2004). Economic choices and lack of social support in the new liberalization and an accelerated pace of area of destination. Internal female migrants reforms have increased employability in infor- are vulnerable to exploitation and are often mation technology and garment industries segregated to do unskilled and monotonous that employ a significant number of females. jobs. In the case of semi-skilled, low-skilled or Since women are ready to work for any wage unskilled female migrants, this can translate to and are perceived as passive and docile, they their entry into the low-paying, unorganized are in great demand, contributing to femini- sector with high exposure to exploitation and zation of labour and that of labour migration abuse. Women have been drawn into deskilled (Shanti, 2006). Literature pertaining to India operations as a form of cheap labour because as well as to Southeast Asian countries clearly they comprise an ideal reserve of labour, since indicates that the initial opposition to female there is a huge availability of labour force of migration has been overcome after seeing women (Braverman, 1979). In the Indian context, in a country-level the remittances from women who migrated earlier. Recent migration research shows that analysis, Pande (2007) highlighted the need female migrants constitute roughly half of all to incorporate a gender perspective in the

Women Workers on the Move

globalization debate and argued that women in the informal sector with poor access to land, credit, education and health facilities remain marginalized despite globalization. They are often exploited by being made to work long hours and paid low wages, and they lack voice and participation, which further restricts their upward mobility at the workplace. Several studies in India have focused on the motivation and reasons behind migration of different groups—the element of choice or compulsions of survival due to the segmentation of the labour market, its implications in terms of security and status—at both source and destination areas. While for the poorest, it is a forced livelihood response arising from a complex set of social relations, including those of debt and dependency, for others it is a positive opportunity to save, accumulate capital or invest in assets (Rao, 2009). From Rao (2009) and related literature, we find that migration for majority of women is a survival strategy rather than an accumulation route. Migration plays a pivotal role in the economy of the southern Indian state of Kerala. The demographic advancement of Kerala’s population has resulted in a situation where the state has a diaspora of the size of nearly three million, while for its domestic requirements, it depends on a migrant workforce of almost the same size (Benoy & Narendran, 2017). Workers from beyond south India take care of most of the low-skilled, low-valued jobs at present. Kerala has about 2.5 million migrant workers from other parts of India. Out of the total interstate migrant workers, 46 per cent are from West Bengal, followed by Odisha (15%) and Assam (11%) (Kerala Economic Review, 2016). The interstate migrant workers in Kerala are engaged in different types of employment, including agriculture, construction, hotel and restaurants, domestic work and manufacturing. The general trend shows that nearly 60 per cent of the interstate migrant workers are engaged in the construction sector.

409

Domestic Migrant Labour in Kerala, a study completed in February 2013 (Narayana, Venkiteswaran & Joseph, 2013), adopted a unique train-based survey of domestic migrant labour (DML) to estimate their stock and the annual inflow. The train survey covered all the 63 long-distance trains entering Kerala through Kasaragod and Palakkad and generated estimates of the stock of DML of over 2.5 million, annual arrivals of 0.235 million, and remittances of over `175 billion a year. If we add 0.23 million annually, the stock of in-­migrants in Kerala can be estimated to be around 3.9 million in 2019. Over 75 per cent of the DML come from five states, namely Uttar Pradesh, Assam, West Bengal, Bihar and Odisha. These findings are closer to the Interstate Migration Survey conducted at the Centre for Development Studies (CDS) (Moses & Rajan, 2012; Rajan & Sumeetha, 2015). The largely male workforce, aged 18–35 years, uses friends and relatives as the main channel of migration, and they mostly work under contractors and get employment for 6–7 days a week. Whereas, 60 per cent of them are employed in the construction sector, their presence is also felt in hospitality, manufacturing, trade and agriculture. The skill sets range from unskilled to skilled carpentry, masonry, electrician and the like. Over 70 per cent of them earned wages above `300 per day in 2012, remitting `70,000 per person per year, almost entirely through banking channels.

STRUCTURE OF THE CHAPTER After the brief introduction on gender and migration in India, this chapter looks at female migrant workers who come to Kerala from different parts of India. In order to understand this phenomenon, the chapter relies on the Interstate Migrant Survey, 2012 (conducted by CDS, Thiruvananthapuram). It analyses the wage differentials of male and female migrants and workers, looks at the remittance data and closely talks about financial inclusion.

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

DATA AND METHODOLOGY The chapter is based on the findings of the Interstate Migrant Survey, 2012, conducted by the CDS, Thiruvananthapuram, funded by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs. The need for the Interstate Migrant Survey emerged from two very pressing reasons. First, the intensity and inflow of migrant workers into the state from different parts of the country has increased tremendously, and therefore, requires adequate attention. Second, the working and living conditions of migrant workers are precarious, even in a labour-friendly state like Kerala. So far, few studies have been conducted in this area, and therefore, this would be a pioneering effort to account for the invisible migrant workers in the state. Five major sectors across four districts were chosen for the survey. This included construction, casual work, gold industry workers, self-employed, industry workers and domestic workers. The sample size was 500, distributed across these districts (2,000 individual migrants). The choice of these sectors resulted from the basic premise that it was difficult for migrant workers to find work in the organized sectors of the economy, and hence, migrants would be located in large numbers in the aforementioned unorganized sectors. Migrants came mainly from Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Odisha. The survey showed that nearly 22 per cent of migrants were from West Bengal. There were many workers from the Northeast and other northern states of India. Unlike the migration pattern in the early 1980s, which comprised migrants from Tamil Nadu in a vast majority, at present, there are migrants from all other parts of India who come to Kerala mainly for semi-skilled and unskilled work. The survey data reveals that the mean age of female migrants is 30 years (Table 29.1). Some of these women are associated migrants who accompanied their husbands to Kerala

Table 29.1  Average Age of Female Migrants in Kerala Female Number of Workers

Mean Age

Construction and repair

95

31

Self-employed

57

30

Casual worker

65

31

Industrial worker

61

26

Gold industry

31

30

Domestic worker

93

29

402

30

Sector

Total

Source: Inter-state Migrant Survey (2012).

and then joined the workforce. At construction sites are young unmarried women who travel in a group and go back to their villages when projects are over. Such women come from mainly Odisha and Jharkhand. They stay in makeshift tents at the construction sites along with other members. The Muttatara Sewage Plant work in Thiruvananthapuram undertaken by the Kerala Government is a huge site with young women workers recruited in large numbers, particularly from the aforementioned states. These women move to other destinations along with their group once the work undertaken is over. They are mainly unmarried young women in the age group of 15–25 years. There are some women who migrate to Kerala due to marriage and then enter the labour force. Thus, the pattern of temporary migration in India is reflected in the age composition of the migrant workers. It is the young workforce that moves across long distances in search of employment. Table 29.2 shows that across all sectors, despite the variation, in income received, women migrants save and remit money. Remittances are considered to be an important element in sustaining migration. Women who migrate to Kerala minimize expenses and send money back home. The migration decision is often based on the notion that wages in Kerala are relatively higher than wages in any other

411

Women Workers on the Move

Table 29.2  Average Wages, Remittance and Savings with Female and Employment Sector Wages

Remittance

Savings

Sector

N

Mean (in `)

N

Mean (in `)

N

Mean (in `)

Construction and repair

95

7,979

91

5,140

65

1,482

Self-employed

57

6,796

47

3,283

46

2,157

Casual worker

65

6,399

54

3,750

44

1,923

Industrial worker

61

7,108

57

4,729

45

1,362

Gold industry

31

8,932

31

4,581

25

2,956

Domestic worker

93

5,859

86

3,659

72

1,419

402

7,007

366

4,237

297

1,743

Total

Source: Inter-state Migrant Survey (2012). Note: ‘N’ stands for the number of respondents.

state of India. Migration can provide new opportunities to improve women’s lives and change oppressive gender relations by breaking traditional patriarchal relations. However, migration can also cement traditional roles and inequalities and make women more vulnerable to exploitation and exclusion. It is observed that women may have little influence on migration decisions in the household. Even where women migrate alone, this is likely to be with reference to, or even determined by, the household livelihood strategy and expectations of contributions through remittances (Jolly & Reeves, 2005). Female migrants tend to remit more of their income to their families than male migrants do. This appears to be the case for both international migrants and internal migrants. However, female migrants often earn less than their male counterparts, so, the total revenue available for remittances may be lower. Studies of remitting behaviour of internal migrants show that ‘a woman’s age and marital status are more important in determining whether she migrates or not than a man’s’ (De Haan, 2000). An interesting observation from the survey is the mode of remittances of migrants. For two sets of migrant workers, male and female, employed in the same sector, possession of bank accounts showed a significant difference among both (Table 29.3). While 33 per cent of migrant men working in construction and

repair possessed bank accounts, only 12 per cent of women working in the same sector had bank accounts. It was observed that in all the sectors surveyed, men had better access to financial services than women. It may also be that one male member of the family handled the finances of female migrants. This raises questions of how financially inclusive are female migrants and how empowering a strategy like migration is. The study clearly showed that for most women, migration was Table 29.3  Possession of Bank Account

Male

Bank Account

Yes

No

Construction and repair

110

242

352

Self-employed

55

189

244

Casual worker

36

264

300

Industrial worker

56

182

238

121

160

281

49

220

269

427

1,257

1,684

Construction and repair

12

83

95

Self–employed

11

46

57

Casual worker

7

58

65

Industrial worker

11

50

61

Gold industry

15

16

31

Domestic worker

10

83

93

Total

66

336

402

Gold industry Domestic worker Total Female

Source: Inter-state Migrant Survey (2012).

Total

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Table 29.4  Daily Wages with Sex and Employment Sector Males Employment sector

Mean (in `)

Females N

Mean (in `)

N

Construction and repair

353

352

305

95

Self-employed

365

238

260

57

Casual worker

356

300

246

65

Industrial worker

341

238

274

61

Gold industry

346

272

331

28

Domestic worker

290

269

233

93

Total

342

1,669

269

399

Source: Inter-state Migrant Survey (2012). Note: ‘N’ stands for the number of respondents. Table 29.4 shows as that in all the five sectors, the average daily wages for female migrants are less than those for male migrants. In certain sectors, like industrial sector and goldwork, women work lesser hours as they are allowed to work in shifts. Women migrants in these occupations do more of the unskilled work and rarely get a chance for upward mobility. However, compared with other states in India, this difference is not very wide.

just a survival strategy, whereas men saw migration as an accumulation strategy. Thus, the whole experience of migration is different for male and female workers. In a study on migrant workers in the Ernakulam district, Prasad-Aleeyamma (2017) point out that migrant workers who were working at a biogas plant construction site in Edathala in the Ernakulam district, had comparable work and wages with agriculture in the Sundarbans in West Bengal and in construction work in Kerala. The daily wage was `80 or `90 for work in tobacco fields in the Sundarbans. At the gas plant construction site, it was `225 (Prasad-Aleeyamma, 2017). Mann (2007) points out that jobs can be defined as unskilled either because they are the province of ‘inferior’ workers or to ensure that ‘undesirable’ tasks are performed by ‘undesirable’ people, regardless of their abilities or experience. This resonates with the work of feminist economists in exposing skill as a gendered category where ‘women’s work’ is identified as unskilled work (Phillips & Taylor, 1980). In gold jewellery work, there are no women designing workers, whereas a large number of local as well as female migrant workers are employed in soldering and in machine-made gold jewellery production.

Within India, Kerala is unusual. For several decades, it departed from the general national pattern due to specificities in class formation and the institutional linkages that emerged from repeated cycles of class-based contestation and state (Heller, 1999). Despite the extent of political consciousness in Kerala, migrant workers are alienated in the state. Questioned on whether local unions approach the workers, none of the female workers in construction and repair sector had been approached by local unions. Even though unions are reluctant to approach male migrant workers, there are a few who have been called for negotiations by local trade unions. This underlines the fact that female migrant workers have a precarious existence as they are not even recognized as wage earners. Because most women do not have prior experience of handling their finances, they rely on relatives and friends to send back money home (Table 29.5). Their migrant male counterparts remit mostly through the banking channel as they have better access to banks and other financial institutions. The mobility of women, particularly in many parts of Southeast Asia, is limited, as young girls and women are earners of the family. This, however, is changing rapidly in major towns and cities as in the post-reform

413

Women Workers on the Move

Table 29.5  Mode of Remittance by Sex and Employment Sector

Male

Female

Construction and repair

Not Reported

Banks

Private Individuals

Private Agencies

Through Others Bank Account

Others

0

200

55

10

70

0

335

Total

Self-employed

1

108

75

17

31

0

232

Casual worker

0

64

73

51

98

1

287

Industrial worker

0

131

64

2

36

0

233

Gold industry

3

129

87

1

47

0

267

Domestic worker

0

98

98

13

46

0

255

Total

4

730

452

94

328

1

1,609

Construction and repair

0

20

39

11

21

91

Self-employed

0

9

22

0

16

47

Casual worker

0

8

36

1

9

54

Industrial worker

0

17

31

1

8

57

Gold industry

2

16

7

0

3

28

Domestic worker

0

21

41

1

19

82

Total

2

91

176

14

76

359

Source: Inter-state Migrant Survey (2012).

period ‘while the loosening of restrictions on physical mobility are seen as a hallmark of modernity, any attempts to restrict women’s access to education and work constitute proof of backwardness’ (Ganguly-Scrase & Vandenbroek, 2005). Improved access to education and better health facilities may still not facilitate women’s contribution to economic growth and lead to reduction in gender inequality unless accompanied with women’s increased participation in the labour force and change in the overall mindset and attitudes (Arora, 2012). Because women are ready to work for any wage and are perceived as passive and docile, they are in great demand, contributing to feminization of labour and feminization of labour migration. No doubt these labour market changes have had their impact on rural–urban migration as well, female economic migration being more pronounced in the recent 10–15 years (Shanthi, 2006). Women migrants and, most of all circular female labour migrants are acutely vulnerable. They tend to gain entry to labour markets only

by taking the most precarious jobs and have little prospect of upward mobility. Despite locating to different labour markets, women migrants in Kerala face formidable challenges. This includes lack of upward mobility in their jobs, lack of collective bargaining to address wage issues and lack of access to financial services, to name a few. Migration experiences can be fruitful only if there are policies to protect women migrants and address the issues they face.

REFERENCES Arora, R. U. (2012). Gender inequality, economic development, and globalization: A state level analysis of India. The Journal of Developing Areas, 46(1), 147– 164. Benoy, P. & Narendran, V. (2017). God’s own workforce unravelling labour migration to Kerala. Ernakulam: Centre for Migration and Inclusive Development. Braverman, H. (1979). Labour and monopoly capital: The degradation of work in the twentieth century. New York: Monthly Review Press.

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Chatterjee, C. B. (2006). Identities in motion, migration and health in India. Mumbai: Centre for Enquiry into Health and Allied Themes. de Haan, A. (2000). Migrants, livelihoods and rights: The relevance of migration in development policies (Social Development Working Paper No. 4). London: Department for International Development. Ganguly-Scrase, R. & Vandenbroek, D. (2005). Globalisation, liberalisation and the transformation of women’s work in India. Paper presented at the TASA Conference, 2005. Heller, P. (1999). The labor of development: Workers and the transformation of capitalism in Kerala, India. Ithaca, NY and London: Cornell University Press. Inter-State Migrant Survey (ISMS) (2012). Thiruvananthapuram: Centre for Development Studies. Jolly, S. & Reeves, H. (2005). Gender and migration. Overview Report, BRIDGE, IDS, Sussex Kerala Economic Review (2016), Government of Kerala. Mann, G. (2007). Our daily bread: Wages, workers, and the political economy of the American West. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press. Moses, J. W. & Irudaya Rajan, S. (2012). Labour migration and integration in Kerala. Labour and Development 19 (1, June): 1–18. Narayana, D. N., Venkiteswaran, C. S., & Joseph, M. P. (2013). Domestic migrant labour. Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Gulati Institute of Finance and Taxation.

Phillips, A. & Taylor, B. (1980). Sex and skill: Notes towards a feminist economics. Feminist Review, 6(1980), 79–88. Prasad-Aleyamma, M. (2017). The cultural politics of wages: Ethnography of construction work in Kochi, India. Contributions to Indian Sociology, 51 (2), 163–193. ———. (2017). The cultural politics of wages: Ethnography of construction work. Contributions to Indian Sociology, 51(2). Rao, N. (2009). Gender differences in migration opportunities, educational choices and well-being. Development Research Centre on Migration, Globalisation and Poverty, Sussex: University of Sussex. Rajan, S. I. & Sumeetha, M. (2015). Struggle, survival and the promise of a new future: Living and working conditions of migrant workers in Kerala, India: A post-­ liberalisation scenario. In S I. Rajan (Ed.), India migration report, gender and migration. London: Routledge. Shanthi, K. (2006). Female labour migration in India: insights from NSSO data (Vol. 4). Madras School of Economics. Umesh Arora, Rashmi. (2012). Gender inequality, economic development, and globalization: A state level analysis of India. The Journal of Developing Areas, 46(1), 147–164. Waite, L. (2001). Kerala’s informal labour market interventions: From work to wellbeing? Economic and Political Weekly, 36(26), 2393–2397.

30 Narratives of Left-Behind Women Neha Rai*

INTRODUCTION Migration has been an important phenomenon in eastern Uttar Pradesh (UP) since the people of eastern UP, that is, Azamgarh, Jaunpur, Gazhipur and Banaras, migrated as indentured labour to Dutch colonies such as Mauritius, Surinam, Guyana, Trinidad and Fiji in 1830 after abolishment of slavery (Narayan, 2005). But it was transnational migration, also known as a new form of slavery (Tinker, 1993). After independence, Article 19(1)(d) and Article 19(1)(e) part iii of the Constitution of India declared movement of people as a fundamental right, that is, ‘All citizens shall have the right to move freely throughout the territory of India, to reside, and settle in any part of the territory of India’. This established internal migration as a constitutional right. Internal migration can be defined as physical mobility of an individual to a different administrative territory to reside but within the national boundary. Typically, this is a change in residence that crosses provincial or urban

boundaries (Bhagat, 2011). Earlier, there was little information about internal migration in the census of India; only few reports were available with some descriptive and linguistic material because earlier people used to cross only village boundaries of their ancestral land for cultivation (Bhagat, 2012). Construction of railways made movement easier for the people in the colonial period (Chattopadhyay, 1987). Internal migration was paid serious attention by scholars such as Everett S. Lee (1966), Kingsley Davis (1951) and K. C. Zachariah (1964) due to population growth and its socio-economic implications. Earlier, migration was a subject for geographers, demographers and economists only, but nowadays it is popular among sociologists. Being a social phenomenon, it is important to understand the social aspects of migration such as identity, gender discrimination and gender relations in the migration process. The trend of internal migration became more prevalent after globalization, which brought a significant change in rural areas. Lack of employment, less

* The author sincerely thanks Dr Archana Singh and Dr Kunal Keshri of G. B. Pant Social Science Institute for their suggestions and comments.

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profitable agriculture and small landholding capacity in rural areas and better infrastructures in urban centres attracted people and compelled them to migrate (Keshri & Bhagat, 2013). According to the 2001 Census, employment is the main reason for male migration, whereas social conditions like marriage are shown as a prevalent reason for female migration. Around 30 per cent of the total population is engaged in internal migration, of which 70.7 per cent is female; but the data on the population of left-behind women is not considered as they are not migrants, although they are an important component that feels the impact of the migration process. As per Thapan (2005), mainstream migration theory perceives migration as being a male movement with women being left behind or following their menfolk as dependents. Whenever migration data is documented or analysed, the reports cover only the people who have migrated. In this case, only the figures of the known ones are derived, that is, the migrants. There are no figures of any other persons who were left behind in the homeland, which means that they are not considered a part of the migration process. In rural environments where women socialize in a traditional way, they are always taught to depend on men, and then they are married into a new and unknown environment. In both the cases, whether women migrate with the male members or are left behind, they face contestation due to their socialization. In the case of arranged marriages, they leave their old surroundings and come to a new environment where they do not know anyone; they are even unfamiliar to their husbands. In such an environment, after the husband’s migration, she has to struggle alone. This difficulty becomes more severe for those who are in a nuclear family setup. The joint family is also quite distressing for newly married women, so women prefer to live in their own maternal homes. Thus, mostly, rural–urban migration does not involve all members of the family. Generally, men leave women at the native place due to familial and cultural obligations

(Parashuraman, 1989). Therefore, more and more male migrants take up non-­agricultural work in small towns and big cities. This male migration is reshaping the traditional socio-economic structure of rural India, where females have to take over all the responsibilities of the male members also.

NEED FOR THE STUDY Earlier migration discourse analysis was done on the basis of sex (men–women) which represented migration as a male phenomenon. Yet, women have always been present in migratory flows, traditionally as wives, daughters and dependents of male migrants, but were never considered as a part of the workforce. Integration of gender in migration studies emerged in the 1970s when scholars used the ‘add women and stir’ approach (HondagneuSotelo, 2000; Indra 1999; Kofman, 2000). The feminist view of gender as a ‘social construct’ has raised questions that have fuelled most of the research in the study of women and migration over the last decade that is related to patriarchy, hierarchies of power and domination. How does patriarchy, which gives men preferential access to the resources available in society, affects women’s ability to migrate, the timing of that migration and the final destination? Connell (1987, pp. 279–304) described four dimensions of gender relations, power, production, emotional and symbolic, which interact with one another in social institutions, with each institution having a particular regime of gender relations that shape and construct people’s individual gender performance. Incorporation of feminist theory of gender in migration provides a new perspective to analyse how gender identity affects migration, and it begins with the decision of who will migrate. The role of women as mothers and wives affects the decision process of the migration. It is the role associated with her gender identity which helps us understand

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why women are less involved in the process of migration. Migration studies still need to focus on gender more intensely to understand and analyse women’s experiences. If we see the migrant men and women with childrearing responsibility, both have different experiences because they have different roles regarding children. Therefore, gender consciousness allows a researcher to choose an appropriate variable and ask the right question to investigate gender and migration (Nawyan, 2010). This biased consciousness makes left-behind women invisible in migration studies. Their socio-economic contributions and unique experiences are not taken into account. Therefore, it is obvious that migration is not a gender-neutral phenomenon. Our perspective towards migration is gender-biased, all the statistics, literature and stories neglect women’s physical, psychological and economic contributions. From the first step of migration, the time of decision-making process, women’s aims, aspirations, outcomes and experiences are entirely different from that of men. There is still a need to understand left-behind women’s contribution in migration. They are the support system for migrants. After male migration, women bear the double burden of household work and agriculture. In spite of all, they are assumed to be beneficiaries passing life on remittances. Migration discourse is guided by social and patriarchal stereotypes. These stereotypes affect the lives of left-­behind women as well as the migration studies and gender discourse. Some of the scholars argued that migration empowered left-behind women (Desai & Bannerji, 2008; Gulati, 1983, 1987), but it is a ‘pseudo empowerment’ because they just follow their husband’s orders and are not actual decision makers. The lives of women need to be re-examined by a gendered lens.

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Studies attempt to understand the impact of migration on left-behind women and examine their aspirations1 from migration.

FIELD, DATA SOURCES AND METHODOLOGY This chapter is based on a primary field survey that used qualitative methods for data collection and analysis. A sociologist seeks to explain social phenomena and social behaviour which can be understood by observing a situation and feeling it. Any emotions, aspirations and experiences are the results of social behaviour that cannot be quantified. The study area is the village of Chakkamarali in the Azamgarh district of UP. This village was purposefully selected based on the high rate of male migration. The total population of the village is 761, out of which 246 men have migrated to Delhi, Mumbai, Gujarat and other places.2 Landholding capacity is remarkably low among the lower class but they do not want to work as agriculture labourers at the native place due to fear of exploitation and humiliation and also because agriculture is less profitable here. The sex ratio of the district is positive3 and in the village too, but the women population is higher due to left-behind population. Left-behind women4 of this village are mainly in the age group of 30–40 years in the upper caste and 20–30 years in lower castes. Male migrants are in the age group of 20–40 years. I mostly interviewed newly married women in the age group of 20–30 years. I did not found any variation in male age groups among upper- and lower-caste males because they all move freely and are

Aspiration here means the desires and hopes that women have as an outcome from the migration process; especially the non-quantifiable ones. 2 Field diary, 2015. 3 According to Census 2011, the sex ratio of Azamgarh is 1,000:1,019. 4 In this chapter, left-behind women indicate those women whose husbands have migrated to cities and are engaged in informal-sector work like construction, labour work, shopkeeper or work in a company. 1

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supposed to take responsibility of their families as breadwinners. In the poorer households entire families migrate rather than in well-off families. Sometimes, they send their 8-12-year-old children to urban areas who work in shops or in hotels as waiters. In the rural areas, there is a tradition where parents prefer male migrants as grooms because marriage is supposed to result in upward mobility and socio-economic security for the women (Palriwala & Uberoi, 2008, p. 31). Marriage is the only means to fulfil dreams and aspirations among the women and living with husband is one of those dreams and aspirations. However, couple migration among rural poor families is a rare phenomenon. Being poor and unskilled, they are not sure of their earning at destination and for fear of losing whatever land they have, husbands prefer to migrate alone and wives do not migrate with them. Data collection methods are divided into three phases. In the first phase, I conducted a focused group discussion to identify the respondents using an open-ended questionnaire with 35 left-behind women out of whom 19 women belonged to lower castes and 18 belonged to upper castes. In the second phase, to verify previous data, I conducted in-depth interviews of 20 left-behind women with baat se baat methodology5 and interviewed 10 male migrants to understand the views of the men about their left-behind wives and their lives. In the third phase, I interviewed two respondents, one from an upper caste and another from a lower caste, as case studies who were very articulate, vibrant and outspoken (identified during focused group discussion). Narrative analysis6 was done to analyse left-behind women’s struggles and aspirations and to document their everyday life experiences.

NARRATIVES OF LEFT-BEHIND WOMEN The process of migration has a constraining effect on left-behind women not only in structural but in cultural terms too. Sometimes alienation and struggle may lead to abuse, exploitation and psychological distress. However, migration starts with a positive hope of life for one, but for others, it creates complexities which affect their lives and identities. This study tries to document the everyday life struggles of women, how they cope with the situation of migration. I found almost similar narratives among upper-caste women and different among lower-caste women. To examine the situations, I have presented two different narratives related to lower and upper caste left-behind women to understand their lives.

First Narratives Anamika7 is a left-behind woman belonging to a lower caste. She lives in a nuclear family. Her husband is Subham who does construction work in Delhi. She earns `100–150 per day despite being illiterate. After finishing household work, she gets busy with the agriculture work. When her husband was at home, he helped in different ways in household work, preparation of food, taking care of children, farming, caring for the livestock and outside work, especially going to the market. In the absence of male members, these tasks are completely transferred to their wives. The worst problem faced by them is having to borrow money from anyone in the village. When the women try to borrow money from people, they say, ‘There is no faith in the woman’s caste, do not know whether she will return the money or not ... We work all the time in Babu’s fields and they do not trust us’ (aurat jati ka kouno

The talk (baat) which is used during participant and semi-participant observation to document the everyday life (Narayan, 2011, p. 32). 6 Narrative analysis is the cognitive process that organizes human experiences into temporally meaning episodes. It has four processes, namely coding, categories, theme and pattern (Polkighorne, 1988, p. 1). 7 The names of the respondents have been changed to protect their privacy. 5

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bharosa nahi ho pata, nahi payisa lotayi ke na, ham rat din baboo logan ke khete me kaam kartat hayi aur unke hamre pe bharose na). This implies that no one trusts a woman’s character or her willpower that she will pay off money by herself. While a man can be trusted to honour his commitment and pay back a loan, the community appears to be less willing to trust a woman in the same circumstances. With women, this difficulty comes across clearly. Left-behind women are not benefitted by the Indira Awas Yojana and other government welfare programmes because ‘nobody is listening to women’s voice’ (aurat ke baat kehu na sunat hai). Another male member of the village, who stays in the village, said that the Gram Pradhan passes their application for the above poverty line (APL) and below poverty line (BPL) cards and house loans under the Pradhanmantri Aawas Yojana. These women face struggle in their everyday lives. Some of the previous literature in migration (Deshingkar, Kumar, Chobey & Kumar, 2006; Srivastava 2011) argue that though remittances are the primary sources of income, but it is not true in case of the informal sector. There are many irregularities in their incomes. To compensate these irregularities, left-behind women start working to generate income, and sometimes, they borrow money for everyday life expenses. After male migration, they face problems as beneficiaries. They are more vulnerable than women whose husbands are with them. The process can be understood by the notion of structural violence as violence is built in to the structure and is reflected into groups as unequal power, life chances and social injustice (Galtung, 1969, p. 171). Women are also victims of the cultural violence which internalizes the symbolic sphere of the their existence, like religion and ideology, language and art. Thus, culture creates invisible marks on their body, which are necessary to be understood for academia because marks of physical violence are easily visible on the body but those on the mind and spirit are not easily visible.

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Anamika’s day begins at 5 am. For breakfast, she cooks roti sabji. Sometimes she uses food left over from the previous evening. She works in the fields for 4–5 hours. In the afternoon, she comes home, cooks rice for the family, which is eaten with some dal and vegetable or sauce (khunua) made with garlic, chilli and mustard oil. Sometimes, she cannot go home due to the workload. Then her children bring food to the farm. The main meal is cooked in the evenings, which is again rice and/or ‘chapattis’ with lentils (rarely a vegetable) and/or salt and chillies and sometimes non-vegetarian food. Her elder girls look after the younger siblings when she is out for work. Girls help the mother inside the home while the boys work outside. In the society, women play multiple roles because compared with men, women have more responsibilities. Men are only responsible to earn money, whereas women have the responsibility of childbearing and rearing as well as earning an income. If you see them in this way, that is when the woman is working, a woman has double responsibilities. Historically, women from all communities have been restricted for outside mobility, but migration has freed them from this. She said that, ‘If you do not get out, how you will do your work. Being a queen will not work.’ (agar ham bahar na nikalbe ta kaise kaam chali, rani banake ghare me baithle se ta kaam na chalina). It reflects that women across lower classes have become more mobile and have started going out of the village for work errands and leisure more frequently than they did earlier. However, this mobility is seen by them as obligations. In the lower castes, where women have always been more mobile and faced very few restrictions, women said that there were no changes in the situation regarding their movement outside the village, as they were fairly mobile in the past too, and continued being so and she felt very confident that she knows more about work than her husband does. When I asked about her husband, whether he helps in fieldwork when he comes back, she replied, ‘The man does not

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want to work in the fields of the upper-class people and prevents his wives too. For two months, sit in the house without any employment but do not work on anyone’s farm. This makes me irritating. Whenever I asked my husband for money for household expenditure, mostly he denied due to low income. A few days ago, I celebrated my grandchildren’s birth ceremony. I spent entire expenses on my behalf…’ (aadmi baboo logan ke khet me kaam na kare chahele aur hamke bhi mana krele ek – do mahina ghar pe hi baithe rahte hai phir chale jate hai lekin baithle se kharch nahi chali, kam kare ke bhi mana krihe aur jab kuch paisa manga ta bolihe abhi na hai kuch, dhandha me bahut manda chalet hai, poora kharch apne bal par karat hai abhi pote ka bdhawer tha ek paisa nahi dihale. Bhut dukh hai bina paisa ke… ek din na chale payi). She visualizes herself a self-dependent woman because she is capable of earning her expenditure. She goes every second or third day to the village market located at a distance of 1 km and buys everything that she needs. In this way, left-behind women belonging to lower castes consider themselves competent enough to earn their livelihoods instead of depending on remittance, and their mobility can result in making them confident, and more responsibilities can bring them into contact with relatives. Nevertheless, they are still in the clutches of patriarchy. Without the permission of their husbands and relations, they cannot spend money and remittances, and they also need permission for management of the household and socio-cultural occasions. They are dependent for even small decisions such as which crop is to be planted. The situation of women in internal migration cannot be defined precisely because their husbands keep coming home after a period of time, and in such situations, women are not able to develop an independent position. They have to wait for the husband’s arrival and all decisions are made by the husbands. They guide their wives 8

on mobile phones, and after earning a small amount, they start planning to improve their own position and are engaged in various strategies to maximise security for their women. But these left-behind women are not willing to follow the exact guidelines defined by the social and cultural structure. They bargain for their freedom and negotiate, sometimes explicitly, sometimes implicitly. This situation is called patriarchal bargaining,8 which indicates the flexibility of patriarchy limits and the negotiation capacity of women in their own households.

Second Narratives ‘Nayiharao k sudh bhul gayel piyava gaiyele jab pardesh’ (I have forgotten even my parental house in absence of my husband due to extra burden). This is the pain felt by a left-­ behind woman whose husband has migrated to Mumbai. When I asked her how she feels when her husband goes to the city, through this song, she painted the whole picture of the pain of left-behind women. The aforementioned line emphasizes that one place women love most is their parent’s home, but she has forgotten that place too due to overburden since her husband has gone away from her. Since her husband left, she has forgotten all her previous relations. Gouri is a newly married upper-caste woman. Her husband works in hotels. She lives with her parents-in-law in a joint family. Her husband comes home twice for 15–20 days in a year because he is paid on a daily basis. In the absence of her husband, she gets all comforts in her home because, as she said, daughters-in-law are not allowed to step out from the home in our caste (hum logen k biradari me bahu gher se baher na nikalihe). All the necessary needs are fulfilled by the in-laws. When I asked has she ever wanted to go with her husband, she said, ‘in our house elder daughters-in-law only get an

This term is derived from Kandiyoti’s article, ‘Bargaining with Patriarchy’ (1988).

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order to go with husband after the coming of the second daughter-in-law and I shall not even go till my children will be able to study.’ (‘humar ghare me dusari bahu jab aa jahihe tab pahli bahu ke baher jaye ke aadesh milela, humke ta tab tak na aadesh mili jab tak ladika- ladki pdhe- likhe layek na ho jay, tab hi ghar se bahere jaye ke mili, eske phle nahi.’) She is obliged to wait for their children to grow up, then, she should take them to the city for admission in a good school. She has a strong desire to accompany her husband but she is held back by her parents-in-law because a daughter-in-law is assumed to be an unpaid servant for household and no one wants to allow her to go outside, as she said, ‘Why would mother-in-law want to go? For her, I am the free unpaid servant. Work all day in the house and then serve them in the evening if we go then who will do all these work. (‘saas kahe ke jaye dihe unake mufat ka nouker jo mil gayel h ghar me pura din kaam kari phir saam ke unke seva, ager ham chali jayib to ke kari sara kaam’). The absence of her husband leads to emotional and psychological loss and this pain is felt more by those newly married women who live in joint families, as they face difficulties in communicating with the older members of the family about their emotions and other needs, due to cultural and traditional constraints. When husbands are in the house, the wives easily communicate with the elders in the family through him. Some of them are positive about joint-family settings because in the absence of their husbands, they can feel secure with the family. Some of them regret the long absence of the male member of the family because tradition bars these women from expressing personal emotions towards the husband. It is in fact considered shameful and immodest to express love for the husband and to complain of loneliness in his absence. They feel helpless in this situation, as they do not have any idea of the company to the husband. Women expect migrants to bring presents for them and their family. They like to show off all that is brought. It is a measure

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of the migrant’s success in the city. Women say that their husbands bring utensils, perfumes, soaps, oil, cloths and such from the city. Mobile plays a vital role in left-behind women’s lives. They talk for at least 4–5 hours in a day, but after it, they are not satisfied and say, ‘On the phone, only we can talk …can’t do anything else… (in terms of sexual needs) do not get to see the face, just hear the voice.’ (Phone par bas batiya skila na aur kuch ta na ho skela na muh ta nahi dekhala na bas awaj sunke hi santosh krai ke hola), this implies psychological loss among women and they feel very insecure about extramarital affairs of their husbands. In the rural context, men’s prolonged absence has many implications on women’s social lives. In the cultural context, the presence of adult men is crucial to household security, decision-making and mobility. If a woman has a desire to dress up nicely, family members say, ‘for whom are you getting ready? No one is going to see you here. But no one understands that females like to do fashion. Does female not fashion before marriage. Is husband necessary for this?’ (Kahe k liye etna taiyaar ho, kehu na dekhe vala h tohke lekin kehuna samjhela k ladki ka to shouk hi hola taiyaar hokhe k, ka ladki sadi se phile na taiyaar honi ta esme pati vali baat kaha se aa gayal’). This statement shows that women have to even dress up based on their husbands’ presence. Woman are supposed to be incomplete without their husbands, they have bound their lives to their husbands, their hobbies, likes or dislikes have no existence, but the same thing is not applicable to a man. He is free to move anywhere and wear dresses of any type. As economic imperatives force men to move away from their homes and villages for long periods of time, an unprecedented change is taking place in the position of women in the household’s realm and social sphere. In particular, these changes are visible in relation to women’s status, responsibility and challenges as they cope with the new reality of the long and frequent absence of their husbands.

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DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION In society, roles of men and women are defined according to social values ​​and cultural activities (Okaly & Hartley, 1974; Butler, 2008). Women have the responsibility to take care of the family and household chores, whereas men are always struggling to earn livelihoods. Women, especially in the upper caste, are forced to stay in the house even after being literate. Their husbands do not allow them to work outside of the house. They are not supposed to be decision makers and men have to maintain their caste superiority by keeping their women within fixed boundaries. They struggle between the social traditions and values and their aspirations. At any circumstance, they are not allowed to leave their traditions because they have been socialized to the internalized notion of a good woman (bhadra mahila)9 and a bad woman since childhood. As Simon writes, ‘one is not born but one becomes women’. In the same way, since childhood, girls are taught to follow traditions, socio-cultural values and to sacrifice, as a result of which they cannot think about self-identity and equality. They are not supposed to be decision makers even in the physical absence of their male family members. Internal migration studies draw pictures of left-behind women as being empowered and independent, but still there is a silence on the issue of their experiences, aspirations and struggles. Until we do not document their hardships and experiences, they and their vulnerabilities will remain invisible in the migration process and discourse. Left-behind women look at migration as an opportunity through which they can forge their own identity by managing the outer and inner realms

alone. Thapan (2005) says that the identity of a person changes according to time, place and culture, but the women fail to establish their own social identities due to patriarchal and socio-cultural structures and traditions. Their identity is constructed through their husband’s position. Throughout their lives they remain dependent on their husbands and are forced to follow their decisions. Although in reality they play multiple roles, they are recognized only as housewives. Besides household chores, they manage agricultural work, struggle for seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, sometimes for loans and for their share in state benefits like public distribution system (PDS) and colonies. This study finds that there are differences in the life experiences of Dalit and upper-caste women, and in the same way, there are differences in their struggles and experiences. Dalit women have some freedom to work outside because of extreme financial constraints. Despite being illiterate, Dalit women earn livelihoods, and even though uppercaste women are undergraduates, they are not allowed to go out of the house; their education is just to fit them into the marriage market because nobody can bring illiterate daughtersin-law into their houses. Their education does not help in earning. Dalit women also aspire10 to go with their husbands. Migration should not be seen only as movement, it is a process affecting the lives of left-behind women. Without considering the issues and experiences of these women, we fail to see their struggles and make them invisible. Their absence in migration data also outs them from all welfare policies as disadvantaged groups, struggling with the double burden of work with no social and emotional

Bhadramahila is derived from the Bengali bhadralok which indicates respectable, educated and cultured women, that is, middle- and upper-class women, as distinguished from chhotolok, which means small people or the poorer, lower classes. Bhadramahila are the women of Bhadralok (Channa, 2013, pp. 50–58). 10 The term aspiration is defined according to the left-behind women’s point of view. They see migration not only as an opportunity in which they desire to gain economic security and avoid everyday struggles but also as freedom from patriarchal clutches to spend life leisurely. It is a different matter that they do not get all these at the destination. 9

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support. Socio-cultural values and aspirations of a woman are different from the gender roles assigned to her; these roles affect the quality of her life. This is the reason that she remains invisible from welfare programs and schemes and also migration policies. In social sciences, scholars ignoring women’s roles, aspirations and experiences make them invisible in migration, especially left-­ behind women. Migration discourse should be investigated with a gender lens that permeates every aspect of the migration experience to analyse gender as a system of power relations. Not only male migrants’ but left-­behind women’s lives should also be examined. Although the absence of men implies some changes, most men assume their traditional and patriarchal roles as soon as they return. In this way, migration of men does not bring a permanent change in the position of women from the restrictions of traditional and cultural roles. Men become insecure and suspicious about the idea of their women spending time and utilizing freedom in their absence. They are suspicious of some extramarital relations in their absence. Their perception of the left-­ behind women is unfavourable. Sometimes, they assume that women live in their homeland without any hurdles. They easily get remittances and just have the work of cooking and eating. They do not feel and understand the struggle of these women. Male migrants gain more authority and move upwards in the social realm as soon as they return home because they earn money to support their families. Kandiyoti (1988) used the term ‘patriarchal bargaining’ to describe this situation, how the constraint of patriarchy controlled the capability and negotiation capacity of left behind women. Thus, returned male migrants constraint women to express their feelings and desires, and they are obliged to pay full attention to the husband and again the position of the women starts becoming secondary in the household. It is very necessary to include left-behind women in the migration discourse. Women

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who are left behind in the village as a result of the migration process should get a separate construct to make them visible in migration data. It is the only way to consider them as claimants of benefits or migration policies. They should be made visible because being invisible means ‘not included in the statistics/discourse’. Whenever the states make welfare programmes for their people, they should count how many people affected from a particular phenomenon in their geographical area. Left-behind women are neglected at the origin from the first stage of counting as part of migration. Social security is also one of the prominent issues for these women. Male absence transforms a woman’s role into two separate roles, which creates contestation in her social life. On the one hand, she is supposed to bear all the responsibilities which are expected of women and manage her loneliness alone, and on the other hand, she has to struggle to manage household expenditure because remittances are not sufficient to take care of the household. Additionally, she has to take the role of men, especially in agriculture works. These two pressures work in opposite directions as patriarchal norms tell her to remain inside the house, and in contrast, economic necessity forces her to go outside to earn money. Neglecting left-behind women in migration policy is the reflection of patriarchal ideology of the academic world. These left-behind women play an important role in growing essential food grains for livelihood. Today, change in the rural scenario can be highlighted by the contribution of women in agricultural works. The main reason for the increased share of women in management of agriculture is the migration of men to the cities. Migration emerges as a cultural phenomenon in which one or two men migrate from each house. After migration, there is a need to balance labour in particular houses and communities where migration has occurred, and this balance is brought by women only. While in India the policymakers still believe that a farmer means a man, it is important to

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pay attention to the fact that women should also be known as farmers and the policymakers need to make available the mechanisms and financial resources with technical training for women. Available literature on gender and migration has failed to explore the relation between migration and those who do not migrate, even though they are the important parts of the migration process. Migration policies and any other labour laws do not address left-behind women. Historically, the rights of women had become entangled in the private and public dichotomy, and many issues which were kept in the purview of the law, like divorce, succession, marriage and land rights, were considered to be personal matters while for men all these were part of public life. Feminist viewpoint highlighted that personal is also political to improve the status of women. When left-behind women participate in public life in the absence of their husbands, then their rights should also be secured. The Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Act, 2008, provides some facilities like education, housing, maternity benefits and skills upgradation. But all these things should be provided to the left-­behind women too. First, they should be included in the database as labour and farmers, only then they will they get their rights. Invisibility of left-behind women is due to lack of awareness and political willpower. We should create space for the left-behind women too, the way migrants have rights, on some basic needs, like health, education and legal protection. Migration policy should focus on negotiating opportunity with training, employment and skills upgradation of women because they face many socio-cultural barriers to step out of their traditional realm. Awareness programmes that make women and their contribution visible in the migration phenomenon should be implemented, especially to remove gender differences and to change socio-­cultural attitudes. They should be considered as one of the most vulnerable groups and should get protection, training and finances to make them less vulnerable or

to move towards real empowerment. Kabeer (2005) defines agency as an ability to make and act on their own life choices, even in the face of others’ opposition. It is true in the context of left-behind women who want to change their life and world even in hard and restrictive situations. Now the question is to find where there is a possibility of their transformation into an efficient agency during the process of migration. Aforementioned description and discussion exhibit that when women are socialized in a traditional way, but they have to carry responsibility of their men too after migration. This changed situation and supposed freedom increase their burden and responsibilities. Absence of men increases their responsibility but they still have no authority. But still, the new situation of their interaction with the outer world may help them to transform into potential agency.

REFERENCES Channa, S. M. (2013). Gender in South Asia: Social imagination and constructed realities. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Chattopadhyaya, H. (1987). Internal migration in India: A case study of Bengal (Vol. 1). Columbia: South Asia Books. Gulati, L. (1983). Male migrants to the east and the impact on the family. Economic and Political Weekly, 18(52/53), 2217–2219, 2221–2226. Connell, R. W. (1987). Gender and power. Cambridge: Polity. Desai, S. & Banerji, M. (2008). Negotiate identities: Male migration and left behinds wives in India. Journal of Population Research, 25(3), 337–355. Deshingkar, P., Kumar, S., Chobey, H. K., & Kumar, D. (2006). The role of migration and remittances in promoting livelihoods in Bihar. Bihar Rural Livelihoods Project (BRLP) India. Galtung, J. (1969). Violence, peace, and peace research. Journal of Peace Research, 6(3), 167–191. Gulati, L. (1987). Coping with male migration. Economic and Political Weekly, 22(44), WS41–WS46. ———. (1993). In the absence of their men: Impact of male migration on women. New Delhi: SAGE ­Publications.

Narratives of Left-Behind Women

Hondagneu-Sotelo, P. (2000). Feminism and migration. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 571(1), 107–120. Kabeer, N. (2005). Gender equality and women’s empowerment: A critical analysis of the third millennium development goal 1. Gender & Development, 13(1), 13–24. Kandiyoti, D. (1988). Bargaining with patriarchy. Gender and Society 2, 274–290. Keshri, K. & Bhagat, R. B. (2013). Socioeconomic determinants of temporary labour migration in India: A regional analysis. Asian Population Studies, 9(2), 175–195. Kofman, E. (2000). Gender and international migration in Europe: Employment, welfare, and politics. London: Psychology Press. Lee, E. S. (1966). A theory of migration. Demography, 3(1), 47–57. Narayan, B. (2005). Bidesia: Migration, change and folk culture. Allahabad: NCZCC. ———. (2011). The making of the Dalit public in North India: Uttar Pradesh, 1950–Present. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. Palriwala, R. & Uberoi, P. (Eds.). (2008). Marriage, migration and gender (Vol. 5). New Delhi: SAGE Publications. Parshuraman, S. (1986). Migration and its effect on the family. Indian Journal of Social Work 47(1), 1–14.

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Rao, N. (2012a). Breadwinners and homemakers: Migration and changing conjugal expectation in rural Bangladesh. Journal of Development Studies, 48(1), 26–40. Rao, N. (2012b). Male ‘providers’ and female ‘housewives’: A gendered co-performance in rural North India. Development and Change, 43(5), 1025– 1048. Srivastava, R. & Shashikumar, S. K. (2003). An overview of migration in India: Its impact and issues. Regional Conference of Migration, Development and Pro-Poor Policy Choices in Asia, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Srivastava, R. S. (2011a). Internal migration in India. Background Paper prepared for the RPC Migrating Out of Poverty, Institute of Development Studies, Sussex. Thapan, M. (2005). Transitional migration and the politics of identity. New Delhi: SAGE Publications. Tinker, H. (1974). A new system of slavery: The export of Indian labour overseas 1830–1920. Published for the Institute of Race Relations by Oxford University Press, London. Zachariah, K. C. (1964). A historical study of internal migration in the sub-continent, 1901–31. Bombay: Asia Publishing House.

PART VI

Migration and Urbanization

31 Urban Migration and Policy Issues* R. B. Bhagat

THE URBAN CONTEXT Urbanization is a process historically linked to the level of economic development and social transformation. Demographically, it is measured as a proportion of the population living in urban centres that evolved over time to varying sizes. Large urban centres are recognized as drivers of economic growth because economic activities, communication services, educational and healthcare services and scientific and technological innovations are concentrated there. Urban centres also provide vital links to the rural areas and are instrumental in rural development. At the same time, sustainable urbanization and equity in the distribution of social and economic resources remain a great challenge globally, and more so for those countries which have been urbanizing faster. Apparently, India can

be characterized as a country with a low level of urbanization, as officially, 31 per cent of the population lived in urban areas as per the 2011 Census. The estimated level of urbanization for the year 2014 was 32 per cent of the population compared with 54 per cent at the global level. The rate of India’s urbanization, that is the annual percentage change in the proportion of the urban population, is higher (1.1%) than the global average (0.9%) (UN DESA, 2014). This shows that India has been urbanizing faster, like most countries in Asia and Africa, and its urban population is likely to grow from 410 million in 2014 to 814 million in 2050, with 50 per cent living in urban areas. However, paradoxically, India will also be a country with the largest rural population of about 805 million by 2050 (ibid.). So, while urbanization will be faster, the rural segment will continue to be substantial for many more

* This is the revised version of a background paper prepared for the World Migration Report 2015, International Organization for Migration (IOM). The author is thankful to IOM for support in writing this chapter.

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decades beyond the middle of the 21st century, when India is likely to achieve population stabilization. However, it may be noted that the comparison of the level of urbanization of India with either global average or any country is beset with definitional heterogeneity, as there is no standard definition of ‘urban’ at the global level. Thus, the definition of urban followed in a country matters in order to understand the relationship between urbanization and migration. The criteria of urban generally comprise one or more indicators such as civic status, size, agricultural density and percentage of non-­ workforce, and urban characteristics such as presence of paved roads, electricity, piped water, sewers and availability of education and health services. India follows a definition that consists of a combination of municipal status and demographic criteria. There is a variety of municipal status in India, such as Municipal Corporation, Municipality (Municipal Council, Municipal Board and Municipal Committee), Nagar Panchayat, Town area committee and Notified Area Committee. If a settlement has a municipal status, it is defined as urban. For the rest of the settlements, criteria such as a population of at least 5,000, a density of 400 persons per sq. km and 75 per cent male workforce in the non-agricultural sector are applied. A settlement not covered by municipal status must satisfy all three criteria to be declared as an urban centre. These prerequisites, with some minor changes, have been followed since 1961. It is also alleged that migration is a weak force in urbanization in developing countries, as urbanization has been occurring in the context of high population growth (Preston, 1982). On the other hand, rural-to-urban migration in Western Europe was a strong factor in the growth of urban centres in the wake of industrialization in the 18th century, which continued until the early 20th century. The migration was not only internal but huge emigration occurred as well (McKeown,

2004). Although it is true that natural increase plays a very important role, but demographic transition due to rural-to-urban migration and reclassification of rural-to-urban areas have been rising significantly. It is also worthwhile to mention that all three components, namely natural increase, rural-to-urban migration and reclassification of rural-to-urban areas, affect the rural areas equally. For urbanization to occur, urban population growth rate essentially needs to be higher than the rural population growth rate. If both are growing equally, urbanization would not occur. So, in the context of high population growth countries, it is possible that there may be rapid urban population growth but no urbanization (Bose, 1965). On the other hand, most of the developing countries, including India, have been passing through fertility transition. In the case of India, fertility decline in urban areas has been faster than that in rural areas. In this situation, ruralto-urban migration and reclassification of settlements may emerge as a dominant force of urbanization. This requires an assessment of natural increase along with the components of migration and reclassification. India has adequate data on birth and death rates for rural and urban areas published separately on a yearly basis by the Registrar General of India. As mentioned earlier, the definition of urban adds complexity to the nature and magnitude of urbanization and requires a careful adjustment in order to decipher the contribution of rural-to-urban migration. Similarly, the definition of migrants followed in official statistics of India, such as censuses and National Sample Survey (NSS), also requires a careful evaluation in the study of migration trends, patterns and consequences. A detailed study of migration trends in general, and migration towards urban areas in particular, also requires an understanding of evolution of urban areas and its association with migration, as urban centres work as a strong pull factor due to the concentration of economic activities and opportunities. This chapter makes an attempt in this direction.

Urban Migration and Policy Issues

NATURE OF MIGRATION DATA As per census procedure, if the place of birth/ place of last residence (POB/POLR) is different from the place of enumeration (POE), the person is classified as a migrant. Villages and towns, whose boundaries are administratively defined, are the lowest units for determining POB/POLR. Villages are defined as revenue villages which comprise areas occupying human habitation as well as areas of other land uses. It is also possible that some revenue villages may be uninhabited. Any change of residence beyond the village, town or city boundary qualifies a person to be classified as a migrant. Districts are the lowest unit for which migration data are available. There were 593 districts in the 2001 Census which increased to 640 in the 2011 Census. Migration data from 2011 has not yet been published by the Census of India. An increase in the number of districts could greatly affect intradistrict and interdistrict migration data, and it is therefore advisable to compare the within- and the between-states migration, which largely remains unaffected by the number of districts. In censuses, immigrants are also enumerated but the Indian Census, being de facto, does not provide information on the emigration of Indians. It is, consequently, not possible to study net international migration from census data, though net interstate migration in India can be examined. Since the 1981 Census, the reasons for migration are also covered in the census schedule. Apart from the census, the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO)—a wing of the Ministry of Planning and Programme Implementation—also now includes a question on migration based on POLR in its employment and unemployment surveys. In NSSO surveys, the POLR is defined as a place (village or town) where the migrant has stayed continuously for a period of 6 months or more before moving to the POE. In contrast, censuses do not limit the duration of residence in defining the POLR.

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In both censuses and NSSO, there is no limit of duration at the POE to qualify as a migrant. Migrants are identified as such if the POLR is different from the POE. The 55th Round conducted in 1999–2000 and the 64th Round held in 2007–2008 also provide information on migration by monthly per capita consumer expenditure (MPCE) in addition to other household characteristics.

URBAN MIGRATION TRENDS India is a federal country. At the time of the 2011 Census, it comprised 28 states and 7 union territories. A new state of Telangana was created in 2014 from the state of Andhra Pradesh, increasing the number to 29. At the state level, there is a marked variation in the level of urbanization. States such as Bihar, Assam and Himachal Pradesh are at the bottom of the ranking as the urbanization level in these states is less than 15 per cent. In the states of Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Maharashtra and Gujarat, the urbanization level ranges from 37 per cent in Punjab to 48 per cent in Tamil Nadu, which is much higher than the national average. These highly urbanized states show a higher level of per capita income and also a higher level of in-migration (Bhagat, 2012a). The National Capital Territory of Delhi is another important special union territory that stands out alone with huge in-migration. The megacity of Delhi, along with Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai (Madras), which emerged as port cities during the colonial rule, shaped the regional pattern of urbanization and the flow of migration. Any understanding of the trends and patterns of migration in India is basically rooted in the emerging pattern of urbanization and the urban system that evolved during the colonial rule and was reinforced in independent India (Bhagat, 2012a; Raza & Habeeb, 1976). Table 31.1 shows that about 35 per cent of India’s urban population is constituted

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Table 31.1  Trends in Migration Rates in Urban Areas, 1981–2008 (Migrants per 100 Persons) Census Census/NSS Years

NSS

Males

Females

Total

Males

Females

Total

1981–1983

33.2

40.8

36.8

27.0

36.6

31.6

1991–1993

26.3

36.2

31.0

23.9

38.2

30.7

2001/1999–2000

32.0

39.4

35.5

25.7

41.8

33.4

NA/2007–2008

NA

NA

NA

25.9

45.6

35.4

Source: Census of India 1981–2001. NSS figures are taken from NSSO (2010, p. 23). Note: Migration rates are based on census excluding Assam for 1981 and Jammu and Kashmir for 1991 where the census was not conducted.

of migrants, according to latest NSS, 2007– 2008. In addition, the census presents a higher proportion of migrants than the NSS due to the aforementioned difference in defining the POLR. There was a decline in the rate of migration to urban areas between the Census/NSS years of 1981–1983 and 1991–1993.1 India suffered from an economic crisis and also a serious balance of payment difficulty associated with declining investment, rising inflation and growing unemployment during this period. In order to overcome the economic crisis, India initiated economic reforms in 1991 with a new economic policy aimed at promoting liberalization and globalization of the Indian economy. The economic reforms aimed at loosening the control of the government and encouraged entrepreneurs to participate actively in the process of economic development. This led to the emergence of India’s growth story resulting in the rise in gross domestic product (GDP) at the rate of 8 per cent per annum in the 2000s (Ahluwalia, 2011). There was an increase in the rate of migration in urban areas after the Census/NSS year 1991–1993, as revealed by data from both the Census of 2001 and the NSS of 2000. The increase is also supported by the latest publication from NSSO for the year 2007–2008 (see Table 31.1). Increase in migration was

evident for both men and women, but it was higher in the case of women. It appears that the feminization of urban migration has become a definite trend in India in recent times. On the other hand, in the rural areas, male migration shows a decline though female migration has increased. Thus, feminization of migration is evident in both rural and urban areas. This chapter mostly relies on NSSO data in subsequent tables, and whenever necessary, the results are compared with census data. Migration streams by rural and urban origins are important dimensions of migration trends and patterns. It will be worthwhile examining the trends in migration on the basis of various streams and categories that reflect upon shortand long-distance migration. Migration data is available by rural and urban status and also by administrative locations, such as intradistrict, interdistrict and interstate. Intradistrict and interdistrict may be considered short-­ distance migration, whereas interstate migration may be treated as long-distance migration. However, in many cases, the destination district in respect of interstate migration is very close to the state boundaries. As migration data by distance is not available, these proxies are likely to throw some light on the nature of movement which may be characterized as relatively proximate and distant. Table 31.2 shows the composition of migration streams by sex.

Some demographers are of the opinion that the quality of the 1991 Census was affected due to political turmoil during 1991 in several parts of the country (Srinivasan, 1994).

1

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Urban Migration and Policy Issues

Table 31.2  Distribution of Migrants in India by Streams of Migration (Percentage) Males

Females

2001 Census

1999–2000 NSSO

2007–2008 NSSO

2001 Census

1999–2000 NSSO

2007–2008 NSSO

Rural to rural

36.3

32.3

27.1

72.4

70.3

70.0

Rural to urban

34.2

34.3

39.0

13.5

14.4

14.8

Urban to rural

6.2

10.7

8.9

4.1

5.2

4.9

Urban to urban

23.0

22.6

24.8

9.9

10.1

10.3

100.0

100.0

100.0

100.0

100.0

100.0

Streams

Total

Source: Census of India 2001; NSSO, 2010. Note: Rural–urban unclassifiable is excluded.

It may be seen from the table that the ruralto-urban stream has the largest proportion of male migrants (39% in 2007–2008), followed by the rural to rural stream (27%). Among women, rural-to-rural migration is the dominant form of migration followed by rural-tourban. However, between 2000 and 2007, the percentage of female migrants across different streams did not change much. In other words, it indicates that female migration was more or less equal in intensity across all streams of migration, whereas it is not so with male migration. Though rural-to-rural male migration has definitely declined, rural-to-urban has significantly increased in recent years, with some increase in urban-to-urban male migration. It would be interesting to examine how migration differs across different administrative jurisdictions. Both the census and NSSO provide data on migration for intradistrict, interdistrict and interstate levels. As Table 31.3 shows, intradistrict movement was about 53 per cent in 2007–2008, and though it had the largest share, it showed a declining trend. However, interdistrict and interstate migration has increased. Of those who moved across states, one-quarter moved from rural-to-urban and one-fifth moved from urban to rural areas. Urban-to-urban migration was also substantial (approximately 18% in 2007–2008), while rural-to-rural migration between states was almost negligible (about 4% in 2007–2008). It is worthwhile emphasizing that internal migration in India

is predominantly a ‘within state’ phenomenon as only around 15 per cent of migrants moved from one state to another. As far as immigration is concerned, its share is less than 1 per cent among all migrants (NSSO, 2010). The latest figures from the NSS data for 2007–2008 show that states which receive a large number of migrants are Maharashtra, Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat and Karnataka. On the other hand, among out-migration states, Bihar tops the list, followed by Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand and Odisha (ibid.) Interstate migration is presented in Figure 31.1. While interstate migration comprises just 14 per cent of all migrants for the combined rural and urban areas and for both sexes, its disaggregation shows some contrasting results. For example, among males migrating to urban areas, it is as high as one-third, and about one-fifth for females, in 2007–2008 (see Table 31.4). The available evidence above indicates that migration in India increased between the two NSSO surveys of 1999–2000 and 2007–2008. This is mainly due to female migration, but among both men and women, interstate migration to urban areas has increased. Furthermore, the decline in male migration observed in the census and NSS survey during the years of 1981–1983 and 1991–1993 was reversed. However, the decline or increase in migration rates depends upon the base year that is considered. For example, Kundu (2011) observed that the migration rate, especially that of male

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Table 31.3  Migration by Streams and Administrative Locations (Percentage) Migration Streams

Intradistrict

Interdistrict

Interstate

All

62.5

24.1

13.2

100

Rural to rural

75.3

20.1

4.6

100

Rural to urban

43.8

36.5

19.6

100

Urban to urban

46.5

33.5

20.0

100

Urban to rural

36.6

43.5

19.9

100

Total

56.1

30.0

13.9

100

Rural to rural

72.4

23.2

4.4

100

Rural to urban

41.2

33.6

25.2

100

Urban to urban

48.8

33.8

17.5

100

Urban to rural

27.9

49.2

22.9

100

Total

53.3

32.0

14.7

100

Census 2001 NSS 1999–2000

NSS 2007–2008

Source: Census of India 2001, Table D2; NSSO, 2001, 2010.

Table 31.4  Migration by Administrative Locations in Rural and Urban Areas (Percentage) Migrated in Rural Areas Type by Location

Male

Female

Migrated in Urban Areas Male

Female

NSSO 1999–2000 Intradistrict

59.7

74.6

34.5

45.1

Interdistrict

25.4

20.7

40.3

38.6

Interstate

14.7

4.6

25.0

16.2

NSSO 2007–2008 Intradistrict

55.6

72.1

27.9

40.6

Interdistrict

27.9

23.5

38.9

40.4

Interstate

16.4

4.2

33.0

18.9

Source: NSSO, 2001, 2010.

migration, has been on the decline since the 1961 Census (Kundu & Saraswati, 2012). However, it is to be noted that there is no secular decline, but male migration to urban areas manifested an ebb and flow pattern, which is characteristic of male migration in response to economic crises or opportunities. Kundu further tried to show that adult male migration in the age group 15–59 years to urban areas declined from the 32 per cent recorded in the 1999–2000 NSSO survey to 31.4 per cent in the 2007–2008 survey (Kundu & Saraswati, 2012). However, this rate excludes the migration of children and the elderly who also form

part of the workforce. According to the 2011 Census, there was a total of 2.6 million workers in the age group 5–14 years and 8.6 million workers in the above 60 years age group. It is also inappropriate to exclude female migrants whose numbers not only show an increasing trend in urban areas but also constitute 20 per cent of the urban migrant workforce, as per data available in the census. Moreover, migration rates are affected by the changing size of denominator (age 15–59 years) as a result of age-structural transition of population evident in the rising percentage of the age group 15–59 years—a potential indicator

435

Urban Migration and Policy Issues

Jammu and Kashmir

Himachal Pradesh Punjab Uttarakhand Haryana

Rajasthan

Arunachal Pradesh Sikkim

Uttar Pradesh

Assam Bihar

Meghalaya Tripura

Jharkhand Madhya Pradesh

Gujarat

West Bengal

Nagaland Manipur

Mizoram

Chattisgarh Odisha Maharashtra

Andhra Pradesh Goa

Karnataka Less then −20

Tamil Nadu

−20 to −1

Kerala

1–20 More then 20 Not estimated due to small sample

Figure 31.1  Net Interstate Migration in India, 2007–2008 Source: Bhagat, 2016. Disclaimer: This figure has been redrawn by the author and is not to scale. It does not represent any authentic national or international boundaries and is used for illustrative purposes only.

of demographic dividend. For example, the proportion of the population in the age group 15–59 years in India increased from 55 per cent in 1991 to about 57 per cent in 2001 and then to 60 per cent, as revealed in the 2011 Census. In view of the age-structural transition, the decline of one percentage point in

adult male migration rate in urban areas seems partly to be a statistical artefact and partly the result of low growth in employment (Bhagat, 2016). It cannot be denied that jobless growth has been a major concern of India’s growth story. In addition, the Census and NSSO data based on POLR, which measures residential

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

migration of permanent and semi-permanent nature,2 are not able to capture temporary and seasonal migrants who constitute 1.3 per cent of India’s population. Rural-to-urban migration is the dominant form of short-term migration (Keshri & Bhagat, 2012). The NSS 64th round 2007–2008 defined short-term migrants as people who were away from their village or town for 30 days or more, but not for more than 6 months, in the preceding 365 days, for the purpose of employment or search for employment. They were enumerated at their place of origin and considered as not having changed their POLR. The number of short-term migrants was around 14 million in 2007–2008. It is also important to note that commuting as a form of spatial mobility providing an alternative to residential migration is a result of improved transportation between rural and urban areas. Chandrasekhar (2011) estimated that about 32 million individuals live in households where one or more members commute for work from rural to urban areas, compared with 15 million commuting from urban to rural areas. Migration to urban areas is, therefore, not only the product of opportunities and constraints in the urban centres but is also influenced by alternative forms of spatial mobility emanating from urban transition.

CONTRIBUTION OF MIGRATION TO URBAN GROWTH While rural-to-urban migration adds to the urban population, the counterstream of urban to rural depletes the urban population. Similarly, in the reclassification of rural-to-urban areas, while some villages are reclassified as towns, some existing towns may be declassified in the absence of fulfilled urban criteria. Net rural-to-urban classification is therefore the real contributor to urban population growth.

Previous studies have attempted to estimate the contribution of all three components, namely natural increase in urban areas, net rural-to-urban and net rural-to-urban classification of and boundary changes of urban centres (Bhagat, 2012a). Figure 31.2 shows that the percentage of net rural-to-urban migration increased during the 1990s than in the 1980s. However, it remained at the same level during the 1990s and 2000s. On the other hand, the proportion of net rural-to-urban migration, together with net rural-to-urban classification and boundary changes, rose from 38 per cent during the 1980s to 42 per cent in the 1990s and to 56 per cent during the 2000s. This shows significant changes in the forces of urban transition in association with migration and related spatial changes. Large cities expand largely due to migration, while the cores of several of them have declined (Sita & Bhagat, 2007, pp. 59–82). The fertility level of many large cities has significantly declined and some have even reached the replacement level fertility (International Institute for Population Sciences, 2009). The growth rates of large cities are therefore predominantly the result of migration as well as areal expansion. At the state level, the more urbanized states show a contribution of net rural-to-urban migration to urban growth of about one-third, whereas at the all-India level, the contribution is about one-fifth (Bhagat & Mohanty, 2009). However, in absolute terms, net ruralto-urban migration has increased from about 11 million during 1981–1991 to 14 million during 1991–2001 and to about 19 million during 2001–2011 at the all-India level. In the past, rural-to-urban migration was largely directed to big cities and to a few small cities and towns where large-scale industries had developed. This trend continues but migrants are now moving to the peripheries of metropolises and large cities, which are often devoid of basic services and have largely grown in an unplanned manner.3

2 Permanent and semi-permanent migration means migrants changed their usual place of residence. 3 See: www.planningcommission.nic.in/reports/sereport/ser/vision2025/urban.doc (accessed 11 October 2014).

437

Urban Migration and Policy Issues

70 62.3 57.6

60

50 43.8

Per cent

40

35.6

1981–1991 1991–2001 2001–2011

30 20.8 20.6 18.7

20

21.5 19

10

0 Natural Increase

Rural to Urban Migration Reclassification and Boundary Changes

Figure 31.2  Contribution of Net Rural-to-Urban Migration in Urban Population Growth (Percentage) Source: Bhagat, 2012a.

REASONS AND CHARACTERISTICS OF URBAN MIGRANTS

move for employment and better employment prospects, whereas females follow them as a consequence of marriage or move later as As mentioned previously, migration to soon as the male migrants have settled down. urban areas is predominantly rural to urban. However, as stated earlier, irrespective of the Table 31.5 presents the motives for migration reasons for migration, a substantial proportion to urban areas. The share of employment-­ of female migrants make up the workforce. Table 31.5 indicates that the share of those related migration has increased for males, but for females it is marriage which has been who searched for better employment as a on the rise. However, migration related to reason for migration has increased, whereas movement with parents and family members, the proportion of those searching for work excluding marriage, has declined. On the declined during the two NSS census periods whole, family-related migration for females of 1999–2000 to 2007–2008. It is also signifhas been increasing during the last two dec- icant that education as a reason for migration ades. It would seem that male and female has declined. This may be due to the wide migration to urban areas are related as males expansion of educational institutions in rural areas in recent decades.

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Table 31.5  Reasons of Migration to Urban Areas Males Reasons In search of employment

Females

1993

1999–2000

2007–2008

1993

1999–2000

2007–2008

8.6

17.0

15.1

1.3

0.7

0.6

In search of better employment

12.9

15.6

16.5

1.4

0.8

0.6

To take up employment/ better employment/transfer of services

18.3

18.3

23.1

1.8

1.4

1.2

Proximity to work Total employment related Marriage

1.7

1.0

1.0

0.4

0.1

0.2

41.5

51.9

52.7

4.9

3.0

2.6

1.0

1.6

1.4

31.7

59.7

60.8

Movement with parents and family members

28.3

27.0

25.2

49.5

31.0

29.4

Total family related

29.3

26.6

26.6

81.2

89.5

90.2

Studies/Education

18.0

6.2

6.8

7.0

1.3

2.2

Othersa

11.3

13.3

13.9

6.9

6.2

5.0

100.00

100.00

100.00

100.00

100.00

100.00

Total

Source: NSSO, 2001, 2012. Note: a This includes business; acquisition of own house or apartment; housing problems; health care; post-retirement; natural disaster, and social/political problems.

In India, income data at the household level is generally not available. As a result, studies generally rely on consumer expenditure which includes both food and non-food expenses. The NSSO provides information on migrants by MPCE of the households. Figure 31.3 shows that the percentage of migrants in urban areas increases with increasing MPCE for both males and females. The increase in migration rate with MPCE is much steeper for males than it is for females. Migration rate increased by five times for males from the lowest to the highest decile class compared with 1.2 times increase for females. Furthermore, India has a number of communities which are historically disadvantaged due to the caste system. Caste is an endogamous group hierarchically arranged based on birth. As far as migration is concerned, higher castes migrate more than lower castes. It is also important to mention that not only do migrants have a higher level of education than non-migrants but also the proportion of educated and technical migrants in urban areas has increased during the period of the two NSSO surveys of 1999–2000 and 2007–2008 (Kundu & Saraswati, 2012). Earlier studies on India also pointed out that the propensity to

migrate increases with rising economic status for permanent and semi-permanent migration (not seasonal and temporary) (Oberai & Singh, 1983; Skeldon, 1986; Bhagat, 2010). However, the results observed for permanent and semi-permanent migration does not apply to seasonal and temporary migration. Seasonal and temporary migration predominantly occurs among the poor and the socially disadvantaged groups. Temporary migration also largely occurs in the rural-tourban migration stream. Further studies show that the annual rate of temporary migration is seven times higher than permanent migration (Keshri & Bhagat, 2013). Studies also point out that seasonal and temporary migration is a livelihood strategy among rural households (Deshingkar & Farrington, 2009; de Haan, 2011; Keshri & Bhagat, 2012b). The largest proportion (about 36%) of seasonal and temporary migrants is employed in the construction industry followed by agriculture (20%) and manufacturing (about 16%). There is a dearth of data on the actual magnitude of seasonal and temporary migration and estimates vary from about 13 million, based on the NSSO, to 100 million evaluated

Urban Migration and Policy Issues

439

120

100

Migration rate %

80

60

Female Male

40

20

0 0–10 10–20 20–30 30–40 40–50 50–60 60–70 70–80 80–90 90–100 Monthly per capita consumer expenditure decile class

Figure 31.3  Migration Rate by MPCE Decile Class, 2007–2008 Source: Based on NSSO, 2010.

by individual researchers (Keshri & Bhagat, 2013; Deshingkar & Akter, 2009). The Planning Commission suggested that there is a need to undertake state-centric surveys to capture the flow and pattern of migration to the various sectors, particularly the construction sector (Planning Commission, 2013, p. 363).

MIGRATION TO CITIES India has 7,935 cities and towns according to the 2011 Census, but 70 per cent of the urban population lives in 468 Class I Urban Agglomerations (UAs) that is with a population of 100 thousand and above. The

number of Class I UAs increased from 384 in 2001 to 468 in 2011. Furthermore, there are 53 million-­plus UAs which comprise 43 per cent of India’s urban population. The number of million-plus UAs increased from 35 in 2001 to 53 in 2011—an addition of 18 UAs during the period 2001–2011 demonstrating that the nature and pattern of urban population is heavily concentrated in large cities. There were eight megacities with a population of more than 5 million in 2011 (see Figure 31.4). Out of these megacities, the three having a population of more than 10 million are Greater Mumbai UA (18.4 million), Delhi UA (16.3 million)4 and Kolkata UA (14.1 million).

According to the Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, UN, Delhi was the second largest UA with 22.7 million inhabitants in 2011 after Tokyo (UN DESA, 2012). As per the Census of India practice, the UA is limited to the state boundaries that exclude the part of the Delhi UA spread out in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.

4

440

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Srinagar UA

Amritsar UA Chandigarh UA Meerut UA Delhi UA Faridabad (M Corp.) Jaipur (M Corp.)Agra UA Lucknow UA Jodhpur UA Gwalior UA Kanpur UA Kota (M Corp.)

Allahabad UA

Patna UA Varanasi UA

Asansol UA Ranchi UA Jamshedpur UA Indore UA Rajkot UA Vadodara UA Kolkata UA Durg-Bhilainagar UA Surat UA Nagpur UA Raipur UA Ahmadabad UA

Bhopal UA

Jabalpur UA

Nashik UA Aurangabad UA Vasal Virar City (M Corp.) Greater Mumbai UA Pune UA GVMC(M Corp.) Hyderabad UA Vijayawada UA

Bangalore UA Chennai UA Kannur UA Kozhikode UA

Legend Total Population

Tiruchirappalli UA

Thrissur UA Kochi UA Madurai UA

1,000,000

Kollam UA Thiruvananthapuram UA

5,000,000

10,000,000 1 Millimetre = 1 Million

Figure 31.4  Million-Plus Cities in India, 2011 Source: Based on the 2011 Census. Disclaimer: This figure has been redrawn by the author and is not to scale. It does not represent any authentic national or international boundaries and is used for illustrative purposes only.

The rising importance of these million-plus cities, both in numbers as well as the huge concentration of urban population within them, indicates the significance of the presence of migrants in the city space. The share of in-migrants in million-plus UAs varies from

less than 15 per cent in Allahabad and Agra to 55 per cent and more in Surat, Ludhiana and Faridabad. About 45 per cent of the population of Mumbai and of Delhi comprised migrants in 2001 (see Figure 31.5). Looking at the proportion of migrants across the million-plus

441

Urban Migration and Policy Issues

cities, it is quite evident that this is closely related to the economic position and vibrancy of these cities. Many million-plus UAs, namely Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore and Pune, show an increase in female migration (Bhagat, 2012b). In fact, the increase in female migration is evident across the class size of urban centres (Singh, 2009). Although the increase has largely occurred due to the rise in marriage and family-related migration in recent times, large cities also show enormous growth in female domestic servants as well as construction workers who were all mainly migrants. A large number of placement agencies have also sprung up that are involved in the recruitment process (Neetha, 2002; Srivastava, 2012a, pp. 166–193). Another characteristic feature of India’s urbanization is the emergence of urban corridors shaped by transport linking the ­million-plus UAs. These corridors have also influenced the flow of goods, services and 58

60

57

movement of people. Some of the important urban corridors are: the Mumbai–Delhi Industrial Corridor, the Amritsar–DelhiKolkata Industrial Corridor, the Chennai– Bangalore Industrial Corridor, and the Mumbai–Bangalore Economic Corridor. The transport network and urbanization would seem to be reinforcing each other. This phenomenon is not new but has strengthened since the liberalization and globalization of the Indian economy in 1991. Urban corridors play an important role in industrial development and labour migration, unhindered by the administrative boundaries of districts and states. Previously, cities and towns mostly existed within district boundaries, but there are now about a dozen UAs spread over several districts indicating their increasing size. It is also evident that eastern and northeastern India stand marginalized in the process of urbanization with the exception of the Kolkata UA. Patna is the next largest city in the region but is seven times smaller than Kolkata.

55 50

50

45

43

43

40 35 28

30

28

27 19

20

17 14

12

10

Figure 31.5  Percentage of Migrants in Selected Million-Plus Urban Agglomerations Source: Bhagat, 2012b.

ra Ag

r

an as Al i la ha ba d

Va r

np u

tn a

Ka

Pa

no w ck

lk

at a

Lu

A

Ko

IN

DI

i lh De

ba i um

ik

ne M

Pu

ad

as N

na

ab

ia

rid

Fa

Lu dh

Su r

at

0

442

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

However, both cities have not been able to attract large migrant populations unlike cities in north, west and south India. As a result, Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh are largely out-migration areas, and the entire region not only has a very low level of urbanization but is also among the more backward regions of India. Regional inequality, pattern of urbanization and distribution of million-plus UAs are, consequently, all closely associated. Areas with a high level of urbanization and per capita income also have a high level of migration (Bhagat, 2010). In this way, migration, as influenced by development processes, surges through cities and urban corridors. India’s development is manifested by its growing agglomeration of economies in the million-plus cities. However, in recent years, the expansion of industries, services and related employment growth has been higher not only in the secondary million-plus UAs, such as Bangalore, Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad and Jaipur, but also in the peripheries of primary million-plus UAs like Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai. Srivastava (2012a) relates this to the ‘hub and spokes’ pattern of growth with which the migration pattern is closely associated.

of the populace and higher castes migrate from rural areas, the gaps that emerge are likely to be filled by the poor and the lower castes with implications for economic improvement and poverty reduction in rural areas. A number of studies show that internal migration can help reduce or prevent households sliding into poverty in both sending and receiving areas (Deshingkar & Grimm, 2005; Harris, 2004; Higgins, Birds & Harris, 2010). The efficiency of labour use and poverty reduction are the two main outcomes associated with transfer of surplus labour from the agriculture to the non-agricultural sector. NSS data also supports the increased transfer of the labour force from agriculture to the non-agricultural sector in recent times. About 55 per cent of migrants who worked in agriculture prior to migration were reported to have shifted to non-­agricultural activities in 1999–2000. This figure increased to 66 per cent in 2007–2008. Studies also show that migrants are better-off than non-­migrants are at the place of destination (Kundu & Sarangi, 2007; Srivastava & Bhattacharya, 2003). Furthermore, in 2007–2008, majority of permanent and semi-­ permanent male migrants (57%) were employed in regular jobs in urban areas compared with non-migrant males who were largely self-employed or worked as casual OPPORTUNITIES OF URBAN labourers (63%). However, seasonal and MIGRATION temporary migrants fall largely behind when compared with permanent/semi-­ permanent migrants and non-migrants in urban areas Rural-to-urban migration is not viewed pos(Srivastava, 2012a). The consequences of itively in many countries including India. migration, therefore, also depend upon the Policies are often aimed at reducing rural to urban migration, although this may not be nature and diversity of migration patterns. In recent years, cities have come to be condesirable as there are many reasons to believe sidered as drivers of economic growth as urban that migration, particularly rural to urban, areas contribute to about 65 per cent of India’s may prove beneficial (Lucas, 1997). The two-­ GDP (Planning Commission, 2008). Migrants sector classical model by Lewis (1954, pp. help in growth and capital accumulation by 139–191) argued that rural-to-urban migraproviding cheap labour and undertaking many tion helps to transfer surplus labour and boost economic development. In the Indian context, risky and unsafe jobs which natives prefer not Dubey, Palmer-Jones and Sen (2004) found to do, although they may face stiff competition strong support for the Lewis model. They also or even conflict with the natives. In addition, observed that as relatively better-off sections the seasonal and temporary migrant labour

Urban Migration and Policy Issues

supply is highly flexible in terms of work intensity, payment regimes and working hours (Srivastava, 2012a). A study by Deshingkar and Akter (2009) shows that the economic contribution of seasonal and temporary migrants, based on major migrant-employing sectors in India, amounts to 10 per cent of the national GDP. On the other hand, informalization of the labour market, increased control of labour and low wages are also associated with increased availability and choice for both the employers and the migrant workers. This is evident in the considerable decline during 1999–2007 of the unemployed among migrants, particularly among those who had moved from rural to urban areas. A decrease was similarly noted in the share of those not in the labour force during this period. This suggests that many rural folks are able to improve their economic conditions through migration, and there is no evidence of strong distress driving rural-to-urban migration. On the other hand, migration decisions have a positive and significant impact on livelihood patterns (Kundu & Saraswati, 2012, p. 223). Using both secondary and primary data, Jha (2008) concluded that in India, after 1991, out-migration played a decisive role in asset-building in the areas of origin and contributed to poverty reduction through remittances. Chellaraj and Mohapatra (2014) concluded that both internal and international remittances have a poverty-reducing effect and showed that remittances are associated with higher household expenditure on health and education. Similarly, in other parts of the world, urban employment provides an opportunity for rural households to supplement their earnings and also to diversify their sources of income. Remittances from urban employment were found to boost consumption in rural areas and contribute to household savings (IOM, 2005, p. 15). Increased investment in agriculture has been possible in some countries through migrants’ remittances leading to growth in agricultural production. Remittances are also spent on housing,

443

in accessing healthcare and on schooling of children (Lucas, 1997). The UNDP Human Development Report noted that household remittances are vital in improving the livelihoods of millions of people in developing countries (UNDP, 2009). Available evidence from India shows that about 55 per cent of male out-migrants send remittances. These remittances constitute half of the average household consumer expenditure and are utilized for food, education and healthcare. Of those households that receive remittances, about three-quarters spend the amount on food, followed by expenditure on health (37.4%), education (31%) and household durables (20.1%). It is therefore evident that remittances are an important means of food security, as higher proportions of households with lower socio-economic backgrounds depend on them for such expenditure (Deshingkar & Sandi, 2012). Several studies have pointed out that migration is a family strategy wherein one or more members are employed in urban areas as insurance against distress and crisis. It also improves their creditworthiness (Stark & Lucas, 1988; Lucas, 1997; Deshingkar & Sandi, 2012). It is also significant to mention that in India, the household remittances sent by internal migrants in 2007–2008 were twice those of the household remittances sent by international migrants for the same period (NSSO, 2010). However, it should be borne in mind that migration alone may not improve household conditions, as they are influenced by a number of factors. So, while it is reported that remittances from internal migration increase school attendance, children of seasonal migrants moving with their parents drop out of school (Deshingkar & Sandi, 2012; Smita, 2008). However, it is necessary to emphasize that while migration is very intrinsic to the path of human development, its impact is also place-specific (de Haan, 2011). As a recent publication by UNESCO (2013) points out, migration is a historical process that has shaped human civilization, culture

444

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

and development. Along with economic remittances, returning migrants bring a variety of skills, innovations and knowledge to their areas of origin, and these are known as social remittances. Migration also enhances the capabilities of the migrants through exposure and interaction with the outside world. Many learn new skills from previous migrants who helped them to migrate and are a part of the migrants’ social network at the place of destination. In a study in the state of Andhra Pradesh in south India, more than 20 per cent of circular and permanent migrants were able to learn more than two skills (Deshingkar et al., 2009, p. 84). In fact, migration is an informal process of capability formation and skill development. Cities are places where new migrants accumulate new skills required by modern production sectors. In the long run, migration can play a positive role with the right type of policy and may benefit both the areas of origin and destination (World Bank, 2009).

CHALLENGES OF MIGRATION AND POLICY ISSUES In India, not all migrants are equally vulnerable. Permanent and semi-permanent migrants with higher education and skills can withstand the challenges and succeed in becoming members of the urban citizenship. On the other hand, migrants with low education and skills, together with the seasonal and temporary nature of their employment, are more vulnerable and subject to various kinds of exclusions in urban areas. These categories of migrants are excluded from social security programmes, such as public distribution of food, access to education and healthcare, and most importantly, entitlement to housing at the place of destination owing to the absence of identity and residential proof.

Social security programmes are place-bound and implementation of the programmes falls under the purview of the state governments. Interstate migrants incur more hardships as the portability of social security programmes is not possible; they also face hostility from native residents who are instilled with the ideology of sons of the soil (Weiner, 1978). Migration is treated more as an issue of governance rather than one of development. Deshingkar and Sandi (2012) argue that there is untapped potential for human development if the positive impacts of migration are harnessed properly, but this requires accompanying changes in attitude and institutional structures. While there is a lack of integration of migration into development planning, there are a host of labour laws that deal with the conditions of migrant workers. However, the Interstate Migrant Workmen Regulation Act, 1979 (ISMWRA), which deals with contractor-­led movements of interstate migrant labour, is not enforced properly. While a segment of migrant workers moves with contractors, many also find work independently through the networks of family, friends and kin and so do not fall under the purview of the ISMWRA. Many schemes and programmes exist for workers in the informal sector which are also applicable for migrant workers but require registration, and in some cases, identity cards. One such very significant programme for migrant workers comes under the Building and Other Construction Workers Act, 1996. Under this Act, funds are collected through a tax on construction for the welfare of construction workers. Substantial funds have been collected by the Construction Welfare Boards in many states but implementation of the programme is very poor due to the paucity of registration of workers. Some non-governmental organizations, like the Ajeevika Foundation, have done good work in Rajasthan helping in the registration of migrant workers and issuance of identity cards5

The Government of India has launched a biometric identification of the population residing in India under the UID (Unique Identity) programme also known as AADHAR. Migrants have the opportunity to enroll and get an AADHAR card which can be used as an identity and residential proof. However, as many migrants lack

5

Urban Migration and Policy Issues

to them. A principal flaw in the Act is that it treats construction workers as immobile and does not provide for locational or even intersectorial mobility (Srivastava, 2012b). Urban planning has been virtually a failure in India (Planning Commission, 2013). The city master plan hardly reflects any concerns for migrants. On the other hand, migrants are often blamed for the declining civic amenities and for almost all the woes of the city. They are even held responsible for the rising crime rate as well as law and order problems in the city. Urban development is a state subject in India. Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) are still controlled by most of the state governments who are unwilling to delegate power and financial autonomy to them despite the constitutional provisions made in the 74th Amendment to the Constitution. These new constitutional provisions have designated ULBs as planning and development authorities. However, in actual practice, there are multiple organizations engaged in planning and development of urban centres. Due to the lack of local democracy, concern for migrants is not visible in various city development plans and projects (Bhagat, 2012b). Many have argued that it would be inappropriate to prevent migration as it plays a very important role in development and in fulfilling human aspirations. Preventing migration may even prove to be counterproductive (World Bank, 2009; UNESCO, 2013; Foresight, 2011). A recent UNESCO (2013) publication highlighted that the policies and programmes facilitating integration of migrants at the destination remain weak at best or non-existent and suggested 10 key areas for the inclusion and integration of migrants in development. Migration policy, however, should not be viewed merely as part of labour policy but

445

needs to be embedded in urban development policy and planning, as rural-to-urban migration is the predominant form of migration. Social security is a very important aspect of labour policy as approximately 90 per cent of the workforce is employed in the informal sector. Although poverty is a yardstick of many policies and a segment of migrants is indeed poor, the consideration of poverty as the only status is not adequate. The migrant status of labourers needs to be incorporated explicitly because it adds to their vulnerability along with poverty and social disadvantages associated with caste, ethnic and minority status. Vulnerable migrants need to be protected against exploitation, long working hours, low wages and restriction of movement after working hours. Access to decent living conditions should also be included in migration policy ensuring that migrants are not denied access to housing and basic services. Although poverty and migrant status overlap, they cannot be treated as synonyms. This is perhaps the strong tacit assumption in India’s urban policies and programmes, mostly formulated in the Five-Year Plans prepared by the Planning Commission of India. As a result, rural-to-urban migration is looked upon as ‘distress migration’ arising out of poverty, and rural development programmes are formulated to include rural-to-urban migration (de Haan, 2011; Planning Commission, 2013). This implicit assumption negates the fact that rural-to-urban migration is also the result of increasing aspirations and ability to migrate as income and educational levels improve in the rural areas. The positive values of migration could far outweigh its negative impacts if supported by proper policies and programmes.

proper documents for identification, a significant step was taken when a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the National Coalition of Organizations for Security of Migrant Workers, a group of NGOs ­working with migrant workers and the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) for facilitating the inclusion of migrant workers in the UID programme. See: http://uidai.gov.in. Recently, the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Mr Raghuram Rajan, announced that bank accounts will be opened for migrant workers without proof of address (Times of India, 16 August 2014, p. 21).

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Box 31.1: Key Strategies for Integration and Inclusion of Migrants in Urban Areas 1. Registration and identity: There is an urgent need to ensure that internal migrants are issued with a universally recognized and portable proof of identity that can enable them to access social security programmes anywhere in India. Political and Civic Inclusion: Special provisions are needed to secure the voting rights of internal migrants and their inclusion in decision-making processes and urban planning. 2. Labour market inclusion: Negotiation opportunities with employers, including training, placement and skills upgradation, with the help of NGOs. In case of uneducated and poor migrants, creating awareness about their rights and supporting them. 3. Legal aid and dispute resolution: Internal migrants should be able to access legal aid and counselling to protect themselves against work- and wage-related malpractices and receive grievance- and ­dispute-handling mechanisms to negotiate with employers/contractors. 4. Inclusion of women migrants: Filling knowledge and research gaps in the gender dimension of migration. Preventing discrimination, exploitation and trafficking of women. 5. Inclusion through access to food: The public distribution system (PDS) should be made portable to include multilocational migrant populations. 6. Inclusion through housing: Providing dormitory accommodation, rental housing and also enabling private housing. In situ upgradation of slums and providing basic services. 7. Educational inclusion: Providing seasonal hostels at the source regions to retain left-behind children in schools, and also worksite schools at destination for children moving with parents. 8. Public health inclusion: Avoiding stigmatization of migrants as carriers of diseases and infections and recognizing women and children migrants as vulnerable to health risks. Strengthening intervention and reaching out to them with healthcare services. 9. Financial Inclusion - Extend banking facilities to promote savings and secure transfer of remittances in the source and destination areas. Source: UNESCO, 2013.

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Bose, A. (1965). Six decades of urbanisation in India 1901–61. Indian Economic and Social History Review, 2(23), 23–41. Chandrasekhar, S. (2011). Workers commuting between the rural and urban: Estimates from NSSO data. Economic and Political Weekly, 46(46), 22–25. Chellaraj, G. & Mohapatra, S. (2014). Internal and international remittances in India: Implications for household expenditure and poverty. KNOMAD International Conference on Internal Migration and Urbanization, Dhaka, Bangladesh. d’Cruz, C., Cadornigara S., & Satterthwaite D. (2014). Tools for inclusive cities: The roles of community-­ based engagement and monitoring in reducing poverty. International Institute for Environment Development Working Paper (IIED), London. de Haan, A. (2011). Inclusive growth? Labour migration and poverty in India (ISS Working Paper No. 513). Institute of Social Studies, The Hague. Deshingkar, P. & Akter S. (2009). Migration and human development in India, Human Development. UNDP

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Human Development Research Paper, 2009/13. Retrieved from http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/global/ hdr2009/papers/HDRP_2009_13.pdf Deshingkar, P. & Grimm, S. (2005). Internal migration and development: A global perspective. Migration Research Series, No. 19. International Organization for Migration, Geneva. Deshingkar, P. & Farrington, J. (2009). A framework of understanding circular migration. In P. Deshingkar & J. Farrington (Eds.), Circular migration and multilocational livelihood strategies in rural India. New York: Oxford University Press. Deshingkar, P., Rao, L., Atker, S., & Farrington, J. (2009). The evolving pattern of circular migration: The household surveys in Andhra Pradesh. In P. Deshingkar & J. Farrington (Eds.), Circular migration and multilocational livelihood strategies in rural India (pp. 58–87). New York: Oxford University Press. Deshingkar, P. & Sandi, M. (2012). Migration and human development in India: New challenges and opportunities. National Workshop on Internal Migration and Human Development in India, 6–7 December 2011, Workshop Compendium, Vol. 2, Workshop Papers, UNESCO/UNICEF, 2012. Dubey, A., Palmer-Jones, R., & Sen, K. (2004). Surplus labour, social structure and rural to urban migration: Evidence from Indian data. Paper Presented at the Conference on the 50th Anniversary of the Lewis Model. Retrieved 19 October 2014, from www.sed.man.ac.uk/research/events/conferences/ documents/Arthur%20Lewis%20Papers/Sen2. pdf Foresight (2011). Migration and global environmental change: Future challenges and opportunities, Final project report. Government Office for Science, London. Retrieved from www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/ file/287717/11-1116-migration-and-global-environmental-change.pdf. Hansen, T. B. (2001). Wages of violence: Naming and identity in postcolonial Bombay. Princeton: Princeton University Press. Harris, N. (2004). The impact of the reform of international trade on urban and rural change. Draft Paper, Development Planning Unit, University College, London. Higgins, K., Birds, K., & Harris, D. (2010). Policy responses to the spatial dimensions of poverty. Overseas Development Institute (ODI) Working Paper, 328/CPRC 168. Hutton, J. H. (1986). Census of India 1931: With complete survey of tribal life and systems, Vol. 1. Delhi: Gian Publishing House.

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Empirical Issues, V. V. Giri National Labour Institute, NOIDA. Oberai, A. S. & Singh, H. K. M. (1983). Causes and consequences of internal migration: A study in the Indian Punjab. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. Planning Commission, Government of India (2008). Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007–2012), Vol III: Agriculture, Rural Development, Industry, Services and Physical Infrastructure. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, pp. 394–422. ———. (2013). Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012–2017), Vol II: Economic Sectors. New Delhi: SAGE Publications. Preston, S. H. (1982). Urbanization: Developing countries. In J. A. Ross (Ed.), International encyclopedia of population (pp. 650–655). New York: The Free Press. Rajan, S. I., Korra, V., & Chyrmang, R. (2011). Politics of conflict and migration. In S. I. Rajan (Ed.), Migration, identity and politics (pp. 95–107). London: Routledge. Raza, M. & Habeeb, A. (1976). Characteristics of colonial urbanization: A case study of satellitic ‘primacy’ of Calcutta (1850–1921). In S. M. Alam & V. V. Pokshishevsky (Eds.), Urbanization in developing countries (pp. 185–218). Hyderabad: Osmania University. Sharma, R. S. (2005). India’s ancient past. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. Singh, D. P. (2009). Poverty and migration: Does moving help? In Ministry of Housing and Poverty Alleviation and United Nations Development Programme, India: Urban Poverty Report. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, pp. 50–75. Sita, K. & Bhagat, R. B. (2007). Population change and economic restructuring in Indian metropolitan cities: A study of Mumbai. In A. Shaw (Ed.), Indian cities in transition orient (pp. 59–82). Hyderabad: Longman. Skeldon, R. (1986). On migration patterns in India during the 1970s. Population and Development Review, 12(4), 759–779. Smita, S. (2008). Distress seasonal migration and its impact on children’s education, Research Monograph No. 28, Consortium for Research on Educational Access, Transitions and Equity (CREATE), Pathways to Access. New Delhi: National University of Educational Planning and Administration (NEUPA). Srinivasan, K. (1994). Sex ratios: What they hide and what they reveal. Economic and Political Weekly, 29(51&52), 3233–3234. Srivastava, R. (2012a). Internal migration in India: An overview of its features, trends and policy challenges. In National Workshop on Internal Migration and

Human Development: Workshop Compendium, Vol. 2, Workshop Papers, UNESCO and UNICEF, New Delhi, pp. 1–47. Srivastava, R. (2012b). Internal migrants and social protection in India: The missing link. In National Workshop on Internal Migration and Human Development: Workshop Compendium, Vol. 2, Workshop Papers, UNESCO and UNICEF, New Delhi, pp. 166–193. Srivastava, S. & Bhattacharya, R. (2003). Globalisation, reforms and internal labour mobility: Analysis of recent Indian trends. Labour and Development, Special Issue on Labour Mobility, 9(2), 31–55. Stark, O. & Lucas, R. E. B. (1988). Migration, remittances and the family. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 36(3), 465–481. United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) (2009). Human Development Report, Overcoming Barriers: Human Mobility and Development, United Nations Development Programme, New York. Retrieved from http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/reports/269/ hdr_2009_en_complete.pdf United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). (2013). Social inclusion of internal migrants in India, UNESCO, New Delhi. Retrieved from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0022/002237/223702e.pdf United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA) (2012). World Population Prospects: The 2011 Revision, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, New York. Retrieved from www.un.org/en/development/desa/ population/publications/pdf/urbanization/WUP2011_ Report.pdf ———. (2013). World Economic and Social Survey 2013: Sustainable Development Challenges (E/2013/50/Rev.1 ST/ESA/344). Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, New York. Retrieved from https://sustainabledevelopment. un.org/content/documents/2843WESS2013.pdf ———. (2014). World Urbanization Prospects: The 2014 Revision, Highlights (ST/ESA/SER.A/352). Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, New York. Retrieved from http:// esa.un.org/unpd/wup/Highlights/WUP2014Highlights.pdf Weiner, M. (1978). Sons of the soil: Migration and ethnic conflict in India. Princeton: Princeton University Press. World Bank. (2009). World development report: Reshaping economic geography. Washington, DC: The World Bank.

32 Migration and Urbanization Jajati K. Parida Ravi K. Raman

INTRODUCTION Indian economy is in a transition phase. India has moved up in the income ladder and has become a lower-middle-income country since 2007–2008 (World Bank, 2015). Due to a sustained growth rate of gross domestic product (GDP) (about 7% per annum) since 2002– 2003, the incidence of poverty has reduced substantially (Chauhan, Mohanty, Subramanian, Parida & Padhi, 2014). More importantly, a structural transformation is taking place with falling share of employment in agriculture and a corresponding rise of employment in the non-farm sectors (Mehrotra & Parida, 2017). With growing mechanization in agriculture (Himanshu, 2011; Mehrotra, Parida, Sinha & Gandhi, 2014), for the first time in Indian economic history, absolute number of workers in agriculture declined (5 million per annum) massively during the period from 2004–2005 to 2011–2012 (Mehrotra et al., 2014; Parida, 2015). Moreover, it is important to note

that rural-to-urban migration in India also increased by 3 million per annum between 2001 and 2011 as per census migration data. With decreasing job opportunities in rural areas on one hand, and increasing enrolments in secondary and higher levels of education on the other hand, it is expected that rural– urban migration would increase further in the coming years. In a context where capital intensity in manufacturing sector is on the rise and newer forms of services are emerging due to globalization and changing economic environment, a study on rural–urban migration and migrants’ employment patterns in urban India is important. As the migrants were being displaced due to mechanization in agriculture, most of them are either unskilled or low-skilled workers, landless or marginal farmers, or they belong to socio-economically marginalized groups, including women. An increasing trend of unskilled and low-skilled migrants from rural to urban areas has implications on the growth

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of low-skilled informal sector jobs, urban housing and growth of slums, quality of education, healthcare services and overall urban poverty and inequality. The main objective of this chapter is to explore the trends and patterns of rural-to-urban migration and to study migrant workers’ employment patterns in urban India. This chapter is organized as follows. The second section provides the sources of data. In the third section, we discuss the structural transformation of employment, rising internal migration trends and their patterns in India. The fourth section discusses how the growth of rural–urban migration determines urbanization in India. In the fifth section, we analyse the employment patterns of rural–urban migrants in urban India. Finally, the sixth section concludes the chapter.

in rural areas and 197,960 in urban areas) in 2007–2008, at the national level. Because both census and NSS define migration (based on last residence criterion) in almost the same manner, using these two data sets is less likely to affect our data analysis. We have combined both usual principal status and usual subsidiary status to calculate work participation, unemployment and labour force participation rates. Moreover, for estimating absolute number of workers from NSS data estimates, we have used census population data (projected population based on monthly exponential growth rates) as an additional weight. We begin the discussion with structural transformation in employment in India in the next section.

ON DATA AND METHODS

STRUCTURAL TRANSFORMATION AND RISING MIGRATION TRENDS IN INDIA

This chapter is based on secondary data. Both macro- (aggregate level) and micro-level (household and individual level) data is used. Data from the population census of India and National Sample Survey Organization is analysed. While Census of India provides migration data at the aggregate level, National Sample Survey (NSS) provides household- and individual-level information of migration and other socio-economic and demographic characteristics. Total number of internal migrants based on their current and last residence is collected from Census of India for the period from 1971 to 2011. This data is used to explore the recent trends of rural-to-urban migration in India. Moreover, the migration-specific unit data collected by the NSS in its 55th (1999– 2000) and 64th (2007–2008) rounds is used to explore the employment status. These surveys provide a comprehensive national coverage: a sample size of 819,013 persons (509,779 in rural areas and 309,234 in urban areas) in 1999–2000 and 572,254 persons (374,294

As sectoral employment pattern has implications on internal migration flows, we begin our discussion with the structural transformation of employment in India. It is important to note that the share of agricultural employment in total employment has been declining since 1993–1994 (the beginning years of our study period). It was about 65 per cent of the total employment during 1993–1994, which has declined to 62 per cent during 1999–2000, further to 58.5 per cent during 2004–2005, to about 53 per cent during 2009–2010 and to 49 per cent during 2011–2012 (see Table 32.1). However, the absolute number of workers in agriculture increased from 241.5 million during 1993–1994 to 246.6 million during 1999–2000 and further to 268.6 million during 2004–2005 (see Table 32.1). However, for the first time, absolute number of workers in agriculture declined to 245 million during 2009–2010, and it continued to decline further to 232 million during 2011–2012 (see Table 32.1). When the GDP picked up during 2002–2003, a structural

451

Migration and Urbanization

Table 32.1  Sectoral Employment Trends in India, 1994–2012 Employment Trends 1994–2012 Sectors

1994

2000

2005

2010

2012

Absolute employment (million) Agriculture

241.5

246.6

268.6

244.9

231.9

Industry

54.7

63.2

83.3

99

115.1

Services

77.7

89.8

107.3

116.3

127.3

399.5

459.1

460.2

474.2

Total workforce

374

Share of employment (%) Agriculture

64.6

61.7

58.5

53.2

48.9

Industry

14.6

15.8

18.1

21.5

24.3

Services

20.8

22.5

23.4

25.3

26.8

Source: Authors’ calculation using NSS unit data, various rounds. Note: Absolute number of employment are calculated by adjusting NSS estimated with census population data.

transformation in employment took place during the post 2004–2005 period. Moreover, during this period, the absolute number of poor also declined massively (Planning Commission, 2013). According to Himanshu (2011) and Mehrotra et al. (2014), this structural transformation in employment happened due to growth of mechanization in agriculture. On the other hand, total employment in industry and service sectors shows increasing trends. The share of employment in industry increased from 14.6 per cent to about 24.3 per cent from 1993–1994 to 2011–2012 (see Table 32.1), and absolute employment

Migrants (million)

500

Total

400

100 0

Internal Migration Trends in India Internal migration in India has been increasing since 1971, but the rate of growth of migration increased massively during the period from 2001 to 2011. In absolute numbers, total migration increased from about 160 million to 202 million from 1971 to 1981 and further to 226 million in 1991 to about 309.5 million in 2001, and to about 454 million in 2011 (see Figure 32.1). In rural areas, it increased from about 124 million to 143 million from 1971 to 1981 and further to 167 million in 1991 to about 223.5 million in 2001 and to about 308.5 million in 2011. On the other hand, in urban areas, it increased from about 31 million to 45 million from 1971 to 1981 and further to 58

Rural

453.6

Urban 309.4

300 200

increased from about 55 million to 115 million (more than twice). Similarly, the share of employment in service sectors increased from 21 per cent to about 27 per cent from 1993– 1994 to 2011–2012 (see Table 32.1). Absolute employment in service sectors also increased from about 78 million to 127 million in the same period (see Table 32.1). Since agriculture in India is mostly practised in rural areas and industry and service sector employments are normally available in either urban or semi-urban areas, structural change in employment has implications on rising internal migration within India.

159.6 123.8 30.8 1971

201.6 143.1 44.5 1981

225.9 166.9

223.4

57.8

49.5

1991

2001

YEAR

Figure 32.1  Internal Migration Trends by Sectors in India, 1971–2011 Source: Authors’ plot based on census migration data (using D-series).

308.4 103.2

2011

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

million in 1991, decreased to about 49.5 million in 2001, but increased again to about 103 million (more than twice) in 2011. The percentage of migrants to total population, which was almost constant at around 30 per cent in 1971 and 2001, increased to about 37.5 per cent (see Figure 32.2). This happened for the first time in the history of Indian economy. This huge increase in urban migration could be due to the structural transformation in employment that took place in the post 2004–2005 period. This is also reflected by the annual growth rate of migration in urban India. It increased massively, 11 per cent from 2001 to 2011, the highest ever since 1971. During 1971–1981 and 1981–1991, the growth rate of urban migration was about 4.5 per cent and 3 per cent, respectively (see Figure 32.3). This growth rate declined to −1.4 per cent during 1991–2001. However, in the post 2001 period, it recovered and increased by 11 per cent, reflecting the speed of the structural transformation process in India.

Intersectoral Migration Flow in India An exploration of the sectoral flow of internal migration in India shows that both ruralto-­urban and urban-to-urban migration flows Total

are on the rise. On the other hand, the share of rural-to-rural and urban-to-rural (return) migration have been falling over the years. In the case of male migrants, the share of rural-to-rural migration decreased from about 51 per cent during 1971 to about 34 per cent during 1971–2011. For female migrants, ruralto-rural migration decreased from about 77 per cent to about 64 per cent during the same period. This is a good sign of rural development as rural-to-rural male migration was mainly distress-driven due to agricultural conditions and seasonal factors owing to uncertainty in agricultural production. This decline may also partly be due to the availability of employment through the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) during agricultural slack seasons (Parida, 2016). In the case of female migrants, rural-to-rural migration was mostly due to marriage (Kundu & Gupta, 1996; Mitra & Murayama, 2009; Parida & Madheswaran, 2011; Premi, 1980; Singh, 1986; Srivastava, 1998, 2011; Srivastava and Sasikumar, 2003). However, the changing direction of movement from rural to urban areas reflects the fact that women have also been migrating for employment in recent years. Moreover, the rising rural-to-urban migration is a reflection of the Lewisian (Lewis, 1954) Rural

Urban

105 95

27.4

Migrants (%)

85 75

28.2

28.2

28.2

28.2

26.8

30.1

29.1

30.3

26.9

30.1

26.8

17.3

65 55

37.0

45 35 25 15

1971

1981

1991

2001

37.5

2011

Figure 32.2  Migrants as Percentage of Total Population by Sectors in India, 1971–2011 Source: Authors’ plot based on census migration data (using D-series).

453

Annual % growth rate of migration

Migration and Urbanization

12.0

Total

Rural

Urban

10.0 8.0

10.8

6.0 4.0

4.5

2.0 2.6

1.6

1.2 1.7

0.0 −2.0

3.7 3.4

3.0

4.7 3.8 −1.4

1971−1981

1981−1991

2001−2011

1991−2001

Figure 32.3  Annual Growth Rate of Internal Migration by Sectors in India, 1971–2011 Source: Authors’ plot based on census migration data (using D-series).

60.0

Panel A: Sectoral flow of male migration in India (%)

50.8

50.0 33.9

40.0 30.0

30.2

28.8

24.0 16.6

20.0 7.5

10.0

7.1

0.0 Rural to Rural

Rural to Urban 1971

80.0

76.8

1981

Urban to Urban 1991

2001

Urban to Rural

2011

Panel B: Sectoral flow of female migration in India (%) 64.0

70.0 60.0 50.0 40.0 30.0 20.0

15.7

10.2

15.1 5.1

10.0

7.5

5.2

0.0 Rural to Rural

Rural to Urban 1971

1981

Urban to Urban 1991

2001

2011

Figure 32.4  Sectoral Flow of Internal Migration by Sex in India, 1971–2011 Source: Authors’ plot based on census migration data (using D-series).

Urban to Rural

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

transition. According to Lewis (1954), rural-tourban migration is likely to decrease the volume of underemployment—excess labour—in agriculture. As these workers—whose productivity is negligible—move to modern urban-sector jobs, their productivity normally increases. As a result, overall labour productivity would increase due to increased rural-to-urban ­migration in developing countries. In India, we have observed that the share of rural-to-urban migration has been rising over the years. For men, it increased from 24 per cent to 30.2 per cent, and for women, it increased from 10.2 per cent to 15.7 per cent. As large proportions of population still live in rural areas, farm mechanization and resulting rural-to-urban migration are likely to decrease the volume of disguised unemployment in agriculture. As the Indian economy moves towards a non-farm economy, the rising share of rural-to-urban migration may have a positive impact on the growth of GDP and overall economic development in India. Furthermore, the rising percentage share of urban-to-urban migration (7.5% to 28.8% in case of men, and 5.1% to 15.1% in case of women) shows that people from small cities/ towns are moving towards large cities for either employment or for better economic opportunities. This is also a good indicator of development. We have explored the composition of ruralto-urban migrants based on their demographics, skills and socio-economic profiles in the next subsection. This may help in ­understanding the structural transformation process better.

Age, Sex and Class of Rural-to-Urban Migration Age-wise distribution of rural-to-urban migration reveals that the share of relatively younger and working-age population is higher in the rural-to-urban migration stream in India. The

share of migrants in the age group 25–34 years increased from 25.8 per cent to 26.4 per cent from 1999–2000 to 2007–2008. Moreover, the share of migrants in the age group 35–59 years increased from 39 per cent to 44 per cent during the same period (see Table 32.2). The increasing share of working-age population in the rural–urban migration stream reflects the structural transformation process. Otherwise, it can be stated that the working-­ age population is leaving rural areas due to the low labour-absorption capacity of rural labour markets and they are moving towards urban areas in search of alternate employment opportunities. This is observed in case of both male and female migrants. Social group-wise distribution of ruralto-urban migrants reveals (see Table 32.2) that the share of Scheduled Tribes increased slightly from 8 per cent to 9 per cent, that of Schedule Castes remained constant around 21 per cent and the share of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) increased significantly from 36 per cent to 42 per cent. However, the share of Others (upper castes) declined from 35 per cent to 28 per cent during the same period. A rising share of OBCs in the rural-to-­urban migration stream indicates that OBCs in India mostly belong to either landless or agricultural labour classes as these categories are expected to move out of agriculture due to growth of mechanization. Moreover, a few of them could be marginal and small farmers, those who could not manage to continue the production process due to rising cost of production in agriculture in recent years. Hence, they migrated to urban areas in increasing numbers. Moreover, we computed the rural–urban migration flows by migrant’s economic categories. We classified them into two broad categories,1 that is, below poverty line (BPL) and above poverty line (APL). It is important to note that about 47 per cent of the rural–urban migrants were poor (BPL) in 1999–2000. This

To calculate BPL and APL, we used Tendulkar’s poverty line (2004–2005) as given in the poverty report (Planning Commission, 2013), but adjusted the price to get the BPL line for the years 1999–2000 and 2007–2008.

1

455

Migration and Urbanization

Table 32.2  Rural-to-Urban Migrants by Age, Sex and Socio-economic Groups in India (in Percentage) 1999–2000 Categories

Males

Females

2007–2008 Total

Males

Females

Total

Age groups Below 15 years

17.1

3.2

5.7

13.9

2.0

3.8

15–24 years

18.4

18.1

18.2

18.9

14.6

15.3

25–34 years

19.1

27.3

25.8

21.6

27.3

26.4

35–59 years

36.6

39.7

39.2

37.0

45.0

43.8

60 and above Total

8.7 100

11.6 100

11.1 100

8.6 100

11.1 100

10.7 100

Social groups Scheduled tribes

7.3

8.4

8.2

7.0

9.6

9.2

Scheduled castes

17.1

20.9

20.2

17.2

21.1

20.5

Other backward classes

33.8

36.9

36.3

39.3

42.9

42.3

Others Total

41.9 100

33.8 100

35.3 100

36.5 100

26.4 100

27.9 100

Economic groups Below poverty line

40.8

48.3

46.9

20

34.5

32

Above poverty line

59.2

51.7

53.1

80

65.5

68

Total

100

100

100

100

100

100

Source: Authors’ estimation based on NSS unit data (55th and 64th) migration rounds.

share declined to only 32 per cent in 2007–2008. This implies the fact that in 1999–2000 people migrated out of income distress. However, the share of distressed migrants has been declining over the years. This could be because the ­incidence of poverty has declined massively. Although the share of the poor in the ruralto-urban migration stream has declined, it is expected that those who lost their jobs in agriculture form a major share of this migration stream. Hence, rural-to-urban migration stream has implications on urban poverty and living conditions.

Role of Education on Rural-to-Urban Migration Distribution of rural-to-urban migrants on the basis of their level of education reveals that the share of low-skilled migrants is very high. Migrants with below secondary level of education and illiterates constituted about 95 per cent of the total migration flow in 1999–2000

(see Table 32.3). Although this share declined slightly to 93 per cent in 2007–2008, it still holds a major share. Among these low-skilled migrants, about 52 per cent were illiterate, 22.5 per cent had primary level of education and 18.5 per cent had secondary level of education in 2007–2008 (see Table 32.3). This high share of low-skilled migrants in the rural-to-urban migration streams reflects a transition process. In a context where capital intensity in manufacturing sector is rising at a rapid rate (Mehrotra et al., 2014), and newer forms of services (modern services) are growing due to globalization (Mehrotra & Parida, 2017; Raman, 2012), rising low-skill migration has implications on growing urban unemployment, poverty and inequality. Furthermore, it can be inferred that due to increased low-skill rural–urban migration, urban information-sector employment is growing in India. We have discussed this in the fifth section where we have explored the employment patterns of rural-to-urban migrants in great detail.

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Table 32.3  Level of Education and Rural-to-Urban Migration in India (Figures in Percentage) 1999–2000 Level of Education

2007–2008

Males

Females

Total

Males

Females

Total

Illiterate

23.4

66.2

58.2

18.9

57.8

51.8

Primary

29.2

18.2

20.3

27.9

21.5

22.5

Secondary

29.0

12.2

15.4

31.9

16.0

18.5

Higher secondary

7.2

1.7

2.8

9.5

2.7

3.7

Graduate & above

7.3

1.1

2.3

8.3

1.7

2.7

Below graduate

3.5

0.4

1.0

2.3

0.2

0.5

Graduate & above

0.4

0.1

0.1

1.2

0.1

General education

Technical/vocational education

Total

100

100

100

100

100

0.3 100

Source: Authors’ estimation based on NSS unit data (55th and 64th) migration rounds.

RURAL-TO-URBAN MIGRATION AND GROWTH OF URBAN POPULATION IN INDIA It is observed that rural-to-urban migration is contributing significantly to the growth of urban population in India. While urban population increased from 286 million to 377 million from 2001 to 2011, with an annual growth rate of 3.2 per cent, rural-to-urban migration increased from about 52 million to about 83 million during the same period, with an average annual growth rate of 6 per cent (see Table 32.4). More importantly, the share of rural-to-urban migration to total urban population increased from 18.1 per cent to 21.9 per cent from 2001 to 2011 (see Table 32.4). Moreover, the growth rate of rural-to-urban migration is higher than both growth of urban population and growth of share of urban population to total population (proxy of growth of urbanization). This shows the contribution of rural-to-urban migration on the growth of urban population. The states which ranked at the top in terms of absolute number of rural-to-urban migration during 2011 are Maharashtra (13.5 million), Gujarat (7.3 million), Uttar Pradesh (7.2 million), Andhra Pradesh 5.9 million), West Bengal (5.7 million), Tamil Nadu

(5.5 million), Kerala (4.4 million), Madhya Pradesh (4.22 million), Karnataka (4.2 million) and Delhi (4.15 million). It is important to note that most Indian states registered a higher annual rate of growth of rural-to-urban migration than the average of all Indian states (see Table 32.4). The states which registered more than the national average rate of growth are Kerala (22.3 per cent), Tamil Nadu (12.1 per cent), Andhra Pradesh (8.5 per cent), Uttar Pradesh (7.9 per cent), Jammu and Kashmir (7.9 per cent), Haryana (6.8 per cent), Uttaranchal (6.8 per cent), West Bengal (6.6 per cent), Rajasthan (6.6 per cent), Assam (6.2 per cent) and Gujarat (6.1 per cent). Moreover, all northeastern states registered more than national average rate of growth of rural-to-­ urban migration, except Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram. Moreover, states in which the share of urban population is higher (relatively urbanized states) have a higher growth of rural-to-urban migration too. Earlier studies like Deshingkar and Akter (2009), Bhagat and Mohanty (2009) also claimed that urbanization is growing due to the sharp increase in rural-to-urban mobility of people. Mechanization in agriculture and unavailability of jobs in rural areas have pushed a large number of poor migrants to urban areas; an improved standard of living along with rising income would sustain this process in the long run.

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Migration and Urbanization

Table 32.4  Growth of Rural-to-Urban Migration and Urban Population in India, 2001–2011

Rural–Urban Migration (Million)

Urban Population (Million)

Rural–Urban Migration as Percentage of Urban Population

Urban Population as Percentage of Total Population

2001

2011

Annual growth rate (%)

Jammu & Kashmir

0.27

0.48

7.9

0.92

3.4

27.5

10.6

13.9

3.1

24.8

27.4

1.0

Himachal Pradesh

0.22

0.26

1.9

0.09

0.7

64.1

36.4

37.4

0.3

9.8

10.0

0.2

Name of the State

2001

2011

Annual Annual Annual growth growth growth rate (%) 2001 2011 rate (%) 2001 2011 rate (%)

Punjab

1.53

2.18

4.3

2.1

10.4

38.7

18.5

21.0

1.3

33.9

37.5

1.1

Uttaranchal

0.49

0.83

6.8

0.9

3.0

25.0

22.7

27.3

2.0

25.7

30.2

1.8

Haryana

1.54

2.58

6.8

2.7

8.8

22.4

25.2

29.2

1.6

28.9

34.9

2.1

Delhi

3.26

4.15

2.7

3.5

16.4

37.3

25.3

25.3

0.0

93.2

97.5

0.5

Rajasthan

1.96

3.25

6.6

3.8

17.0

34.5

14.8

19.1

2.9

23.4

24.9

0.6

Uttar Pradesh

4.01

7.17

7.9

10.0

44.5

34.7

11.6

16.1

3.9

20.8

22.3

0.7

11.8

Bihar

1.47

2.21

5.1

3.1

28.2

17.0

18.8

1.1

10.5

11.3

0.8

Sikkim

0.02

0.05

17.5

0.09

0.15

6.4

28.2

30.3

0.7

11.1

25.2

12.7

Arunachal Pradesh

0.08

0.11

3.7

0.09

0.32

25.5

36.8

36.2

-0.2

20.8

22.9

1.1

Nagaland

0.06

0.16

15.2

0.23

0.57

15.0

18.6

28.1

5.1

17.2

28.9

6.8

Manipur

0.03

0.10

24.8

0.26

0.83

22.3

5.1

12.3

14.0

26.6

29.2

1.0

Mizoram

0.10

0.15

5.3

0.13

0.57

33.7

21.8

25.6

1.8

49.6

52.1

0.5

Tripura

0.09

0.27

20.2

0.42

0.96

13.1

16.4

28.1

7.2

17.1

26.2

5.3

Meghalaya

0.05

0.10

11.6

0.14

0.60

32.1

10.1

16.6

6.5

19.6

20.1

0.3

Assam

0.67

1.09

6.2

1.0

4.4

35.9

19.6

24.8

2.6

12.9

14.1

0.9

West Bengal

3.41

5.66

6.6

6.7

29.1

33.6

15.2

19.4

2.8

28.0

31.9

1.4

Jharkhand

1.34

1.99

4.9

1.9

7.9

30.9

22.3

25.1

1.2

22.2

24.0

0.8

Odisha

1.49

2.09

4.0

1.5

7.0

37.1

27.0

29.8

1.0

15.0

16.7

1.1

Chhattisgarh

1.10

1.68

5.3

1.8

5.9

23.9

26.3

28.4

0.8

20.1

23.2

1.6

Madhya Pradesh

2.91

4.22

4.5

4.1

20.1

38.9

18.2

21.0

1.6

26.5

27.6

0.4

Gujarat

4.5

7.3

6.1

6.8

25.7

27.8

24.0

28.3

1.8

37.4

42.6

1.4

Maharashtra 10.5

13.5

2.8

9.7

50.8

42.3

25.6

26.5

0.3

42.4

45.2

0.7

5.9

8.5

7.4

28.2

28.1

15.5

21.1

3.6

27.3

33.4

2.2

23.6

Andhra Pradesh

3.2

Karnataka

2.8

4.2

5.0

5.7

Goa

0.18

0.28

5.1

0.24

Kerala

1.4

4.4

22.3

7.7

Tamil Nadu

2.5

5.5

12.1

7.4

51.7

82.6

6.0

286.1

All India

31.7

15.7

17.9

1.4

34.0

38.7

1.4

28.4

27.3

30.3

1.1

49.8

62.2

2.5

15.9

10.8

16.4

27.4

6.8

26.0

47.7

8.4

34.9

37.0

9.1

15.8

7.4

44.0

48.4

1.0

377.1

3.2

18.1

21.9

2.1

27.8

31.1

1.2

0.91

Source: Authors’ calculation based on census migration data (using D-series).

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

To substantiate our argument further, we explored the employment patterns of rural– urban migrants in the next section.

RURAL-TO-URBAN MIGRATION AND URBAN EMPLOYMENT IN INDIA The share of migrants in the urban workforce is greater than their share in the total population. About 37 per cent of the total urban workers are migrants (see Table 32.5). The shares of migrants in the workforce is highest (about 59%) in Delhi and in Maharashtra (about 50%). It is important to note that the two largest metro cities, namely, New Delhi and Mumbai, belong to these states. Moreover, in most of the states, it was noticed that the share of migrants in workforce is more than the national (all India) average. This implies that both large and small cities attract rural migrants during the transition periods. Distribution of migrant workers on the basis of their types of employment reveals that in 1999–2000, share of self-employed migrants was about 36 per cent, that of casual worker was 16 per cent and that of regular salaried workers was about 48 per cent. In 2007– 2008, the share of self-employed and casual workers increased to 37 per cent and 18 per cent, respectively, whereas the share of regular salaried workers declined to 45 per cent (see Table 32.5). The share of regular salaried workers also declined across states in India. The share of regular salaried workers declined from 69 per cent to 59 per cent in Delhi, from 56 per cent to 50 per cent in Maharashtra, from 49 per cent to 37 per cent in Tamil Nadu, from 47 per cent to 40 per cent in West Bengal, from 45 per cent to 41 per cent in Uttar Pradesh, from 41 per cent to 37 per cent in Andhra Pradesh and from 40 per cent to 39 per cent in Gujarat (see Table 32.5). The increasing share of both self-­employed and casual employed and declining share

of regular workers indicates that there was a high inflow of low-skilled and unskilled workers into the urban areas, of which most are from rural areas. The unskilled and semiskilled workers from rural areas are most likely to work as either casual labourers or are self-employed. Earlier studies on migrant labour, like Connell, Das Gupta and Lipton (1976), Joshi and Joshi (1976), Bhattacharya (2002), Srivastava and Bhattacharya (2002) and Deshingkar and Akter (2009) have found that poor households participate extensively in rural-to-urban migration and they are mostly absorbed in the unorganized sector of the economy. Most of these workers either open small shops or engage themselves in petty trade, street vending, rickshaw pulling or auto-rickshaw driving. Distribution of male migrant workers across the industries reveals that about 74 per cent of them were engaged in various non-farm sectors in 1999–2000 (see Table 32.6). This share increased to 79 per cent during 2007–2008. Industry-wise distribution of urban migrant workers—those who have come from rural areas—reveals that of the male migrants, about 29 per cent are employed in the manufacturing sector, 13 per cent in construction activities, 17 per cent in the hotel trade and restaurant services, about 9 per cent in transport and communication services, about 13 per cent in education, healthcare and other social services, 3 per cent in real estate and finance services, 1 per cent in mining and quarrying activities and 21 per cent in agriculture and allied activities. The distribution of female migrant workers, on the other hand, reveals that most of them are engaged in agriculture and allied sectors. Nevertheless, of the female migrants, about 7 per cent are engaged in manufacturing sectors, 2.3 per cent in construction, 2.7 per cent in hotel trade and restaurant services and about 4 per cent in education, healthcare and other social services. This finding by and large supports earlier studies like Joshi and Joshi (1976), Dupont

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Migration and Urbanization

Table 32.5  State-wise Employment Patterns of Migrants in Urban India

Name of the State Andhra Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh

Percentage of Migrants in the Urban Workforce (UPSS)

Distribution of Urban Migrant Workers by Their Types of Employment (%) Self-employed

Regular workers

Casual workers

1999–2000 2007–2008 1999–2000 2007–2008 1999–2000 2007–2008 1999–2000 2007–2008 41

47

35

37

41

37

24

27

3

6

0

30

82

59

18

11

Assam

15

32

24

39

54

54

23

8

Bihar

19

29

42

53

50

36

8

12

Goa

47

46

22

31

48

51

30

18 20

Gujarat

38

40

34

40

39

40

27

Haryana

52

47

36

38

52

55

12

8

Himachal Pradesh

66

56

30

37

62

52

9

12

Jammu & Kashmir

27

16

34

44

51

47

15

9

Karnataka

37

34

33

26

50

56

17

19

Kerala

39

35

42

36

38

35

21

29

Madhya Pradesh

30

30

37

44

42

34

21

23

Maharashtra

52

50

30

33

56

50

14

16

Manipur

2

1

60

11

29

75

11

14

Meghalaya

4

7

19

30

59

31

22

40 11

Mizoram

1

27

50

54

41

35

10

Nagaland

71

47

23

47

72

49

5

5

Odisha

42

42

36

40

51

50

13

10

Punjab

42

35

36

30

52

59

12

11

Rajasthan

43

40

44

49

43

36

13

16

Sikkim

54

75

35

26

60

74

5

0

Tamil Nadu

37

25

33

36

49

37

17

27

Tripura

12

17

22

32

66

57

12

11

Uttar Pradesh

37

25

47

48

45

41

9

11

West Bengal

40

33

39

44

47

40

14

16

5

59

21

33

69

59

10

8

Chhattisgarh

NA 

49

NA 

27

NA 

49

NA 

24

Jharkhand

NA 

27

NA 

37

NA 

38

NA 

25

Uttaranchal

NA 

53

NA 

41

NA 

47

NA 

13

Other UTs

53

53

30

24

62

53

8

23

All India

38

37

36

37

48

45

16

18

Delhi

Source: Authors’ estimation based on NSS unit data (55th and 64th) migration rounds. Notes: 1.UPSS implies Usual Principal and Subsidiary Status, which is derived by combining both principal and subsidiary status of employment. 2.UTs implies Union Territories.

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Table 32.6  Rural–Urban Migrants by Their Industry of Employment in Urban India (Figures in Percentage) 1999–2000 Industry of Employment

2007–2008

Male

Female

Total

Male

Female

Total

Agriculture & allied

25.6

82.6

67.7

21.3

82.7

70.2

Mining & quarrying

1.3

0.3

0.5

1.0

0.3

0.4

20.3

7.4

10.8

22.9

7.5

10.6

Electricity, gas and water

0.8

0.0

0.2

0.6

0.0

0.1

Construction industry

8.0

1.4

3.2

12.6

2.3

4.4

17.6

3.1

6.9

16.7

2.7

5.6

Transport & communication

8.5

0.1

2.3

9.2

0.2

2.0

Real estate & finance

1.9

0.1

0.6

3.2

0.2

0.8

16.1

5.0

7.9

12.5

4.1

5.8

Manufacturing

Hotel, trade & restaurant

Education, healthcare and other services Total

100

100

100

100

100

100

Source: Authors’ estimation based on NSS unit data (55th and 64th) migration rounds.

(1992), Kundu and Gupta (1996), Srivastava (1998), Singh (2002), Mitra (2003) and Deshingkar and Akter (2009). These studies were conducted in various states of India and found that unskilled or semi-skilled migrant workers in small towns and suburban areas are normally employed in construction, textiles, small-scale industries, brickmaking, stone quarries, mines and hospitality services. The increasing share of rural-to-urban migrants in manufacturing, construction and service-sector employment may have contributed significantly to economic growth in India in the recent years. Though manufacturing and service sectors are highly heterogeneous in terms of their range of activities, the labour-intensive subsectors (Mehrotra et al., 2014; Parida, 2015) absorb a large share of rural-to-urban migrants in India. Since ruralto-urban migration is an outcome of higher economic growth and structural changes that are occurring in both output (GDP) and employment in India, an increase in labour productivity after migration can help speed up this process. However, because a large share of ruralto-urban migrants are illiterate or low-skilled with up to primary level of education, a rising demand for skilled workers would increase

urban unemployment rate. This may impact urban poverty and inequality.

CONCLUDING REMARKS During this period of high economic growth and structural transformation, a ‘Lewisian transition’ is taking place in India, with a large number of people migrating from rural to urban areas to take up urban employment. Mechanization in agriculture is one of the major drivers of rural-to-urban migration in India. Rural-to-urban migration not only increases the share of migrants in the urban population but also their share in employment. Since migrants are found employed in manufacturing and service sectors, it is expected that their labour productivity may have increased. As a consequence, the incidence of poverty has declined substantially. However, since a large share of rural-tourban migrants are illiterate or low-skilled with up to primary level of education, a rising demand for skilled workers may increase the urban unemployment rate. This may impact urban poverty and inequality. In this context, strengthening labour-intensive manufacturing

Migration and Urbanization

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1993–4 to 2011–12. Economic & Political Weekly, 49(32), 49–57. Mitra, A. (2003). Occupational choices, networks and transfers: An exegesis based on micro data from Delhi slums. New Delhi, India: Manohar. Mitra, A., & Murayama, M. (2009). Rural to urban migration: A district-level analysis for India. International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, 5(2), 35–52. REFERENCES Parida, J. K. (2015). Growth and prospects of non-farm employment in India: Reflections from NSS data. JourBhagat, R. B. & Mohanty, S. (2009). Emerging pattern nal of Industrial Statistics, 4(2), 154–168. of urbanization and the contribution of migration in ———. (2016). MGNREGS, distress migration and liveurban growth in India. Asian Population Studies, 5(1), lihood conditions: A study in Odisha. Journal of Social 5–20. and Economic Development, 18(1), 17–39. Bhattacharya, P. C. (2002). Urbanization in develop- Parida, J. K., & Madheswaran, S. (2011). Determinants ing countries. Economic & Political Weekly, 37(41), of migration and remittance in India: Empirical evi4219–4228. dence. The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, 54(3), Chauhan, R. K., Mohanty, S. K., Subramanian, S. V., 561–578. Parida, J., & Padhi, B. (2016). Regional estimates of Planning Commission. (2013). Press note on poverty poverty and inequality in India, 1993–2012. Social estimates, 2011–12 (No. id: 5421). New Delhi: GovIndicator Research, 127(3), 1249–1296. ernment of India. Connell, J. B., Das Gupta, L., & Lipton, M. (1976). Migra- Premi, M. K. (1980). Aspects of female migration in India. tion from rural areas: The evidence from village studEconomic & Political Weekly, 15(15), 714–720. ies. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. Raman, Ravi K. (2012). Currents and Eddies: Indian Deshingkar, P. & Akter, S. (2009). Migration and human Middle East Migration Processes. Cambridge Journal development in India (Human Development Research of Regions, Economy and Society 5 (2): 189–205. Paper, No. 13). UNDP. Retrieved from http://hdr. Singh, J. P. (1986). Marital status differentials in rural to undp.org/en/reports/global/hdr2009/papers/ city migration in India. Genus, 42(3/4), 89–106. HDRP_2009_13.pdf Singh, C. S. K. (2002). Daily labour market in Delhi: Dupont, V. (1992). Impact of in-migration on industrial Structure and behaviour. Economic & Political Weekly, development: Case study of Jetpur in Gujarat. Eco37(9), 884–889. nomic & Political Weekly, 27(45), 2423–2436. Srivastava, R. (1998). Migration and the labour market Himanshu. (2011). Employment trends in India: A re-­ in India. Indian Journal of Labour Economics, 41(4), examination. Economic & Political Weekly, 46(37), 583–616. 43–59. ———. (2011). Labour migration in India: Recent Joshi, H., & Joshi, V. (1976). Surplus labour and the trends, patterns and policy issues. The Indian Journal city: A study of Bombay. Bombay: Oxford University of Labour Economics, 54(3), 411–440. Press. Srivastava, R., & Bhattacharyya, S. (2002, September). Kundu, A., & Gupta, S. (1996). Migration, urbanization Globalisation, reforms and internal labour mobility: and regional inequality. Economic & Political Weekly, Analysis of recent Indian trends. Paper presented at 31(52), 3391–3398. a seminar ‘Labour Mobility and Globalising World: Lewis, A. (1954). Economic development with unlimited Conceptual and Empirical Issues. New Delhi, India, supplies of labour. Manchester School of Economic V. V. Giri National Labour Institute. and Social Studies, 22, 139–191. Srivastava, R., & Sasikumar, S. K. (2003, June 22–24). An Mehrotra, S., & Parida, J. K. (2017). Why is the labour overview of migration in India, its impacts and key issues. force participation of women declining in India? In Regional Conference on Migration, Development and World Development, 98, 360–380. Pro-Poor Policy Choices in Asia, Dhaka, Bangladesh. Mehrotra, S., Parida, J. K., Sinha, S., & Gandhi, A. (2014). Explaining employment trends in the Indian Economy:

units in micro-, small- and medium-size enterprises in rural areas may check the growth of rural-to-urban migration and help sustain growth of employment in rural areas.

33 Circular Migration and Urban Housing Renu Desai Shachi Sanghvi

INTRODUCTION There is increasing recognition that circular and seasonal migrants to cities remain on the extreme margins in their urban work destinations, facing layers of socio-­economic and political vulnerabilities, although they contribute significantly to the economy (Deshingkar & Akter, 2009).1 In Ahmedabad, these migrants work in construction, factories, small hotels, restaurants and food stalls, domestic work, head-loading and load-cartpulling, scrap recycling and vegetable vending (Aajeevika Bureau, 2007). A large number of them work as construction labourers,

migrating from other districts of Gujarat and from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and other states. Mosse et al. (2005) have pointed out that the physical expansion of Gujarat’s industrial growth poles can be attributed directly to the seasonal flow of casual labourers of Adivasi background from upland villages in south Rajasthan, western Madhya Pradesh and eastern Gujarat to work in construction and related industries. Although they build the cities, they live in some of the most vulnerable conditions which remain unmapped and are barely understood. While there has been an increasing emphasis on the invisibility of these migrant

This chapter is concerned with circular and seasonal migrant labourers, but henceforth, for ease, we refer to them simply as migrant labourers. Estimates of seasonal migrants in India vary widely from 40 million (Srivastava, 2012) to 100 million (Deshingkar & Akter, 2009). Official data comes nowhere close to these estimates due to definitional problems. Census does not capture seasonal migration at all. The NSSO 2007–2008 round estimated about 14 million short-duration seasonal migrants in India using a definition which only captures those who migrate for one month or more, up to a period of six months, within the last year. This leaves out the many seasonal migrants who migrate for more than six months in a year.

1

Circular Migration and Urban Housing

labourers in urban policies, planning and governance processes (Bhagat, 2012, pp. 86–99; Deshingkar, Khandelwal & Farrington, 2008; Srivastava, 2012, pp. 166–193), there are only a few studies that look at their housing in the city in any depth.2 This chapter examines in depth the spaces inhabited by migrant construction workers in Ahmedabad by developing a typology of their housing, discussing the conditions and migrants’ experiences in each housing type and outlining the policy and governance dynamics shaping these conditions. The chapter draws upon a housing survey done in 2018 of 224 migrant construction workers across 14 kadiya nakas (informal street-side labour markets), qualitative research undertaken since 2014 in about 20 migrant settlements through observations and informal conversations as well as focus group discussions with migrants from 8 settlements and an analysis of relevant legislation, policies and governance.3

MIGRANT LABOUR IN THE CONSTRUCTION SECTOR India’s construction industry is highly labour intensive and is the second largest employer in the country, after agriculture. Employment in the sector rose from 14.5 million in 1995 to 31.5 million in 2005 and to 41 million in 2011 (Planning Commission, 2012). In 2011, skilled and unskilled workers were 9.1 per cent and 83.3 per cent of the total workforce, respectively, with most being unorganized and migrant labourers (Planning Commission, 2012). In Ahmedabad, the number of construction workers was estimated to be about 0.1 million in 2009, with 70 per cent being migrants who shuttle back and forth between

463

Ahmedabad and their native place (BSC, 2009). The recruitment channels through which construction workers are employed involve an absence of a clear relationship between workers and the principal employer while a series of intermediaries seek to maximize their profit. This creates major difficulties for workers in terms of occupational safety, fair wages and welfare facilities at their workplaces. While the Building and Other Construction Workers (BOCW) Act 1996 has led to some important shifts, there is still a long way to go. Many of the difficulties are compounded for the migrant workers. They also face severe obstacles in realizing decent housing, basic services and social services in the city. One reason for this is the lack of a political voice in the city as they exercise their vote in their villages, resulting in no interaction with political leaders in the city. Bureaucrats in the urban local bodies (ULBs) perceive these workers as not having any claim on urban resources because they are ‘temporary’. This chapter identifies two main types of migrant construction workers based on their path of migration and recruitment and elaborates on their housing spaces in the city.

HOUSING SPACES OF THE FLOATING MIGRANT CONSTRUCTION WORKERS Many migrant construction workers come to Ahmedabad through labour recruiters/contractors as part of labour gangs and go directly to construction sites. The employer or contractor gives them a place to live on the site or off-site. These ‘floating’ migrant construction workers shift across construction sites to work and live, with many also moving between cities. Work is

This includes Agarwal (2016) on migrants living in Indore’s slums, Naik (2015) on migrant renters in Gurgaon and Naraparaju (2014) on migrant construction workers in Navi Mumbai. 3 This research was mainly undertaken through three studies sponsored by the Prayas Centre for Labour Research and Action and funded by The Tata Trust Migrant Support Program (in 2014) and the Paul Hamlym Foundation (in 2017 and 2018). See Desai, Soni, Vaid and Mevada (2014), Desai (2017) and Desai and Sanghvi (2018). 2

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considerably regular for them for a few months or more, and sometimes even few years. Under the BOCW Act, every establishment which employs 10 or more construction workers and where the total cost of construction is more than `1 million has to be registered and is supposed to provide workers with temporary accommodation for the duration of their work. The accommodation should have separate spaces for cooking, washing, bathing and toilet facilities, and drinking water should be provided. However, the provisions made by employers in Ahmedabad are generally inadequate due to legislative, policy and governance gaps (Desai, 2017). The Gujarat Building and Other Construction Workers Rules 2003, which was formulated under the Act, does not set out any standards for these provisions, and in fact, does not even refer to temporary accommodation. This creates ambiguities about what kind of temporary accommodation and basic services should be provided. Moreover, the task of implementing the BOCW Act and 2003 Gujarat Rules was given to the Directorate of Industrial Safety and Health (DISH), the wing of the Labour and Employment department in charge of factories, without any additional resources. Dedicated inspectors for construction sites were recruited only in 2017. The impact of these human resources on improving accommodation and basic services for workers remains to be seen, especially in the absence of mechanisms to ensure that all construction sites are registered with DISH in the first place. While the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has data on construction sites because it issues development permissions, there is no data sharing with DISH. As part of the development permission process, developers are required to sign a bond with AMC which states that they will provide temporary housing and sanitation to the workers, but here too, absence of standards means that the nature of this provision is open to interpretation, generally resulting in poor provisions.4 4

See Desai (2017) for a detailed discussion.

Most of the workers, therefore, live on-site or off-site in shacks made of metal sheets or even plastic sheets. In case of the off-site arrangements, the employer or contractor often negotiates access to public or private land and puts up the workers there. In case of multi-storey building construction, the workers move into the under-construction building after it reaches a certain number of floors. Better workers’ accommodation, often using prefab materials, is provided by some large construction companies, but this is still an exception rather than the rule. Provision of water and sanitation facilities varies across sites, but in many cases, potable water is not provided, toilets are poorly maintained and storm-water drainage around the workers accommodation is non-existent. There are also instances where the builder or contractor accommodates the workers in existing informal rental rooms and pays their rents. The Gujarat Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board (hereafter referred to as the Board) has a large fund from the cess collected from employers of construction workers. In 2017, the Board launched a temporary housing scheme to build rooms using precast concrete slabs for walls and metal sheets for roofs. This was directed at the labour gangs working on private construction sites or public infrastructure projects. The land for this housing was provided by the developer in the former case and by a ULB in the latter case. By doing this, the Board absolved the employers of their responsibility under the BOCW Act. In conclusion, we suggest how the Board can better use its cess funds for workers’ housing.

HOUSING SPACES OF THE MIGRANT NAKA WORKERS The second type of migrant construction workers based on their path of migration

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and recruitment are those who migrate to Ahmedabad independently and go to kadiya nakas to search for daily-wage work. Referred to as naka workers, these migrants remain in the city for few, several or even 11 months of the year, with many of them migrating to the city in a circular manner over many years. Work obtained from the naka is irregular, with workers getting from 5 to 25 days of work in a month depending on the season (summer, winter, monsoon and festivals), skills, experience, contacts with contractors who come to the naka to hire labour and negotiating abilities. These migrants work at different construction sites over the course of a single month, which makes it difficult to pin down an employer responsible for housing them. Thus, these workers arrange for their own housing in the city, and in most cases, enter the city through village- and kin-based social networks, find housing through them and then start going to a nearby naka. Migrant naka workers live in four main housing typologies in Ahmedabad: squatter settlements on public and private lands, homeless settlements in public spaces, rental rooms/ units and rental spots on lands and building rooftops. A survey with 224 migrant workers across 14 nakas covered workers living in these different typologies (Table 33.1). Each of these is discussed in the following sections, drawing upon the survey findings and qualitative research.

Squatter Settlements Majority of the survey respondents living in squatter settlements on public and private lands were living in kutcha shelters (Table 33.2). Kutcha shelters are constructed from plastic, cloth, wood and bamboo sticks and have to be rebuilt at least once a year. This is generally after the monsoon, as the wooden columns rot away due to waterlogging and the hut is sometimes blown away by strong wind and rain. The plastic sheets tear from the summer heat and have to be replaced before

Table 33.1  Housing Typologies of the Survey Respondents Number of Respondents

Housing Typology Rental rooms/units

108

48%

Squatter settlements

41

18%

Homeless settlements in public spaces

30

14%

Rental spots on lands/building rooftops

26

12%

Other (living with relatives, in employer-provided housing or in public resettlement housing)

19

8%

224

100%

Total

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

Table 33.2  Quality of Shelter in Squatter Settlements Shelter Quality Kutcha

Number of Respondents 35

85%

Potla

6

15%

Total

41

100%

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

the monsoons. Termites and rodents intermittently damage the structure, necessitating repairs. In heavy rains, the shelters offer little protection to their occupants and their possessions. Cooking is impossible and the migrants have to sleep hungry or spend money on purchasing cooked food. In some settlements, severe waterlogging forces the migrants to temporarily shift to shop verandahs or under flyovers. Some migrants live in the open without any shelter, tying up their belongings into a bundle (potla) every day (Table 33.2). This was found in the squatter settlements on narrow strips of land along railway tracks. The state authorities allow them to erect tent-like plastic-sheet structures during the monsoons, but this offers only minimal protection. These squatter settlements generally lack municipal water provision. None of the survey respondents living in these settlements were found to have an individual tap (Table 33.3).

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Table 33.3  Source of Water in Squatter Settlements Water Source Surrounding buildings (residential, commercial or schools)

Number of Respondents

Type of Toilet Use

29

Open defecation

71%

Shared water source in the settlement

8

19%

Government facilities

4

10%

41

100%

Total

Table 33.4  Access to Toilets in Squatter Settlements

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

Of the respondents, 19 per cent had access to a shared water source in the settlement. This may comprise a borewell dug by the residents or an informal water supplier or common municipal taps. The remaining 81 per cent of respondents filled water from buildings and government facilities outside the settlement (Table 33.3). Discussions with migrants revealed that one or two members from each family woke up early to obtain water through informal arrangements with security guards/ caretakers at government facilities like a water distribution station, sewage treatment plant or police chowky, or from nearby residential and commercial complexes. Water was available for only a few hours in the morning and sometimes in the evening and involved long queues. The migrants generally walked, making multiple rounds to fetch water for bathing, washing, drinking and cooking, making it a time-­consuming process. Most migrants do not have to pay for water, but establishing and sustaining informal arrangements to obtain water is not always easy. In some cases, the migrants had to oblige the provider to sustain regular access to water, for example, by sweeping the area around the water tap or buying tea/snacks from him in case the provider was a shopkeeper. In some settlements, groups of 15–20 migrant families had organized 24-hour water access for themselves by pooling money (approximately `700 each) to dig a shallow borewell and install a handpump. This breaks down every few years, necessitating reinvestment.

Number of Respondents 33

81%

Shared toilet

3

7%

Pay-and-Use toilet/Pay-andUse toilet + Open defecation

3

7%

Public toilet Total

2

5%

41

100%

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

Majority of migrants living in squatter settlements practised open defecation (Table 33.4), although this is getting increasingly difficult as surrounding lands are getting developed. AMC has placed mobile toilets in some settlements, but not all the migrants use them for reasons such as inadequate number, distance from their hut, lack of cleanliness and lack of water inside the toilets. The management of these toilets has been given to a private organization which is required to assign one caretaker for each toilet and AMC sends water tankers to fill the toilet’s water tank and arranges to empty its sewage tank. Migrants’ narratives suggest that these tasks may not be undertaken properly. Bathing is generally done in cloth/plastic sheet enclosures made by the migrants near their huts. These are usually open-tosky enclosures, which offer little privacy and women, therefore, bathe in the dark. When the migrants cannot obtain enough water, they are unable to take a bath. The workers are exposed to dust, cement, paint and mud along with sweat, which makes access to water and bathing facilities crucial to maintain hygiene. Significantly, the mobile toilets do not have bathing facilities. Of the survey respondents, 90 per cent were not provided with electricity in their shelters. Monthly electricity-related expenses varied widely, almost nil using the torchlight from their mobile phones, `100 using a kerosene lamp, `300–400 using candles and `600

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Circular Migration and Urban Housing

by renting a rechargeable battery to power a light bulb in their hut. An additional `100–300 was spent monthly for charging their mobile phones at nearby shops in case they could not charge them at their worksites. The lack of provision of basic services like water, sanitation (toilets, bathrooms and drainage) and electricity to the squatter settlements inhabited by migrant naka workers is a consequence of AMC’s approach to these settlements. This approach can be summed up as comprising the following reasons: (a) an absence of recognition of these settlements, with AMC viewing the migrants as being temporary in the city, (b) land-ownership issues with many of the settlements being on railway authority lands, (c) improperly done slum surveys, like the 2009 Rajiv Awas Yojana survey in Ahmedabad, which exclude these settlements and (d) current governance processes engaging urban poor settlements only if their residents vote in the city. This also results in tenure insecurity, especially on the railway lands and denial of resettlement in case of eviction. Three migrant settlements on railway lands have faced eviction in the past few years, with the migrants returning to the land after eviction and rebuilding their shacks in the absence of any alternative.

Homeless Settlements in Public Spaces Migrant naka workers living in homeless settlements in public spaces are found most commonly under flyovers, on roadsides and footpaths and on shop verandahs. In some areas of the city, the roadside and footpath settlements comprise of kutcha shelters, but in most of the homeless settlements, the migrants live in the open. They tie up their belongings into a bundle (potla) every morning before they leave for the naka and unfold the bundle when they return to set up their sleeping and cooking spaces. During monsoons, those

Table 33.5  Source of Water in Homeless Settlements in Public Spaces Water Source Surrounding buildings (residential, commercial or temples) Government facilities Total

Number of Respondents 28

93%

2

7%

30

100%

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

living in the open on the roadsides and footpaths erect tent-like plastic-sheet structures. However, during torrential rainfall, some are forced to take shelter under flyovers, on shop verandahs or in bus stands. Water and sanitation access is a challenge for the migrants living in public spaces. A majority of the survey respondents obtained water from surrounding buildings, like residential societies, commercial establishments and temples (Table 33.5). A few filled water from government facilities like a police chowky. Fetching water was found to be a laborious, time-consuming and uncertain process and could also turn violent. In one settlement, a young girl was physically assaulted by a middle class resident from a locality when a tap at the temple from where the migrants filled water was found broken. After this, the temple discontinued giving water to the migrants. While they do not generally pay for the water, the migrants in one footpath settlement reported calling a private water tanker intermittently. Majority of the homeless survey respondents used pay-and-use toilets (Table 33.6). A significant number practised open defecation, with some intermittently using pay-and-use toilets. The AMC’s scheme for pay-and-use toilets includes the possibility of instructing the private organization contracted with running and maintaining a pay-and-use facility to not charge for use,5 and AMC has made

Circular no. 75, dated 19 February 2014, from the Municipal Commissioner’s Central Office based on AMC’s Standing Committee resolution no. 1441, dated 23 November 2013, about ‘Pay and Use Toilet Blocks’.

5

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Table 33.6  Access to Toilets in Homeless Settlements in Public Spaces Type of Toilet Access Pay-and-use toilet Open defecation/ pay-and-use toilet + open defecation Total

Number of Respondents 22

73%

8

27%

30

100%

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

the use of certain pay-and-use toilets free.6 However, discussions with migrants revealed that the pay-and-use toilets they used charge `1 for urinal use, `3–5 for toilet use, `10 to bathe and `10 to wash clothes. For a migrant couple getting 20 days of work in a month as unskilled workers, a minimum of 6–8 per cent of their monthly earnings would be spent on sanitation if they were to use these toilets for all their sanitation needs. This explains why some of the migrants using these toilets defecated in the open at times, and only some used the toilets for bathing and washing clothes. Wherever possible, the migrants make opento-sky bathing enclosures on the roadside, with the women bathing in the dark. Washing of clothes is also done on the roadside wherever possible. None of the migrants who live in the homeless settlements in public spaces has been provided with electricity. Homeless migrants living on the roadsides and footpaths face regular harassment by the state. Their belongings—clothes, blankets, utensils and foodstuffs—are intermittently taken away by the traffic police or the AMC. Discussions with migrants from two roadside/footpath settlements revealed that they faced this kind of eviction twice a year when VIPs visited the area or residents of surrounding middle class societies complained to the AMC. With each eviction, they had to buy all their necessities again, which cost them at least `2,000. Some of the homeless migrants have also experienced

theft of money and mobile phones at night and theft of utensils when they are away during the day. Homeless shelters can play an important role in improving the living conditions of homeless migrants. However, there are limitations with the current shelters that would have to be addressed (discussed later).

Rental Rooms The rental housing market provides low-cost accommodation to a large number of migrant workers, including those who go to the nakas. Majority are in informal rental chalis, which are clusters of rental rooms built without following development and planning regulations. The nature of the landlord’s land tenure can vary—it can be informal with the landlord having occupied the land by squatting, or it could be semi-formal with the government having allotted this land to an individual for a certain use (e.g., for use as cattle sheds) who has then violated this use and built rental rooms; or it could be formal with the landlord legally owning the land. A chali can comprise of a few rooms to over 50 rental rooms; it can be a cluster of kutcha or semi-pucca groundfloor rooms or it can be a 2–3 storey pucca building comprising rooms. In some cases, the landlord lives there and has built semi-pucca groundfloor rooms next to his house or has expanded his house into a 2–3 storey structure to include rental rooms. Some migrant naka workers also live in rental rooms in low-income, most likely semi-formal, housing societies and in urban villages. The survey also revealed some migrant naka workers living in small rental room clusters built on farmland in the urban periphery. A few of the survey respondents rented a one- or two-bedroom flat in public housing or a private apartment building. Rent of a room/unit likely depends on its location

Data about chargeable and free pay-and-use toilets collected from AMC West Zone and New West Zone offices in June 2018.

6

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Circular Migration and Urban Housing

Table 33.7  Rent Levels for the Rental Rooms/ Units

Table 33.8  Source of Water in Rental Rooms/ Units

Monthly Rent of the Room/Unit (in `)

Water Source

Number of Respondents

Up to 500

0

501–1,000

1

1%

19

1,001–1,500

—

Shared water source in the settlement

80

74%

18%

Individual tap

25

23%

Surrounding buildings and government facilities

3

3%

108

100%

1,501–2,000

25

23%

2,001–2,500

27

25%

2,501–3,000

24

22%

More than 3,000

11

10%

1

1%

108

100%

Rent unknown Total

Number of Respondents

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

Total

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

Table 33.9  Access to Toilets in Rental Rooms/ Units Type of Toilet Access

in the city, shelter quality and the level of services. Table 33.7 shows that majority of the rentals are in the range of `1,000–3,000 per month. Of the 108 survey respondents, 45 were single male migrants, of which 40 shared a room among 2–6 single males, thus making the room affordable for them. Of the survey respondents living in rentals, 74 per cent obtained water through shared water sources in the settlement (Table 33.8). The landlords provide common taps for their tenants, and the water source is a municipal connection or a borewell dug by the landlord. The landlords do not charge additionally for water; however, in the case of using a motor to draw water from the borewell, tenants are sometimes expected to contribute towards the electricity costs of running it. In case of a handpump, tenants may be required to contribute to repair costs. Of the respondents, 23 per cent had an individual tap inside their rooms. Only a small percentage of the respondents reported having to fetch water from surrounding buildings and government facilities. Of the survey respondents living in rented rooms/units, 64 per cent used shared toilet facilities, mostly provided by the landlords (Table 33.9). The adequacy of these shared toilets varies, with a toilet shared between a few rooms to being shared by a large number of rooms. Of the respondents, 20 per cent had

Shared toilet

Number of Respondents 69

64%

Individual toilet

22

20%

Open defecation

10

9%

6

6%

Pay-and-use toilet Public toilet Total

1

1%

108

100%

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

individual toilets, 9 per cent defecated in the open and 6 per cent used pay-and-use toilets, revealing that not all landlords provide toilets, and if they do, these may be so inadequate that it forces the tenants into open defecation or using toilets outside the settlement. Access to electricity in the rentals is better than in the other housing typologies. Majority of survey respondents had access to electricity, 46 per cent without any additional cost while 49 per cent had to pay for electricity in addition to the rent. Experiences and perceptions of tenure security amongst migrants who live in rentals is not as straightforward as in squatter and homeless settlements because many did not report being evicted or feeling threatened with eviction, but mentioned moving rooms frequently. Landlords do not want a migrant to occupy the same room for a long time, and sometimes increase the rent to force the

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tenants out. However, there were also some migrants who had been renting the same room over several years, attributing this to good relations with their landlords. Most of the rental arrangements described above are in a totally unregulated sector, and thus, level of services and tenure security provided is entirely up to each landlord. In semi-formal settlements, where the landlords are the legal landowners but have developed the land without following the planning and development regulations, the AMC only concerns itself with providing a water and drainage connection to the landowner’s plot and not with how many people reside within the plot, through what arrangements and whether they have adequate access to water and sanitation. In informal settlements, recognized by the AMC as slums, it assumes all residents to be illegal, and therefore, does not recognize the right of anyone to be a landlord. This also means that there is no policy and governance process to ensure that the residents of the rental rooms have access to adequate services. The non-­recognition of landlordism and tenancy in these slums also means that if in situ slum redevelopment projects, such as under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna, are implemented in them or the slum faces eviction and resettlement, it may lead to a loss of the informal rental stock that is more affordable to these migrants.

Rental Spots on Lands and Building Rooftops Migrant naka workers also live in Ahmedabad by renting a spot on land or a building rooftop. This refers to two arrangements, one in which a landowner or land occupier charges rent for allowing one to live in the open or build a kutcha shelter on a plot of land and another in which migrants stay on the rooftop of a commercial building or warehouse on a rental basis, generally in the open, but sometimes by building a kutcha shelter. In some of these arrangements, monthly rent is charged

per family, while in others, a rent of `200–300 was charged per adult. Rental spots on lands are found in the peripheral areas of Ahmedabad where farmlands are still available as well as in some central areas with undeveloped lands. Some of these peripheral farmlands are home to small groups of migrants while some have much larger groups. Qualitative research revealed that almost 500 migrants from a single tehsil from Rajasthan’s Banswara district were living on a farmland in the city’s Sarkhej area in the peak summer season, paying `300 per adult to a caretaker employed by the landowner. In the monsoons, many of the migrants return to their villages for agriculture, but those who stay on in the city cannot live on this land as it is farmed during this time and they stay in rental rooms instead. There are other lands where migrants live all year round, although the number of migrants living on them decreases during the monsoons. Majority of the survey respondents living on rental spots paid up to `500 rent per month in this manner (Table 33.10). Little more than half the survey respondents obtained water from shared sources set up by the landlord within the settlement (Table 33.11). The nature of water provisioning varies, from supply twice a day from a large Sintex plastic tank filled from a borewell to 24-hour supply from a handpump. In many cases, landlords make no provision for water. Thus, half of the survey respondents fetched water from surrounding buildings. Open defecation is Table 33.10  Rental Costs Incurred in Rental Spots on Land/Rooftop Monthly Rent Incurred (`)

Number of Respondents

Up to 500

15

58%

501–1,000

6

23%

1,001–1,500

4

15%

1,501–2,000

1

4%

26

100%

Total

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

Circular Migration and Urban Housing

Table 33.11  Source of Water in Rental Spots on Land/Rooftop Water Source

Number of Respondents

Shared water source in the settlement

14

54%

Surrounding buildings (residential, commercial, industrial or temples)

12

46%

Total

38

100%

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

Table 33.12  Access to Toilets in Rental Spots on Land/Rooftop Type of Toilet Access Open defecation

Number of Respondents 19

73%

Shared toilet

4

15%

Pay-and-use toilet/pay-anduse toilet + open defecation

3

12%

26

100%

Total

Source: Based on the primary research conducted by the authors.

common among these migrants (Table 33.12). Only a few survey respondents reported using shared toilets or pay-and-use toilets. While women reported they bathed in the darkness in the open or in cloth and plastic-sheet enclosures, during a visit to one settlement, a woman was observed taking a bath in an open area in broad daylight with all her clothes on, raising concerns about privacy, hygiene and safety of women migrants. Of the survey respondents, 89 per cent of those living in rental spots did not have access to electricity. Many of the migrants, living in two rental spot settlements in the central area of the city, reported having lived in other typologies of housing from where they had been evicted. The caretaker at the settlement on the farmland in Sarkhej indicated that the implementation of a town-planning scheme had recently begun in the area and the migrants may not be allowed to live on that field much longer. 7

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Homeless Shelters Around 45 homeless shelters have been constructed in Ahmedabad by the AMC in response to Supreme Court orders. In 2018, the shelters, which were initially conceived as night shelters, began to be converted into 24-hour shelters as per the guidelines of the Shelters for the Urban Homeless (SUH) scheme, a programme launched by the central government in 2014 under the National Urban Livelihood Mission. Twenty-eight shelters were open in August 2018.7 Several shelters were used by migrant construction workers. Mostly, these were single male migrants, however, a few shelters were also used by family migrants because the shelter caretakers allowed them to live as families—sleeping as families in the halls or in the open in the shelter’s compound or on its terrace—unlike other shelters, where men and women of a family were made to live in separate male/female halls. Research at two shelters housing family migrants revealed that in each of these shelters, all the migrants were from the same district and were largely related to one another through familial ties, resulting in a good level of understanding, trust and cooperation. This was an important reason for the shelters being feasible for families even though they are not designed for families. In both these shelters, the caretakers allowed the families to make their mud/brick stoves (chullahs) in the compound and cook with firewood. Although cooking in the rains was not possible, the caretakers in many of the other shelters did not accommodate such informal uses in the shelter’s compound. A few of the shelters were equipped with kitchens, but these were either very small rooms or had been taken over by the caretaker’s family for their own use. The shelters faced certain issues in provision of water and sanitation. In one shelter, the piped municipal water was not adequate, resulting in the caretakers having to call for water tankers. When these tankers did not come on time, it resulted in lack of running water in

Data obtained from the Urban Community Development Department, AMC, 18 August 2018.

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the toilets and baths, as there was not enough water in the underground tank to pump up to the overhead tanks. At such times, the migrants had to use buckets to draw water from the underground tank, and at times, even descend into the tank to fill their buckets. In the other shelter, the caretaker did not always operate the motor to pump water to the overhead tank in order to save on electricity costs, resulting in lack of running water in the toilets and baths, and the migrants having to draw water from the tank with buckets. Furthermore, a family living next door forcibly used water from this shelter’s underground tank resulting in no water in the evenings on some days. In one shelter, the caretaker allowed the migrants to rest in the halls if they did not get work during the day, whereas in the other shelter, the caretaker did not. In the latter, the caretaker also did not allow the migrants to leave their belongings in the halls during the daytime, forcing them to place their belongings in his house (which was opposite the shelter) and pay him for this purpose. In the absence of proper monitoring by the AMC, the conditions at the shelters thus varied, depending on the organization that had been contracted to run the shelter and the caretaker it employed. In mid-2018, AMC began to revamp some of the shelters under the SUH scheme to include better facilities as well as prepared to contract out the shelters to a new set of organizations with clearer terms and conditions regarding operation and maintenance. There are also long-term plans for constructing new shelters, including some designed for families. It remains to be seen how these efforts unfold and to what extent they provide decent shelter, basic services and other facilities to the city’s homeless, including family migrants.

Relationship of Migrant Workers Housing to the Naka For the urban poor, the viability of housing is intricately linked to distance and mobility with regard to development opportunities,

which includes workplaces and social services (Harish, 2017). This was revealed in the survey with regard to proximity of housing to the naka. Of the respondents, 38 per cent were found to live in locations from where they could get to the naka in 10 minutes or less while 32 per cent travelled for 11–20 minutes. Of the respondents, 22 per cent reported travel time from home to the naka to be between 21 and 30 minutes. Only 8 per cent took more than 30 minutes to reach the naka. Walking was found to be the preferred mode of travel from home to the naka for a large majority of the respondents (71%), followed by shared autos (19%). Some used a combination of walking and shared autos, and a few used motorcycles. A very small percentage of the respondents (2%) used buses, which might be due to poor connectivity of the bus routes, frequency, and in case of Ahmedabad’s bus rapid transit system buses, may also have to do with affordability. Because 71 per cent walked to the naka, they did not incur any transport costs. Of the respondents, 21 per cent reported spending `5–10 per person to reach the naka. Only 8 per cent spent more than `10 one-way, indicating the unwillingness/inability to incur such transport costs among majority of the migrant naka workers. Any intervention to improve migrant naka workers’ housing will have to take distance and transport costs to the naka into consideration.

CONCLUSION AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS Housing and basic services for migrant construction workers in their urban work destinations continue to be inadequate for majority of both the floating migrant workers—who migrate directly to construction sites and do regular work for a significant duration and are provided a place to stay by the employer or contractor—as well as the migrant naka workers—who are engaged in irregular daily wage work and arrange for their own housing in the city. Furthermore, little is being done at present to seriously address this inadequacy,

Circular Migration and Urban Housing

which is particularly striking in the context of the Government of India’s ‘Housing for All by 2022’ slogan. In the case of the floating migrant construction workers in Ahmedabad, the inadequacy is due to legislative, policy and governance gaps involving both the labour department and the municipal authority. There is potential for coordination between these two government agencies to regulate construction sites in terms of adequacy of workers’ accommodation and provision of basic services. Given that the BOCW Act and Gujarat Rules are ambiguous on the nature of this provision, standards must be devised and then enforced. The validity of the development permission given by the AMC could even be suspended/cancelled in case a construction site does not comply with these standards. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives can also play a role by innovating on modular systems through which adequate housing and basic services can be provided to workers across different construction sites at a cost that is viable for the employers. In the case of migrant naka workers, the inadequacy stems from the urban policies, programmes and governance approach at the central, state and municipal levels towards the different housing typologies in which they currently live in the city. For this, a first necessary step would be for the ULBs to enumerate the migrant settlements. Squatter settlements of migrants, which are tenable in terms of landownership and not located on hazardous lands, must be extended basic services like water, toilets, drainage, paving and electricity, at the initiative of the ULBs. Where the settlements are not tenable on a long-term basis, a proposal can be prepared to resettle and rehabilitate their residents in alternate housing in a manner that is affordable to them as well as viable in terms of the migrants’ access to the naka for work. This will require delinking resettlement provision from eligibility criteria like cut-off dates and city-based proof-of-residence documents, and finding other ways to identify

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the residents who are to be resettled and rehabilitated. The registration booklet given by the Construction Workers Welfare Board is one possibility, however, while the Board in Gujarat has increased its registration of construction workers in recent years, registration of the migrant workers needs specific attention. To address the affordability issue with regard to resettlement housing, tying up with the Board’s housing subsidy scheme is a possibility. It should be noted here that some of these settlements are home to not only migrant construction workers but also locals, permanent migrants and circular migrants from occupations other than construction, and the question of affordability of resettlement housing may have to be addressed in other ways for them. Rental housing may also be explored as alternate housing for the migrants in settlements that are non-tenable because house-ownership may not be affordable for all (see the following paragraph for more on rental housing). Until such time that resettlement and rehabilitation can be done, it is important that there are no evictions and that the ULBs instead make temporary arrangements for adequate and potable water as well as affordable and safe access to toilets. Central and state governments and ULBs have not so far formulated appropriate housing policies and programmes to create a decent housing stock in the city for migrant workers. The homeless shelters can play an important role here, especially given the extensive SUH guidelines (MHUA 2018), but so far, they remain limited in their design, management and coverage. Attention must also be given to rental housing. At the Centre, this would require finalizing the Draft National Urban Rental Housing Policy 2015 (MHUPA 2015), and translating it into a programme with budgetary allocations and clear guidelines with regard to modalities and norms for rental housing construction and management. This should be integrated into the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (urban) and future housing programmes of the central government. However, the state government need not wait

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for the centre to move on this front and can formulate a rental housing policy and programme through its housing boards. Public sector rental housing has increasingly come to be seen as a failure in Indian cities due to past experiences; however, new institutional mechanisms can be evolved learning from the past and consultations with relevant stakeholders to innovate on this front. For instance, Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS, 2015) suggests that the state government or even the ULBs can setup Rental Management Companies as no-profit or limited-profit companies with technical, financial, social and tenure capacities. There could also be a role here for the private sector, but not on a forprofit basis; this can potentially be done by linking up to CSR initiatives. The Construction Workers Welfare Board also has an important role to play here. It could use a part of its cess funds to lease land and construct rental labour colonies, or construct the colonies on land provided by the urban local bodies and state government. Migrant naka workers can opt to stay in these colonies by paying rent. If employers cannot provide accommodation to their workers as per the BOCW Act—for reasons like constraint of space on the construction site or inability to access other private land for this purpose—they can also accommodate their workers in these colonies by paying their rents for the duration of their employment with them. Here too, the institutional structure for running these rental labour colonies would need to be looked into and NGOs can be considered in this context. There is also a possibility of convergence between the board’s cess funds and the SUH scheme to create some special shelters or sections within shelters for migrant construction workers. The importance of proximity of rental housing or such homeless shelters to a naka cannot be emphasized enough if these are to be viable for the migrant naka workers. India is seeing the beginning of important initiatives for improving migrant workers’

housing, the most well known of which are the migrant hostels in Kerala by the state’s labour department. This chapter moves us further along in terms of thinking about city-­specific and sector/occupation-specific dynamics, and the numerous interventions that would be required to realize decent housing in cities for migrant construction workers, both family migrants and single male migrants, floating workers and naka workers.

REFERENCES Aajeevika Bureau (2007, December). Migrant construction workers in Ahmedabad: A profile. Ahmedabad: Shramik Sahayata Evam Sandarbha Kendra, Aajeevika Bureau. Agarwal, S. (2016). Urban migration and social exclusion: Study from Indore slums and informal settlements (Working Paper). London: International Institute for Environment and Development. Bhagat, R. (2012). Migrants’ (denied) right to the city. Workshop Compendium Vol. 2: Workshop Papers. National Workshop on Internal Migration and Human Development in India, Indian Council for Social Science Research, 6–7 December 2011. New Delhi, India: UNESCO & UNICEF. BSC. (2009, March). Situational analysis of construction labour market in Ahmedabad city. (Report) Ahmedabad: Behavioural Science Centre. Desai, R. (2017). Entitlements of seasonal migrant construction workers to housing, basic services and social infrastructure in Gujarat’s cities: A background policy paper (Working Paper 35). Ahmedabad: Centre for Urban Equity, CEPT University. Desai, R., & Sanghvi, S. (2018). Migrant construction Naka workers in Ahmedabad: A study of housing conditions, migrants’ perspectives, and future directions (CUE Working Paper 41). Ahmedabad, India: Centre for Urban Equity, CEPT University. Desai, R., Soni, S., Vaid, U., & Mevada, M. (2014). Housing conditions of construction workers in Ahmedabad (Master’s thesis). Ahmedabad: Centre for Urban Equity, CEPT University. Deshingkar, P. & Akter, S. (2009). Migration and human development in India (Human Development Research Paper 2009/13). New York, NY: United National Development Programme.

Circular Migration and Urban Housing

Deshingkar, P., Khandelwal, R., & Farrington, J. (2008). Support for migrant workers: The missing link in India’s development (Natural resource perspectives, Vol. 117). London: Overseas Development Institute. Harish, S. (2017). Urban development, housing and ‘slums’. IIC Quarterly, 43, 184–198. IIHS. (2015). Instituting rental housing (Policy Brief 5). Bangalore, India: Indian Institute for Human Settlements. Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (MoHUPA). (2008, December). Report of the high level task force on affordable housing for all. New Delhi, India: Government of India. MHUPA. (2013). Scheme of shelters for urban homeless: Operational guidelines. New Delhi, India: Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Government of India. ———. (2015, October). Draft national urban rental policy. New Delhi, India: Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Government of India. ———. (2018, July). Scheme of shelters for urban homeless: Revised operational guidelines. New Delhi: Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India.

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Mosse, D., Gupta, S., & Shah, V. (2005). On the margins in the city: Adivasi seasonal labour migration in Western India. Economic & Political Weekly, 40(28), 3025–3038. Naik, M. (2015). Informal rental housing typologies and experiences of low-income migrant renters in Gurgaon, India. Environment and Urbanization ASIA, 6(2), 154–175. Naraparaju, K. (2014). Well-being of migrant workers: Perspectives from daily labour markets in Navi Mumbai. Urban India, 34(1), 68–86. Planning Commission. (2012). Report of the working group for social inclusion of vulnerable group like child labour and bonded and migrant labour in the 12th Five Year Plan (2012–17). New Delhi, India: Planning Commission, Government of India. Srivastava, R. (2012). Internal migrants and social protection in India: The missing link. (Workshop Compendium Vol. 2: Workshop Papers. National Workshop on Internal Migration and Human Development in India, Indian Council for Social Science Research, 6–7 December 2011). New Delhi: UNESCO & UNICEF.

34 Occupational Mobility in Migrants* Arvind Pandey Ajit Jha

INTRODUCTION Migration in search of a better fortune is a natural characteristic of humankind since times immemorial. People’s movement from one area to other is always guided by the specific needs of their time. The era after industrial revolution witnessed unprecedented growth in production and trade, which induced large-scale migration of labour and capital. This process led to a massive sectoral shift in the economy from agriculture to tertiary sector. Developed countries experienced this change first, and gradually, it spread among developing countries with the rise in urban population and expansion of transport and communication in the later half of the 20th century. Indian society was perceived to be

relatively less mobile in the first few decades after independence, as internal migration was very low and declining until the 1990s. The predominance of agriculture, strong community ties, lack of education, rigidity of caste system, diversity of languages, culture and food habits were the main reasons cited by researchers for the immobility of Indian population (Chandrasekhar, 1950; Davis, 1951). The structural adjustments in the economy adopted by the Government of India in 1991 due to severe balance of payment crisis changed this pattern. Both the secondary data sources on migration in India-Census and National Sample Surveys (NSSs) have shown an increasing trend of internal migration after economic reforms (Mahapatro, 2012; Parida & Madheswaran, 2010; Srivastava, 2012).

* The present study is a part of the doctoral thesis of Arvind Pandey, submitted to Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, in 2016. The authors are grateful to Prof. Ravi Srivastava for his constructive comments and suggestions.

Occupational Mobility in Migrants

The growing spatial inequalities in terms of economic opportunity and widening regional gaps with the concentration of growth in few areas and states have impacted the pace and pattern of migration in India. Significant improvements in the road infrastructure and transportation, and revolution in telecommunication have facilitated labour migration. Structure of the labour market has changed under globalization with the generation of demand of workers in certain sectors. The supply-side factors have also changed with the changing social structure and pattern of education (Srivastava, 2012). These aspects have contributed positively to the process of migration of rural folks to metropolises in search of a better livelihood, higher income and longterm employment opportunity. The absorption of these low-skilled and semi-skilled workers taking place in informal sector jobs is mostly casual in nature. The neoclassical framework argues that migration from underdeveloped to developed regions provides an opportunity to the poorer sections of society for upward mobility in terms of their employment. In this context, it is an important question to study whether rural–urban migrant workers remain causally employed or their status of employment changes over the course of time. Several studies (Baganha, 1991; Granato, 2014; Fernandez-Macias, Grande, Poveda & Anton, 2015; McAllister, 1995; Sabirianova, 2002) contextualize the employment and occupational mobility among migrants mainly based on the experiences of immigrants in developed countries. However, studies on employment and occupational mobility of internal migrants are limited in both developed and developing countries mainly due to the lack of reliable and adequate data of employment history of migrants (Nguyen, 2005). The present study is an attempt to enrich the existing limited literature on employment and occupational mobility of internal migrants by providing a pattern and determining factors of employment and occupational mobility of migrant workers living in selected slums

477

of the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi.

CONTEXTUALIZING THE THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK OF EMPLOYMENT AND OCCUPATIONAL MOBILITY AMONG MIGRANT WORKERS There are three forms of employment and occupational mobility: (1) intergenerational occupational mobility, (2) social occupational mobility and (3) migratory occupational mobility. Intergenerational mobility is conceptualized as the occupational differentials between two successive generations (Ray & Majumder, 2010; Reddy, 2015). In India, there are certain types of occupations which are directly associated to a particular caste or religion. The mobility in these types of occupations is classified as social occupational mobility. These two types of occupational mobilities have been studied by several scholars in India (Ray & Mazumder, 2010; Reddy, 2015; Thorat & Neuman, 2012). However, the third form of occupational mobility is solely related to migrants. It shows the upward/ downward occupational mobility of migrant workers before and after migration and mobility within the duration of stay at destination. There is dearth of studies which cover migratory occupational mobility in India. The theoretical framework of employment and occupational mobility among migrant workers is mainly based on the experiences of immigrants because of limited availability of knowledge about occupational mobility of internal migrants (Nguyen, 2005). Recent development in the migration studies shows a changing perspective of scholars towards the theories of internal and international migrations, where they have tried to find a convergence tendency between these two processes, and have developed the possibility of studying both the processes in a coherent framework (King & Skeldon, 2010; King,

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Skeldon & Vullnetari, 2008; Massey et al., 1993; Skeldon, 1997; Srivastava & Pandey, 2017). In this context, the broader framework of occupational mobility among immigrants can be used to determine the factors responsible for employment and occupational mobility among internal migrants up to a certain extent. It has been discussed in several studies (McAllister, 1995; Sabirianova, 2002) that economic development is one of the main reasons for employment and occupational mobility among migrants. The structural changes in the economy affect the pattern of employment and occupational mobility among migrants. The gradual shift of economy from agriculture to manufacturing and service sector led to the change in the employment and occupation of migrant workers. The status of the economy of a country also affects the pattern of occupational mobility. It has been found that at the time of recession, migrants settle for low-paid jobs or become unemployed (Rajan & Prakash, 2012; Zachariah, Prakash & Rajan, 2004). However, in times of economic growth, they experience upward employment and occupational mobility depending on their social and economic capital. Empirical studies (Baganha, 1991; Fernandez-Macias et al., 2015; McAllister, 1995) have established the hypothesis that the occupational mobility of immigrants is a ‘U-shaped’ curve. There is a decline in the occupational status of immigrants and in-­ migrants from the latest employment at place of origin to first employment at place of destination due to cultural differences, limited knowledge of labour market, lack of family and social networks and inadequate education and skills (Fernandez-Macias et al., 2015; Nguyen, 2005). With longer duration of stay at the place of destination, the migrant generally moves upward in terms of employment and earnings. However, this ‘U-shaped’ pattern of occupational mobility among migrants is not universally true, as there are skilled migrants who receive better employment at place of destination and move upwards over the course of time.

The discrimination approach as mentioned by McAllister (1995) suggests that job availability for a newly arrived migrant at the place of destination and occupational mobility of a migrant (both upward and downward) depends on the socio-cultural and economic characteristics of the destinations. The human capital of migrant workers, such as level of education, formal and informal learning of workplace, knowledge and skills, languages and work experience also determine the occupational mobility of migrant workers (Fernandez-Macias et al., 2015; McAllister, 1995; Nguyen, 2005; Srivastava, 2011). Migrant workers who have more human capital may find better employment opportunities at the destination because of the appropriate education and skills according to the demand of the labour market at the destination and better information compared with others. They also move upwards because of these individual characteristics (Nguyen, 2005). Socio-economic capitals, such as existence of social networks at place of destination (Massey, Alarcón, Durand & González, 1987) and possession of land holdings and other assets at the place of origin (Pandey, 2017), also decide the occupational mobility of migrant workers. Social networks not only help the migrants to get their first jobs in the city on arrival but also pre-inform them about the skills required for the jobs. Over the course of time, they also inform the migrants about better job availability, and therefore contribute to upward occupational mobility.

OBJECTIVES, METHODS AND MATERIALS The broad objective of the present study is to analyse occupational and employment mobility among migrant workers living in slums of a metropolitan city. This study also examines occupational and employment mobility among migrant workers across social groups.

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Occupational Mobility in Migrants

N

28°50′0˝N

28°50′0˝N

Delhi sample JJ Clusters

77°20′0˝E

29°0′0˝N

29°0′0˝N

77°10′0˝E

28°40′0˝N

28°40′0˝N

28°30′0˝N 024

8

12 16 kilometers

77°0′0˝E

Location of JJ Clusters River River

77°10′0˝E

28°20′0˝N

Primary survey in the present study was conducted in households identified through stratified random sampling. In the first strata of the sampling, four districts of NCT of Delhi, South, South West, North East and North West were selected based on the highest decadal urban growth in 2001–2011.1 The basic assumption behind the selection of these four districts was the contribution of migrant households in the decadal urban growth. During the preparation of Commonwealth Games in Delhi, a large number of slums were displaced from core areas to peripheries,2 which is reflected in the negative decadal urban growth in the districts located in the core (Central Delhi and New Delhi) and positive decadal urban growth in the peripheral districts (South West Delhi, South Delhi, North East and North West Delhi) in 2001–2011. The percentage share of slum households settled on the land of different landowning agencies shows that in Delhi, 52.2 per cent slum households are settled on

77°0′0˝E

28°30′0˝N

Sampling Design

the land of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), followed by the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB), Railway and Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD). Therefore, in the second strata of sampling, two JJ Clusters were selected from each district, one, which is settled on the land of DDA, and two, which is settled on the land of DUSIB or Railway or MCD. After the pilot survey and field observations, the following eight JJ Clusters were finalized for the present study:

28°20′0˝N

The secondary data sources on migration pattern in India (Census and NSS) do not have comprehensive information on the occupational and employment mobility of migrant workers, and therefore, to fulfil the aforementioned objectives, a primary survey was conducted in eight different slums (locally known as Jhuggi-Jhopri clusters [JJ Clusters]) of NCT of Delhi from November 2014 to March 2015. It is evident from the studies (Bhan, 2013; Dupont, 2008) that in NCT of Delhi, majority of the migrant population lives in JJ Clusters. This was the main reason for the selection of JJ Clusters for the study of occupational mobility among migrant workers.

77°20′0˝E

1. South Delhi:  Indira Kalyan Vihar, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase-I, Okhla, (DDA) (2)  V P Singh Camp, Tuglakabad (RAILWAY) (7) 2. South West Delhi:  Dalit Ekta Camp, Vasant Kunj (DDA) (8)

The analysis of the decadal growth of the urban population is based on the Population Census of India, 2001 and 2011. 2 Several studies (Bhan & Shivanand, 2013; Dupont, 2008) have documented forceful displacement of slum households from core to peripheries of NCT of Delhi. According to these studies, at least 60,000 households were evicted from 218 slums between 1990 and 2007. 1

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 Sonia Gandhi Camp, Samalkha, Kapashera (MCD) (6) 3. North East Delhi:  Dr Ambedkar Camp, Jhilmil Industrial Area, Raj Nagar (DDA) (1)  JJ Cluster, CPJ Block, New Seelampur (DUSIB) (5) 4. North West Delhi:  JJ Cluster, B-Block, Meera Bagh, Near NG Drain, Paschim Vihar (DDA) (3)  JJ Cluster, B-Block, Near Samshan Ghat, Wazirpur (DUSIB) (4) Note: The numbers shown in the maps are mentioned in the parenthesis in front of the respective JJ Clusters.

In the last stratum, 50 households were randomly selected from each of the above mentioned JJ Clusters, which include all types of households, that is, households with the claim3 of ownership of the jhuggi and rented households. Therefore, total 400 households were surveyed. The employment and migration history of the heads of the households were collected from 400 households along with other socio-economic and demographic characteristics through a structured questionnaire. The principle earner of the household was considered as head of the household in the present study to avoid any confusion in this regard. In the employment history of heads of the households, information related to pre-migration working status, post-migration working status (first employment in the city) and the current employment status was collected. Later, the employment status of the heads of the households was classified according to the nature of employment, that is, self-employment, regular wage/salaried employees and casual labour and industrial categories based on National Industrial Classification (NIC) Code, 2008. In this study, the term ‘migrant workers’ is used for the heads of the households to make the analysis simple and understandable.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS Background Characteristics of the Migrant Workers The results from Table 34.1 show that the majority of the migrant workers in selected slums were from the two states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. These states contribute 77.25 per cent of the total migrant workers. Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan are the other states from where migrant workers migrated to Delhi. The migrant workers in selected slums had migrated in their early adulthood as the mean age at migration for the sample is 20 years. The main reason of migration reported by the respondents was poverty, followed by low wages or income in source areas. These two reasons acted as push factors. However, 34.17 per cent migrant workers reported that they migrated to Delhi in search of employment and to find better employment. Of the respondents, 60 per cent workers reported that they themselves took the decision to migrate to Delhi. The duration of stay indicates that majority of the migrant workers in selected slums were old migrants. The average duration of stay for these migrant workers was 24 years. It has been discussed in several studies (Dubey, Palmer-Jones & Sen, 2006; Srivastava, 2012) that caste plays an important role in the process of migration. Certain castes in India are historically deprived from acquiring/owning any form of property, formal education and other human capital (Dubey et al., 2006), and therefore, rural-to-urban migration is part of their survival strategy. This pattern is reflected in the selected sample of the present study. A total of 44.75 per cent migrant workers in selected slums were from Other Backward Castes (OBCs). However, the percentage share of migrant workers belonging to Scheduled Castes (SCs) was 42.25 per cent. These two social groups constitute 87 per cent

The ‘claim’ word is deliberately used in the present study because at the time of survey, not a single household could produce documents related to its claim of tenure status in the jhuggi.

3

481

Occupational Mobility in Migrants

Table 34.1  Background Characteristics of Migrant Workers Background Characteristics Place of origin

Percentage (N) Uttar Pradesh

41.00 (164)

Bihar

36.25 (145)

Madhya Pradesh

12.00 (48)

Rajasthan

5.00 (20)

Others Age at migration

29.50 (118)

16–20

39.25 (157)

21–25

17.00 (68)

26–30

8.75 (35)

≥31

5.50 (22)

Mean age (in years) Reasons of migration

Agriculture work is not remunerative Non-availability of non-farm employment Poverty

31.47 (349)

Religion Landholding (in hectare)

0.27 (3) 0.45 (5)

In search of employment

16.41 (182)

To take up a better employment

17.76 (197)

Other reasons

Social groups

3.61 (40) 19.39 (215)

Natural calamities

Duration of stay (in years)

20 4.60 (51)

Low wages/income in source area Socio-political conflict/displacement due to project

Decision of migration

5.75(23)

≤15

Self

6.04 (67) 59.75 (239)

Parents

19 (76)

Self and parents both

5.5 (22)

Friends

1.5 (6)

Relatives

6.5 (26)

Spouse

3.5 (14)

Others

4.25 (17)

≤10

8.75 (35)

10–20

30.25 (121)

20–30

42.25 (169)

30 and above

18.75 (75)

Average (in years)

24

Scheduled Tribes

0.50 (2)

Scheduled Castes

42.25 (169)

Other backward castes

44.75 (179)

Others

12.5 (50)

Hindu

78 (312)

Muslim

22 (88)

Landless

62.00 (248)

Small landholding (≤0.25)

17.50 (70)

Medium landholding (0.25–0.75)

13.75 (55)

Large landholding (≥0.75)

6.75 (27) (Continued)

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Table 34.1  (Continued) Background Characteristics Level of education

Percentage (N) Illiterate

36 (144)00 (000)

Primary

13.5 (54)

Middle

21.25 (85)

Secondary and higher secondary

26.75 (107)

Graduate and above

2.5 (10)

Source: Primary survey, 2014–2015. Note: The figures in the parenthesis are the samples in the respective categories.

of the total sample. The characteristics associated with SCs and OBCs are clearly reflected in the pattern of landholding size at origin and level of education of the migrant workers. In selected samples, 62 per cent migrant workers were landless and 31.25 per cent were smalland medium-size landholders. The education level of the migrant workers is also very low as one-third of the workers were illiterate and 70.75 per cent had education up to middle school. Only 26.75 per cent migrant workers had secondary and/or higher secondary education. Religion-wise distribution of migrant workers shows a dominance of Hindu religion among sample households. The number of Muslim migrant workers was significant only in the JJ Cluster of Seelampur and Wazirpur.

Pre-Migration Employment Status The analysis of pre- and post-migration employment status of migrant workers is very relevant in migration studies. It not only throws light on the economic motives of migration but also provides insights into the determining factors of rural-to-urban migration (Caldwell, 1968). In this context, the employment status of migrant workers before migration to Delhi was collected during the field survey. Pre-migration employment status of migrant workers is classified broadly into

six groups based on the response4 provided by sample households, namely cultivators, agricultural labourers, mining and quarrying, manufacturing and construction, wholesale and retail (including motorcycle repair) and service sectors. However, a significant percentage of migrant workers were studying before migration to Delhi, and are therefore considered in a separate ‘not in labour force’ category. Rural India is still dominated by the agriculture sector as majority of the rural population in India is engaged in this sector as cultivators or agriculture labourers. Only a small percentage of workers in rural areas work in the non-farm sector in small-scale cottage industries, business and other activities. It is evident from Table 34.2 that 68.25 per cent of the total migrant workers were employed before they migrated to Delhi and 31.75 per cent were not in the workforce and were studying. Majority of the migrant workers worked as agricultural labourers (42%) and cultivators (11.5%) before migration. The high percentage share of the migrant workers in these two types of employment is a manifestation of the agrarian nature of rural economy in India. Manufacturing and construction followed by wholesale and retail (including motorcycle repairs) were other sectors in which migrant workers worked before migration.

A significantly high number of migrant workers were studying before migration to Delhi in each of the selected JJ Clusters. The pre-migration employment status was also not very diversified. Therefore, the classification of the pre-migration employment status has not been done on the basis of the NIC Code-2008 and nature of employment. This analysis is done only for post-migration employment status and current employment status of migrant workers. 4

45

26

8

South Delhi (n = 100)

South West Delhi (n = 100)

11.5

Total (N = 400)

Source: Primary survey, 2014–2015.

7

5

North East Delhi (n = 100)

North West Delhi (n = 100) 42

51

20 52

Cultivators

Districts

Agricultural Labourers 0

0.5

1

0

1

8

6.75

8

6

5

4

5

9

6

1

2.5

1

4

2

3

Workers in Services

68.25

75

68

69

61

Subtotal

31.75

25

32

31

39

Student

Wholesale & Retail (Including Motorcycle Repair)

Manufacturing and Construction

Mining and Quarrying

Not in Workforce

Employment Status before Migration

Table 34.2  Employment Status of Migrant Workers Before Migration to Delhi (Pre-Migration Employment Status) (in Percentage)

100

100

100

100

100

Total

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

The percentage share of the OBCs and SCs is high compared with other categories and a significant percentage of migrant workers were landless at the places of origin. Therefore, the analysis of the pre-migration employment status of the migrant workers by social groups and landholdings provides more insights about the patterns of pre-migration employment status of these workers. It is evident from Table 34.3 that the highest percentage of migrant workers from SCs and OBCs were agriculture labourers before they migrated to Delhi. By contrast, migrant workers in other categories worked as cultivators before migration. This social group-wise occupational segregation is a direct consequence of the possession of the landholdings at the place of origin. It has been discussed earlier that in India, land deprivation is high among SCs and OBCs than among Others. It could be one of the reasons why migrant workers from these social groups used to work as agriculture labourers. By contrast, other category workers used to work as cultivators because they owned lands at places of origin. Compared with SCs and OBCs, the percentage share of migrant workers who were studying before migration is high. It also indicates the limited accessibility of human capital for workers belonging to SC and OBC categories. The percentage share of migrant workers according to the landholding size at the place of origin supports the above results. The migrant workers who owned medium and large landholdings at places of origin worked mainly as cultivators before migration. By contrast, migrant workers in landless and small landholding categories worked as agriculture labourers. The percentage of migrant workers who were studying before migration also increases with increasing size of landholding. The aforementioned analysis shows that social groups and landholdings at places of origin significantly determine the pre-­ migration employment status of migrant workers.

Post-Migration Employment Status (First Job in Delhi) The location of a JJ Cluster determines the nature and industrial category of post-­ migration and current employment status of the migrant workers, and therefore, analysis of the employment status of migrant workers from this section onwards is done at the JJ Cluster level (Table 34.4). The share of post-migration employment status (first job in Delhi) of migrant workers according to the nature of employment shows that the percentage share of migrant workers who worked as regular wage/salaried employees at the time of migration (their first job in Delhi) was highest (39%), followed by casual labourers (34.50%) and self-employed (26.50%). The cluster-wise share of migrant workers shows that the percentage of migrant workers who worked as regular wage/salaried employees at the time of migration was highest among the workers in the JJ Clusters located in industrial areas such as Okhla, Jhilmil Industrial area, Wazirpur and Tuglakabad. Initially, at the time of migration, most of the migrant workers joined the industries located in these clusters as regular wage/salaried workers. By contrast, the share of migrant workers who worked as casual workers at the time of migration was highest among the workers in JJ Clusters located in residential areas such as Vasant Kunj, Meera Bagh and Samalkha. It can be explained by the information provided by respondents that they migrated with a contractor to work in construction of these residential areas as daily/weekly wage labourers. The share of migrant workers who were self-employed at the time of migration was highest among the workers in JJ Clusters located near the railway station and industrial areas such as Seelampur, Wazirpur, Okhla and Tuglakabad. Industry-wise classification (NIC-2008) of the post-migration employment of migrant workers provides more insights about the types of first jobs of migrant workers in different

7.14

43.64

62.96

Small (≤0.25)

Medium (0.25–0.75)

Large (≥0.75)

0.00

9.09

40.00

54.44

16.00

39.66

52.66

Agriculture Labourers

0.00

0.00

0.00

0.81

0.00

0.00

1.18

Mining and Quarrying

3.70

1.82

2.86

9.27

2.00

10.61

3.55

Manufacturing and Construction

0.00

3.64

7.14

5.24

4.00

5.59

4.73

Wholesale & Retail (Including Motorcycle Repair)

Source: Field Survey, 2014–2015. Note: Due to the inadequate sample of Scheduled Tribes’ households (N = 2), they are not included in this table.

0.00

Landless

Landholdings (in hectare) at place of origin

38.00

8.94

Others

6.51

Other Backward Castes

Cultivators

Scheduled Castes

Social groups

Social Groups/ Landholdings

Sector of Employment before Migration

0.00

1.82

2.86

2.82

2.00

1.68

3.55

Workers in Services

66.66

60.01

60.00

72.58

62.00

66.48

72.18

Subtotal

33.33

40.00

40.00

27.42

38.00

33.52

27.81

Student

Not in Workforce

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

Total

Table 34.3  Pre-Migration Employment Status of the Migrant Workers across Social Groups and by Landholding Size at Place of Origin (in Percentage)

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Table 34.4  Post-Migration Employment Status (First Job in Delhi) of the Migrant Workers (in Percentage)

Districts South Delhi

South West Delhi

North East Delhi

North West Delhi

Selfemployed

JJ Clusters

Regular Wage/ Salaried Employees

Casual Labourers

Total

V. P. Singh Camp, Tuglakabad

26

58

16

100

Indira Kalyan Vihar, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase-I, Okhla

26

74

0

100

Subtotal (n = 100)

26

66

8

100

8

4

88

100

Sonia Gandhi Camp, Samalkha, Kapashera

26

22

52

100

Subtotal (n = 100)

17

13

70

100

Dr Ambedkar Camp, Jhilmil Industrial Area, Raj Nagar

16

54

30

100

JJ Cluster, CPJ Block, New Seelampur

56

32

12

100

Subtotal (n = 100)

36

43

21

100

JJ Cluster, B Block, Meera Bagh, Near NG Drain, Paschim Vihar

16

16

68

100

JJ Cluster, B-Block, Near Shamshan Ghat, Wazirpur

38

52

10

100

Subtotal (n = 100)

27

34

39

100

26.50

39.00

34.50

100

Dalit Ekta Camp, Vasant Kunj

Grand Total (N = 400) Source: Field Survey, 2014–2015.

JJ Clusters and the reasons of the spatial concentration of migrant workers in a particular sector. Post-migration employment status (or their first job in Delhi) of the migrant workers is classified into seven groups as follows, as per NIC-2008: 1. Manufacturing 2. Water supply, sewerage, waste management and remediation activities 3. Construction 4. Wholesale and retail trade (including motor vehicles and motorcycle repair services) and hotels and restaurants 5. Transport, storage and communication 6. Financing, insurance, real estate and business, and 7. Service sectors (community, social and personal services)

It is evident from Table 34.5 that manufacturing and construction were the two main sectors in which migrant workers worked when they first arrived in Delhi. These two sectors alone constitute 70 per cent of the total migrant

workers. Wholesale and retail trade (including motor vehicles/motorcycle repair services), restaurants and hotels and service sector were the other sectors in which migrant workers worked, but the overall percentage share of these migrant workers is very low compared with manufacturing and construction. The post-migration employment patterns of migrant workers can be better explained by tracing the origins of the JJ Clusters. The share of migrant workers who worked in the manufacturing sector at the time of migration was highest in the JJ Clusters located in industrial areas such as Okhla, Tuglakabad and Jhilmil Industrial area. It was reported by older respondents that during the establishment of industries in these areas, the demand of labourers increased, and therefore, migrants from the rural areas of surrounding states migrated to get employment in these industries. In this process, they started settling on the public land surrounding the industries. Over the course of time, other members of the

25

Sub-Total (n = 100)

Source: Field Survey, 2014–2015.

35.50

40

JJ Cluster, B-Block, NearShamshan Ghat, Wazirpur

45

Subtotal (n = 100) 10

42

JJ Cluster, CPJ Block, New Seelampur

JJ Cluster, B Block, Meera Bagh, Near NG Drain, Paschim Vihar

48

14

Subtotal (n = 100)

Dr Ambedkar Camp, Jhilmil Industrial Area, Raj Nagar

6 22

58

Subtotal (n = 100)

Sonia Gandhi Camp, Samalkha, Kapashera

64

Indira Kalyan Vihar, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase-I, Okhla

Dalit Ekta Camp, Vasant Kunj

52

V. P. Singh Camp, Tuglakabad

JJ Clusters

Grand Total (N = 100)

North West Delhi

North East Delhi

South West Delhi

South Delhi

Districts

0.75

0

0

0

2

4

0

0

0

0

1

0

2

Water Supply, Sewerage, Waste Management and Remediation Manufacturing Activities

34.25

39

10

68

20

10

30

70

52

88

8

0

16

Construction

13.25

14

20

8

17

22

12

10

18

2

12

16

8

Wholesale and Retail Trade (Including Motor Vehicles and Motorcycle Repair Services) and Restaurants and Hotels

5.25

7

10

4

6

10

2

3

4

2

5

4

6

Transport, Storage and Communication

Table 34.5  Post-Migration Employment Status of Migrant Workers According to Industrial Categories (NIC-2008)

1.75

2

2

2

0

0

0

0

0

0

5

4

6

9.25

13

18

8

10

12

8

3

4

2

11

12

10

Financing, Community, Insurance, Social and Real Estate Personal and Business Services etc. Services (Services)

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

Total

488

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

households also joined the migrant workers and the JJ Clusters spread over a large area. The share of migrant workers who worked in the construction sector at the time of their arrival in Delhi was highest in the JJ Clusters located in residential areas such as Vasant Kunj, Meera Bagh and Samalkha. Migrant workers from these JJ Clusters reported that at the time of their migration to Delhi, massive construction work was happening to build the residential areas close to these JJ Clusters and most of the them migrated with contractors or co-villagers to work in the construction of these colonies. Initially, they lived in the makeshift arrangements provided by the contractors on the empty land surrounding these colonies. Over the course of time, they made their own jhuggi on the same land and the JJ Clusters came into existence. The share of migrant workers who worked in the wholesale and retail trade (including motor vehicles/motorcycle repair services), restaurants and hotels and service sectors at the time of their migration to Delhi was significant only in Seelampur, Wazirpur and Okhla.

Current Employment Status of Migrant Workers The current employment status of migrant workers shows occupational mobility of migrant workers from their first employment in Delhi (Tables 34.6 and 34.7). The share of regular wage/salaried employees is still high among migrant workers. However, compared with the post-migration employment status of migrant workers, the share of migrant workers currently working as casual workers declined with a corresponding increase in self-­ employment. It shows that over the course of time, migrant workers have shifted from being casual labourers to being self-employed. It was observed during the field survey that the migrant workers who worked as daily wage labourers at the time of their arrival in Delhi have shifted to being rickshaw pullers,

autorickshaw drivers, tea-stall owners and owners of small grocery stores. Comparison of post-employment status and current employment status of migrant workers also indicates the occupational shift of a small percentage of regular wage/salaried workers to being self-employed. It can be explained by the observations made during the field survey that over the course of time, many workers who worked as electricians or motor mechanics in industries later start their own electricity shops. Likewise, migrant workers who were in the age group of 30–39 years when they migrated to Delhi and initially worked in industries, also shifted to self-­ employment as most of them opened small shops and tea stalls inside the JJ Clusters they lived in. Cluster-wise share of migrant workers shows that although there is occupational mobility among migrant workers from casual and regular wage/salaried employees to self-employment, but nature of employment is still linked with the location of the JJ Clusters of the migrant workers. Majority of the migrant workers settled in industrial JJ Clusters still work as regular wage/salaried workers in nearby industries. Likewise, majority of the migrant workers settled in the JJ Clusters surrounding the residential colonies still work as casual labours. Industry-wise classification of the current employment status of migrant workers shows that the dominance of manufacturing and construction has declined over the course of time as the percentage shares of migrant workers currently working in these two sectors are low compared with that of migrant workers who worked in manufacturing and construction at the time of their first arrival in Delhi. The decline is more prominent among workers in the construction sector. These migrant workers have moved from manufacturing and construction to transport, storage and communication, wholesale and retail trade (including motor-vehicle repair), hotels and restaurants, financing, insurance, real estate and business

489

Occupational Mobility in Migrants

services as the percentage shares of migrants currently working in these sectors have increased compared with the post-migration employment status of migrant workers in the respective sectors. Cluster-wise industrial classification of the current employment of migrant workers shows that although the spatial concentration of the particular types of employment still exists in JJ Clusters, but compared with the first employment of the migrant workers, it has shifted towards other sectors. Comparison of the post-migration and current employment status of migrant workers in different JJ Clusters shows that the percentage share of migrant workers currently working in the ­manufacturing sector has declined in the JJ Clusters located in industrial areas over the course of time, as the percentage share of migrant workers currently working in the manufacturing sectors is low compared with the share of migrant workers who reported their first job in the city in manufacturing sector. Likewise, the percentage share of the workers

in construction sectors has also declined in the JJ Clusters located in residential areas than that of migrant workers who reported their first job in the city in the construction sector. The share of migrant workers currently working in transport, storage and communication has increased sharply. Other sectors in which there is a slight increment in the percentage share of the workers are wholesale and retail trade, hotels and restaurants, finance, insurance, real estate and business services. The analysis clearly shows a sectoral employment mobility among migrant workers. The occupational mobility of migrant workers in the present study is evident from the aforementioned comparison of the post-­ migration and current employment status of the migrant workers. Migrant workers in the present study have shifted mainly from being casual labourers to being self-employed and from construction and manufacturing sectors to transport, storage, communication, wholesale and retail trades, hotels and restaurants, financing, insurance, real estate and business services.

Table 34.6  Current Employment Status of the Migrant Workers (in Percentage)

Districts South Delhi

South West Delhi

North East Delhi

North West Delhi

JJ Clusters

SelfEmployed

Regular Wage/ Salaried Employees

Casual Labourers

Total

V. P. Singh Camp, Tuglakabad

52

38

10

100

Indira Kalyan Vihar, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase-I, Okhla

28

70

2

100

Subtotal (n = 100)

40

54

6

100

Dalit Ekta Camp, Vasant Kunj

26

4

70

100

Sonia Gandhi Camp, Samalkha, Kapashera

30

30

40

100

Subtotal (n = 100)

28

17

55

100

Dr Ambedkar Camp, Jhilmil Industrial Area, Raj Nagar

10

68

22

100

JJ Cluster, CPJ Block, New Seelampur

50

42

8

100

Subtotal (n = 100)

30

55

15

100

JJ Cluster, B Block, Meera Bagh, Near NG Drain, Paschim Vihar

38

10

52

100

JJ Cluster, B-Block, Near-Shamshan Ghat, Wazirpur

50

42

8

100

Subtotal (n = 100)

44

26

30

100

35.50

38.00

26.50

100

Grand Total (N = 400) Source: Field Survey, 2014–2015.

34.25

21

Subtotal (N = 100)

Grand Total

30

JJ Cluster, B-Block, NearShamshan Ghat, Wazirpur

48

Subtotal (N = 100) 12

38

JJ Cluster, CPJ Block, New Seelampur

JJ Cluster, B Block, Meera Bagh, Near NG Drain, Paschim Vihar

58

19

Subtotal (N = 100)

Dr Ambedkar Camp, Jhilmil Industrial Area, Raj Nagar

30

Sonia Gandhi Camp, Samalkha, Kapashera

49

Subtotal (N = 100) 8

56

Indira Kalyan Vihar, Okhla Industrial Area, Phase-I, Okhla

Dalit Ekta Camp, Vasant Kunj

42

Manufacturing

V. P. Singh Camp, Tuglakabad

Clusters

Source: Field Survey, 2014–2015.

North West Delhi

North East Delhi

South West Delhi

South Delhi

Districts

1.50

0

0

0

5

4

6

0

0

1

0

2

Water Supply, Sewerage, Waste Management and Remediation Activities

26.75

31

8

54

15

8

22

55

40

70

6

2

10

Construction

15.00

17

22

12

16

24

8

13

20

6

14

16

12

Wholesale and Retail Trade (Including Motor Vehicles and Motorcycle Repair Services) and Restaurants and Hotels

10.25

15

18

12

9

16

2

6

2

10

11

6

16

Transport, Storage and Communication

Table 34.7  Current Employment Status of Migrant Workers According to Industrial Categories (NIC-2008)

4.00

1

2

0

3

4

2

2

2

2

10

12

8

Financing, Insurance, Real Estate and Business Services

8.25

15

20

10

4

6

2

5

6

4

9

8

10

Community, Social and Personal Services etc. (Services)

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

100

Total

491

Occupational Mobility in Migrants

Occupational Mobility across Social Groups Social groups determine and assist in occupational and employment mobility of the migrant workers. Studies (Gupta & Mitra, 2002; Munshi & Rosenzweig, 2006; Panini, 1996) show that caste-based social networks not only help in the process of rural-to-urban migration but also often provide information on job and space to the newly-arrived migrants to settle down. Occupational choice at the initial stage of migration of the migrant workers largely depends on their social networks. However, the social networks also help in the process of occupational mobility. In sample migrant workers, 92 per cent reported that they had previous social networks in Delhi. In this context, the present subsection provides the details of differences among the post-migration and current employment status across social groups and occupational mobility across social groups based on the nature and sector of employment. At the time of migration to Delhi, a high percentage of migrant workers among SCs and OBCs were casual labourers compared with Others (Table 34.8). However, the percentage share of regular wage/salaried employees was highest among Others, followed by OBCs.

The percentage share of self-employed was highest among OBCs, followed by Others. This occupational pattern can be explained by the differences in social and human capital among the migrant workers across social groups. It was observed during the field survey that migrant workers from the Others category had better social networks than those from OBCs and SCs, and therefore, majority of them got regular wage/salaried jobs when they migrated. However, a large number of migrant workers, especially from the SC category, migrated with the contractors/co-­ villagers/family members who worked in the construction sector, and therefore, they also engaged in this sector as casual labourers. Current employment status of the migrant workers shows occupational mobility among SCs and OBCs, as they have shifted from being casual labourers to being self-­employed. Likewise, migrant workers from the Others category have also moved from regular wage/ salaried employees to self-employment (Table 34.9). Sectoral distribution of the post-migration and current employment status of migrant workers across groups supports the aforementioned observation during the field survey, as a high percentage (45.56%) of migrant workers from SCs worked in the construction sector

Table 34.8  Post-Migration Employment Status and Current Employment Status across Social Groups (in Percentage) Social Groups

Self-employed

Regular Wage/ Salaried Employees

Casual Labourers

Total

Post-migration employment status Scheduled castes

19.53 (33)

34.91 (59)

45.56 (77)

100 (169)

Other backward castes

33.52 (60)

35.20 (63)

31.28 (56)

100 (179)

Others (General)

26.00 (13)

66.00 (33)

8.00 (4)

100 (50)

Scheduled castes

26.63 (45)

34.91 (59)

38.46 (65)

100 (169)

Other backward castes

43.02 (77)

35.75 (64)

21.23 (38)

100 (179)

Others (General)

40.00 (20)

56.00 (28)

4.00 (2)

100 (50)

Current employment status

Source: Field Survey, 2014–2015. Note: Due to the inadequate sample of Scheduled Tribes’ households (N = 2), they are not included in this table. Samples are given in the parenthesis.

Manufacturing

40.78 (73)

52.00 (26)

Other Backward Castes

Others

40.22 (72)

38.00 (19)

Other backward castes

Others

0.00 (0)

0.56 (1)

2.96 (5)

0.00 (0)

0.00 (0)

1.78 (3)

4.00 (2)

21.23 (38)

39.05 (66)

8.00 (4)

30.73 (55)

45.56 (77)

Construction

26.00 (13)

14.53 (26)

12.43 (21)

20.00 (10)

12.85 (23)

11.83 (20)

Wholesale and Retail Trade (Including Motor Vehicles and Motorcycle Repair Services) and Hotels and Restaurants

10.00 (5)

13.97 (25)

6.51 (11)

6.00 (3)

6.70 (12)

3.55 (6)

Transport, Storage and Communication

12.00 (6)

3.35 (6)

2.37 (4)

4.00 (2)

1.12 (2)

1.78 (3)

Financing, Insurance, Real Estate and Business Services

Source: Field Survey, 2014–2015. Note: Due to the inadequate sample of Scheduled Tribes’ households (N = 2), they are not included in this table. Samples are given in the parenthesis.

26.63 (45)

Scheduled castes

Current employment status

24.85 (42)

Scheduled Castes

Post-migration employment status

Social Groups

Water Supply, Sewerage, Waste Management and Remediation Activities

10.00 (5)

6.15 (11)

10.06 (17)

10.00 (5)

7.82 (14)

10.65 (18)

Community, Social and Personal Services etc. (Services)

Table 34.9  Sectoral Distribution of Post-Migration Employment Status and Current Employment Status across Social Groups

100 (50)

100 (179)

100 (169)

100 (50)

100 (179)

100 (169)

Total

Occupational Mobility in Migrants

when they migrated. However, 70 per cent migrant workers among OBCs worked in the manufacturing and construction sectors. In the Others category, half of the migrant workers worked in manufacturing and 20 per cent of them worked in wholesale and retail trade and hotels and restaurants. The current employment status of migrant workers across social groups shows occupational mobility. Although the construction sector is still dominated by SCs and OBCs and manufacturing is the main sector among Others and OBCs, the share has declined in the respective sectors across social groups. The increasing percentage share of migrant workers in wholesale and retail trade (including motor-vehicle repair), hotels and restaurants, transport, storage, communication, financing, insurance, real estate and business in each social group, evidently shows occupational mobility across social groups.

CONCLUSION The study examines the pre-migration employment status of migrant workers living in the selected Jhuggi-Jhopri clusters of NCT of Delhi. It also compares the post-­migration and current employment status of these migrant workers and attempts to examine the occupational and employment mobility over the course of time. Analysis of the pre-­migration employment status of migrant workers indicates that before migration to Delhi, majority of the migrant workers were agriculture labourers and cultivators. However, a significant percentage of them were not in the labour force as they were studying. The social group is one of the determining factors in this pattern of employment as majority of the migrant workers from the Others category were either cultivators or were studying before migration to Delhi because of the possession of

493

landholdings at places of origin. By contrast, a high percentage of SC and OBC migrants were agricultural labourers before migration to Delhi due to landlessness or limited landholdings. The comparison of post-migration (first job in Delhi) and current employment status of migrant workers shows occupational mobility among migrant workers. The migrant workers in selected clusters moved from being casual labourers to being self-employed. This mobility was mainly among workers belonging to the SC category, followed by those belonging to OBC category. However, migrant workers from the Others category who worked as regular wage/salaried employees also shifted towards self-employment. Sectoral distribution of the migrant workers shows occupational mobility across social groups. Construction and manufacturing were the main sectors in which migrants worked when they migrated. The current employment status of the migrant workers shows that although these two sectors still dominate than others, over the course of time, the percentage share of migrant workers in these two sectors has declined. Migrant workers have shifted to wholesale and retail trade (including motor-vehicle repair), hotels and restaurants, transport, storage, communication, financing, insurance, real estate and business. Social group-wise occupational mobility is also evident from the present study. One of the interesting findings of the present study is spatial concentration of the employment of migrant workers in different Jhuggi-Jhopri clusters. The tracing of the origins of selected JJ Clusters shows that the share of migrant workers in the manufacturing sector is high among the JJ Clusters located near industrial areas. Likewise, the share of migrant workers in the construction sector is high in the JJ Clusters located near residential areas.

494

HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

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Stockholm University, Sweden. Retrieved from http:// epc2012.princeton.edu/papers/121017 Massey, D., Alarcón, R., Durand, J., & González, H. (1987). Return to Aztlan: The social process of international migration from Western Mexico. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press. Massey, D., Arango, J., Hugo, G., Kouaouci, A., Pellegrino, A., & Taylor, J. (1993). Theories of international migration: A review and appraisal. Population and Development Review, 19(3), 431–466. McAllister, I. (1995). Occupational mobility among immigrants: The impact of migration on economic success in Australia. International Migration Review, 29(2), 441–468. Munshi, K. & Rosenzweig, M. (2006). Traditional institutions meet the modern world: Caste, gender, and schooling choice in a globalizing economy. The American Economic Review, 96(4), 1225–1252. Nguyen, L. (2005). Pattern and determinants of occupational mobility of adult Ghanaian in-migrants in the central region. Paper present at Population Association of America 2005 Annual Meeting Program, Philadelphia, PA. Retrieved from http://paa2005.princeton. edu/papers/50333 Pandey, A. K. (2017). Social protection of urban migrants and state responsiveness: A case study of JJ clusters in NCT of Delhi (Unpublished doctoral thesis). Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India. Panini, M. N. (1996). The political economy of caste. In M. N. Srinivas (Ed.), Caste: Its twentieth century Avatar (1st ed., pp. 28–68). New Delhi, India: Penguin Books India. Parida, J. K. & Madheswaran, S. (2010). Spatial heterogeneity and population mobility in India (Working Paper 234). Bangalore, India: The Institute for Social and Economic Change. Retrieved from http://www.isec. ac.in/WP%20234%20-%20Jajati%20Keshari%20 Parida.pdf Rajan, S. I. & Prakash, B. A. (2012). Migration and development linkages re-examined in the context of the global economic crisis. In S. I. Rajan (Ed.), India migration report 2012: Global financial crisis, migration and remittances. New Delhi, India: Routledge. Ray, J. & Majumder, R. (2010). Educational and occupational mobility across generations in India: Social and regional dimensions (MPRA Paper No. 28539). Munich, Germany: Munich Personal RePEc Archive. Reddy, A. B. (2015). Changes in intergenerational occupational mobility in India: Evidence from national sample surveys, 1983–2012. World Development, 76, 329–343.

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Russell, K. Skeldon, R. (2010). ‘Mind the Gap!’ Integrating approaches to internal and international migration. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 36(10), 1619–1646. Sabirianova, Z. K. (2002). The great human capital reallocation: A study of occupational mobility in transitional Russia. Journal of Comparative Economics, 30(1), 191–217. Skeldon, R. (1997). Migration and development: A global perspective. Harlow, Essex: Addison Wesley Longman. Srivastava, R. (2011). Labour migration in India: Recent trends, patterns and policy issues. The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, 54(3), 411–440. Srivastava, R. (2012). Internal migration in India: An overview of its features, trends and policy challenges. Workshop Compendium, Vol. II: Workshop Papers,

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National Workshop on Internal Migration and Human Development in India. New Delhi, India: UNESCO/ UNICEF. Retrieved from http://www.unesco.org/new/ fileadmin/MULTIMEDIA/FIELD/New_Delhi/pdf/Internal_Migration_Workshop_-_Vol_2_07.pdf Srivastava, R. & Pandey, A. K. (2017). Internal and international migration in South Asia: Drivers, interlinkages and policy issues (Discussion Paper). New Delhi, India: UNESCO. Thorat, S. & Neuman, K. S. (2012). Blocked by caste: Economic discrimination in modern India. New Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. Zachariah, K. C., Prakash, B. A., & Rajan, S. I. (2004). Indian workers in UAE: Employment, wage and working conditions. Economic and Political Weekly, 39(22), 2227–2234.

35 Maternal Healthcare in Slums* Namrata Ahirwar Kunal Keshri

INTRODUCTION More than half of the human race lives in urban areas. Therefore, the cities which receive internal as well as international migrants are becoming focal points of development policies (International Organization for Migration, 2017). India is home to the world’s highest number of internal migrants (309 million). Generally, these migrants are driven from the backward countryside by push factors and destined to live in the urban areas of developed regions (Government of India, 2010). The recent growth of Indian urbanization has a peculiar characteristic of lopsidedness towards the megacities, such as Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata (Gaur et al., 2013; Registrar General of India, 2005). In addition, the latest population census results suggest that a majority of the urban population resides in the 53 million-plus cities. There has been an increment of 18 such cities from the year 2001 to 2011 (Registrar General of India,

2001, 2011). These cities face the predicament of mushrooming of slums. Apart from problems like inadequate housing, lack of basic utilities and affordable transportation, Indian slum dwellers are facing immense problems of meagre public healthcare infrastructure which will increase in the near future. There is a growing concern of inadequacy of healthcare services of migrants, making it a global public health policy issue (Ghent, 2008). Poor migrants mostly end up in the lower segment of the workforce in cities owing to their deprived economic status. It compels them to stay in slums characterized by adverse physical and social environment which poses health risks for them (Gawde, 2016). Maternal health is a significant indicator of women’s socio-economic development. Apart from this, it is also a means to fulfil the gap between health status of men and women. But in most of the developing countries, such as India, there has been limited progress towards women’s health. Also, their awareness

* An earlier version of the chapter was presented at an international seminar on ‘Population, Health and Development: Global and National Policy Perspective’ held in Delhi during 15–17 February 2018, which was organized by International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai. The authors are thankful to the participants of the seminar for their comments and suggestions. Thanks is also due to Dr Kirti Gaur for providing inputs towards the improvement of this chapter.

Maternal Healthcare in Slums

regarding availability of healthcare services and access to healthcare facilities is not up to the mark. If we consider the countryside and urban slums, the condition is more deplorable. Despite the presence of various national and international programmes and policies to promote the health status of women in developing economies, women continue to experience life-threatening and other serious health issues related to pregnancy or childbirth. The situation is quite dismal in South Asia due to inadequate access to healthcare services and poor utilization (Chandwani & Padhiyar, 2013; Kabir & Khan, 2013). Conspicuously, poor women are least likely to receive maternal care services in India (IIPS & Macro International, 2007). Chimankar and Sahoo (2011) in their study found that only one-fifth of women in slums had received full antenatal care (ANC). It was also found that only 37 per cent of women had received postnatal checkups within 42 days of delivering a child. Due to rapid urbanization and industrialization, a large number of women come from rural to urban areas along with their family for better opportunities and start living in slums, which are characterized by poor living conditions. The prevalence of reproductive health problems among women of reproductive ages is quite high in the urban slums of developing countries. Because of poverty, low level of education and lack of accessibility, utilization of healthcare services is very low (Hossain et al., 2013). Women, especially those who are poor, are often trapped in a cycle of ill health exacerbated by childbearing and hard physical labour. Timely antenatal check-ups have an impact in the reduction of maternal morbidity and maternal deaths. Absence of proper antenatal check-ups may lead to various pregnancy complications. Women in slums remain unaware of their own reproductive health problems. Srivastava et al. (2015) found that in Dehradun city, the availability of government and private health facilities within the vicinity of the slums is low and the indicators of institutional delivery and postnatal care are poor.

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RATIONALE OF THE STUDY Availability of data on the utilization of maternal healthcare services among migrants in Indian slums is limited. Although some recent data is available from the large-scale National Family Health Survey (2015–2016), it does not have the information on migration of slum dwellers in all the cities of India (IIPS & ICF, 2017). Very few micro-level studies have been conducted to understand the utilization of maternal healthcare services in the slums of Uttar Pradesh, especially in the Prayagraj (erstwhile Allahabad) city, which is a ­million-plus city and faces problems of increasing slum population. This calls for a need to understand the utilization of maternal healthcare services disaggregated by their migration status and to identify the factors associated with the underutilization of these services among urban slum dwellers of Prayagraj city. The main objective of this chapter is to study the utilization of maternal healthcare services by migration status in the slums of Prayagraj city. It also aims to identify major determinants of the utilization of maternal healthcare services. The study hypothesized that migrant women are at a disadvantage in terms of utilization of maternal healthcare services than their non-migrant counterparts. It also hypothesized that utilization of maternal healthcare services is positively related to the duration of migration.

The City of Prayagraj (Erstwhile Allahabad) Prayagraj is one of the important educational centres of north India and is also headquarter of the most populous district (Prayagraj district) of Uttar Pradesh. The total population of Prayagraj urban agglomeration/metropolitan region is 1,212,395 (Registrar General of India, 2011). As per the 2001 Census of India, 15 per cent of the total population in Prayagraj urban agglomeration is comprised of migrants.

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Of the 150,000 who migrated into the city, 33 per cent are from rural areas (Government of India & World Bank, 2015). Primary healthcare facilities and urban health posts, provided by the National Urban Health Mission, lie within a radius of 4–6 km (National Urban Health Mission, 2013–2014). Healthcare services in Prayagraj city are mainly provided by the public sector, including the Department of Medical, Health and Family Welfare, and private sector hospitals, nursing homes and clinics (Government of India & World Bank, 2015).

DATA SOURCE AND METHODS The study mainly utilizes primary data. To fulfil the study objectives, both qualitative and quantitative methods were used. To collect information on demographic and socio-­ economic characteristics of the sample, quantitative survey method was used. Additionally, qualitative methods such as in-depth interviews (IDIs), focus group discussions (FGDs) and case studies were widely used to fulfil the objectives of the study. Prayagraj city was purposively selected due to its increasing slum population in recent decades. Fieldwork was conducted at different locations in the four prominent slums of Prayagraj city, namely Kareli, Kydganj, Alopibagh and Parade Ground, which are mostly scattered along the banks of the rivers Ganges and Yamuna (locations are shown in Figure 35.1). The study population includes a sample of 50 women of reproductive age (15–49 years) from the aforementioned slums of Prayagraj city. Half of them were migrants (25) and remaining were non-migrants (25). In each of these groups, 13 women were pregnant and 12 women had recently delivered, that is, they had given birth to a child within 6 months preceding the survey. Women were

selected using snowball sampling. Along with the women selected for the sample, participants for the qualitative component of the study consisted of healthcare personnel, managers from the municipal corporation of Prayagraj city and representatives of voluntary organizations. The semi-structured interview schedule included questions regarding migration, personal and family characteristics and utilization of antenatal, delivery and postnatal care. Respondents for the case studies were purposively selected from each of the chosen slums during the course of fieldwork. The case studies were carried out to cover the following topics: knowledge, attitude and practices with regard to utilization of maternal health care services (antenatal care, delivery and postnatal care), local attitude, cultural practices, accessibility factors, availability of services and medicines, attitude and behaviour of medical staff. Fieldwork was done for 2 months in the four slums of Prayagraj city in the second half of the year 2016. During the fieldwork, health posts and anganwadi centres were also visited.

RESULTS Socio-Demographic and Migration Characteristics Table 35.1 presents socio-demographic profiles of the women selected for the sample. Results suggest that majority of the migrant and non-migrant women were in the age group of 20–30 years. The results on educational status of migrant women suggest that about 64 per cent of women were illiterate, 28 per cent had primary education, 4 per cent of women had secondary education, and remaining 4 per cent had attained higher secondary education. The educational status of non-­migrant women was more or less similar to that of migrant women.

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Maternal Healthcare in Slums

Phulpur

Pura Gadaria

Bishanpur

Bagia Mumfordganj Ashoknagar

Salori Chandpur Baghara

Allenganj Kota Colonelganj Chhota Baghara Church Lane Darbhanga Colony Bakshi Khurd Allahpur

Purwa

Police Lines Panghat Salem Sarai

Badshahi Mandi

Railway Colony Legend

Chakiya

Places Road

Alopibagh

DaraGanj

Mirganj Chahchand Chak Bahrana Bandigani Atala Attarsuiya

Allahabad_rail Slum Locations River

Mirapur

Kota Ghat Bat Ghat

Phulpur

Arail Karbala

Sands Water_body

Figure 35.1  Location of Slums in Prayagraj City Source: Slums in Prayagraj City (Municipal Corporation Allahabad, 2016).

About 20 per cent of the migrant women were employed while among non-migrant women, employment was 24 per cent. It is important to mention here that the economic status of non-migrant women was better than that of migrant women, which is evident from their husbands’ occupation and monthly family income. Further, results suggest that 76 per cent of migrant women belonged to Scheduled Castes (SCs) and 24 per cent belonged to Other Backward Classes (OBCs), while 68 per cent non-migrant women belonged to SCs and 32 per cent belonged to OBCs. Majority of the women (both migrant and non-migrant women) were Hindus (84%) and a few were Muslims (16%). Most of the migrant women had in-migrated from the same state (intrastate migrants), that is, Uttar Pradesh. It was found

during fieldwork that only few migrant women were interstate migrants, mostly migrated from Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand. Majority of the people had relatives in the city who were from the same home states, with similar cultural backgrounds, which shows the presence of social network of migrants in the city.

Utilization of Antenatal Care Services The utilization of ANC services among migrant and non-migrant women is presented in Table 35.2. We found a significant differential in the registration for ANC among migrants (69%) and non-migrants (92%). Out of registered migrant women, only 11 per cent

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Table 35.1  Socio-Demographic Characteristics of the Sample

Table 35.2  Utilization of Antenatal Care among Pregnant Women Migrants

Non-Migrants

(N = 13)

(N = 13)

69

92

First trimester

11

25

Second trimester

67

50

22

17

0

8

Migrants

Non-Migrants

(N = 25)

(N = 25)

8

16

Registration for ANC

20–24

32

32

Time of registration for ANC

25–30

52

40

8

12

Third trimester

Covariates Age of women 30 Education of women

Covariates

Illiterate

64

72

Do not remember

Primary

28

24

Place of seeking

4

4

Government facility

78

75

4

0

Private healthcare provider

22

25

Health workers

0

0

Employed

20

24

Other

0

0

Homemaker

80

76

Number of antenatal care visits One

45

42

Illiterate

60

52

Two

22

25

Primary

36

32

Three

22

33

12

Four of more

11

0

0

0

Secondary Higher secondary and above Occupation of women

Education of husband

Secondary Higher secondary and above

4 0

4

Source: Authors’ fieldwork.

Occupation of husband Permanent salaries employed

4

4

Temporary salaries employed

8

12

Daily wage labour

72

68

Not working

16

16

5,000

80

56

5,000–1,000

12

40

8

4

Schedule Castes

76

68

Schedule Tribes

0

0

Other Backward Classes

24

32

Hindu

84

84

Muslim

16

16

0

0

Monthly family income (in `)

>1,000 Caste

Religion

Other Source: Authors’ fieldwork.

Do not remember

were registered in the first trimester, 67 per cent were enrolled in the second trimesters, followed by 22 per cent in the third trimester. Contrastingly, a quarter of the non-migrant women (25%) were registered in the first trimester, around half (50%) in the second trimester, followed by 17 per cent in the third trimester and remaining 8 per cent could not recall their date of registration. A majority (78%) of the registered migrant women received ANC in government facilities and 22 per cent in private healthcare facilities. On the other hand, three-fourths of the registered non-migrant women received ANC in government facilities and a quarter in private healthcare facilities. Frequency of ANC visits is slightly higher among registered non-migrant women as three or more visits were observed among 33 per cent of non-migrant women compared with 22 per cent among migrant women.

Maternal Healthcare in Slums

From the IDIs, it can be articulated that there is a perception that registration for ANC in the first 3 months of the pregnancy is unnecessary. For instance, a migrant woman who was 6 months pregnant mentioned, ‘I have not faced any problem, during my first few weeks of pregnancy then why do I need to go for check-ups?’ It was also found that most of the women go for check-ups when they face complications and problems. A four-month pregnant non-migrant woman said, ‘I was not feeling well after three months of pregnancy, since I had relentless back pain and vomiting, my sister took me to a Anganwadi centre.’ A major chunk of slum women started consumption of iron folic acid (IFA) tablets during the second and third trimesters of their pregnancy. They reported receiving information about IFA tablets from the Anganwadi workers; a few of them also reported receiving information from doctors when they visited the healthcare facilities, but some of them also received information from their family members, friends, neighbours and television. Women reported that the major sources of IFA tablets were Anganwadi centres, government healthcare facilities and private clinics or hospitals. Awareness about the benefits of IFA tablets was good among few slum women. They knew that these tablets are meant to provide strength to their feeble bodies during the pregnancy and it also helps in keeping them away from fainting, back pain and improves maternal health and well-being. A non-­migrant woman who was three-month pregnant said, ‘Iron ki goliyan (iron folic acid tablets) are helpful for my body and good for my health because they provide me strength’. Some of the respondents were not aware of the IFA tablets. They had not even heard about their benefits. Some of the reasons they provided were no or less visits by the healthcare workers, less income and illiteracy. Women felt that they only had to consume IFA tablets if they felt weak. Some did not consume them because of adverse effects such as indigestion and vomiting.

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Most of the participating health workers, Anganwadi worker (AWW) and Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) were aware of the benefits of IFA tablets. One of the AWW explained, Iron and vitamins tablets are good for the health of mother and the fetus because pregnant women face many complications during their pregnancy period; they get sick, they feel pelvic pain, bleeding and iron-deficiency anemia. Here (in slums) women know about these tablets rebuild strength and also improve anemia.

One migrant woman (eight-months pregnant) said, ‘I did not take IFA tablets because my mother-in-law also told, don’t take iron tablets. If you take iron tablets, your baby will be big and black in colour.’ Therefore, it can be ascertained that the major impediments to the use of IFA tablets reported by the slum women were forgetting to take the tablets on a regular basis or family members not allowing them to take these tablets. Majority of the women were afraid of the consumption because they had experienced side effects like vomiting, nausea, belly pain, constipation, diarrhoea and stomach cramps. They also had misconceptions related to medications provided during pregnancy. A three-month pregnant non-migrant woman said, ‘We have heard that taking medicines during pregnancy, including iron tablets causes vomiting, leading to enlargement of the foetus resulting difficult delivery or even miscarriage.’ She also said, ‘I don’t want to go to hospital as I don’t want to be examined by male doctors because I feel uncomfortable to show my body parts.’ Lack of men’s support is also a reason for women not taking these tablets. In the slum of Kareli, a 26-year-old non-migrant woman who was not registered for the ANC, said, ‘My husband does not give me permission to visit any health check-up. He says that there are lots of domestic work to be done. That’s why I am not taking to any antenatal check-up.’ A 29-year-old migrant woman narrated, ‘My husband does not want me to talk to

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outsiders especially health workers and do not allow me to go out of home. My ­mother-in-law also supports my husband and she says I have delivered 8 children at home with the help of traditional birth attendance, it was good. That’s why I am not taking to any antenatal check-up.’ Many migrant women who were expecting their second or third child told that bad experience of the first delivery made them wary of ANC visits. For instance, a 24-year-old migrant woman said, I was 19 years old when I got married, I got pregnant soon after. My first baby was very weak at birth. Doctor said he had a weak heart and needed treatment. During my pregnancy, I did not know what to eat, how much to eat and how much to rest, that is why my child was born weak. This time I was aware of the importance of nutrition. I visited the health clinic regularly for check-up. They told me what to eat, when to eat, how much to sleep, in what position to sleep, what are the signs to immediately see a doctor. This time I have very little fear’. Also, a 27-year-old migrant woman shared a similar kind of experience, ‘In my earlier pregnancy, I didn’t know much; since this pregnancy I have learnt a lost; I must give my first milk for the first 6 month, health workers tells as about food, what to feed, how much to feed, go to the hospitals if something happens, and to wash our hands before touching the baby.

The behaviour of healthcare providers towards women has a major influence on women’s decision whether or not to use a particular type of maternal healthcare service. The qualitative study also confirmed this. One of the respondents reported, ‘We do not visit health centre because doctors and nurse are not aware of the services and its benefits for our health.’ Geographical accessibility and transportation was observed as the main obstacle for using maternal healthcare services. A 34-yearold woman said, ‘The government and private hospital are far away, that’s why I have not taken any antenatal care.’ According to the healthcare providers, the common barriers to the use of ANC and especially the consumption of IFA tablets were the women forgetting to take them daily; family

members, mainly mothers-in-law and husbands, not allowing the women to use them; the women felt well and stopped without consultation; the women did not take medicines during the pregnancy; the woman did not visit healthcare providers; and fear of side effects of consumption or from previous experiences. Women did not know the advantages of these and they had no education. Awareness and perceptions regarding the consumption of IFA tablets, which are an important supplement during pregnancy for the health of mothers and their unborn babies, were mixed among migrant and non-migrant women. The study also suggests that lack of husbands’ support and previous history of a complication during pregnancy, delivery or after delivery influence utilization of maternal healthcare services. Analysis of the fieldwork observations and interactions with healthcare personnel revealed that the health centres/posts are not located in close proximity of the slums. Long distance to healthcare centre is a problem to access healthcare facilities for some slum people. In the slum of Kareli locality, there was no anganwadi centre. It was also observed that if the distance to healthcare centres is less, then access to healthcare services is comparatively higher.

Utilization of Delivery and Postnatal Care Services The utilization of delivery and postnatal care among the recently delivered migrant and non-migrant women is shown in Table 35.3. Among migrant women, 83 per cent had normal delivery and 17 per cent had a caesarean, whereas among non-migrant women, the proportion of normal delivery reduced to 76 per cent. Comparison of migrant and non-migrant women suggests that institutional deliveries are lesser among migrant women (25%) than that among non-migrant women (33%). Among migrant women who delivered at home, only 11 per cent were attended by a trained birth attendant, 45 per cent by a

Maternal Healthcare in Slums

Table 35.3  Delivery and Postnatal Care among Women Who Recently Delivered Migrants

Non-Migrants

(N = 12)

(N = 12)

Normal

83

76

Caesarean

17

24

Home

75

67

Hospital

25

33

Covariates Type of delivery

Place of delivery

Birth attendant for home delivery Trained birth attendant

11

13

Traditional birth attendant

45

50

Mother/ mothers-in-law

33

25

Other

11

12

Postnatal check-ups

17

33

Source: Authors’ fieldwork.

traditional birth attendant and 33 per cent by mothers/mothers-in-law. The scenario is not very different for migrants and only 13 per cent deliveries of migrant women were attended by a trained birth attendant, which presents the sorry state of affairs regarding the utilization of delivery services in the slums of Prayagraj city. Another important observation is related to the postnatal check-ups in which migrant women (17%) lag far behind than non-migrant women (33%). During the fieldwork, especially during IDIs and FGIs, it was found that most of the migrant and non-migrant women faced complications and problems due to unawareness and traditional social barriers. A recently delivered migrant woman narrates: I calculated the delivery date myself based on my last menstruation. I had a feeling about when it had to be but he came too early. I was all alone that day. Hamao pati (My husband) had gone outside of the house. I went into contractions for a long time but there was no sign of progress. Though this was not my first baby the pain was strangely unbearable. I remember seeking help,

503

and fortunately my brother-in-law came and went to get my mother-in-law. I got assistance from my mother-in-law so the birth was normal and everything went well.

A 26-year-old non-migrant woman, who had lost her last baby in the hospital, recalls her experiences, My family and I did not know out that I was expecting twins because the babies were too small. We discovered that I was having twins after the birth of the first one. Everyone was surprised, and it was delayed for 2–3 minutes in finding out that there was another baby inside, my second child choked to death. There was a problem as I did not know, so now I will go for check-ups.

These birth stories also indicate that some slum women are not getting any kind of maternal healthcare at all. If the woman had visited a healthcare centre, then she would have known that she was pregnant with twins during her ultrasound check-up. This shows the seriousness of the situation. Traditional knowledge is helpful in handling normal births, but in complicated situations, proper healthcare is a big help. The most common reason for choosing the place of delivery includes family tradition, past delivery experiences, economic conditions and rude behaviour of hospital staff. Women feel that home delivery is safe and they should go to hospital only if they face complications during the labour pain. Women who have had home deliveries in the past without major complications see no need to have an institutional delivery. For instance, a 40-yearold migrant woman said, ‘I have not faced any complications, during my past three pregnancies and delivery with the help of traditional birth attendance.’ She did not take any postnatal care but said that she would have gone to a hospital for check-up if she had money. A migrant woman, who did not use antenatal and postnatal services said, ‘When I became pregnant, I had to follow the instructions given by my mother, elders my m ­ other-in-law and society.’

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For women who delivered in their homes, mothers-in-law played an important role in decisions related to delivery. Seeking healthcare for routine check-ups during pregnancy in the absence of illness is also rare, as opposed to the expectation that one should. Recent migrant women had stayed in the city for less than five years. Non-recent migrant women had stayed in the city for a longer time. Most migrants delivered in their homes, the proportion being higher among newer migrants compared with older migrants. It is also common for most Indian women to have their first delivery at their parents’ place. This cultural practice also results in migrant women opting to return home for their pregnancy. Social support and cultural norms override the benefits provided by the city. During the FGDs, some women expressed concerns about the maternal healthcare quality in their home and preferred to stay in Prayagraj city. A seven-month pregnant migrant woman narrated, ‘The city life is problematic; room is very small. And here we are 8 members. So this condition is not suitable. Women also reported that at my home (village), whole families are there who will take care of me.’ A non-migrant woman said ‘In my village, there is no facility for operation, and the hospital and clinic are too far away.’

Factors Affecting Utilization of Maternal Healthcare Services among Migrant and Non-Migrant Women The main constraints to utilization of maternal healthcare are diversity of population groups, low literacy and income levels and socio-­ cultural beliefs and practices which adversely affect health. Low levels of socio-economic conditions are the key features of slum areas, which lead to a substantial number of problems related to health. Majority of the women who live in slums belong to lower socio-­ economic classes. Socio-cultural factors have

an important bearing on maternal healthcare utilization (Gawde et al., 2016). Fieldwork results suggest that family income is one of the important determinants and is positively related to the utilization of maternal healthcare services in the slums of Prayagraj city. A 24-year-old migrant woman said, I know I should go to the hospital for check-up after delivery, but the baby is good, he is feeding well, his activities are good too, and I also don’t have any problem. So why should I go to the hospital and increase unnecessary expenditure. If any complication happens then we will go. If I see a doctor, he will take `200 for the consultation fees. We do not have money to see a doctor. So why should we go to a doctor? They advise to take proper diet. We cannot afford it. I think that if I had money, I go for health checkups.

This indicates that their healthcare comes after meeting their basic needs in life. Study suggests that people who are from a low-income background prefer to seek free treatment or low-cost treatment. The husband’s decision about maternal healthcare services is also one of the main factors identified. The study also revealed that level of education (woman and her husband’s) is a significant predictor to utilization of maternal healthcare services. As one ANM said, ‘The uneducated husbands scold their wives every time. They just want their wives to stay at home. On the other hand those husbands with little education background motivate their wives to follow their pregnancy check-ups regularly.’ The slum women are not only economically and socially backwards but are also a neglected section among the society. Maternal healthcare utilization is not only determined by the socio-economic factors but there are also other confounding factors. Women do not get proper food and they consume cheaply priced high calorie food. There are several matters, like individual and community knowledge, partner’s support, previous maternal healthcare experiences, distance from the healthcare

Maternal Healthcare in Slums

centre/hospital and the degree of communication with other women, which affect the utilization of maternal healthcare.

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This study found that factors such as socio-demographic, healthcare systems and cultural beliefs and practices affect the utilization of maternal healthcare services. Findings suggest that family income, education of husband and maternal care have important bearDISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION ing on maternal healthcare utilization. Women with higher education are more likely to go Pregnant women residing in urban slums are for health check-ups than illiterate or less assumed to belong to a ‘high-risk’ group with educated women. Husband’s education also limited access to health facilities, especially affects the use of ANC and postnatal care. maternal healthcare services (Srivastava et al., Women with higher-educated husbands visit 2015). Maternal health is inextricably bound the healthcare centre more than women with with social, cultural and economic factors that less-educated husbands do. It is found that influence all aspects of their lives. This study Muslim women receive less ANC and postnafocuses on utilization of maternal healthcare tal care than Hindu women do. Family income among migrant and non-migrant women in also has positive impact on the use of maternal the slums of Prayagraj city. It shows that most care. Use of ANC and postnatal care is higher women registered late because of a belief that among high-income families than among there are no advantages in booking for the low-income families. A study in Chennai city ANC in the first three months of pregnancy. found similar results that poor socio-­economic Low consumption of IFA tablets was found conditions of the women badly affect the to be the weakest component of healthcare in health status (Kaviarasu & Xavier, 2015). the slums of Prayagraj city. Several myths and Lack of men’s support is also a reason behind misconceptions surround the consumption some women not using healthcare services, of IFA tablets. Similar results were found in which affects women’s health. In some slums, a qualitative study of two cities in Pakistan, women prefer to deliver at home with the help which suggests that women do not know the of healthcare professionals and a traditional benefits and advantages of the use of IFA birth attendant. The healthcare centres/posts tablets and are afraid of the side effects from are not located close to all slums. Distance previous experiences (Nisar et al., 2014). to healthcare centre is a problem to access We found that most of the migrant and non-­ healthcare facilities for some slum people. migrant women favoured delivering at home Women felt the healthcare workers’ attiwith the help of a traditional birth attendant. tudes, bad language and feeling of being However, a proportion of migrant women is neglected. They also felt that the healthcare higher among women who deliver at home. workers at the hospital were biased against Husbands, mothers and mothers-in-law play poor, illiterate slum women and preferan important role in decisions related to the ential treatment was given to people with place of delivery. A study in the urban slums higher socio-economic status. Majority of of Solapur city of Maharashtra reported simi- the respondents complained about the non-­ lar observations (Kotnis et al., 2012). Seeking availability of medicines and long waiting healthcare for routine check-ups during preg- times for the poor. One study on Mumbai nancy in the absence of illness is also rare. slums (Gawde, 2016) also had similar findings. Most migrants delivered in their home towns, Migration was found to be a significant the proportion being higher among newer factor in the utilization of maternal healthcare migrants than among older migrants. services and most of the migrant women lag in the utilization of ANC and postnatal care.

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rural and urban area of Bangladesh. Journal of Most importantly, institutional delivery is Nutrition & Food Sciences, 3(4). doi:10.4172/2155higher among migrant women which shows 9600.1000219. the deplorable situation of awareness of the availability of the healthcare facilities in the IIPS & ICF. (2017). National family health survey (NFHS4), 2015–2016: India. Mumbai, India: IIPS. city. Duration of migration also affects the IIPS & Macro International. (2007). National family health status of migrant women. Utilization health survey (NFHS-3), 2005–2006: India, Vol. I. of maternal healthcare is better among non-­ Mumbai, India: IIPS. recent migrant women than among recent International Organization for Migration. (2017). World migrant women. Migration Report 2018. Geneva, Switzerland: Interna-

REFERENCES Chandwani, H. & Padhiyar, N. (2013). Utilization of maternal health care services in an urban slum of Gujarat, India. Electronic Physician, 5(3), 672–678. Chimankar, D. A. & Sahoo, H. (2011). Factors influencing the utilization of maternal health care. Studies on ­Ethno-Medicine, 5(3), 209–216. Gaur, K., Keshri, K. & Joe, W. (2013). Does living in slums or non-slums influence women’s nutritional status? Evidence from Indian mega-cities. Social Science and Medicine, 77, 137–146. Gawde, N. C., Shivkami, M., & Babu, B. V. (2016). Utilization of maternal healthcare services among internal migrants in Mumbai, India. Journal of Biosocial Science, 48(6), 767–796. Ghent, A. (2008). Overcoming migrants’ barriers to health: With increasing numbers of people on the move, migrant health has become a key global ­public-health issue. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 86(8), 583–584. Government of India. (2010). Report of the committee on slum statistics/census. New Delhi, India: Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, National Buildings Organisation, Government of India. Government of India & World Bank. (2015). City development plan for Allahabad, 2041 (Final City Development Plan). New Delhi, India: Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India. Hossain, B., Sarwar, T., Reja, S., & Akter, M. N. (2013). Nutritional status of pregnant women in selected

tional Organization for Migration. Kabir, R. & Khan, H. T. A. (2013). Utilization of antenatal care among pregnant women of urban slums of Dhaka City, Bangladesh. Journal of Nursing and Health Science, 2(2), 15–19. Kaviarasu, S. & Xavier, G. G. (2015). Status of women’s health in urban sub-standard settlements of Chennai, Tamil Nadu state, India. European Academic Research, II(11), 14473–14483. Kotnis, S. D., Gokhale, R. M., & Rayate, M. V. (2012). Why still home deliveries in urban slum deliveries. National Journal of Community Medicine, 3(1), 85–88. National Urban Health Mission. (2013–14). Urban Health Plan National Urban Health District Allahabad. New Delhi, India: Government of India. Nisar, Y. B., Alam, A., Aurangzeb, B., & Dibley, M. J. (2014). Perception of antenatal iron-folic acid supplements in urban and rural Pakistan: A qualitative study. BMC Pregnancy and Child Birth, 14, 344. doi: 10.1186/1471-2393-14-344. Registrar General of India. (2001). Paper 2, India-census of India 2011, Primary census abstracts. New Delhi, India: Registrar General of India and Census Commissioner. ———. (2005). Slum population, India, series-I, census of India 2001. New Delhi, India: Registrar General and Census Commissioner. ———. (2011). Paper 2, India-census of India 2011, provisional population totals. New Delhi, India: Registrar General of India and Census Commissioner. Srivastava, A. K., Kishore S., & Padda, P. (2015). Socio economic differentials in utilization of maternal health care services: A study in urban slums of district dehradun. Bangladesh Journal of Medical Science, 14(03), 280–285.

PART VII

Migration and Politics

36 Displacement and the Biopolitics of Development* Samir Kumar Das

INTRODUCTION This chapter seeks to find out how development impinges on the body—the living human body of those who are displaced by it and vice versa, and most importantly, with what effects. In the existing literature, still dominated by a high developmentalist streak, development is viewed as one that calls for the production of a docile body of displaced persons—a body that not only is invested with the insatiable desire for development, but also strives for honing and chiselling it in ways that are considered conducive to development. The growing corpus of literature on disciplining the labouring body with the objective of releasing within it the productive capacity provides only one example of how the body turns into an object

of the power of development. Thus, borrowing from Foucault, we may say that development is what ‘makes [us] live or once power begins to intervene ... in order to influence life’ (2003, p. 248). It is only in recent years that a paradigmatic break in literature is sounded, when development is increasingly being viewed to have ‘uprooted life’ (Sharma, 1996, p. 311), ‘degraded the socio-economic, cultural and political lives’ (Hussain, 2008, p. 15) or ‘excluded and expelled’ the victims from the world of rights (Harriss-White, Prakash & Mishra, 2013). This chapter seeks to take the argument a step further and points out with the help of a series of interviews and ethnographies conducted by us and others in recent times how development makes the living body extinct

* Some of the arguments figuring in the chapter were presented at the national round-table conference on ‘The Fading of Development in the Face of Rising Politics of Identities’ organized by Osmania University under the University with Potential for Excellence (UPE) Programme on 10 March 2017 in Hyderabad. I thank A. V. Satish Chandra and others for their comments on the presentation. Lapses, if any, are entirely mine. Unless otherwise stated, all translations from original non-English sources are mine.

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and disappear as much as the living body also asserts its ‘sovereignty’ through the mere act of living, by way of transcending what Bataille calls the fear of death, extinction or disappearance. While the third and fourth parts of this chapter revolve around these two themes, they are prefaced by the first part that dwell on how development calls for producing a docile body that is not only invested with a strong developmentalist desire—­developmentality as I once described it (Das, 2016, pp. 19–45)— but is also constantly urged to hone and chisel it to meet the requirements of development. The second part points out how development targets already vulnerable bodies in the sense that those who are already otherwise vulnerable are found to be further vulnerable to displacement induced by it. The impact of development on concrete and living human body, and vice versa, forms only an emerging area of social science research in contemporary India.

DEVELOPING THE BODY On the eve of the recently held panchayat1 polls in West Bengal in May 2018, Anubrata Mandal—the heavyweight leader of the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) Party from the district of Birbhum—spoke of ‘development’ waiting on the road for the opposition candidates venturing out to file their nominations to see for themselves and be mesmerized by it. The opposition took it as a direct threat in order to forcibly prevent them from filing nominations by way of blocking the road. According to a section of the press, the TMC had thus bagged a sizeable percentage of seats returned unopposed as a result of the wanton violence allegedly organized by it. The ruling party, however, put up a brave front and

remained unfazed. The panchayat elections were held on 14 May 2018. Reacting to Mandal’s widely reported attempts at muzzling opposition voices in the name of development, Shankha Ghosh—a Jnanpeeth and Sahitya Akademi-awardee and a well-respected poet from West Bengal— wrote in a poem: ‘Everyone only spreads canard./All roads are wide open –/Come anyone and oppose./ … Open your third eye2/ Development (unnayan) stands blocking the road/With a sword (khadga) in its hand.’3 While development is anthropomorphized in this poem, albeit with a poetic and aesthetic spin characteristic only of a poet of his stature, it is also seen as one huge, solid rock standing on the way, encroaching on it and blocking the road in a way that prevents the opposition candidates from coming out without fear and freely filing their nominations. Opposition parties would not be able to file their nominations because development would be standing on the road blocking their way. Development, in other words, trumps the larger democratic question of expressing one’s opinion without fear or favour and voicing one’s dissent through elections. After all, the poetics of democracy, according to Ghosh, strips development of the ‘certainty’ that it is otherwise made to enjoy in public eye. Mandal, widely criticized for his acid tongue, reacted bitterly with these words: There is a poet, yes a poet! We used to know Rabindranath is a poet, we know Nazrul is a poet. He is as if telling me [that] development is standing—blocking the road. I am still saying that development is standing on the road. I am not a poet who lies. Isn’t development standing on the road? Who can deny this? O Poet, can’t you see it?4

Mandal’s rebuff was taken as unaesthetic at its best and audacious at its worst and elicited

The three-tier local self-government institutions are generically known as panchayats in India. In Hindu mythology, the third eye is regarded as the divine eye that can see more than what our ordinary pair of eyes can including the past, the present and the future. 3 Freely translated from Shankha Ghosh’s Mukta Ganatantra (Free Democracy). 4 Zee24Ghanta news channel published on 10 May 2018. 1 2

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reactions from all quarters. Mandrakanta Sen—a comparatively young litterateur—­ protested in rhyme: ‘So wretched is my country, so unruly is my state, the illiterate shout loudly, ignoring the poet.’ The Left political leaders condemned Mandal on the ground that he was being audacious and not sufficiently respectful of the poet. A Left leader was quoted as saying: ‘We all bow our heads before Shankha Ghosh. And this man is asking who is he? This is misbehaviour and is not acceptable.’ According to Mandal, the omnipresence of development is bound to blow away the poetics of democracy, for the latter, after all, refuse to adjust to the invariable ‘inflections’ of the ‘rough, blunt world of the politics’ of development (Samaddar, 2018). Anubarata Mandal was perhaps right in asserting that development demands the production of a docile body in the form of a captive vote bank in this instance—fully contented with its enjoyment or with the mere promise of enjoyment of the dividends of development—a body that (a) not only submits to development without ever raising any voice and should derive ‘pleasure’ even in the mere promise of being developed, let alone being actually developed and (b) is even more than ready to sacrifice itself at the altar of development. We argue that development calls for the production of a body that recognizes its infinite perfectibility. At one level, the recognition is issued from one’s own unhappiness with the body one is endowed with, on the ground that it is not of adequate use for development. At another level and as a corollary to it, the recognition is also accompanied by an unprecedented concern for the well-­being of the body, its care and upkeep, its health and well-being, the imperative of achieving desired physical and mental parameters and proportions, shapes and forms—in one word, its ability to prove ‘useful’ for development. It also implies that one has the capability of possessing one’s own person and one’s capacity and developing and perfecting them to meet the changing requirements of development.

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Studies conducted particularly on different sectors of labour in India, like the recruitment of tribal labour in the construction of roads and in stone quarries, of women in care industry, and so forth, illustrate this. Second, what holds individual bodies together, within a collective body—a nation, a region, a panchayat or a development unit— with the potential of developing itself, is the market. In other words, individual bodies form a collective whole insofar as they are cast into a market mechanism by way of playing different, but complementary roles—whether as producers, consumers, traders, suppliers, middlemen or otherwise. The roles are tied together within the market mechanism so that each of them plays a role in the production economy and no segment of the society falls apart. Market, thus, becomes a microcosm for the society, and those who do not fit into it are of no use and should accordingly be dispensed with. As I argued elsewhere, India’s Northeast has been subjected to a surge of policies in the age of globalization, not so much to find a market for the societies of the region but to convert the societies themselves into a gigantic market (Das, 2015a, pp. 178–184). As Polanyi, albeit in a different context, observes: [T]he control of the economic system by the market is of overwhelming consequence to the whole organization of society: it means no less than the running of society as an adjunct to the market. Instead of economy being embedded in social relations, social relations are embedded in the economic system. The vital importance of the economic factor to the existence of society precludes any other result. For once the economic system is organized in separate institutions, based on specific motives and conferring a special status, society must be shaped in such a manner as to allow that system to function according to its own laws. This is the meaning of the familiar assertion that a market economy can function only in a market society. (Polanyi, 1957, p. 57)

Third, the body with its infinite potential for development, acquires in our time what Escobar calls ‘the status of certainty in social

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imaginary’ (Escobar, 1995, p. 5) with the effect that it rules out any dissenting voice. We now live in a world in which we are destined to develop, and even any alternative way to develop ourselves is ruled out. Implicit in it, there is epistemic violence that is practised to wipe out the alternatives. Development, in other words, over-determines the public discourse. Let us cite an example. After land was acquired in Singur (West Bengal) in 2006 in the immediate aftermath of the massive electoral mandate that the Left Front had secured in May in the same year, the ruling Front faced a series of drubbings in all the subsequently held elections, culminating in its final exit in 2011 (Das, 2018, pp. 29–45). After its final exit in the state Legislative Assembly polls, a middle-ranking leader of the Communist Party of India (Marxist)—the leading partner of the Left Front—told me in an interview that the people are not appreciative of the necessity of land acquisition. They must appreciate it, he emphasized, for their own benefit. They must be persuaded (bojhano) by our cadres to see the benefits of development. Else, they will have to pay dearly as Bengal ‘misses the development bus’. His words seem to forecast those of Anubrata Mandal from his rival political party, for the latter too—as we have noted—accuses the poet of not having seen development standing visibly on the road. People have no right to non-development and what is predestined as development escapes any kind of introspection, review or reflexivity. People are forced to develop. As I argued elsewhere, it is the development, which is sovereign, not the people, for development turns each one of the collective body of people into its mute and pliant objects (Das, 2015b, pp. 1–10). All this creates a world in which development, as it were, has no outside. Development exercises its unbridled hegemony by way of pushing the other alternatives from out of the public discourse. Arturo Escobar’s powerful work chronicles ‘the history of loss of an illusion’ of development as a ‘singular experience’

(Escobar, 1995, p. 10). Recent writings on the subject tend to suggest that there is indeed no dearth of alternatives to development, if not alternative ways to development. Rajinder Singh’s writings on the traditional modes of water conservation practices in the arid deserts of Rajasthan or Fukuoka’s innovations in the field of organic farming provide only two classic examples in this regard. But Baviskar, on the other hand, shows how these alternatives—not of course to be considered as well-orchestrated and competing models of development—were gradually ‘compromised’ (Baviskar, 1995, p. 227) and thrown out of reckoning. What does one do with the ‘useless’ bodies that do not qualify as tools for development? Development, by its very definition, produces a hierarchy and the most elementary form of hierarchy that it does tends to differentiate those who have the potential of being developed from those who have not. The latter are summoned to pay the ‘price’ of development. While inaugurating the Hirakud dam on 13 January 1957, Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, maintained that the ‘price’ that development extracts from them is worth paying for compared with the gains that it is expected to bring to the ‘nation’. The problem arises when the losers and gainers are distributed asymmetrically in the body politic and those who are already vulnerable become further vulnerable to displacement.

VULNERABLE BODIES While early studies conducted by such scholars as Fernandes (1997) and his associates discovered a positive correlation between social backwardness and displacement, latter studies conducted in different parts of India also reinforce the argument. In simple terms, it is found that the otherwise vulnerable bodies (like the poor and the landless, the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and the Other

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Backward Classes, the Dalits and the women) become further vulnerable to displacement. Vulnerability, in short, is of a self-spiralling nature, insofar as it spills across diverse sectors of social life. The most vulnerable among the vulnerable left with no ‘cultural capital’5 to invest, kinship or community network to fall back on, no sources of livelihood to thrive with, no trace of cognitive, legal and political resources, that otherwise enable one to access the constitutional and legal rights are most likely to be displaced by the development projects. I propose to elaborate the argument by way of referring to the narrative that one can reconstruct from one of my interviews with Ms Arati Dasgupta, facing the threat of being displaced from what she considers ‘home’, as a result of the government’s decision of dredging and widening the Beliaghata Circular Canal (in north Kolkata) as part of urban planning. The government felt it necessary in order to save the city from heavy waterlogging during rainy season by way of enhancing the water-­ carrying capacity of these canals and facilitate rapid release of water. It is interesting to examine the reasons she expounds in support of her claim to her right against displacement. When asked how she had come to settle in the place from where she now faces the threat of being evicted, she replies— With God! I came here holding the hands of God. Don’t you believe? This is my motherland. I had nobody. On the other hand, I had everybody. My mother died after giving birth to me. I have never seen my father. The people on the banks of this canal raised me. One grandma raised me up during my childhood at her place. She too died when the ice factory had caught fire. Believe me, my dear sister [in a reference to the interviewer]; I grew old by crawling on this soil and bathing in this canal. You will see, no one will be able to evict me. I came here holding the hands of God. Only God will be able to lift me up. It does not

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matter whether my home is destroyed. How can they deprive me of this soil and sky?6

A careful reading of the above narrative brings us face-to-face with at least two broad principles that expressly run counter to the reasons of the modern state—from whom she might seek to reclaim her right to home. As a result, she found it absolutely impossible to assert her rights claims sound plausible to the state. First, natural endowments (like soil and sky) are divine gifts, and therefore, for everyone to enjoy. We can also cite the example of Lakshmi—another respondent woman who also faces the same threat. The world, she says, has space for the garbage heaps to be dumped. But she has no place to call home. As she observes, ‘Let us remain like garbage heaps dumped at one corner. My dear sister [with an obvious reference to her interviewer], are we to remain with our feet hanging in mid-air? We too are creatures of this world. Isn’t there anything left in our part?’ How can she survive without a place where she can rest her feet? In simple terms, a form of divine theory is invoked in support of their claim to right to home. Second, Dasgupta seeks to establish her claim by way of invoking the narrative that she was raised in the same place—in the ‘new’ home of her neighbours, crawled on the same soil and took bath in the same canal. In one word, she grew up depending and by surviving on common property resources. The fact that she was raised here makes her, as she puts it, an integral part of the neighbourhood, and most importantly, makes her feel at home in the same place. Home is not simply a piece of land and a civil structure that can be owned and transferred at one’s will. By home, she understands a space where one can feel at home and does not feel homeless.

We use the concept in the same sense in which Pierre Bourdieu has used it (Bourdieu in Richardson, 1986, pp. 241–258). 6 Interview taken on 7 December 2008 in Kolkata. 5

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The principles cited by Dasgupta do not qualify for what in political theory is called ‘public reason’. For one thing, public reason stipulates that one’s claim to right must be couched in a demonstrable concern for ‘public good’ or what we describe as some form of collective interest. If Arati Dasguptas and Lakshmis are to be evicted in the interest of saving the city from the regular cycles of floods and the public interest of city-dwellers, then they can voice their rights claims only in opposition to the ‘public good’ in question. The irony is that they can express their rights claims only at the risk of opposing the ‘public good’. Thus, it is not without reason that those who resist displacement of this nature are also branded as ‘anti-national’. Second, the protagonists of the modern state agree that God has given us natural endowments for everyone’s use, but God, as John Locke reminds us, has also given us ‘reason to make use of them to the best advantage of life and convenience’. Since reason is innate to the person, and hence, to be regarded as personal, only one’s reason entitles one to whatever one makes of the natural endowments, and it, as Locke categorically informs us, ‘excludes the common right of other men’ (Locke, 1946, pp. 51–52 ff.). Dasguptas and Lakshmis simply lack the cognitive and other resources that would have enabled them to access and enjoy their rights; they do not have what Hannah Arendt calls ‘right to rights’.7 Democracy, in the words of Kaviraj, acts like a ‘sluice gate’ that protects the laws and institutions of Indian democracy from being run over by ‘shirtless fellow citizens’. The desperation that emanates from the inability of the shirtless to voice their rights claims, in a language that the laws and the institutions of the modern state understand, eventually gives birth to what he calls ‘a culture of insubordination’ (Kaviraj, 2001, pp. 229–257). Right to communication, for the vulnerable bodies, does not easily translate into communication of rights claims. 7 8

The above ethnographic account shows how the poor and the socially vulnerable, the backward and the erstwhile immigrants from East Pakistan/Bangladesh, the people without any legal ownership of home—become hapless and shirtless victims of eviction and displacement, first by being denied access to necessary means of survival, and then through the application of sheer force. In this case, encroachment by the state agencies on the people’s hitherto enjoyed access to common property (water or land in this case) resources is done either in the name of environmental protection, or in the name of protecting the ‘national’ property or simply in the name of upholding the sanctity of the law of ownership. Contrary to common beliefs, we notice that phenomena such as resource crisis, environmental degradation, floods, natural disasters and climate change can hardly be called great levellers, as they do not discriminate between the high and the low, the rich and the poor, the well-groomed and the shirtless, and therefore, have the potential of cutting across the social divide that exists amongst the people affected by them. Development has the effect of not only displacing the victims but also making them disappear and extinct. More often than not, development, as our following case study of the Andaman Islands presents, renders them redundant and extinct.8

THE EXTINCT BODY If in the so-called ‘Indian mainland’, the promise of development creates a ‘docile body’ of people who are seen to cherish and nurture an insatiable desire for development, in the Andamans, the labour ‘rejected’ (Weiner, 1993, pp. 1737–1746) elsewhere, whether as convicts or aboriginals or even as constantly circulating cheap and unskilled ones, served as the prime movers of development. We

The above ethnographic account is taken from Das (2011). Elaborated from Das (2017, p.7).

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know that the Andamans developed as a penal colony. In the aftermath of the Rebellion of 1857, state-directed deportation of political and criminal convicts served for the colonization of the islands. The penal colony was established out of strategic and punitive considerations of keeping the mainland free from convicts, insofar as it meant that many convicts and indentured labourers did not return to their homelands. The belief was that prisoners could not escape from the Andamans and even if they did break out, the dense forest, the ‘ferocious’ tribal people or the surrounding rough sea would claim all those who were not recaptured. In fact, within the first 10 months, 240 out of the 733 convicts were found dead. The Andamans, for long in colonial times, served as India’s Guantanamo Bay where the convicts and criminals can be herded together, isolated and set apart, in a bid to keep the mainland safe and secure. This was also a space of impunity outside the public gaze where the authorities had scant regard for the law of the land, rules could be flouted without being detected and referring to the court of law, people could be ‘killed without being sacrificed’ as Giorgio Agamben had famously said. The transition to the policy of settling the ex-convicts started to change in the early 20th century. One distinct outcome of this policy change was the settlement of two ‘criminal’ groups9 of subalterns as self-supporters—the Bhantu, a ‘criminal tribe’ from north India and the Moplah, rebels from the Malabar Coast. Both groups were not split up like the previous convicts in the settlement. Instead, they were settled in isolated spaces of jungles, far away from the villages and stations of the penal settlement. This was intended to avoid any potential menace to the so-called order of the colony, which these rebellious and ‘criminal’ groups were apprehended to cause through their historically evidenced behaviour of insubordination.

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The colonial policy of deportation and settlement of ‘problem people’ continued even in postcolonial times. On the one hand, the policy was meant to improve the governance of the so-called mainland by removing landless people, squatters, refugees and other categories of ‘uncontrollable’ subalterns to the former penal colony, where they were rehabilitated as sedentary farmers. On the other hand, this massive state-directed population movement also aimed at rejuvenating the older colonial project of attaining self-sufficiency in terms of agricultural production. The immigrants of peasant origin—mainly the Partition refugees from erstwhile East Pakistan—were the harbingers of development assigned with the task of spreading and disseminating the art of wet rice cultivation in the islands. Much of the migrant labour—whether of the convicts, tribes and aborigines or of the nomads, in short, the jetsam and flotsam of the population—all ‘rejected’ in the mainland, became an integral part of whatever development had hitherto taken place in the Andaman Islands. While development in the islands reflects their desperate urge to survive in a landscape that was inhospitable—if not utterly hostile—often aided by the generous state patronage, their journey to be part of ‘We, the People of India’ has yet to come to an end. Convict labour was primarily utilized to dry swamps, fell trees and cut forests, and to develop the infrastructure in order to facilitate ‘colonization’ of the land. A rehabilitation scheme was set up to allow ‘loyal’ and tamed convicts to settle down with their mainland families as free, self-supporting colonists at the end of their term. To create families for permanent settlement of the colony, the British even encouraged self-supporters to marry convict women. Poor climatic conditions, high expenses and the dependence on imports led the administration to reconsider their settlement policy in the 1920s. The descendants of

The colonial authorities resorted to the practice of designating and officially classifying some tribal groups as ‘criminal tribes’. Some of them reportedly continue to suffer from social stigma even in independent India.

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the freed convicts remained a small proportion of the population. Only 12.53 per cent in 1901 and 20.20 per cent in 1911 were locally born and the rest (87.47% and 79.80%, respectively) were immigrants. The scheme continued even in post-­ independence India. Thus, between 1949 and 1978, under the rehabilitation schemes, all together 4,531 families (450 of them were settled between 1949 and 1952 and 3,281 between 1949 and 1961) were settled on cleared plots of jungle. Most families were provided with either 10 or 5 acres of hilly and paddy land or supplied with food items and timber, pesticides, a buffalo, and/or a milk cow plus some cash. According to an estimate, more than 86 per cent of these families were Bengali refugees (Biswas, 2010, p. 90, quoted in Zehmisch, 2012, p. 10). In the last scheme of rehabilitation, more than 560 families were allotted agricultural and homestead land over the 4,100 acres of cleared forest land in Middle Andaman, Neil Island and Little Andaman till the middle of 1969. Apart from that, landless communities, like Malayalis from Kerala, and ‘Ranchi labourers’ from middle India, were rehabilitated. Tamil Sri Lankan repatriates, and Telugu as well as Tamil repatriates from Burma, came to the Islands under the same schemes. These non-Bengali families were probably brought in at the instance of the government as a reaction to the protests of the local-born communities. The old inhabitants, who were in control of political power, had fears that a Bengali majority might overpower them. As an echo to the colonial schemes, the administration hired many Ranchi labourers from the Chota Nagpur region to work on contract basis. Recent ethnographic records suggest that several officials have confirmed that as Adivasis or indigenous people of India, they were assumed to be racially fit for this kind of hard labour required for clearing the jungles and removing the swamps. Their ‘aboriginality’ and ‘primitiveness’ explain their ‘docility’ and ‘hard-working’ characteristics. In other words, migration to the Andaman

Islands consisted mainly of this stereotype of labour. Parallel to the state-directed settlement of people, an independent movement of people to and from the Andamans has always existed. These migrants—soldiers, administrators, servants, labourers, traders, teachers and have come, either temporarily fishermen—­ or permanently. A sprinkling of privileged migrants has been white-collar government servants, most of them from Kerala and West Bengal. Many among them had been attracted from the mainland with the lure of high salaries. Moreover, the development of new plots of agricultural land coincided with a desire to expand the geographical boundaries of the colony. An increase of surplus production could only be realized through the expansion of cultivable land by clearing forest land. In addition to that, there has been an independent, ‘self-motivated’ population movement to and from the islands since the early years of colonization. The development and growth of government institutions has attracted labourers, adventurers, scientists, entrepreneurial traders, soldiers and white-collar as well as blue-collar government servants. This ‘settler colonialist’ policy of stretching the frontier into ‘virgin’ forest was combined with the expansion of commercial forestry. According to R. V. R. Murthy, many of the Telugu labourers coming from Telangana and the erstwhile state of undivided Andhra Pradesh, are actually displaced from the Maoist-affected areas of the district of Srikakulam (Murthy, 2016). While in 1901, the population of Andaman and Nicobar Islands was 24,649, in 2011, it reached 380,581. While sporadic data on the convicts, penal colony settlers and refugee migration from West Bengal or of the Ranchi settlers is available, corresponding survey on the expelling factors that led the present settlers to migrate is, to our knowledge, non-­ existent. The importance of fieldwork in this regard can hardly be exaggerated. In a survey conducted in 2016 on a sample of 70 settlers representing varying periods of duration of their stay in the areas of their settlement,

Displacement and the Biopolitics of Development

it is being seen that ‘expelling factors’ and ‘attracting factors’ play almost an equal role in explaining immigration (36 as against 34 persons). While the sample size is too small, the factors specified in the survey also overlap. The interviewees were not allowed to provide mutually inclusive answers. Taking the total of 36 persons as 100 per cent, it was seen that conflict (11.1%), drought (8.3%) and religious factors (5.6%) do play an important role in pushing out the population from the mainland, although there is no denying that lack of jobs (38.9%), poor economic activity (16.7%) are much more important. Discriminatory culture (11.1%) and political intolerance (8.3%) are nevertheless important. In all, 51.4 per cent of the sample migrated due to expelling factors while 48.6 per cent migrated due to attracting factors (Rajavel, 2016). The Andaman group of islands like the rest of India became a part of the development programme with the introduction of five-year plans undertaken in the early 1950s. By 1955, 20,000 acres of forest had been cleared for 4,000 families to settle. In the second five-year plan an additional 1,500 families was added to the total number of families settling in the islands, with impetus being given to agriculture, small-scale industries, and the construction of roads. By 1965, the infrastructure of the island had undergone significant changes. Development, however, has taken its toll on the local and the tribal population. As the total population of the island reached 200,000, the total number of the Andamanese tribal population decreased to about 450. Increasing encroachment on the tribal habitat not only cut into their life-bearing resources but also adversely affected the demographic balance, eventually threatening their extinction. This indeed has a long history. Early morning on 17 May 1859, one party of tribal Andamanese proceeding along the shore was stopped by the naval guard’s gunfire but another party reached the convict

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workstation and occupied it, in spite of gunfire. Fresh British troops arrived and recaptured the station resulting in the death of several Andamanese. Some of them were wounded and some were taken as prisoners. This attack is known as Andaman’s ‘Battle of Aberdeen’. It is believed to be the Andamanese tribes’ ‘first organized, large-scale attack’ on convict settlers and their British guards. In retaliation, the Andamanese and the Burmese forest workers and sepoys (security personnel) were often ordered to make ‘punitive expeditions’. Vacant Jarwa campsites, deep in the forest, were invaded, ransacked and set afire by armed people. In a 1925 expedition, 37 Jarwas reportedly died, reflecting the extreme nature of such ‘punitive expeditions’.10 In the past, Jarwas were regarded by settlers and outsiders in the islands as being wild, hostile and violent, who deserved to be killed, hunted down and wiped out. From 1947 to 1963, there were no less than 46 violent encounters with the Jarwas, in which mostly non-tribal settlers were killed. Records since 1979 indicate that the frequency of hostile Jarwa attacks increased each year. On an average, about two dozen non-tribal forest workers and construction labourers were killed within the 765 km of Jarwa reserve every year. The policy of plunder and decimation underwent a change with Indian independence. The administration started feeling that the only way to conciliate and tame the Jarwas was to capture them in large numbers and then send them back as ‘messengers of peace’. In a way, this policy of pacification and gift-­giving to transform the Jarwas shows continuity between the colonial policy and the Island’s post-­ independence administration. Since 1960, the practice of gift-giving was stepped up, and whenever possible, Jarwas were captured around villages of Middle Andaman and brought over to the capital city of Port Blair by the Bush Police. Jarwa individuals were presented with abundant gifts and dropped back

The figures are taken from Pandya (2002, pp. 799–820).

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at the site of their capture. Through the re-­ instituted policy of gift-giving, the Jarwas were ‘induced to appreciate and accept a policy of coexistence’. Today, Jarwas are not seen as primitive anymore, but as ‘ex-primitive’. This two-way change in the image and imagination of the tribals is, in the words of Pandya, tied inextricably with the planning and inauguration of the Andaman Trunk (A. T.) road. By 1988, the construction of A. T. road was completed and the road, by all accounts, continues to have its transformative impact on the social landscape of intergroup relations. As he puts it: … Both tribal and non-tribal people going back and forth over the road have dislocated the very fixity of the image of primitive and modern. Ideas, individuals, and identities are dislodged, transposed, and relocated in relation to places connected by the road. Hence, the road in the Andamans is now a setting for the acting out of the script of modernity. Much as a map connects perceived space and experienced place … the movement on the road connects two worldviews, that of the tribal and that of the nontribal. (Pandya, 2002, p. 803)

Thus, to cite an instance, late morning on 31 October 1997, about 25 Jarwas ‘came out’ of the forest with the intention of contact rather than confrontation. The gesture on their part is believed to have completed the full circle that had its origin back in 1859—the year when the long saga of hostility and confrontation with the tribals began (Pandya, 2002, pp. 799–820).

THE SOVEREIGN BODY At a time when more intense exploitation of natural resources is considered essential for development to take off all over India, particularly in the Northeast, dams are expected to provide a source of cheap hydroelectric power in an otherwise energy-starved country, and also serve as a solution to annual rounds of floods and other natural catastrophes. A string

of dams is already waiting to be constructed in different parts of the Northeast, particularly in the Indian states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Manipur, in the near future. We conducted a series of interviews in Gerukamukh area in Upper Assam—the hub of anti-dam protests in the Northeast—­ organized by the Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS or the Association for the Liberation of Peasants) and a few other organizations. The movement in Gerukamukh seems to have marked the arrival of a new political subject in the wake of a series of developmental policies clubbed under what is generically called ‘Look East’, and in its new avatar, the ‘Act East Policy’, initiated since the early 1990s. The interviews were conducted across various groups and communities, like the Mishings, Dewris, Ahoms, Assamese, Nepalis, Hajongs and Bodos and other tea tribes, like the Kurmis, living in the area— Most of our respondents extend their unwavering support to the anti-dam protests—although not all of them actively participate in them. When asked why they support it, all of them have been unambiguous in pointing out that the issue is integral to the ‘security of their life’ (jiwanar suraksha). They argue that unless their life is not secure, development becomes ‘unthinkable’. What will they do with development if they are not alive? The issue of security cuts across the ethnic lines and is incommensurably ‘greater’ (brihattar swartha) than development of this or that community. When their collective survival is at stake, it is necessary that people as a whole irrespective of their ethnic and communal considerations come together and organize a joint (ekeloge) resistance and joint (umaihotiya) struggle. Dams once constructed make them vulnerable to natural catastrophe which—if it ever happens in a region otherwise prone to tremors and earthquakes—will not differentiate between classes and ethnicities. The survival of the people with their bare bodies and bones is under threat (bhabuki). Life always is greater than development.

Life for them is understood in terms of mere survival as bare, living bodies that somehow survive. While more evident movements for autonomy split and divide the people along ethnic

Displacement and the Biopolitics of Development

and linguistic lines, and necessarily privileged communities over others and create ‘minorities’ within the ethnically marked-out spaces, the movement for collective survival calls for their joint resistance. In other words, never before in the history of the Northeast has bare survival of the physical body become so much of a security concern for the people as it is now. These new issues of biopolitics are likely to question ethnic and linguistic issues of homeland, territoriality and autonomy by expressing what Barbora calls ‘Assam’s new voice of dissent’ (Barbora, 2011, p. 22). The ‘new voice of dissent’, in other words, seeks to not die by meekly submitting to development or constantly cowering under the fear of death in the face of development, but lives in full till the moment it dies. As Bataille puts it, [Man’s] is a creative death, but if the consciousness of death—of the marvelous magic of death—does not reach him before he dies, during his life it will seem that death is not destined to reach him, and so the death awaiting him will not give him a human character. Thus at all costs, man must live at the moment he really dies, or he must live with the impression of really dying. (Botting & Wilson, 1997, p. 287)

The body, as Bataille argues, must live in order to die and is to be considered ‘sovereign’ till the moment it remains a concrete, living body without submitting to death. This biopolitical turn in Assam’s politics—though unprecedented—is far from being irrevers­ ible. The recent preparation for the National Register of Citizens in Assam, for instance, threatens to trigger a certain resuscitation of ethnic politics in the region. ********* The body is cultivated and perfected, honed and chiselled so that it becomes productive, makes itself available for the productive use of development, and in the process, turns what Foucault calls ‘docile’. Development targets the already vulnerable bodies and only makes them further vulnerable to serial displacement.

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Vulnerable bodies are also rendered extinct if they prove to be of no ‘use’ to the enterprise of development. The body must be of use and contribute to social productivity, else it should not exist. By contrast, the body too asserts its sovereignty way of living the moment it dies, lives in order not to die, by refusing and defying death. Development, in short, impinges on the concrete body of the displaced in diverse ways.

REFERENCES Barbora, S. (2011). Assam’s new voice of dissent. The Economic and Political Weekly, 46(28), 19–22. Bourdieu, P. (1986). Forms of capital. In J. G. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of the theory and research on sociology of education (pp. 241–258). Westport, CT: Greenwood. Baviskar, A. (1995). In the belly of the river: Tribal conflicts over development in the Narmada Valley. New Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. Biswas, S. K. (2010). Colonization and rehabilitations in Andaman and Nicobars Islands. Delhi, India: Abheejit Publications. Botting, F. & Wilson, S. (Eds.) (1997). The Bataille reader. Oxford: Blackwell. Das, S. K. (2011). Livelihood struggles or civil society activism? Ethnographic reflections on the people living on the edge. Retrieved from www.socialsciences.in ———. (2015a). A requiem for social science in India’s Northeast. Eastern Quarterly, 11(III/IV), 178–184. ———. (2015b). Democracy and popular sovereignty: Developing the missing link. In L. S. Gassah & C. J. Thomas (Eds.), Democracy and development in India’s North-East: Challenges and opportunities (pp. 1–10). Delhi, India: Bookwell. ———. (2016). A gaze without a gaze: State, development and the internally displaced persons in contemporary India. In F. Padovani (Ed.), Development-­induced displacement in India and China: A comparative look at the burdens of growth (pp. 19–45). Foreword by Michael Cernea. Philadelphia, PA: Rowman & Littlefield, Lexington Books. ———. (2017): ‘Rejected’ in the mainland: Labour migration, democracy and development in the A ­ ndaman Islands. Man and Society – A Journal of North-East Studies XIV (Winter): 7–17.

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———. (2018). Singur: Exemplar of peasant resistance. In S. I. Rajan (Ed.), India migration report 2017: Forced migration. New Delhi, India: Routledge. Escobar, A. (1995). Introduction: Development and the anthropology of modernity. In A. Escobar (Ed.), Encountering development: The making and unmaking of the third world (pp. 3–20). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Fernandes, W. (1997). Development-induced displacement in the tribal areas of Eastern India. New Delhi, India: Indian Social Institute. Foucault, M. (2003). ‘Society must be defended’: Lectures at the College de France 1975–1976 (D. Macey Trans.). New York, NY: Picador. Harriss-White, B., Prakash, A., & Mishra, D. (2013). Globalization, economic citizenship and India’s inclusive developmentalism. In S. K. Mitra (Ed.), Citizenship as cultural flow (Transcultural Research – Heidelberg Studies on Asia and Europe in a Global Context) (pp. 187–209). Berlin: Springer. Hussain, M. (2008). Interrogating development: State, displacement and popular resistance in North East India. New Delhi, India: SAGE Publications. Kaviraj, S. (2001). The culture of representative democracy. In N. G. Jayal (Ed.), Democracy in India. New Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. Locke, J. (1946). An essay concerning the true original, extent and end of civil government. In S. E. Barker

(Ed.), Social contract: Essays by Locke, Hume and Rousseau. London: Oxford University Press. Murthy, R. V. R. (2016). Migration of Telugu labourers in Andaman (sic) and their social status. Mimeo. Pandya, V. (2002). Contacts, images and imagination: The impact of a road in the Jarwa Reserve Forest, Andaman Islands. On the Road: The Social Impact of New Roads in Southeast Asia, 158(4), 799–820. Polanyi, K. (1957/1044). The great transformation: The political and economic origins of our time (Foreword by R. M. McIver). Boston, MA: Beacon Press. Rajavel, N. (2016). Role of migration of laborers into and their status in A. N. Islands. Mimeo. Samaddar, R. (2018). Double entendre for development and Bengal’s hurt poetic sensitivity. The Wire. Retrieved from https://thewire.in/government/the-poet-and-the-commissar. Retrieved 17 September 2018. Sharma, S. P. (1996). The cultural costs of a globalized economy for India. Dialectical Anthropology, 21(3/4), 299–316. Weiner, M. (1993). Rejected peoples and unwanted migrants in South Asia. Economic and Political Weekly, 28(34), 1737–1746. Zehmisch, P. (2012). A xerox of India: Policies and politics of migration in an overseas colony (Working Papers in Social and Economic Anthropology, Vol. 12). Munchen: Institute for Ethnologie.

37 Migrant, City and Changing Lives Ranabir Samaddar

LABOUR, MOBILITY AND INFORMALITY When we reinforce the point that the migrant sits at the heart of the city in the neoliberal time, we are actually suggesting a provisional theoretical framework that can accommodate the figure of the migrant labour, as a critical element, in the transformation of the city to a rental outlet, and at the same time, a site of extraction. These two transformations cast new light on the relationship between labour and urban space—the fundamental problematic in the emergence of the neoliberal city. These also reflect on the hidden processes of the shift of the modern city from being a site of industrial production to being one of a logistical economy requiring, besides localized concentrations of human capital, a complex of place-based services to support the circulation of capital and commodity. From this angle, the relationship between the migrant and the neoliberal city encapsulates the central social contradiction of modern global capitalism, namely increased return from global connectedness and the increasing informality and

precarity of life and work, which the migrant in the city represents. This is indeed the main question arising out of the massive infrastructural programmes in and around the cities of the world, and certainly India. Theorists of urbanization (Henri Lefebvre and David Harvey, to name the two most influential ones) have shed light on the various practices of space-making. These space-making exercises have impacted the new and emerging forms of labour, leading to new zoning practices and policy interventions and to ‘new’ issues of life such as old-age labour, dangerous work in waste processing and new kinds of biological works such as surrogacy, caring, nursing, sex and entertainment industry, forms of flexible wage, and an overall new kind of precarious work regime. Anyone working in these occupations knows the overwhelming presence of migrant labour in these industries and the gendered nature of migrant work. All in all, the phenomenon of migration remains at the core of these material developments. They mark the dynamics of entry and dispersal of migrant labour force at the moment of its arrival in the city. They also show how the

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arrival of a migrant labour force becomes an occasion for restructuring a city along neoliberal lines, and for the emergence of a neoliberal urban authority. The migrant in this way becomes a necessary but invisible part of the modern metropolis. The city becomes global only with the presence of the migrant.1 In the postcolonial condition, we have, besides the factory form, other forms of labour—dispersed, informal and ­unorganized—with labouring subjects moving from one site to another. We need to study as to how this dispersed labouring population is managed under postcolonial capitalism. Marx foresaw the capitalist task of the management of a mobile population. In Sections 3–4 of Chapter 25 in Capital (volume one), he discussed the phenomenon of relative surplus population and its different forms. In Section 5, he discussed the nomad population, whom he described as a class of people whose origin is agricultural, but whose occupation is in great part industrial. They are the light infantry of capital, thrown by it, according to its needs, now to this point, now to that. When they are not on the march, they camp. These sections suggest the ways in which we can study the formation of a mobile army of labour by way of identifying its foundational elements— primitive accumulation, laws of population, violence and government of market economy. Thus, with regard to the composition of labour, we must attend to the specific transient forms, while in regard to the composition of capital, we must attend to the specific forms in which capital can produce profit. These two inquiries allow us to situate the entire discussion on mobile labour in the context of accumulation. The situation acquires further complication because in the circulation process, labour is involved without adding anything to the total value, which means much of the migrant

labour force will remain at the bottom-end of the income-sharing process of the society. It does not require much imagination to see that the logistical agenda of capital acquires even greater significance in the postcolonial condition, known above all by a lack of infrastructure for the sale and purchase of goods and capital. Massive amount of migrant labour will be employed in jobs such as construction, cable laying, container handling, data infrastructure and building, yet remaining in a permanently precarious condition. Hence, the anxiety all over the capitalist world is in face of this permanent precarity of labour—which is its own creation—how to make the postcolonial labour, which is what migrant labour is, resilient? And hence, the demand for making labour resilient goes hand in hand with the global agenda of infrastructure building in the postcolonial world.2

MIGRANT LABOUR’S SPECTRAL PRESENCE IN THE MARKET Much of the mobile labour is involved in processing, reprocessing and particularly, logistical processes. Financial processes and data economy, just like waste processing and reprocessing, play a significant role in the marginalization of mobile labour. This is now witnessed in the backdrop of a tidal wave of bankruptcies and closures of monetary institutions, which threaten to submerge the global labour market in a backlash against neoliberal market economics. Free market neoliberal economics means complete freedom for the various circuits of the economy, like money circuit, production circuit and circulation circuit, to operate even when competing and conflicting with each other to a point of ruin.

The phrase ‘global city’ is invoked here in the sense Saskia Sassen used it. See Sassen (2005). It is not accidental that what Saskia Sassen calls the new labour demand in the wake of the rise of global cities marks the labour programme of capitalism in the postcolonial world (see Sassen, 1989). She also notes the role of migration in capitalist management of labour in the wake of globalization. Capitalist management of labour means, among others, management of ‘migration as a global supply system’ of labour (p. 31).

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The entire logistical process in the economy also creates waste, which involves a lot of logistical labour for the reprocessing of waste. Thus, waste of money, conduct, material, organic elements, biological remains and e-waste becomes a permanent feature of capitalist circuits, and the capitalist circuit, in one form or another, must include processing waste also, so that the circuit does not come to an abrupt end, and the logic of circuit can proceed.3 Waste appears in this way as the other form of value. Waste must now produce value. It represents the capital’s attempt to salvage, recuperate and recycle the remains of production, the disposable that must not become irretrievably waste. Postcolonial labour is the guarantee that nothing will be an irretrievable waste for the global commodity chain.4 It is not surprising that migrant labour is heavily deployed in the processing of waste that characterizes urban economy. Given the dynamics of postcolonial capitalism, we may ask: will there ever be, in the capitalist system of production, anything that will not have value? Can we assume always that waste is a by-product, residual, epiphenomenal and inconsequential, for the understanding of value production and realization? Or, is it not true that waste is the product of a contradictory process of value production and realization? Given the fact that without labour,

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waste renewal is not possible, the question will be: how do we situate migrant labour in the value chain of a commodity which puts capital at the centre and pushes labour of the migrant to the margins? Not without reason, contemporary global capitalism is marked by increasing production of waste, recycling of waste, an ever-expanding waste reprocessing economy and a rapidly expanding and largely impoverished global labour force involved in waste recycling.5 This is the logic of global value chains to which everything useful must attach in order to be useful as an exchangeable product. Apart from the fact that waste processing structures labour migration, we have to also note another factor in making labour’s presence spectral in the economy. Think of the postcolonial condition under which labour migrates from work to work and the peasant becomes a semi-worker to become a full worker only to return to till his/her small parcel of land or work in others’ fields when industrial, semi-industrial or semi-­manufacturing, or even extractive jobs, like small-scale and artisanal mining, sand mining or stone crushing, become scarce. Research on transformations of agrarian society throws some light on the transformation of labour. Yet our understanding of the transformation of labour will remain incomplete unless we take into account

On this, see the interesting discussion by Vinay Gidwani (2008). Bennett (2010); see also Friends of the Earth Report (2011); Gabrys (2013); Graham and Thrift (2007); Lepawsky (2014); and the significant essay on labour and waste (Rossiter, 2009). 5 One report from Bangladesh states, 3 4

Sixty per cent of iron used in the construction business in Bangladesh comes from the ship-breaking industry, earning the state-capitalist apparatus annual revenue of US$900 million. It employs 30,000 people directly and 250,000 people indirectly. Yet the labour laws in the sector are not applied to protect the workers from grievous injury. In the last decade, 250 workers have died and more than 800 have been handicapped for life. Hulking steel remains of ships that took part in maritime trade across the earth’s ocean spaces in the last century undergo radical transformation, reverting from ship back to steel. The process of breaking down the massive ocean liners uses a mixture of acetylene and muscular power. Within the rusting structural frames lie the secrets of steel reclaiming its form. Here is the inverse of the shipyards of northern maritime powers, where steel, through the power of capital infrastructure, was reshaped into objects that would produce the conditions for capital to reorganize itself. The long stretching beach and the bay provide the scenography as the labourers struggle to dismember rusting leviathans in the oily mud. The bosses of the ship-breaking yards of Chittagong have an appalling human rights record despite global media coverage and impose a notorious no-photography rule…. (Ahmed, 2013, p. 50)

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the rise of a city-centric economy with all its logistical implications that occasion massive influx of migrant labour into cities and towns. Only with such a dual understanding, we shall get a full sense of the said agrarian transformation and the transformation happening to rural labour. The unremunerative rural small-scale economy, the impact of neoliberal governance, massive migration and consequent multiplication of labour forms—all these were much in evidence, for instance, in India, when the Report on Conditions of Work and Promotion of Livelihoods in the Unorganized Sector came out in August 2007. Migrant work in various logistical processes brought back the focus on studying interchangeable labour forms. In this context, it is important to note that the footloose postcolonial labour is also a consequence of international investment chains in countries like India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Jordan, Turkey, Egypt, Colombia, Panama, Cambodia and Mexico, in garment-­production, iron ore mining, manufacturing of ancillary parts and instruments in industries such as automobile, electronic production, mobile telephony, leather products and toy industry. These are overwhelmingly export-oriented, with the production sites being often special zones. Wages are often low, the workforce is markedly female and the labour supervision rules strict and marked with violence.

Think of the supreme logistical sites, such as building financial corridors or special economic zones, upgrading ports for greater container-handling capacity, creating seamless multimodal transport hubs, building new towns, reprocessing e-waste, constructing highways, airports and logistical cities, all these requiring and creating footloose labour—the latter forever remaining in the shadows of the logistical sites but moving on from construction work to plumbing to driving transportation vehicles, to perhaps quarrying or reprocessing urban e-waste. Profit is never derived from these logistical activities directly. For instance, in a new town where land prices will soar up, built-in environment will rake in money, financial hubs will be established, BPOs will populate the town and new steel and glass buildings will come up, the immediate revenue will be in the form of rent and interest, whereas without labour, the soil cannot have been ready, bridges cannot have been built, airports cannot have been constructed, additional iron ore supply would have been impossible and steel and glass buildings could not have come up. Yet, in this circuit of commodity circulation, capital will continuously change form and value-­producing labour will be more and more distant from the final stage when the profit will be realized from the capital invested and revenue will be shared.6 Or, think of the capital (which deployed labour)

Indeed, the role of logistical initiatives, such as infrastructure building, make the circuits of capital more and more complicated leaving the capitalist class with only aggregate calculations to decide how much of the said infrastructure-building programme finally becomes profitable (after deducting all other forms of revenue including payment of salaries and wages). Two economists have noted,

6

Many of the recent infrastructure initiatives in Eurasia seem to treat connectivity gaps as a problem with an easy solution. For example, the ostensible purpose of China’s Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is to direct large amounts of new credit toward infrastructure projects, suggesting that the problem is a ‘financing gap’. Yet international credit has been cheap for the better part of a decade, and institutional investors would happily lend money toward long-term projects offering a reasonable and reliable rate of return. Rather than a lack of lenders, a more pressing problem in Eurasia is mobilizing the resources to repay them. Infrastructure is funded in one of two ways: through use of public revenues (i.e., taxes) or through user fees (e.g., tolls). If the estimated infrastructural needs outweigh the resources available, the result is a funding gap rather than a financing gap, and it is the former that remains the more binding constraint in Eurasia. Funding shortages are only one of the many impediments to increasing infrastructure investment in Eurasia... Initiatives such as the Global Infrastructure Facility run by the World Bank and the G20-supported Global Infrastructure Hub are trying to address some of these constraints ... (Besides China’s One Belt

Migrant, City and Changing Lives

that went into clearing the forest to open up an iron ore mine to produce steel to produce a crane to build a giant steel and glass house or a data centre in a new town so that a local version of the Silicon Valley can come up to produce programmes and facilitate information expansion and transmission. For capital, this is the desirable history of labour—labour at work but not visible, ready at hand but not always necessary, labour living but whenever required must soon be dead.7 Everywhere, this strategy seems to be successful only to fail at the most unexpected hour of crash. In this ghostly transformative exercise, money (increasingly in credit and digital mode) seems to be the most important tool in determining the mode of living labour. Money capital, and not industrial capital, is the spectral other of living labour in the postcolonial condition. Study of migrant labour as shaped by logistical requirements must take this as a central fact.

MIGRATION AND CHANGING FORMS OF LABOUR The issue of migration and border has become one of the central questions in studies of

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labour.8 In the postcolonial situation, this is significant as the postcolonial composition of labour shows increasing multiplicity and heterogeneity of labour forms. For instance, the movements of workers impelled by the supply side of the economy and the overall logistical reorientation of economy provide new shapes to labour’s living existence and its organization. Supply of labour accompanying these changes also brings changes in labour regimes. From body shopping of IT workers to strict vigil over workers who may escape the informal, small and artisanal mines—we have a range of control modes that show the co-existence of freedom of workers to move from one work to another (involving change in workplace, country) and modes of controlling and tying them to the work where they are needed. This duality requires varieties of wage system, contract procedures, labour laws and differing degrees of freedom to unionize. Multiplicity is in the gene of capitalism. There is then, as always, another scene, the other scene of supply. Logistical reorganization of capitalism points to that other scene of reorganization of supply of labour. The continuous redrawing and rearrangement of political boundaries within postcolonial countries and among these countries (including various types of border arrangements, border flexibilization and trade

One Road project) Other initiatives, such as those proposed by Tokyo and New Delhi ... are similarly driven by each capital’s commercial and geostrategic interests. (Goodman & Parker, 2016) One can also note in this context the pervasive failure of postcolonial cities to build a durable infrastructural environment—as seen in Gurgaon or Rajarhat in India. 7 One aspect of this transformation is that besides the conditional visibility of labour in the logistical milieu, labour’s individuality (product of visibility) is over as the infrastructural turn of capitalism overwhelms the society. In the logistical milieu, infrastructure is able to present labour as a necessary coordinate to the universal future made of mobility. The sacrifice of labour as individual to a projected digital future signals the transition of industrial capitalism to postcolonial capitalism, from the factory to the imperium of roads, airport cities, ports, containers, special freight corridors, Uber taxis, fast transmission cables, autorickshaws and trucks. 8 On this, one of the incisive analyses in recent time, Mezzadra and Neilson (2013) clarify at the outset, Our emphasis on heterogeneity is also important for the analysis of what we call with Karl Marx the composition of contemporary living labor, which is more and more crisscrossed, divided, and multiplied by practices of mobility and the operation of borders… we also focus, to make a couple of examples, on the hukou system of household registration in contemporary China and the complex systems of bordering that internally divide the Indian labour market. (Preface, p. x)

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

facilitation) show the global space of modern capitalism made possible by a series of new lines of enclosure, separation and partition.9 The entire debate on goods and services tax (GST) in India is an instance of the new mercantilism that is on its way to become the ruling ideology of postcolonial capitalism.10 The worldwide trade and currency wars resemble the spirit of new mercantilism, perched on logistical agreements and arrangements, both within the country and internationally. The new mercantilism, while consolidating, strengthening, rationalizing and unifying the supply system, cannot do away with the internal differentiation within the commodity market, including the market of labour as commodity. In this sense, there is a postcolonial backyard in every developed country.11 But to develop the full implications of this argument, we have to theorize the migrant along relatively less explored lines, which will show that the migrant is not a

derivative figure in contrast to a stable citizen but that the migrant occupies a primary position in the capitalist production process, more so in the neoliberal time, when accumulation would not be at all possible without labour flexibility, that is, without migrant labour. In the capitalist economy, all these will function also to exacerbate the fault line of race along which accumulation will proceed.12 Besides race, migrant labour negotiates and institutes boundaries of similar other kinds, like gender, caste and region.13 Recent investigations suggest a broader connection between borders and today’s labour migration. Climate changes in addition to the already happening massive migrations in and from the colonial countries.14 Our time is, in many ways, following the colonial age marked, as it is now, by famines and massive population movements induced by dry weather, floods, hunger and the forcible exit of large peasant communities from the

This also includes militarization of borders and the pronounced presence of armed groups in the border towns. Militarization and the influx of labour go hand in hand. On this, studies of towns and settlements in Mexico on the US–Mexico border are insightful. See, for instance, Andreas (2000) and Birson (2010). 10 Goods and services tax is a proposed system of indirect taxation in India merging most of the existing taxes into a single system of taxation. It will be a comprehensive indirect tax on manufacture, sale and consumption of goods and services throughout the country, replacing taxes levied by the union and state governments. Instead, it will be now levied and collected at each stage of sale or purchase of goods or services based on the input tax credit method. Taxable goods and services will not be distinguished from one another and will be taxed at a single rate in a supply chain till the goods or services reach the consumer. Administrative responsibility would generally rest with a single authority to levy tax on goods and services. Exports would be zero-rated and imports would be levied the same taxes as domestic goods and services adhering to the destination principle. It is claimed that amalgamating several Central and State taxes into a single tax would mitigate cascading or double taxation, facilitating a common national market. The Union government has assured states of compensation for any revenue losses incurred by them from the date of introduction of GST (1 July 2017) for a period of 5 years. 11 For instance, one study on US workers shows that transit mobility fails to improve the employment status for low-income persons. See Sanchez, Shen, and Peng (2004). 12 It is not altogether beside the point that in as much as migration invokes race and racism, it is also the other way round, in the sense that race has produced over centuries bounty hunters, escapees, vagrants and fleeing bondsmen. 13 Colonial history is replete with accounts of circulating labour. For instance, Kerr (2006) wrote that in 1770 a British official in Madras observed groups composed of men, women and children who formed ‘a kind of travelling community of their own under a species of Government peculiar to themselves, with laws and customs which they follow and observe wherever they go’. These itinerant, coveted groups of earth and stone workers circulated from worksite to worksite where they dug tanks (small reservoirs), ditches and wells and built roads and fortifications. They lived close to their worksites in temporary huts which they set up for the occasion and always chose a spot distinct from any village, ‘wandering from one place to another as is most convenient’ (p.  85). 14 Mike Davis on the late 19th century famines and migration in China, India and Brazil in the context of the El Nino spells (2001); see the report by Furquan Ameen Siddiqui (2016). 9

Migrant, City and Changing Lives

emerging global food market. The humanitarian response to what is known as ‘migration crisis’ has grown in range as governments discover why people move: they move not only due to violence, threat of violence, torture and discrimination (by now banal causes), but also due to natural disasters, man-made famines and floods, climate change, developmental agenda, resource crisis, environmental catastrophes and the like. It is in this complex context that the basic migration control systems have been put in place, such as recording the foreigner, developing labour market management tools to use immigrant labour for a capitalist market and for control of domestic labour, and finally developing a detailed surveillance system. Relief organizations have proliferated, destitute asylums resembling prison houses have been set up in different lands by charitable institutions to welcome survivors, particularly girl and elderly female survivors. In all these, one common feature appears, possibly for the first time, that of treating the migrant as the source of insecurity. The victim of forced migration is now an active body, whose soul no longer needs to be saved because the destitute, wretched body would soon and inevitably die, but because this is now an unruly body that requires management and control. Historical comparisons with colonial times can yield valuable insights. Think of imperial infrastructures in the context of the reorientation of postcolonial economy towards being an infrastructural site for global supply of commodities.15 Imperial infrastructures focus on facilitating supply or more correctly,

15

527

circulation—of information, data, money, soldiers, labour and other commodities. Logistics makes the infrastructural sites a dual ground of production and circulation. Thus, the development of shipbuilding, railways, container traffic, roadways, airport cities, pipelines, cable laying, and last but not the least, information and financial processing zones like data centres, not only indicate a logistical reorientation of economy, but also mark a new type of politics that is imperial and vested with the ‘natural’ power of producing new territories. Rural migrant labour, waste reprocessing worker, container truck driver, the crane operator in the shipyard, the construction labour—these figures complete the other side of the software systems that link and run the port’s cargo handling capacity, the toll plazas on the highways, the working of the data centres, the diffusion of mobile telephony and the remaining infrastructural sites of logistics. All these tell us of the urban turn in the capitalist policy universe. Cities have always been there with us but with infrastructural growth, the world of cities has now produced the urban in which migrant labour remains a hidden, subaltern figure. Policies in tandem become mobile and development strategies follow suit. Labour follows the commodity chain, and in the process, labour also becomes a part of the commodity chain. The structure of one predicates the other. If this has been true of the colonial and postcolonial history of South Africa, this is true of migration to the Gulf region in the Middle East today. In case of South Africa, this has been evident in the production of primary commodities like minerals.

On this, Ned Rossiter (2016) writes, Focusing on the combinatory force of logistics and infrastructure between the 1800 and 2000 communication system of the cable, I argue that the logistical operation of imperial infrastructures produces territory in ways that skew and structure the relation between states and empire ... the territoriality of power manifests through communications infrastructure such as telegraphic cables and data centres to produce a new sovereign entity that I term the logistical state. (author’s emphasis, pp. 140–141)

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

The mineral market and labour market have moved together.16 On the other hand, in the Gulf in the Middle East, the specific requirements of pink-collar jobs have shaped migration flows there. The Gulf is the region where women labour in pink-collar jobs migrate in large numbers from South Asia, and the Gulf economy has produced a society which continuously calls for the reproduction of such labour. One can notice a specific type of labour recruitment pattern or a regime of recruitment modes which produce women as labouring subjects. These patterns resemble many of the past patterns of labour recruitment. In short, infrastructure and logistics of supply—of commodities, human beings, 16

money, information and waste—do not make labour flows homogenous, even and standard, but heterogeneous.17 Postcolonial capitalism is a confirmed evidence of this law of mobility.

REFERENCES Ahmed, N. (2013). Entangled earth. Third Text, 27(1), 44–53. Andreas, P. (2000). Border games: Policing the US-­ Mexico divide. Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press. Bennett, J. (2010). Vibrant matter: A political ecology of the thing. Durham, NC: Duke University Press. Birson, K. (2010). Mexico: Abuses against U.S. bound migrant workers. NACLA. Retrieved from https://

In this respect, reports on South Africa are instructive. For instance, Since the mineral revolution of the late 19th century, migrant labour in South Africa referred not only to workers coming into South Africa from neighbouring countries, but also to a system of controlling African workers within South Africa. Migrant labour provided abundant cheap workers, at the same time occasioned enforcement of strict labour supervision in the form of racial segregation of land. Male migrants employed by white-owned businesses were prohibited from living permanently in cities and towns designated for whites only. Hundreds of thousands of African men lived in crowded single-sex hostels near their jobs and were not allowed to bring their wives and children, who were described as “superfluous appendages”. Thus, migrant workers were divided into labourers during most of the year and full human beings—spouses, parents, and community members—during their short Christmas and Easter holidays in the rural reserves. Migrant workers were initially almost all men who needed to earn a wage to pay hut taxes. Later, women, too, became migrant workers, chiefly doing domestic work for white families. Millions of Africans within South Africa—workers and their family members—were affected by this system. As the economy became more reliant on industry, urban migration increased further. There was pressure for reform of the labour system to allow Africans to stay in urban areas where their work and accumulated skills were needed, although apartheid still afforded them no political rights outside the so-called Bantustans. Migrancy continues to be significant in South Africa to this day. Retrieved from http://overcomingapartheid. msu.edu/multimedia.php?id=65-259-5 (accessed on 16 December 2017)

According to the 2001 Census, in the city of Mumbai, out of the total population of 11.97 million, 5.18 million or 47.3 per cent population of Mumbai was categorized as migrant population. Migrants from other parts of the state were concentrated in the cotton textile mills. Concentration of workers from Andhra Pradesh was in the construction sector. Migrants from UP and Bihar were mainly taxi and auto-rickshaw drivers. Muslims from UP earlier engaged in garment-making and power looms, and some in the textile mills, but are now engaged in labour-intensive activities. The Marathi Muslims are now mostly involved in the leather industry, zari work and embroidery, bakeries, garment-making and tailoring and jewellery-making. Amongst Dalits, Mahars are mostly engaged in contractual jobs and unskilled employment. In 1998, the government initiated a drive of deporting ‘illegal immigrants’ who had apparently come from Bangladesh. An unofficial estimate of homeless population in the city is around 1.5 million persons. Following the ‘Vision Mumbai: Transforming Mumbai into a World-Class City’, a document prepared by a global consulting firm, McKinsey & Company in 2003, the state government initiated transforming Mumbai into an International Financial Centre with world-class infrastructure, citizen-friendly services and a business-friendly environment. The government embarked on slum redevelopment to free at least 60 per cent of land occupied by slums. In 2004–2005, more than 90,000 of slum units were demolished. Since then, periodic demolition of the slums has been a regular phenomenon (from the research report, Cities, Migrants, and the Urban Poor: Issues of Violence and Social Justice, Calcutta Research Group, Kolkata, 2016, retrieved from http://mcrg.ac.in/Rural_Migrants/Final_Research_Briefs.pdf, accessed on 12 October 2016).

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nacla.org/news/mexico-abuses-against-us-bound-migrant-workers Davis, M. (2001). Late Victorian holocausts: El Nino famines and the making of the Third World. London: Verso. Friends of the Earth Report. (2011). The policy study report on the waste electrical and electronic equipment directive. Retrieved from https://www.foe. co.uk/.../report-influence-eu-policies-environment-9392 Gidwani, V. (2008). Waste. In Capital interrupted: Agrarian development and politics of work in India (chapter 1, pp. 1–31). Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press. Gabrys, J. (2013). Digital rubbish: A natural history of electronics. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press. Graham, S. & Thrift, N. (2007). Out of order: Understanding repair and maintenance. Theory, Culture & Society, 24(3), 1–25. Goodman, M. P. & Parker, D. A. (2016). Eurasia’s infrastructure rush: What, why, so what? Global Economics Monthly, 5(1), 1–2. Kerr, I. J. (2006). On the move: Circulating labour in pre-colonial, colonial, and post-colonial India. International Review of Social History, 51, 85–109. Lepawsky, J. (2014). Composing urban orders from rubbish electronics: Cityness and the site multiple. Inter-

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national Journal of Urban and Regional Research, 39(2), 185–199. Mezzadra, S. & Neilson, B. (2013). Border as method or the multiplication of labor. Durham, NC: Duke University Press. Rossiter, N. (2009). Translating the indifference of communication: Electronic waste, migrant labour and the informational sovereignty of logistics in China. International Review of Information Ethics, 11, 35–44. ———. (2016). Software, infrastructure, labour: A media theory of logistical nightmares. New York, NY: Routledge. Sanchez, T.W., Shen, Q., & Peng, Z.-R. (2004). Transit mobility, jobs access and low-income labour participation in US metropolitan areas. Urban Studies, 41(7), 1313–1331. Sassen, S. (1989). The rise of global cities and the new labour demand. In The mobility of labour and capital: A study in international investment and labour flow (chapter 5, pp. 126–170). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ———. (2005). The global city: Introducing a concept. Brown Journal of World Affairs, XI(2), 27–43. Siddiqui, F. A. (2016, September 16). Escaping a river’s wrath. Hindustan Times, Kolkata edition, p. 7.

38 Adverse Incorporations and Subnational Welfarism M. Suresh Babu M a n s i Wa d h w a M. Vijayabaskar

INTRODUCTION Internal migration for work has emerged as a significant labour market phenomenon in post-reform India (Deshingkar, 2006, 2008). Of particular significance is the presence of considerable interstate migration (Chandrasekhar & Sharma, 2014). At the current stage of India’s development, interstate migrant workers have emerged as an oft-­ overlooked segment of the population, effectively marginalized in policy discourse and civil society groups working on social inclusion due to a complex interplay of factors (Prasad-Aleyamma, 2018). As mobility of capital and labour manifests in modern demographic settings, norms of citizenship get reformulated at the subnational level, thereby altering access to public provisioning and entitlements which are inextricably linked to an individual’s ability to claim citizenship.

However, as scholars in political science have noted (Chatterjee, 2004), members of the informal economy stake claims to property and entitlements not as citizens but as members of a political society that has emerged with the rise of electoral democracy in India. Further, there are states like Kerala and Tamil Nadu that are not only home to a large segment of interstate migrant workers, but also, importantly, to some of the best social welfare regimes in the country. Based on a micro-level study of interstate migrant workers in the state of Tamil Nadu, we point to the emerging inadequacy of social protection for such migrant workers and to the pathways of exclusion and marginalization of migrant workers in the state. Through this, we also show the limits to the distributional framework of welfare entitlements in India. We draw our inferences from micro-level data gathered using survey methods from among interstate migrant workers in

Adverse Incorporations and Subnational Welfarism

urban and peri-urban areas of Chennai city. By advancing our understanding of the processes of marginalization and exclusion, the analysis renders visible the spaces of intervention that may be necessary to ensure ‘inclusive citizenship’ that is increasingly seen to be critical to developmental improvements. Rapidly increasing interstate migration of workers in India is a reality, particularly for men from the relatively poorer states of India (Srivastava, 2013). However, this has received scant policy attention. Buried under the rhetoric of economic growth, rural-to-­urban migration often corresponds with migration across state boundaries, owing to vast regional disparities in industrial development and availability of employment. The state of Tamil Nadu is one of the major Indian states experiencing an influx of a significant population of migrants each year due to demand emanating from its expanding manufacturing and services sectors. The state is known for a vibrant labour-­ intensive manufacturing base that includes textiles and apparel, leather goods and automobile and auto-component production. In fact, the state has the largest share of employment in manufacturing in the country (Tamil Nadu State Planning Commission, 2017). The state has been going through a construction boom and also has one of the highest shares of construction employment in the country (Tamil Nadu State Planning Commission, 2017). In addition, the state is also home to a vibrant services economy known for its software, healthcare and educational service sectors. While existing literature on citizenship discusses the politics of its constitution and whom the citizenship extends to, there is a visible lack of empirical evidence depicting the processes of exclusion from the prevailing umbrella of citizenship. Theoretical debates on citizenship, hence, are said to be taking place in an ‘empirical void’ (Kabeer, 2005). This chapter attempts to fill that gap by providing an account of various aspects of the exclusion of migrant workers due to the crisis of citizenship at the grassroots. The chapter,

531

therefore, enriches macro-level understanding of the phenomenon of interstate migration in India, and it is aimed at informing contemporary policymaking by looking at the processes of marginalization at the micro-level. It is argued that both formal (based on legal recognition) and informal citizenship (rooted in regional affiliation and ethno-linguistic differences) contribute to such exclusion. This account of ‘lived citizenship’ at the subnational level in India reveals how rights and identity are negotiated in the face of cultural estrangement and practices of marginalization (Lister, 2007). This phenomenon is then juxtaposed with that of the experience of excluded labour groups in other countries.

INTERSTATE MIGRATION IN CONTEMPORARY INDIA Trends in interstate migration in recent years fall in line with the growth patterns and employment opportunities that have arisen in India in the last two decades. Internal migration is substantial and impactful. According to data from the 2001 Census, 314.54 million people in India (almost 30% of Indian population) were migrants out of which 29.90 million migrated for the purpose of employment (Planning Commission, 2011). As per estimates from the National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) 2007–2008, 326 million or 28.5 per cent of the Indian population falls under the category of internal migrants. When viewed as a part of the overall population, the NSSO data indicates that 26.1 per cent of rural residents and 35.4 per cent of urban residents are classified as migrants (Chandrasekhar & Sharma, 2014). At the same time, estimates of short-term or seasonal migrants range from 15 million (NSS 2007–2008) to 100 million (Deshingkar & Akter, 2009). The number of internal migrants in India is found to have increased by 37 per cent between 1991 and 2001 (226 million migrants in 1991) and by 100 per cent since

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1971 (159 million migrants in 1971) (Singh, Kumar, Singh & Yadava, 2011). Interstate migration has become an important component of internal migration with the number of migrants doubling between 2001 and 2011 and growing at a rate of 4.5 per cent annually.1 According to the Economic Survey 2016–2017, the stock of interstate out-­ migrants in the age group of 20–29 has nearly doubled during this period, with Tamil Nadu being one among the seven states that have witnessed net in-migration.2 Our analysis is restricted to interstate migrants who move between federal regional units (called states in India) for the purpose of undertaking employment. Given the geographically patchy patterns of industrial development and urbanization in India, stark inequality exists among various Indian states with regard to availability of jobs, leading to migration of people from industrially backward and largely poor regions to the more ‘developed’ ones. This often coincides with rural-to-­urban migration flows that have strengthened in recent years. Breakdown of National Sample Survey (NSS) data (2007–2008) for both in-migrant and out-migrant groups shows that migration to urban areas for employment is predominant (Srivastava, 2013). Interstate migration over long distances was undertaken by 27.5 per cent male migrants in contrast to 8.4 per cent female migrants, consistent with conventional migration theory (Srivastava, 2013). This trend is further compounded by a rapidly decreasing agricultural income in rural areas. Urban areas and industrial towns, especially those situated in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and the National Capital Region, have emerged as major sources with demand for cheap, skilled as well as unskilled labour force, which is met by hordes of workers who regularly out-migrate from poorer states like

Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Bengal and Odisha in search of employment. Large-scale distress migration from rural areas, particularly out of agriculture-supported livelihoods, has been a cause of concern for Indian planners for a while now, as often they do not find ‘decent’ work even as their migration is seen to pose additional demands on existing urban infrastructure. The analysis of pre-liberalization census data between the 1960s and 1991, carried out by Kundu and Gupta (1996), revealed that there was a decrease in the percentage of interstate migrants to total migrants in this time frame, which signified a decrease in the mobility of the population under the impact of changing socio-economic patterns. However, in the post-liberalization period, a noteworthy increase in the magnitude of interstate migration was observed. Data from NSSO rounds of 1999–2000 and 2007–2008 points to a clear picture of increase in interstate migration for members of both genders. While 19.72 per cent of the male migrants fell under the category of interstate migrants in 1999–2000, 26.27 per cent of the total migrants were found to be migrating between states in 2007–2008 (Table 38.1). For females, these figures increased from 9.94 per cent in 1999–2000 to 10.33 per cent in 2007–2008 (Mahapatro, 2012). Based on the 2007–2008 NSSO data, the respective shares of the four migration streams are: rural–rural (62%), rural–urban Table 38.1  Percentage of Interstate Migrants in Successive Rounds of NSSO Surveys

Males Females

NSS 1999–2000 (%)

NSS 2007–2008 (%)

19.72

26.27

9.94

10.33

Source: Data from Mahapatro (2012).

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/interstate-migration-in-india-doubled-between2001-2011-wef/articleshow/61224940.cms (accessed on 23 July 2018). 2 https://www.outlookindia.com/website/story/economic-survey-2016-17-inter-state-labour-migration-close-to9-mn/297775 (accessed on 3 September 2019). 1

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Adverse Incorporations and Subnational Welfarism

(19%), urban–rural (6%) and urban–urban (13%). This distribution follows the trend identified by Chandrasekhar and Sharma (2014). Thus, while rural-to-rural migration continues to be the dominant form of migration, it is followed by rural-to-­urban migration (Chandrasekhar & Sharma, 2014; Deshingkar & Akter, 2009; Singh et al., 2011). An analysis of NSSO data of 2007–2008 reveals some other important trends. Among men, the major reasons for migration were found to be employment (43.02%), followed by family (22.07%) and education (17.34%). On the other hand, marriage (64.6%), followed by family (21.03%), emerged as the most important reasons for migration among women (Mahapatro, 2012).

not have had a positive net in-migration at all three points of time (Table 38.2). Post 1991 economic reforms, many Indian states, including Tamil Nadu, have been competing among each other to attract foreign investment and to forge links with global production networks. These linkages stir up the demand for affordable labour, which is met by in-migration from other states. Rapid urbanization, thriving industry and an expanding services sector has created a huge demand for mostly low-skilled labour force in Tamil Nadu (there also exists some demand for experienced workers with specialized skills like carpentry). This demand is met by in-migrants hailing primarily from the rural areas of states like West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, Assam and Northeastern states. Migrant labourers are quickly hired as not only do they seek lower wages but also are seen to be more pliant than the local labour force is. Moreover, strong out-migration flows of natives of Tamil Nadu further contribute to the creation of a lacuna that is filled by immigrants from poorer states. A report based on a recent study of interstate migrants in Tamil Nadu, completed in 2016, shows that the state has nearly 1.1 million internal migrants, which according to labour activists, is an underestimate.3 The study is, however, useful, as it provides a geographical and sectoral break-up of interstate

THE CASE OF TAMIL NADU Before the economic reforms of 1991, most of the developed states, like Gujarat, West Bengal, Karnataka and Punjab, displayed high percentages of interstate (lifetime) immigrants. However, Tamil Nadu was an exception to this general trend. Even when the rates of net interstate (intercensal) migration for Indian states were compared, Tamil Nadu was found to be the only developed state to

Table 38.2  Rate of Net Interstate Migration (Intercensal) in Some Major States During 1961, 1971 and 1981 Rural States

1961

1971

Urban 1981

1961

1971

Total 1981

1961

1971

1981

Assam

1.66

0.85

—

8.31

2.59

—

2.23

0.97

—

Gujarat

−0.63

−0.23

0.34

1.88

1.87

1.21

0.03

0.38

0.62

Haryana

—

0.45

0.91

—

−0.49

0.93

—

0.29

0.93

0.58

0.26

0.12

−2.98

0.75

0.55

1.27

0.4

0.19

Maharashtra

−0.15

0.06

0.53

9.78

5.36

5.05

2.86

1.85

2.21

Tamil Nadu

−1.62

−0.49

−5.30

−0.13

0.13

−0.88

−1.22

−0.31

−1.62

Karnataka

Source: Kundu and Gupta (1996). https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Tamil-Nadu-now-home-to-1-million-migrant-workers-Study/ articleshow/50861647.cms (accessed on 30 April 2018).

3

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

migrant workers in the state. According to the study, construction, textiles and other manufacturing are the major destination sectors while Chennai and its two adjoining districts, Kancheepuram and Thiruvallur account for more than 51 per cent of interstate migrants. Kancheepuram district alone accounts for more than 20 per cent of such migrant labour.

SURVEY AND DATA COLLECTION The survey was conducted among migrants employed in the Kancheepuram district of Tamil Nadu. This district is home to several special economic zones and industrial parks for automobiles and auto components, electronics and footwear. The spurt of industrial activity has also led to a construction and real estate boom in the region. Our survey was carried out primarily in three sectors: manufacturing, construction and services (security services and hospitality). Data was collected using a combination of a questionnaire-­ based field survey and selected case studies. A total of 150 migrant workers were surveyed. Data captures the channels of migration, methods of recruitment, terms of employment, wages, access to public welfare provisions, access to social security schemes, living conditions, political representation and issues faced by workers on account of ethno-linguistic differences. It was not, however, a systematic sample as it was difficult to access the workers, and hence, relied on snowballing techniques. We, however, ensured that the workers we spoke to did represent the macro-trends with regard to the nature of work and lives they lead in the region through discussion with some key informants, such as labour contractors and HR personnel of a few firms. In order to understand the geographical mobility and work trajectories of the migrant workers, in-depth case studies were conducted with 63 workers. Detailed interactions about their

lives, work, backgrounds and families provided qualitative insight into the migration process. Respondents for both surveys and case studies represented a variety of backgrounds and migration experiences. This systemic exclusion of migrants is located within the broader conceptualization of citizenship structures and rights-based understanding of entitlements of citizens.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN WELFARE AND CITIZENSHIP: IMPACT OF GLOBALIZATION With the nation state being the dominant mode of political organization in the current world order, citizenship of the nation state has come to be inextricably linked with state support and welfare provisioning. Legal and economic configuration of the nation state implies that benefits of the nation state, which take the form of subsidies, welfare and social protection can only be enjoyed by the ‘citizen’. In his seminal work on social citizenship, Marshall (1950) elucidates the theoretical understanding of state provisioning for a citizen. Marshall saw social citizenship as the third and final stage in the development of citizenship—the first two being civil and political citizenships, respectively. Social citizenship incorporates economic security, public provisioning (including education and social services) and ‘a right to share to the full in the social heritage’ of society. In this conception, citizenship is a tool to lay down conditions for equality in society and reflect ‘the urge forward along the path ... towards a fuller measure of equality’. However, Marshall also noted that through the course of history, citizenship, rooted in civil rights, had also become a means of creation of inequality in the market economy of earlier times. The exclusionary potential of citizenship has also been discussed in the works of Engin F. Isin (as cited in McNevin, 2006, p. 137), who argued that citizenship was not

Adverse Incorporations and Subnational Welfarism

‘a possession’, but was akin to ‘an identity and practice through which political privilege and marginalization are constructed’. At each point in time, the prevailing system of citizenship created certain ‘immanent others’ inside the polity whose existence was necessary to produce the ‘insider/outsider’ dichotomy that is a feature of all citizenship regimes. The exclusion and marginalization of these ‘immanent others’ was crucial for the creation of privilege for the citizen. For example, slaves, women and the property-less in the Greek polis (McNevin, 2006, p. 137). Under such conditions, the debate about what citizenship entails and who is to reap the fruits of being a ‘citizen’ has significant influence on the discussion about interstate migrants in Tamil Nadu. As globalization boosts mobility across national and international borders, dislocating individuals from their traditional ecosystems, the role of citizenship practice in creating pockets of exclusion among the political subjects of a country cannot be ignored. In fact, the interpretation of citizenship norms and the discourse on rights of a citizen encompass the dialectic with which modern-day democracies continually struggle. Free movement of labour has led to citizenship being prized almost akin to an asset that has value due to exclusive ownership (United Nations Research Institute for Social Development [UNRISD], 1996). The close relationship between citizenship and welfare support has come to develop very differently today under the influence of global market capitalism and neoliberal values, particularly in postcolonial democracies like India. The onus of meeting daily needs is on the individual who must be given the freedom to participate in the market and fulfil his duty towards the state. The buoyant support that the concept of state welfare provisioning enjoyed in Western nations in the mid-20th century has given way to a strengthening belief in the market allocation of social goods. Even when state support is discussed, preference is towards contributory welfare

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programmes that reflect the ascendance of the principles of contractual exchange in public discourse and the simultaneous decline of the importance of community obligation (Fraser & Gordon, 1994). As self-reliance of the individual becomes necessary for social citizenship, the state takes on a more protective role that only helps those who are unable to fulfil their requirements through market action. With a policy-shift towards liberalization and privatization efforts in the last two decades in the developing world, dominance of private action, market forces and individual self-­ reliance have become the markers of citizenship (Kabeer, 2005). Post-reform Tamil Nadu, however, reveals a different trajectory. While it has also initiated a series of reforms that can be labelled ‘neoliberal’, its regional history of collective mobilization (Dreze & Sen, 2013) and lower caste-based political regimes (Harriss, 1999) has allowed for a welfare regime that has been able to combine neoliberal reforms with a set of welfare protection measures provided to citizens. Even as employment became increasingly contractualized or informalized, the state provided a range of welfare provisions to its citizens. It includes, for example, provision of 20 kg of free rice to all households with ration cards, some lentils and cooking oil, free television sets and also laptops for children going to higher secondary schools among other things. The state has also initiated a health insurance scheme for the poor for tertiary treatment in both private and public hospitals in the state. Apart from being one of the most industrialized states in the country, the state is known for better human development outcomes attributed to robust state interventions in both education and healthcare (Tamil Nadu State Planning Commission, 2017). The extent to which migrant workers from other states are able to avail of such welfare provisioning and whether there are barriers to their access are, therefore, worthy of investigation.

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BARRIERS TO CITIZENSHIP: FORMS OF MANIFESTATION With regard to the unique character of exclusion of internal migrant workers in Tamil Nadu, citizenship needs to be understood not merely as a formal recognition of nationality but also as a set of socio-cultural practices and socio-psychological narratives that constrain or facilitate an individual’s claim to rights and entitlements. Bauder (2008) views citizenship as a ‘strategically produced form of capital’ which manifests in the form of formal and informal citizenship, both of which create distinction in the labour market, effectively marginalizing migrant workers over non-migrants in industrialized countries. Formal citizenship refers to the legal declaration of membership of a modern nation state that is firmly linked to certain civic, economic and social rights and privileges. Informal citizenship, on the other hand, implies membership of a national community anchored in socio-cultural codes and a sense of belonging to a civil society. Informal citizenship is particularly relevant in the case of those groups that may belong to the nation state formally but do not share the same community or cultural allegiance as is applicable in our analysis. Thus, exclusion of one group over another occurs by regulating access to resources based on institutionalization of identity differences. Although migrant workers are accorded equality with regard to formal rights and opportunities as local workers in Tamil Nadu, informal citizenship practices dictated by ethno-linguistic differences lead to marginalization of the migrants with regard to employment, wages, welfare entitlements and social protection measures. While in the case of international migration, a lack of formal citizenship is the source of discriminatory practices, in the case of interstate migration to Tamil Nadu, informal citizenship, rooted in regionally determined political and cultural economy, plays a major role. We point to the segmentation of the labour market, differences

in wages, differential access to socio-legal protection and differential treatment under administrative processes in the destination region.

DIMENSIONS OF ADVERSE INCORPORATIONS: EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM TAMIL NADU By virtue of their peculiar position as ‘outsiders’ within the larger socio-economic matrix of the destination state, migrants confront multiple barriers to accessing quality employment and welfare provisions. As has been pointed out by Bhagat (2011), exclusion and discrimination are embedded within administrative and political processes, market mechanisms and socio-economic processes that further worsen the socio-economic divide between ‘locals’ and ‘migrants’. At the same time, with migrants flowing in, the topography and socio-economic landscape of urban and peri-urban areas is undergoing a gradual, yet visible, transformation. While the living spaces of migrants and their utility in economic functioning (both often distinct from the locals) affect the way local people interact with their tangible environment, ­ethno-linguistic differences contribute to the marginalization experienced by the migrant community. The different dimensions of marginalization and adverse incorporations that immigrant groups experience are discussed in this section.

Economic and Labour Market Marginalization The migrant’s functional role in the economy is what integrates the migrant with the destination. Still, mechanisms of formal and informal citizenship function to make the migrants’ labour less valuable than that of the native workers. The analysis reveals that

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migrant workers in Tamil Nadu only have partial access to labour market opportunities because the chain of intermediaries directs migrants towards a few functional roles only. They are employed mainly in low-skilled jobs that require very little training or experience, and importantly, in positions that do not allow them to build any considerable capabilities to move into better jobs. An exception, however, is a segment of the construction sector where skilled workers like carpenters have been incorporated into the workforce. Specifically, in factory establishments covered in the survey around Chennai city, where assembly lines dominate production, migrant workers primarily work in jobs with lowest skill requirements. This is clearly reflected in the composition of labour in industries where the migrants occupy low-end jobs on the shop floor, such as painting, which also pose health hazards, while the more skilled, better-paid positions that are higher up in the organizational hierarchy are almost exclusively held by non-migrants. Upward mobility into the upper ranks is generally not possible for the migrants as it requires formal educational qualifications. It is common practice for migrants to be employed in particularly hazardous jobs that involve a significant risk of injury. Several recent incidents of accidents and building collapses in Tamil Nadu involved the death or maiming of migrant workers. Decent work deficits and labour law violations have been shown to be extremely common in establishments employing migrant workers previously as well (Kantor, Rani & Unni, 2006). Survey results show that owing to the elaborate chains of contractors and subcontractors involved in recruitment, it is hard to pinpoint responsibility for untoward incidents on one player. As a result, this broken chain of liability causes the aggrieved worker to not receive adequate compensation or redress. The fact that identity cards that migrants are required to possess showing their employment status do not carry any insignia or name of the primary employer

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but only of the contracting firm signifies the absence of a direct and legally enforceable link between the larger firms and the shop floor labour. The nature of employment is mainly contractual (except in hospitality sector, where casual labour is most common). Of the respondents, 73.4 per cent had regular contract employment while 21.4 per cent were in regular casual employment. A mere 1.3 per cent claimed to have a permanent job and 2.6 per cent were employed without any intermediary. However, contractual employment at the lower rungs of the labour market exhibits immense informality due to absence of effective protection and equations of power that are skewed in favour of the contractor. This is reflective of the larger national trend towards informalization in the Indian economy, with increase in informal employment— defined as employment without access to employment security or employment provided social security—being particularly prominent (Srivastava, 2012). Often, a migrant labour is employed through large contractor firms that have thousands of workers on their rolls and deploy them in different firms in the region depending on the demand and requirements. While in the case of smaller firms, the contractor is an individual and not a firm, contractors have a role even in formal contractor firms as the latter rely on a chain of contractors to source labour from distant regions. As recruitment occurs through informal networks and personal contacts only, the contractor wields significant power over the worker’s employment, wages and dayto-day life. In both manufacturing and construction, large numbers of respondents were engaged in informal employment within the formal sector, that is, under private contractors to whom a part or whole of the operations of a particular kind had been outsourced. The hiring of workers through third-party agents or contractors is a widely prevalent strategy among big corporate players (both Indian and foreign ones) who dominate the

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manufacturing sector in Tamil Nadu. This practice distances the employer establishment from the recruitment process and terms of employment of workers on their shop floor. Instead, the third-party contractors hold all responsibility due to which the costs and liabilities of violating employment-protection legislation are avoided by the company. The construction industry showed similar trends in the functioning of government-run projects like the Chennai metro. By outsourcing specific tasks, like electrical work and civil construction, to external private agents, primary employers are cut-off from their ground-level workers, and hence, can avoid responsibility for delayed salary payments or hazardous work conditions. This reflects the informalization of labour relations within the organized/formal sector even when government/public sector employers are concerned. Another interesting pattern emerged from different segments of the services sector; security guards (a prominent occupation for immigrant labour in Tamil Nadu) were recruited by big, private firms that provide security services. The security sector showed greater job security, fewer labour violations than the other two sectors. Jobs here, however, continue to be deadend jobs and are quite strenuous as it requires workers to stand for long hours and also regularly work night shifts. On the other hand, in the hospitality sector, mode of employment varies according to the size of the employer establishment—corporate hotel chains hire on a contractual basis with fixed norms and work hours, but small restaurants/caterers recruit workers casually. It must, however, be said that even a significant share of local workers does not have permanent employment and they are often employed as trainees or apprentices for a few years in manufacturing firms only to be replaced with a new set of trainees or apprentices. However, such jobs provide a few more possibilities of skill learning or entering into better jobs compared with the ones that migrant workers are confined to.

Survey results also show high job insecurity experienced by migrant workers. Termination of employment can be arbitrary and the threat of termination may be used as a coercive force to make the worker toe the line. The insecurity translates into exploitation as contractor(s) often refuse to pay the migrant labourers their rightfully earned wages in the smaller firms. Survey results reveal that hardly any collective bargaining mechanisms exist in most occupational areas for migrants. Even in the manufacturing sector, where there is a trade union present in some of the firms, we observe that migrant workers neither are members of trade unions nor are their interests represented. In the other two sectors, the absence of trade unions or any such association representing workers’ interests was a striking feature.

Marginalization through Debt Given that recruitment is largely through contractors, the practice of taking advances from their contractors is evident in sectors such as construction and to a lesser extent in the hospitality sector. This has obvious implications with regard to freedom of mobility and reflects the phenomenon of neo-bondage. Workers often move from one firm to the other depending on the contractor’s networks, and hence, are tied to the contractor to assure themselves of a degree of income security. In the absence of the contractor, migrants do not have access to networks that allow them to move jobs in an extremely precarious labour market. By providing credit, the contractor further reinforces the extent of dependence of the labourers on him. This phenomenon is also strengthened by the difficulties experienced by migrant workers to access other sources of informal credit in the destination regions on account of absence of social networks that local workers can tap into.

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Marginalization of Reproductive Realms Given the aforementioned character of informal employment, migrants, especially in the construction and hospitality sector, do not possess any legally recognized proofs of identification of employment or residence. As a result, they are effectively excluded from public services and provisions of any kind. No respondent in our study possessed a ration card or any other governmentally recognized proof of identity/residence in Tamil Nadu (though many of them reported having them at their places of origin). Cut-off from their basic right to access essential entitlements, like subsidized food grains through the public distribution system (PDS) or subsidized cooking gas, migrants have to bear the additional financial burden of buying grains or cooking gas from the open market. Moreover, not possessing formal documentation leaves them in a legal limbo making them prone to harassment at the hands of local police, as revealed by respondents, particularly in the hospitality sector. However, the rice and wheat distributed through the PDS find their way into the open market when ration card holders sell their entitlements for a subsidized rate. Some of the migrant respondents did acknowledge that this allows them to access cheaper rice or wheat compared with states like Gujarat where they worked previously. This phenomenon starkly reveals the ambiguities and loopholes existing in the framework of formal citizenship, which is characterized by legally guaranteed, uniform and equal rights for all citizens. Yet, groundlevel realities captured in our data show that internal migration tends to create differentiated citizenship. This can possibly be overcome if the migrant workers are able to stay for longer periods of time. But given the harsh conditions of work and high precarity, migrant workers are highly mobile. Especially in the case of the construction sector, workers move across states, and therefore, are not in a

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position to become ‘entitlement claiming citizens’ in the destination regions.

Adverse Incorporation Due to EthnicLinguistic Segmentation Data from the field showed apprehension among the migrants when asked about intermingling with the locals. There exists a social distance between migrants and the local communities, worsened by clustered settlements of migrants leading to spatially distinct spaces of the two groups. Migrant worker settlements are geographically concentrated, creating distinct spaces of reproduction with very thin networks of integration with the local community. Often, migrant workers report issues with regard to getting rental accommodation. In the case of manufacturing, we observed a new class of low-end rentiers among locals in the villages close to the factories. They construct one room tenements with common bathing facilities for migrant workers to stay. In many instances, defecation is in the open, and this has led to issues of collapse of sanitation infrastructure and a slew of diseases. However, migrant workers have not been able to mobilize around these issues given the absence of any degree of embeddedness in the local milieu. Informal citizenship, that refers to a sense of belonging which ‘may not be defined so much by “racial” markers as by having access to territorially defined cultural codes and conventions and by being able to enact place-particular habitual performances’ (Bauder, 2008) is clearly lacking in this case. This is also largely enabled by the linguistic divide as migrant workers do not speak Tamil, the official language of the region. Over half of the respondents of this study did not know Tamil, 26.9 per cent reported having acquired Tamil over the course of their stay, with the duration of stay inducing greater acquisition of language, expectedly. Intersectoral differences were observed in this context—migrants employed in manufacturing and services need

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to interact with native Tamil speakers on a dayto-day basis, and hence, report higher level of language awareness than workers in the construction sector who tend to live and work in regionally-concentrated clusters. Migrants are also often suspected of engaging in antisocial activities leading to enhanced surveillance by the police. Incidents involving the ‘north Indian’ criminal have garnered ample media attention in public memory.

Exclusion from Social Protection Apart from the inability to access the PDS that is universal in the state and offered as entitlements to ration-card holders in the state, we observed that migrants also face barriers to accessing social protection offered through labour welfare boards. Tamil Nadu has been a pioneer with regard to creation of labour welfare boards for informal workers, especially in the construction sector (Agarwala, 2013). Funds are sourced through contributions by both the employer and the state, which are then utilized by the welfare boards to provide for pensions, accident and healthcare and a limited amount of unemployment allowance. This is, however, incumbent upon the workers being registered as members of welfare boards. Given the high degree of mobility among migrant construction labour and the absence of mobilization among the migrant workers even by local trade unions on account of linguistic differences among other factors, migrant workers are seldom registered, and hence, are excluded from such protection. Even in the case of contractual employment, migrant workers are unable to access the public schemes that they are enrolled in and actively paying for. A significant 81 per cent of our respondents claimed to have access to the public Employee State Insurance (ESI), for which a certain amount of money was being deducted from their salaries automatically every month. However, it was found that 81.1 per cent of those who claimed to have

access to the ESI facility did not possess the ESI card, and hence, could not make actual use of it in times of emergency. Any attempt made by respondents to attain their ESI cards from the contractors was met with indefinite delay. Out of all those respondents engaged in contractual employment, 31.5 per cent had access to Provident Fund (PF) facility while the remaining 68.5 per cent did not. However, on closer inspection, it was found that while monthly deductions were made from the salaries of these workers in lieu of PF, individual workers did not receive their cumulative PF on leaving the company. Broken chain of responsibility results in a concentration of power in the hands of the hiring agent/contractor, who then exercises ultimate control over payments and is able to dupe migrants of their own money. With job-hopping common among migrants, most lose a significant part of their salaries that was spent on accessing social security (PF) in the previous company. A significant proportion of the meagre salaries of migrants is spent on housing, daily supplies and healthcare. Children of workers who accompany them to the destination are in extremely vulnerable circumstances and face a higher risk of child labour and falling out of school intermittently. It is noteworthy that while Acts like the Right to Education Act and policy initiatives like the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan both provide for inclusion of migrant children within the fold of formal education, in reality, migrant children are unable to make use of the provisions under these two schemes due to inadequate implementation. This poor implementation, as can be expected, is largely due to absence of civil society initiatives towards mobilizing migrant worker families into enrolling under such schemes. Barriers to access public health services were also reported by significant segments of our survey respondents. Migrants are often found in jobs that involve doing dangerous tasks at work where they are prone to injury. In case of an accident, the cost of medical treatment has to be borne fully or

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partially by the worker himself. Respondents mention cases where the contractor or company paid for the first round of treatment and then left the worker on his own to pay for the rest of the treatment. Unlike Mumbai in Maharashtra, where the ‘sons-of-the-soil’ ideology holds great sway over political attitudes towards migrants, the official state position towards migrant workers in Tamil Nadu is not as harsh. Rather, they are marginalized because of their invisibility in civil and political negotiations at the state level. The fact that many do not vote in Tamil Nadu but in their source region implies absence of political clout. Further, their high mobility and spatial and ethno-linguistic marginalization undermines their incorporation into civil society initiatives. Their plight has rarely been acknowledged by state authorities until recently. It was only in August 2014, in wake of the furore caused due to serious accidents at multiple construction sites leading to the demise or incapacitation of numerous migrant workers that announcements were made to the effect that the migrant workers in the state would be allowed to register with the Tamil Nadu Construction Worker’s Welfare Board, and hence, would be able to access the social security measures that non-migrant workers have access to. While the ultimate outcome of such attempts of the government remains to be seen, it is to be noted that the norms of citizenship that dictate access to public services at the local level are currently undergoing gradual change in the context of Tamil Nadu. Even this enumeration has been seen in some quarters as a means of harassment by the police in a context where migrants are increasingly being viewed as antisocial elements responsible for criminal activities.

Gender-induced Marginalization In the extant discourse on migration, women’s labour and economic contribution often remain invisible. However, given that 70.7

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per cent of the total internal migrants in India are women (Census, 2001), there is a significant gender dimension to internal migration. Women’s experience of migration is very different from that of men, and women become susceptible to a unique set of vulnerabilities that require special attention. As official data sources on migration encapsulate marriage as a woman’s primary reason for migration, her work—both before and after marriage—does not get accounted for in statistical estimation. Yet, the social perception of women’s economic contribution tends to undermine their role in subtle ways. In the construction sector in Tamil Nadu, migrants were observed to have been accompanied by their families, while this was not common in other sectors. The wife of the migrant was then employed as a helper on the same worksite. Women are the most marginalized among the migrant workforce. Not only are women paid less than men are, married women bear the dual burden of paid work and unpaid housework. Detailed interviews with women from migrant households, who are also involved in paid employment, revealed that most women had no control over their earnings. While this is likely to be true in the case of in-state female workers as well, absence of adequate reproduction infrastructure, location at the lowest ends of the labour market and ghettoization of their residential spaces render their position more adverse.

Invisibilization through Poor Recognition Despite the conspicuous economic, social and demographic ramifications of the phenomenon of internal migration, migrant labourers have largely been sidelined in policy circles. The absence of any concrete national migration policy is telling in itself. Lack of political attention coupled within adequate data (both official and academic) results in a wide gap in governance by the Indian state. The only piece of Indian legislation relevant for interstate

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migrants is the Interstate Migrant Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979 which is aimed at regulating migrant workers’ recruitment and terms of employment. It provides for compulsory licensing of contractors and for registration of the establishments that employ migrants. The principal employer, implying the actual organization where work is carried out by migrants, is made responsible for ensuring that proper salaries and allowances are paid to the interstate migrant workers. However, this law is weighed down by multiple loopholes that render it largely ineffectual. The narrow definition of a migrant worker assumed in the Act excludes a large proportion of actual migrant worker population. Only the migrants who are employed by a contractor in their native state for employment in another state come under the purview of the Act, while all the other modes of recruitment, mobility and employment undertaken by the migrants are neglected. In Tamil Nadu, many migrants travel to the destination on their own accord and then look for jobs, hence, getting excluded from the provisions of this Act. Second, labour contractors are rarely registered in the source regions. Another major failing of the Act is that it does not address the problems pertaining to registration and identity of the migrant workers at all. Coordination and cooperation among different states is essential to bring about real impact on ground level but no attention is paid to that aspect either. Moreover, poor implementation of this Act, even in its current form, has rendered it obsolete. The lack of quality data on internal migration in India is another big impediment. Data from both the major sources on migration—the Census and the NSS—is unreliable and fraught with empirical and definitional problems due to which internal migration remains underestimated. While the Census does not capture short-term migration adequately, it also fails to account for return migrants and the total number of moves made by an individual migrant. Additionally, the

data from these sources are not comparable. There is also little information available about the channels, pace and rounds of migration (UNESCO, 2013). Political exclusion of migrants is also manifested in their absence from the electoral process altogether. Since migrants are away from their native constituencies for long periods of time, they are unable to exercise their right to vote (UNESCO, 2013). Although in the past, special arrangements have been made in a few rare cases for migrants working in one state to visit their native place and vote in the elections, these are at best infrequent. As mentioned earlier, even in the spaces of their residence in destination areas, their inability to vote implies that they have little collective voice to press for better amenities.

CONCLUSION AND EMERGING ISSUES In India, civil society, international organizations (e.g., UNESCO’s Internal Migration in India initiative), community welfare bodies and the media are currently working for the agenda of inclusive citizenship with respect to internal migrants. Rights-based arguments in favour of social support and economic security are based on globally accepted standards. This trend also brings to the fore the importance of ‘horizontal’ view of citizenship, which emanates from relationships among citizens as opposed to the state–individual ‘vertical’ relationship. Such horizontal associations have been the foundations of pioneering collective action for inclusive citizenship (Kabeer, 2005). The discussion on migration, labour and citizenship in academic literature has largely revolved around international migrant workers, who are subject to restrictions and discriminations in their country of employment, by virtue of absence of citizenship. However, we point out in our paper that internal migration in multi-ethnic countries like India, marked

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by different levels of political commitment to social protection across regions, can also generate exclusions and adverse incorporations that are similar in some ways to that observed in the case of international migration. Central to this phenomenon is the delinking of work and residence from the notion of citizenship experienced, which is common to both international and internal migrants (UNRISD, 1996). Internal migration, in countries like India and China, is a prime example. Since allocation of resources is deeply entrenched within the practice of citizenship, an inclusive citizenship framework is essential to ensure equal opportunity for all. We point out that even in a state like Tamil Nadu that has a better social protection framework and is culturally less non-discriminatory, there are factors that undermine migrant workers’ ability to access certain public services and welfare provisioning. Such cases of marginalized groups have been observed in other countries as well (e.g., China), particularly influenced by global production chains and investment flows. This is also partly driven by responsibilization of regional governments initiated by the central government as a part of its neoliberal reforms to reduce fiscal expenditure. Further, regional (state) governments have the unenviable task of providing social welfare and public services such as healthcare and education even as they are given meagre control over resource mobilization. This undermining of fiscal capability further undermines incentives for regional governments to address the marginalization of migrant workers. Though there is evidence of a movement towards inclusive citizenship in the form of community action at the grassroots level, a lot remains to be done at the level of policy. The discussion opens a number of avenues of further research that have the potential to advance an academic as well as policy-centric analysis of migration, citizenship and exclusion. The linkages of citizenship with work and residence, that form the framework for distribution of entitlements to individuals,

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need to be explored in detail. The role of the destination state of a migrant worker vis-à-vis the responsibility of the home state continues to be ambiguous in the context of Indian federalism. Moreover, statistical indicators and data sources need be adjusted so as to incorporate the nuances of Indian internal migration properly in order to provide reliable estimates of their mobility. The population of migrant workers in India is likely to be on the rise in the coming years. Yet, this issue has remained marginal to mainstream political discourse for long. The economic and social ramifications of the exclusion of migrant workers need to be looked into while paying due attention to the underlying concerns of belonging and citizenship.

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McNevin, A. (2006). Political belonging in a neoliberal era: The struggle of the sans-papiers. Citizenship Studies, 10(2), 135–151. Prasad-Aleyamma, M. (2018). Cards and carriers: Migration, identification and surveillance in Kerala, South India. Contemporary South Asia, 26(2), 191–205. Planning Commission. (2011). Faster, sustainable and more inclusive growth: An approach to the 12th five year plan (Working Paper No. 4452). New Delhi: Planning Commission. Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India (2001). Census of India 2001. New Delhi: Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. Singh, V. K., Kumar, A. K., Singh, R. D., & Yadava, K. N. S. (2011). Changing pattern of internal migration in India: Some evidence from census data. International Journal of Current Research, 33(4), 289–295. Srivastava, R. (2012). Changing employment conditions of the Indian workforce and implications for decent work. Global Labour Journal, 3(1), 63–90. ———. (2013). Impact of internal migration in India. Migrating out of Poverty Research Programme Consortium (Working Paper No. 41). Retrieved fromhttp://www.rmmru.org/newsite/wp-content/ uploads/2013/08/workingpaper41.pdf Tamil Nadu State Planning Commission (2017) Tamil Nadu State Human Development Report. Government of Tamil Nadu, Chennai. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). (2013). Social inclusion of internal migrants in India: Internal migration in India initiative. Retrieved from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/ images/0022/002237/223702e.pdf United Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD). (1996, December 9–11). Globalization and citizenship. Report of the UNRISD International Conference, Geneva.

39 Spaces of Alienation ­ esistance and R Charvaak Pati

INTRODUCTION The automobile industry in India has grown enormously in recent decades. India is the sixth largest producer of automobiles. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government in India has declared the industry as the foremost driver of its ambitious Make in India programme that is aimed at turning India into a manufacturing powerhouse with an ostensible goal to compete with China. The Automotive Mission Plan (AMP) 2016–2026, prepared jointly by the Government of India and the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), predicts that the industry will contribute to over 12 per cent of the country’s GDP and 40 per cent of the manufacturing sector and add 60 million jobs (AMP 2016–2026, 2017). The industry has come a long way from operating in an economy characterized by import substitution industrialization in a protected market to playing an important engine of growth and

employment in an open economy with a highly competitive market. However, this is only a partial story of the industry. The growth of the industry since the economic reforms of the 1990s, and particularly since the early 2000, has coincided with labour conflicts due to increasing work intensity, higher rate of contractualization of jobs, low wages, and most importantly, denial of basic trade union rights (Barnes, 2018; Bose, 2012). Existing literature on the industry lays emphasis on two aspects: first, the structural aspect with its focus on the production structure in the industry and the place of the industry in the global production networks; second, the collective action of workers (Ness, 2016; Nowak, 2016). The experience of workers, especially migrant workers who constitute the bulk of the workforce in the industry, tends to be underemphasized. The present chapter takes a small step to fill this gap in the literature by narrating the experiences of migrant workers in the automobile industry with a

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specific focus on workers working in Maruti Suzuki’s Manesar plant. Maruti Suzuki India Limited (MSIL) is the largest carmaker in India with more than 45 per cent of the market share. Its two plants are located in Gurgaon and Manesar in the state of Haryana. This chapter narrates the experiences and everyday life of migrant workers working in the Manesar plant who constitute majority of the workforce. The fieldwork for this study was conducted in 2014–2015 and involved a variety of methodologies, including structured and unstructured interviews, participant observations and ethnography. Amidst the growth story of the industry and collective actions by workers, what is often ignored is the mundane and everyday life of migrant workers as they experience and articulate it. The chapter is divided into three sections. The first section, which I call spaces of production, looks at how workers relate to industrial life at the Manesar plant. This is followed by a discussion of workers’ experiences in the living space, which is called spaces of reproduction. The third section examines the complex ways in which the migrant workers relate to collective actions and union politics, and I call the space in which these activities take place as spaces of resistance. The metaphor of space is used in order to highlight the centrality of geography in the experiences of migrant workers. The discussion ends with a few concluding remarks.

THE SPACES OF PRODUCTION While workers from Haryana and Rajasthan constitute the majority of the workforce at the Manesar plant, a large number of workers from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab also work at the plant. These migrant workers are employed in different capacities at the plant. When the plant began operations in 2006– 2007, there were very few permanent workers. Many of them were trainees and apprentices,

while a majority of the migrant workers were employed through multiple labour contractors. It was only in 2009 that workers were made permanent at the plant. These were the workers who had degrees from Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs). The number of contract workers was very high and a significant section of these workers were migrant workers. Coming from different parts of India, these migrant workers had high expectations from their jobs. The glitter of the fast-paced automobile industry offered a lot of hope to the migrant workers. It did not take too long for the workers to realize that their expectations of high wages, better working conditions and a respectable working life were going to turn into despair. High work intensity, constant surveillance on the shop floor and high-­ handedness by the supervisors were becoming unbearable for the workers. In the words of Pankaj, a worker from Bihar— ... I came here with a lot of hope thinking that working in Maruti would get me a decent salary and job security. Many of my friends could not make to Maruti but I made it, and my parents were very happy .... but the working conditions were very bad and the supervisors always shouted at you for the smallest of the faults. There is no dignity here for any of us. I continue to work here because I have a family and I am the only earning member of my family ... everything is a farce here ...

Pankaj was not alone in his ruminations. Other workers echoed similar views: high work intensity, low wages, no job security, especially for the contract workers, and continuous humiliation on the shop floor. Even those migrant workers who were permanent were getting salaries of approximately `15,000, including overtime at the end of 2010. The contract workers were getting less than `10,000, which also included overtime. This meagre wage was by no means enough to run a family and that is why most of the migrant workers did not bring their families to live with them. After a protracted struggle which lasted from June to October 2011, workers at the Manesar plant formed a union called Maruti Suzuki Workers’ Union (MSWU) in March 2012. The

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struggle witnessed a rare unity between local and migrant, permanent and contract workers. The formation of the union was followed by a tragic and violent incident inside the plant on 18 July 2012, leading to the death of a higher management official. Subsequently, 2,300 workers were terminated, including more than 500 permanent workers. The violent incident was used by the management to restructure the workforce inside the plant. Instead of contract workers, the company went for what it called Company Trainees who were appointed for 6–7 months at a time. Most of these workers were migrant workers. Moreover, an attempt was made to not recruit workers from nearby villages to not let workers regroup again. The politics on the shop floor also underwent a change. Every workstation involved workers from different regions working alongside each other. The sole motive behind this move was to not let workers form a bond of solidarity on the shop floor, as had happened in the past, due to relatively homogenous workforce at different work stations. The post-18 July situation on the shop floor was narrated poignantly by Panchanan, a worker from Odisha— Earlier workers from one region would work together ... they [supervisors] would put Odia workers together with Bengali workers or workers from other Hindi speaking states like Bihar. We always had problem working with workers from Haryana as they are very dominating ... but we were friendly. After the kaand [the violent incident] things have changed. Now they don’t allow workers from only one or two states to work together. At any work station you will find workers from different states. Language problems, cultural problems make it difficult to become friends ...

While bringing together workers from different regions has the potential for the creation of wider working class solidarity in the long run, the strategy has been used to divide workers along regional and linguistic lines. Thus, the existing cultural and regional differences are exploited to create a divide between local and migrant workers as well as among migrant

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workers themselves. Interestingly, the workers are not unaware of these divisive objectives of the management as the common refrain among migrant workers is that the management is resorting to these tactics in order to not let them unite the way they did during the struggles for the formation of a union 2011. The self-realization of being a migrant worker is more sharply visible in the workers’ descriptions of life in the living space, which is the subject matter of the next section.

THE SPACES OF REPRODUCTION The migrants working in the Manesar plant live in the villages surrounding the plant. These workers prefer to stay in the dormitories which have come up in these villages. This saves both time and money for these workers. However, staying in these villages, like Kho Gaon, Kasan and Dhana, among others, brings its own share of problems and workers feel the most alienating experiences in these spaces. A large number of dormitories have been built in these villages. They are overcrowded and cramped with 3–4 workers living in one small room for which they pay between `3,000 and `4,000 every month. These are the only places they can revive themselves and send home part of their wages. These living or spaces of reproduction have become an important source of labour control in the region as the villagers and political representatives from these villages make sure that the workers are under regular surveillance. This ensures labour control across spaces—from spaces of production to reproduction. The migrants are forced to buy grocery from the shops owned by their landlords. Failure to do so sometimes results in a range of reprisals including intimidation and eviction. The migrants who have never been in such a situation resent this the most. Even those who had worked in other places wanted to be left alone without interference. Sandip, a worker from Rajasthan working in the press

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shop, expresses the angst of other workers when he says the following: We came here (to work in the Manesar plant) to earn some money, take care of our family and live a good life ... but we are being treated like dogs here. We feel like we are in a prison. The factory feels like a prison, this place where we live is nothing short of prison. At least leave us alone here and do not tell us always what to do and what not to do. In the factory we get money for work but here we give money to stay ... on the top of that we are threatened and abused all the time ... sometimes we feel like going back to our towns and villages but it is a compulsion to stay here. There is nothing to do back home ...

There are many restrictions for these migrant workers. They are not allowed to talk over phone on the rooftop as these workers can potentially cast an evil eye on their bahu/ betis (daughters-in-law/daughters) and violate the sacred space for women in the villages. Many workers have reported that they have been beaten up by the locals for talking to the women in these villages. These spaces become even more unbearable for the workers in case there is a strike going on in the plant. During the multiple strikes in the Manesar plant in 2011, workers found it difficult to get together in these villages and devise strategies. The landlords routinely intimidated these workers against any collective action in the plant. The status of these workers as migrants added an interesting shift to the narrative. Thus describes a worker from Bihar: During strikes or sit-ins we will be told by these landlords and local Sarpanchs, ‘Look, you are migrants, you have come from outside. What will you gain from these activities? If something happens to the locals [local workers] they can go back home right away but what will happen to you?’ We used to talk about among ourselves and sometimes we would listen to them but many times we would not. Because of this I have changed five rooms in the last four years. Many of my friends have done the same.

While socializing with other workers and going out on Sundays is constrained, the migrants go to temples on holidays and

Sundays. However, not all of them have the time to engage in such activities as many of these workers work in shifts, which are either on Sunday mornings or Sunday nights. For these workers, holidays do not mean much. The contract workers among the migrants cannot even afford to move to better places. Only a few workers who have been made permanent with a rise in wages have moved to rented rooms in better localities. The rest carry on with their alienated lives.

SPACES OF RESISTANCE Resistance offers a space for workers to de-­ alienate themselves. Strikes and other collective actions in the Manesar plant witnessed rare unity among permanent and contract workers and local and migrant workers. Migrant workers, most of whom were contract workers, believed that the formation of a union in the plant can get them permanent employment and a huge wage increase. This was the common talking point among them. The motives for participating in the collective actions were different for different migrants, depending on their employment status. While those working as trainees aspired for permanent positions, the contract workers wanted to be made trainees, and they believed that the union was the proper institution to fulfil these aspirations. Many others believed that the union can demand from the management housing for all the migrant workers in the plant. MSWU was recognized by the management in March 2012, and it was followed by workers bargaining for wage increase, reduction in work intensity and making contract workers permanent. The violent incident on 18 July happened even as negotiations were on between the union and the management. The restructuring that followed the violent incident made the migrant workers more vulnerable. In the face of police crackdown,

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many of them fled Manesar. The entire union body was imprisoned. The spontaneous workers’ movement, which emerged in the wake of the incident and termination of more than 2,300 workers, did not address the concerns of the migrant workers. While the issues raised by the Maruti Suzuki Provisional Committeeled movement were immensely significant, it suffered from one serious limitation. The movement mostly addressed the concerns of the imprisoned workers and the terminated permanent workers, while contract workers’ concerns and interests were ignored, although not deliberately. Pratik, a worker from West Bengal, said about the movement and the position of migrant workers in it— There was a lot of unity between us during the struggle [during the strikes in 2011 and afterwards] but after the incident everything changed ... there was no one to talk to outsiders [migrant workers] ... the central trade unions only talked about permanent workers. Even the smaller labour organizations talked about getting the imprisoned workers out of the jail. No one thought about us ... all they cared for was local workers ...

The disappointment of being left out and not having been made a part of the movement is revealing. The common refrain among migrant workers was that the unions in different companies, including MSIL, were dominated by ‘locals’, that is, workers from Haryana and Rajasthan. In fact, migrant workers went to the extent of saying that no one cared for them because they did not have voting rights like the locals had. While this view has limited validity in the face of increasing onslaught on the working class by capital and the state, it speaks volumes about migrant workers’ belief in the legitimacy of the political system.

CONCLUSION This short chapter narrates the experiences of migrant workers working in the Manesar

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plant of MSIL. A number of observations can be made based on the narratives the workers offered. Migrant workers are aware of their vulnerable situation both as workers and as migrants. This self-awareness, or what Marxists have called class consciousness, is limited to the extent that these workers seek to improve their both working and living conditions by forming a union. The class consciousness of migrant workers is remarkably similar to the experiences of the wider working class. However, what differentiates their experiences from others is the way they relate their status as migrant workers and the vulnerabilities associated with it to the totality of their experiences. This totality of experiences takes shape in the spaces of production, reproduction and resistance. This has significant implications for the trade union movement in the automobile industry. It is time both company-based unions and Central Trade Unions took note of the specific interests of migrants workers, who constitute more than 60 per cent of the workforce in the Manesar plant and more than 90 per cent in the industry.

REFERENCES Automotive Mission Plan 2016–26. (2017). Delhi, India: Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, Government of India. Barnes, T. (2018). Making cars in the New India: Industry, precarity and informality. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Bose, A. J. C. & Pratap, S. (2012). Worker voices in an auto production Chain: Notes from the pits of a low road. Economic and Political Weekly, 47(33), 46–59. Ness, I. (2016). Southern insurgency: The coming of the global working class. London: Pluto Press. Nowak, J. (2016). Strikes and labour unrest in the automobile industry in India: The case of Maruti Suzuki India Limited. Working USA, 19(3), 419–436.

40 Politics of Sons of Soil Shahana Purveen

INTRODUCTION The chapter is set within the context of exploring the lives of migrants who serve as taxi drivers or public servants in a city that is known for its politics of violence against them. In this chapter, the researcher explores the question, ‘How do taxi drivers from Uttar Pradesh (UP) relate to their role and work when their situation and identity as migrants is uncertain and accompanied with suspicion?’ Mumbai, the city of migrants, has witnessed a complex history of migration, extremely diverse and continually shifting migrant populations and their politics of polarized identities along ethnic lines. Mumbai is known for its ‘cult of violence’ against migrants that came into prominence in the 1960s with the rise of Shiv Sena and its leader Bal Thackeray. Shiv Sena played the politics of regionalism or sons of soil for political mileage against South Indian migrants. In the 2000s, the same politics was played by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena leader Raj Thackeray against migrants from UP and Bihar (commonly called migrants from Bhaiya Land) to gain a foothold in state politics. The experience of migrant taxi

drivers is located within the paradox of multiple vulnerabilities and the work of providing social service by giving rides in kali-peeli taxis (historical identity of Bombay [Mumbai city currently]), which is vital to life in the city. This chapter explores the everyday experiences of taxi drivers/taxi work in the city through ethnographic responses of taxi drivers. It leads us to an understanding of various expressions of urban realities in driving work and the ways in which they coalesce with established discourses on taxi driving, identity and migration. The chapter is divided into five broad sections. It begins with methodology, challenges faced during fieldwork and the process of mapping taxi drivers in a metropolitan city like Mumbai in different settings. The second section presents a thematic history of migrant labourers in Mumbai. The third section gives an overview of the taxi industry with specific reference to Mumbai. The fourth section explains the precarious conditions of taxi occupation and unfolds the different layers of discrimination embedded in the everyday work and life of migrant taxi drivers through ethnographic responses of the drivers. The

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fifth section summarizes the implications of discrimination on the lives of migrant drivers in the city.

METHODOLOGY The study is exploratory in nature. Ethnography methodology was used for the purpose of the study. Ethnography is a methodological choice that allows to engage in contextually rich and nuanced type of qualitative research, in which data is produced, and it involves ‘thick’ interaction between researcher and researched (Falzon, 2009). Data was collected over a period of six months from November 2016 to May 2017 with the help of two methods, in-depth interviews and focus group discussions in multiple phases. For sample selection, theoretical sampling was applied and was continued till the data reached a saturation point. It is difficult for a researcher to collect data from respondents who work in a mobile occupation such as taxi driving. Taxi drivers do not sit or stand at one taxi stand or at one location. At any point of time in the day, they can ply their taxi to any part of the city on the basis of availability and needs of the passengers. For the researcher to map the taxi drivers, especially those from UP, was the biggest challenge. For this purpose, initial contact was made with the president of one of the premier taxi unions that helped to gather basic information about the taxi drivers, but this was not enough to locate the migrant taxi drivers. Although, he gave a thick historical background of taxi occupation that explains how the occupation was initiated in Mumbai and also how the ‘faces of drivers’ have changed over time from Gujarati Muslims to UP ‘bhaiyas’ (detailed explanation provided in upcoming section). This information was not enough to initiate fieldwork with the taxi drivers. The researcher met various officials of the Regional Transport Office (RTO) to get more information about

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taxi drivers. The fieldwork progressed on the basis of the information collected from RTO officials. At this stage, taxi drivers were contacted and in-depth interviews were conducted. Taxi drivers were approached at some of the biggest as well as smallest taxi stands of the city, for example, CST railway stand, Andheri railway stand, Pallavi stand, Mumbai Central railway stand, Dadar stand, LTT stand, Deonar stand, Chembur stand, Govadi stand and Kurla stand. In order to get a comprehensive understanding about the study, two focus group discussions were also conducted with those drivers who were willing to share more information about day-to-day social and political complexities of their lives. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. It began with transcription of the collected data. The interviews were recorded in mixed Hindi and Bhojpuri. Initially, all interviews were transcribed into English. The transcribed data was then ordered and divided into homogeneous data types or according to emerging subthemes. The process of data analysis proceeded with the objective of discovering concepts and emerging patterns within concepts with similarities and dissimilarities. The process was followed by identifying broad themes, and breaking them into subthemes; thematic codes were created and quotations of participants were classified under these codes. Finally, interlinks among various themes were ordered in the paper by focusing on research objectives.

MUMBAI AND MIGRANTS: A HISTORICAL GROWTH Today, Mumbai is recognized as ‘India’s Most Modern City’ (Patel, 2005, p. 249). It is considered India’s first town to experience economic, technological and social changes associated with the growth of capitalism. However, the history of migration in Mumbai is complex and dynamic. This section draws

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attention to history of migrant labourers in Mumbai. The history of labour migration in Mumbai has predominantly centred on the growth of the cotton textile mills in the early and mid-19th century. Mumbai emerged as an important and the biggest cotton market in the world by the mid-19th century (Chandavarkar, 2009). The establishment of railways in 1860 connected Mumbai to adjoining regions facilitating movement of people into the city to seek employment in the cotton mills. By the late 19th and early 20th centuries, cotton mills offered work opportunities to migrants in various skilled and unskilled activities. The labour force was drawn from neighbouring regions of Konkan, Ratnagiri, the Deccan, Kathiawar and Kutch in Gujarat and from north India (Chandavarkar, 1994). By the end of 20th century, Mumbai had established an identity as a city of many tongues and many cultural expressions (Chandavarkar, 2009; Prakash, 2011; Purandre, 2012; Weiner, 1978). However, in 1995, the emergence of a chauvinist ethnic party, the Shiv Sena, in Maharashtra officially changed the city’s name from Bombay to Mumbai, which destroyed the multi-ethnic and multilingual identity of the city. Henceforth, the Marathispeaking regional political elite decided the fate of the city, and these changes initiated the process of fragmentation of people on the basis of class, community, language, religion and region. Therefore, from the 1960s, Mumbai started redefining its boundaries both politically (with the Marathi-speaking groups asserting their domination on the elite block) and in imagination (Patel, 2005). In order to understand the context of migrant labour in Mumbai, it is important to understand how Mumbai as a prominent industrial centre observed migrant labour in different sectors from past to present. The textile industry employed workers for various activities, which varied from handloom weaving, dyeing, spinning, printing clothes, tailoring and dressmaking. There was also demand for specialists, such as electricians,

blacksmiths, cobblers, mechanics and carpenters. An interesting feature of the Mumbai manufacturing industry was its flexible production strategies, wherein it employed a large number of casual labourers to overcome seasonal and trade-­related variations as well as maintained a small scale of operations, specifically in relation to certain jobs, for example, tanning, dyeing and spinning. Many other factories and industries grew alongside catering to the city population, opening up avenues for employment and small and home-based businesses in the local market. Casual and unskilled jobs for migrants were mainly found in the dockyards, godowns and warehouses. Such labour was not based on contract or a monthly basis but on the basis of demand and supply (Chandavarkar, 1994). It is also interesting to note that migrant labour from particular regions was preferred to work in particular sectors. Workers from the coastal Konkan strip and the Western Ghats manned the docks and cotton textile mills. Most businesses and trading groups came from Gujarat. Particularly after independence, new waves of migrants arrived in the city from both north and south India (Patel, 1995). There was diversity in the category of migrants when they came to settle in the city, ranging from the language they spoke, part of the country they belonged to and the economic activities they were engaged in. Migrants from Maharashtra were mainly concentrated in the cotton textile mills while the concentration of workers from Andhra Pradesh was highest in the construction sector. Gujaratis dominated the trade and commerce along with Marwaris and Sindhis. Migrants from UP and Bihar dominated the sectors of taxi and autorickshaw drivers and home-based industries (Joshi & Joshi, 1976). Further, ‘the ethnic and communal diversity of Bombay’s business world was striking. It included merchants belonging to many communities of Gujarat, as well as businessmen from other provinces of India (Sind, Marwar), Baghdadi Jews’ (Markovits, 1995). Similar

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findings were observed in the present study. According to leaders of various taxi unions: Migrants from UP and Bihar are preferred to ply taxi and autorickshaws. Locals do not want to work as drivers. If they do, it will be difficult for them to get a bride; no one+ will give their daughters to them as driving a taxi is considered a demeaning occupation.

Along with the economic structure of the city, the space of Mumbai city has also been divided along the lines of class, caste, religion and region. Socio-spatial division is also found in Mumbai slums. Class-based grouping has found its spatial expression largely for the Hindus. Muslims are forced to live in Dongri, Pydhonie, Nagpada, Byculla, Mazgoan, Mahim, Bharat Nagar, Behrampada, Jogeshwari, Millat Nagar, Kurla, SonapurBhandup, Govandi, Cheeta Camp and Kidwai Nagar (Wadala East), due to fear and danger of political violence. The higher classes of other religious groups mainly live in enclaves of their own religious groups. Sikhs are mainly concentrated in the areas of Guru Teghbahadur Nagar, Punjabwadi, Chembur Colony and Marol. Parsis have maintained their presence in Dadar (East). The city has also been polarized along the lines of caste and class. Some lower class and caste populations often face problems in finding residence in areas dominated by higher class and castes (Shaban, 2010). Migrants from UP and Bihar are located in Kurla, Sonapur-Bhandup, Govandi, Bandra (East), Mahim, Goregoan, Jogeshwari, Nagpada and Byculla. The wealthiest communities in the city live in Malabar Hill, Worli, Tardeo, Bandra (West), Juhu, Andheri (West), Versova and Powai (Shaban, 2010). In this sense, arrival of migrants is not new to the city but is very much deep-rooted in every part and every work. However, different vulnerabilities make them uncertain about their rightful claim to the city.

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THE TAXI INDUSTRY: HISTORICAL TO PRESENT ERA There are various studies that focus on migrants’ conditions in different industries, such as, construction, agriculture, stone quarries and fish and prawn processing. ­ However, it is difficult to get the literature on migrants in taxi occupation though the and-yellow (kaali-peeli)1 taxis city’s black-­ are predominated by immigrants from north India, particularly UP and Bihar (Joshi & Joshi, 1976). Driving the office cab, the long-­ distance holiday taxi, the airport taxi or the black-and-yellow taxi, the taxi drivers in their many avatars have struggled to extract full usage value from the car and from their labour (Surie, 2017). Black-and-yellow taxis are an integral part of the city’s heritage and have been depicted in various Bollywood movies, such as Taxi Driver (1954) and Gaman (1978) (Prakash, 2011). The number of registered metre taxis has increased from 43,627 (in 2011–2012) to 44,433 (in 2012–2013)2 to fulfil the demands of commuters. They are a lifeline for Mumbai’s residents. Mumbai being a historic city, the new and old localities and constructions have blended chaotically, aided by the lack of cohesive city planning in the decades after independence. Thus, the residents usually commute across the city on a daily basis to travel to their places of study, work and so on. Black-and-yellow taxis prove crucial in their role of providing last-mile connectivity as well as safety. Yet the service providers (taxi drivers) always come under the ambit of apprehension and their integrity is always under question. To take the attention towards the history of black-and-yellow taxis and how they came into the existence in an era that is marked as the ‘dead British era’. ‘Earlier horse cart was the main source of transportation in Mumbai

Kaali-peeli and black-and-yellow are used simultaneously for the purpose of this study. Motor Vehicles Statistical Data of Maharashtra State District: Table No. 13 of Statistical Book. Compiled by Ghag, N. Digital Transport Info Exchange.

1 2

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and then few taxis came into existence by the efforts of the British government. In 1960, the Indian government restricted the permit for new taxis on the demands of horse-cart owners. However, horse carts were banned officially by the government in 1968, and in exchange, the government gave taxi permits to the owners of horse carts. Officially, ­kaali-peeli taxis started operating in Mumbai approximately from 1909. Until then, no colour was assigned for taxis. Over the course of time, this colour has become iconic for the existence of Mumbai’s taxis. All over the world, people can identify it and now it has become a part of the identity of Mumbai. The occupation of drawing the horse cart was mostly practised by Gujarati Muslims. So in 1968, automatically Gujarati Muslims came into taxi occupation and dominated the trade completely. After a few years, Gujarati Muslims moved to the hotel business. So there was a scarcity of drivers in Mumbai and it was filled by South Indian migrants. Until the 1980s, all taxi drivers were from the southern states of India, like Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. However, some of them were from Punjab and Himachal Pradesh as well. Later, South Indian migrants migrated to the Gulf to work as taxi drivers. After 1980, there was another wave of migrants in Mumbai from north India, especially UP and Bihar. These migrants were very hard-working and fulfilled the demand for taxi drivers. Since then, taxi driving has been the main occupation for migrants from UP (primary data collected from field). At present, the entry of private aggregator companies like Ola, Uber, Meru, TabCab and Car Zone has made work difficult for drivers of black-and-yellow taxis. In this competitive and uncertain condition of the taxi occupation, migrants end up competing with each other. They are also the victims of more violent assaults and are exposed to dangerous situations. Especially, newly arrived migrants from different cultures with a different language are easy to target. Various studies can be traced in different countries of the world in context

of the taxi driving occupation. Schwer, Mejza, and Grun-Rehomme (2010) in their study ‘Workplace Violence and Stress: The Case of Taxi Drivers’ describe the patterns of drivers’ experiences with occupational violence in terms of abuse, physical assault, robbery, fare evasion and false allegations in two cities, Las Vegas and Nevada. A study by Hamil and Gambetta (2006) explored that taxi drivers are 60 times more likely to be murdered on the job than the average worker and face the highest homicide rate than any other occupation in the United States. Contrarily, studies in the Indian context lay more emphasis on economic conditions of drivers and government regulations in the taxi trade. The study based on taxi drivers in Goa mainly focuses on their economic conditions during the preliberation and postliberation period in Goa (Boadita, 1970). Another study done by the students of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) explored the government regulations in the intermediate public transport market (including autorickshaw and black-and-yellow taxis) in Greater Mumbai (Chauhan, 2016). Hence, there is a need to do this kind of study that explores different layers of discrimination embedded in everyday work and life of migrant taxi drivers in the present-­ day socio-political environment. Therefore, the present study focuses on migrant taxi drivers from UP and their complexities in the socio-political context. It explores their experiences of discrimination and marginalization in everyday working and living environments. It explores the issues of identity and different experiences of the migrant taxi drivers in Mumbai city, their expectations from the city, and their concerns with work and employment.

FINDINGS FROM THE FIELD In this section, the researcher has thematically arranged findings from focus group discussions and in-depth interviews with taxi drivers

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to provide a glimpse and a perspective on their life in the city as migrants, their struggle to survive in the city, the nature of discrimination and the challenges of taxi-driving. To get a comprehensive understanding of the study, individual cases are presented in every theme.

SURVIVAL CIRCUIT In earlier studies, various scholars and geographers found that migrants make ghettos in urban spaces to make themselves a part of the city (Demuth, 2000; Shaban, 2012). They practise their culture and norms within this space with fellow migrants. However, in the study, it was found that along with ghettoization of urban spaces, migrants make a ‘survival circuit’ in work life too. Perhaps the major characteristic which distinguishes taxi drivers from previous migrants (in general) is that they form a kind of ‘survival circuit’ in the city. If one family member is engaged in the occupation of taxi driving, then slowly their other relatives, like brothers, cousins, uncles, brothers-in-law and even the new generation sons and nephews start doing the same work. Therefore, eventually it becomes their ‘family businesses’.

The Case of Sooraj (Age 37 Years) In this case, he explained the process due to which taxi occupation became their khandani occupation. Whenever a new member of the family or a villager comes to Mumbai in search of employment, they end up in this circuit of taxi occupation— My grandfather came to Mumbai in 1940 and worked on dockyard and after the retirement he drove a taxi. Then my father and uncle (Taaujee and Chachajee) came to Mumbai. They both opted taxi occupation. My father has spent 40 years in this occupation and still plying it. My

3

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uncle’s son is also driving a taxi. As a child, I used to visit my father and partially completed my schooling from Mumbai. However, in 2009 I settled here and decided to work as a taxi driver. It was my father’s taxi which I drove first. I used to drive the same taxi in night shift and my father drove in the day shift. So we both managed with one taxi. However, now I have bought my own taxi. My brother-in-law also stays in Mumbai and he is also in the same occupation. Over generations, my family is involved in the same occupation. Hence, the taxi occupation has become our ‘khandani3 occupation’ and we are like ‘khandani taxi drivers’.

THE CHOICE OF MIGRATION AND TRAJECTORIES OF CITY LIFE Lack of opportunity and agrarian crises are main factors for migration into the city based on interactions with taxi drivers. Most of the taxi drivers interacted with during the fieldwork own agricultural land back home, but it is not enough to earn a living. However, the degree of crisis can be seen in the form of migration of the large number of upper caste population (Brahmins, Kshatriyas and Thakurs). The researcher encountered in the field that majority of taxi drivers belong to upper caste Hindu communities. Declining revenue from agriculture, lack of development at the places of origin, inability to fulfil family obligations and an aspiration for a better life seem to be some of the dominant reasons for migrating into the city.

The Case of Prem (Age 42 Years) He is an upper caste Brahmin from UP. In his case, he explained the reason to move to Mumbai and to refer to work as a taxi driver— My grandfather had five brothers and five brothers have four children. After the demise of my grandfather the property, including the

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agricultural land was divided equally among all brothers. Hence, the share in the property gradually reduced and each one of us was left with a small portion of land. My grandfather owned 10 bighas of land, but now I have only 2 bighas. I have three sons and two daughters. I cannot survive with my family on these 2 bighas. Therefore, I had to migrate to Mumbai. The land area under the cultivation has reduced. Earlier, there was a time when the farmland produced more than enough to feed 20 family members. Now it cannot even produce enough for seven members (we are seven members in the family). Our position has become very weak in the village. Hence, I came here and now agricultural production is entirely dependent on the labourers. On the seasonal basis, every year I have to go back home and look after the agricultural land. However, I cannot depend on it completely.

Thus, the choice to migrate or stay back is not an individual decision but depends on the circumstances and prevailing conditions. As Demuth (2000) mentioned, no one personally forces the migrants, except that circumstances and the zeal to find a job at the destination that may provide much more money than could be earned by staying back.

The Case of Rakesh (Age 35 Years) In Bhadoi, there are no occupational opportunities except the carpet intertwines work. We come under the category of higher caste, the Brahmins. Traditionally, we Brahmins are considered as priest, teachers (acharya) and protectors of sacred learning through generations. Our main occupation is to perform puja in temples or at socio-religious ceremonies and rite of passage rituals, such as, solemnizing a wedding with hymns and prayers. Apart from it, we can do only agricultural work in the village but not anything else. In fact, now it is so difficult to get laagat (cost) of farming and weaving carpets is not honourable for Brahmins. If I do the work of ghaliche (carpet making) in village, people will talk about me that ‘a Brahmin boy does a low-category job. But no one can see me here in the city if even I clean sewage and back home I will get the same respect as a Brahmin.

This section reflects that due to the failure of agriculture, people migrate and are ready

to do peculiar jobs in precarious conditions which are against their status or prestige. The changing attitude towards agriculture is also because of the change in agrarian relations as they find it difficult to employ labour on their terms. In the cases presented above, the ‘devalourization of material labour’ n the village forces these migrants to search occupations in the city (Sanyal & Bhattacharaya, 2011).

The Case of Mahesh (Age 39 Years) Every case is unique in its own way. The case of Mahesh explains the struggle after getting into the city and the process of selecting taxi occupation: I came to Mumbai in 1979, without any backing, although my follow villager was staying here. He was the one who introduced me to Mumbai city and its dazzling life. On his advice I came here and did all kinds of odd jobs before entering into the taxi-driving occupation. I had to sleep on the footpath, took shelter at the railway station during the rainy season, and even spent nights under the pavement during the time of winter. I first started working as a cleaner. Day and night I cleaned taxis of others at the stand. For that I used to get 10 rupees per taxi (such a meagre amount). The few years I continued the same work and in between in the free time I learnt driving and started to ply auto in night shift. Finally, with the help of other drivers I rented a taxi and since then I am driving the taxi.

The Case of Vishnu (Age 55 Years) He explains how migration affected his family life and his inability to bring his wife and children to Mumbai. He believes that by doing so he is protecting his family from the hardships of the city that he is already facing. For migrant taxi drivers life is not easy in Mumbai. They have to sacrifice so many things especially ‘family life’. I got married in 1990. My wife is from my caste and religion. She is 50 years old. I have three children; one son and two daughters.

Politics of Sons of Soil

From the initial stage of my marriage, I am staying in Mumbai and my wife along with the children lives in the village. So you can imagine what kind of family life I have. I do not have the capacity to keep my wife and children in Mumbai. I drive a taxi and do not have income to buy a flat. If my wife comes here, she has to stand in queue for toilet and that I don’t want her to do. I am already living my life in the gutter and do not want to spoil the lives of children by bringing them. I always believe my son should not go outside UP. He should get good education and work there. If he is unable to get a good job, then he would do a small business. Thus, his next generation will be happy forever. I am having various problems in my body by sleeping on the floor. In the village, I used to sleep on the couch. Here, I have to sleep on the floor. Bedbugs are another problem. They keep biting the whole night’. Therefore, I don’t want my family to come here and face similar suffering which I am going through.

For most of the taxi drivers that the researcher interviewed, their personal stories of migration do not end with arriving in Mumbai, but it is a beginning of another journey, a journey for the search of ‘livelihood and foothold in the city’. Through these cases, we can conceptualize the diversity in which the city life is conceived and managed by migrants. Multiple voices give multiple views on the urban way of life and experiences of migrant labourers. They also enable the idea that the city of Mumbai holds tremendous capacity to change migrants’ lives in different ways and it is not wrong to say that ‘Mumbai a city of dreams’.

THE PECULIARITIES OF TAXI DRIVERS AND TAXI OCCUPATION Taxi drivers play a pivotal role in urban transportation systems and in the lives of locals. They are the only service which is accessible 24 hours a day, everywhere and which offers individually arranged and flexible origin– destination movement without reference to routes and timetables. However, the life of migrant taxi drivers is full of dilemmas and

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uncertainties in their work. Migrants’ hopes and expectations of the city are intertwined with fear and experiences of everyday insecure conditions at the workplace. Below are excerpts from in-depth interviews that reflect ambivalent dilemma and paradox of ‘service provider/public servant’ about the conditions of their work in the city.

The Case of Chanchal (Age 42 Years) He is the president of one of the many taxi stands in Mumbai. He explained the situation of taxi stands thoroughly: We taxi drivers do not have any facility at the taxi stand. I met members of the Municipal Corporation to MLA and asked them to provide facilities at the taxi stand but nothing has happened so far. If you see, there is no lavatory within the ambit of 1 kilometre of the taxi stand. Drivers have to walk very far or stand in the bush to discharge urine. Many times we have to give fine because police officers catch us while pissing in the places where urination is forbidden. There is no facility for water. Drivers take water from the nearby tea stall. Perhaps the government can think to provide electricity facility on every stand throughout the city. So we could hear and read news. Certainly, passengers can also take advantage of these facilities in the waiting time. If the government is not able to provide all the facilities then just provide a place to sit and rest of the things we will manage by donating money among us.

The Case of Suresh (Age 40 Years) His case gives the idea that the situation is more or less similar at every taxi stand in the city. The case also highlights that government can provide basic facilities: Unfortunately, accidents can occur with us at any time. Therefore, it is necessary to arrange medical facility at the stand. There is no place to sit for us. We have only two options, either to sit inside our taxis or stand outside in spite of unfavourable weather (heavy rains, heat waves, etc.). Government seeks to designate a place for taxi

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drivers where we all can sit and take rest. He kept on telling ordeal of drivers and described the fear to drive a taxi in case of lack of medical facility and lack of interest by the government about their problems. If any accident occurs to us, there is no first-aid facility at the stand which could save our life. We would die on the way to hospital due to the lack of first aid. It can be possible for the government to open a medical booth at every taxi stand, where some basic medicine can be provided for the welfare of all drivers.

It was also found during the fieldwork that majority of the migrant taxi drivers live without family and have to depend on food in cheap restaurants and street food. There is no facility for food at the stand, ‘every time we just eat vada pav (burger) from the roadside and get ill (Vada Pav khao or bimaar raho)’. If there is an accident, there is no compensation for us. Actually, ‘we drivers are like public servants, as we help the people in their daily lives by providing rides.’ However, we do not get any support from the government in terms of medicines, food or facilities at the taxi stand. In fact, it is not easy to get loans from banks being migrant drivers.

The Case of Raju (Age 55 Years) He narrated the stigma and apprehension associated with the taxi-driving occupation: Although we taxi drivers do public service, but we do not get any respect from passengers. Anyone can physically assault us and make false allegations against us. I believe, there should be some laws for our protection. Let me share an incident with you: Once a passenger came and insisted for five people to sit in the taxi. But I denied as a taxi has space only for four people and it’s also illegal. They were drunk too. Then those five people abused me and even beat me but no one came to help me. Finally, I had to run away from there. Earlier people have some humanity but now they do not have any affection and respect towards taxi drivers. In fact, they treat migrants as alien who come from a different world.

Across all interviews that the researcher conducted, there was a sense of futility associated with the work of taxi driving. Along with the futility, they have anger towards the government and union because of the condition of taxi stands and taxi drivers. These conditions trash their self-esteem and zeal to do public service.

MIGRANTS VERSUS LOCAL: THE POLITICS OF SON OF SOIL At the time of migration, resettlement of people elsewhere generates issues related to their identity and conflict, which are often discussed under the purview of ‘insider–outsider’ politics. However, for the purpose of this chapter, the researcher has used both terms migrants versus locals and insider–outsider simultaneously. In the Indian context, very few studies talk about migrants and their related issues, such as identity and conflict (Rajan, Korra & Chyrmang, 2011). Most of the time, migration (both international and national) is considered a negative phenomenon caused by underdevelopment, violence, trouble at source regions, poverty and joblessness. Almost everywhere, right-wing politics opposes migrants’ entry, particularly when migrants are poor, refugees or from a different ethnic or religious background (Rajan et al., 2011). In this section, the researcher attempts to examine the conflicting situation of migrant taxi drivers and the stigma associated with their identities. Chauvinist regional politics of Mumbai in the 1960s gave birth to disputed issues of cultural identity and job opportunity between local and migrant taxi drivers. It also gave birth to the concept of ‘son of soil’, which demands preferential hiring policies for locals. Below are presented two cases which reflect the antagonism between migrant taxi drivers and locals.

Politics of Sons of Soil

The Case of Kashi (Age 44 Years) I came to Mumbai from Jaunpur, UP in 1948 at a very tender age with my father. My father was working as a conductor for BEST bus service. It was a government job. It was possible that I would become a bus conductor in place of my father after his retirement. But I preferred to become an independent taxi driver. I got the licence and badge from RTO office easily. Although, it is not easy now to get a taxi badge and permit due to the mandatory 15 years of domicile certificate. Apart of mandatory 15 years domicile certificate RTO wants from ‘potential driver to know Marathi language’. To check the fluency in Marathi language, officer in charge himself speaks only in Marathi to the applicant. If the potential driver gives all reply in Marathi then, they say ‘yes’ otherwise ‘they say go back to your home and cancelled the application (bolte hain wapis jao apne desh)’. They want to give jobs to Maharashtrians not other Indians. I believe that this rule has been made to restrict the entry of migrants and give the jobs only to Maharashtrians not other Indians. Local drivers always justify the enactment of this rule and believe that migrants from UP and Bihar come here with empty hands, they do not have anything but within two days they get the licence and did all scandal (Kand). Immediately, after committing the crime, they run away from the city.

The Case of Shayam (Age 50 Years) Local makes fun of us the way we migrants live, the way we speak, and the way we eat. We are always treated as outsiders, because of that we do not have any izzat (honour) here. We use the word bhaiya in a respectful manner however it sounds derogatory to them. We do not have any proper place to stay; it make us lose our astitva (identity). We can experience it in our daily lives. Even though they do not use say it directly to us but sometimes we overhear their conversation in which they use derogatory remarks against us and it makes us to feel disrespected and insulted. We migrants travel 1,500 kilometres to come to Mumbai with the hope to earn something and do not want to indulge in politics. If we would have enough opportunities at UP then we would have stayed back and not been insulted on the regular basis. Since we do not have many

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opportunities back to our homeland that is why we have to come here. The majority of the taxi drivers in Mumbai are from UP. In Mumbai the demands of drivers are much higher than UP due to development. But local have arrogance that it is their land (inlogo ko ghamand hota hai ye to mera desh hai). There are some incidences that easily showed that what kind of attitudes they have towards us. Sometimes local people easily say that there is nothing that belongs to migrants. Earlier the atmosphere was not like this. It is after the emergence of a few political parties. Perhaps from the past eight-nine years the scenario has been changed completely. These political parties have created human-hatred among common people due the political greed. They started the slogans Bhaiya yahan se Bhag (run away UP migrants) and Maharashtra for Marathi Manus. In reality migrants earn their own, so what is wrong with it. Migrants do not ask someone to do favour on behalf of them or they do not snatch anything from anyone.

Many incidents have also happened at taxi stands due to the political environment. He shared one such incident. ‘Can you see this tree of almonds (pointing to a tree at the stand), earlier it was very small. One day a lady came from Bandra and started to pluck the leaves. I requested her not to pluck many leaves as we all grew-up this tree with so much effort and now it provides us some shade during the hot summer (it is the common place for all of us to sit and take rest in between the work). But the woman with aggression and anger said to me: You are stopping me in my Maharashtra (Hamare Maharashtra mai aakar humko hi tu rok rha hai). Now you can imagine about their way of thinking. Then I also became angry and said if it is your Maharashtra, so would you pluck the entire tree (tera Maharashtra hai to pura ped le logi). Lastly, she threatened me by saying ‘I will see you’ and left the place.’

From the above narratives, it is clear that antagonism may be not visible but always exists in the minds and hearts. It is not only limited to political parties but also spread among the masses. To stop this kind of rivalry, people need to understand when they have same occupation and same gathering then why to

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quarrel with each other unnecessarily. As one of the respondents rightly mentioned, ‘when we are at the taxi stand, we do not belong to Maharashtra or UP or any religion (Hindu or Muslim), we all are taxi drivers to serve the common people and behave accordingly’.

CONCLUSION From the study, it appears that there is a deep sense of being a migrant and the feeling of discrimination at all times. Although a strong expression of ‘my city’ also emerges by providing public service to passengers day and night in winter, summer, monsoon and spring. The political milieu created by regional parties does not deter the migrants; however, migrants choose to resist the stereotypical ways in which they are viewed. Many of them claim their right to the city by buying their own taxis, getting licences and badges for taxi, procuring ration cards, Aadhaar cards and bank accounts. As it is correctly pointed out by Lefebre, ‘membership in the community of enfranchised people is not an accident of nationality or ethnicity or birth rather it is earned by living out the routines of everyday life in the space of the city’ (Purcell, 2002, p. 102).

REFERENCES Boadita, C. G. (1970). A study of taxi drivers in Goa (Unpublished thesis). Mumbai: TISS. Chandavarkar, R. (1994). The origin of industrial capitalism in India: Business strategies and the working classes in Bombay, 1900–1940. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Chandavarkar, R. (2009). History, culture and the Indian city. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Chauhan, T. (2016). Government regulation in the intermediate public transport sector: Study of a metropolitan city (Unpublished thesis). Mumbai: TISS. Demuth, A. (2000). Some conceptual thoughts on migration research. In B. Agozino (Ed.), Theoretical and methodological issues in migration research interdis-

ciplinary, intergenerational and international perspectives (pp. 21–58). Brookfield: Ashgate Publishing Ltd. Falzon, M.-A. (2009). Introduction: Multi-sited ethnography: Theory, praxis and locality in contemporary research. In M.-A. Falzon (Ed.), Multi-sited ethnography: Theory, praxis and locality in contemporary research. Farnham: Ashgate Publishing Limited. Hamil, H. & Gambetta, D. (2006). Who do taxi drivers trust? American Association, 5(3), 29–33. Joshi, H. & Joshi, V. (1976). Surplus labour and the city: A study of Bombay. Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. Markovits, C. (1995). Bombay as a business centre in the colonial period: A comparison with Calcutta. In Bombay: Metaphor for modern India. Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. Patel, S. (1995). Bombay’s urban predicament in Bombay: Metaphor for modern India. Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. ———. (2005). Bombay and Mumbai: Identity, politics and populism. In S. Patel & J. Masselos (Eds.), Bombay and Mumbai the city in transition. New Delhi, India: Oxford University Press. Prakash, G. (2011). Mumbai fables. Noida, India: HarperCollins Publisher. Purandre, V. (2012). Bal Thackarey and the rise of the Shiv Sena. Delhi, India: Roli Books. Purcell, M. (2002). Excavating Lefebvre: The right to the city and its urban politics of the inhabitant. Geo Journal, 58(2/3), 99–108. Rajan, S. I., Korra, V., & Chyrmang, R. (2011). Politics of conflict and migration. In S. I. Rajan (Ed.), Migration, identity and conflict: India migration repot 2011 (pp. 95–101). New Delhi, India: Routledge. Sanyal, K. & Bhattacharya, R. (2011). Bypassing the squalor: New towns, immaterial labour and exclusion in post-colonial urbanisation. Economic and Political Weekly, 46(31), 41–48. Schwer, R. K., Mejza, C. M., & Grun-Rehomme, M. (2010). Workplace violence and stress: The case of taxi drivers. Transportation Journal, 49(2), 5–23. Shaban, A. (2010). Mumbai political economy of crime and space. New Delhi, India: Orient Blackswan Private Limited. ———. (2012). Ethnic politics, Muslims and space in contemporary Mumbai. In A. Shaban (Ed.), Live of Muslims in India politics, exclusion and violence (pp. 208–225). New Delhi, India: Routledge Publication. Surie, A. (2017). Tech in work organising informal work in India. Economic and Political Weekly, LII(20), 12–15. Weiner, M. (1978). Specification of sons of the soil: Migration and ethnic conflict in India. New Delhi, India: Oxford University Press.

PART VIII

Emerging Issues

41 Nature of ‘Unfreedom’ among Migrants* Deepak K. Mishra

INTRODUCTION Migration of labour has been conceptualized as a process which is part of the process of economic development and prosperity. However, while some authors have viewed migration itself as a sign of economic development, the vast literature on migration studies suggests considerable diversity in migration, in terms of its both causes and implications. Increasingly, the non-economic aspects of migration, such as lifestyle choices, freedom and social and cultural preferences, have also been recognized as important motivations that impact the outcomes of migration. International labour migration has increasingly become a contentious and divisive issue in many parts of the developing and the developed world. Also, there is a greater recognition of the contribution of migration to the process of economic development in the host countries

and regions (Kannan, 2005; Maimbo & Ratha, 2005; Zachariah & Rajan, 2004). In the standard neoliberal framework, migration decisions are supposed to be taken voluntarily by atomistic individuals in their individual interests in response to various push and pull factors. The New Economics of Labour Migration school expanded the scope of migration analysis by emphasizing that migration decisions are part of household-level decisions not only to increase incomes but also to minimize risks (Stark & Bloom, 1985). The roles of social networks and reciprocities are also recognized as important determinants of migration. In India, the relatively higher levels of economic growth following the neoliberal economic reforms since the early 1990s have been accompanied by an increase in the extent of migration. The relatively low mobility of the population in India has been at the centre

* Financial assistance from the ICSSR, New Delhi, and UPE-JNU to conduct this research is gratefully acknowledged.

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of scholarly attention for some time. First, a substantial proportion of the migration is termed as social migration, which results from factors like marriage and movement of families, although some of these migrations may end up being economic outcomes. Migration for economic reasons is considered to be rather low in comparative terms. The high costs of leaving the social networks of trust and reciprocity and crossing the language and cultural barriers across the states are cited as reasons behind the low mobility in India (Munshi & Rosenzweig, 2009). In the recent period, with the turnaround of the Indian growth story, there was an expectation that migration flows would increase in response to the uneven demand for labour in a growing economy. There is some evidence to show that there has been a growth of labour migration in the post-reform period, and barriers of language and distance have become less of a binding constraint for the migrant population.1 However, as the neoliberal growth process is unfolding and the urban spaces are being reconfigured, there are indications that the exclusionary forms of urbanization discourage migrants from moving into the metropolitan cities of India. The rising costs of living and commuting, creation of gated communities and exclusionary urban spaces, denial of rights to passage, housing rights or access to crucial livelihood resources for the poor in the name of security and beautification have resulted in worsening economic prospects for many migrants from marginalized socio-­ economic backgrounds. Nativist politics and lack of security, particularly for women, children and minorities, have further aggravated the risks associated with migration. On the other hand, three distinct processes have contributed to an increase in economic migration in recent decades (Mishra, 2016a). First, the nature of economic growth in

post-reform India has resulted in widening of regional disparities, which goes beyond interstate disparities, along with rising interpersonal inequalities (Bakshi, Chawla & Shah, 2015; Bhattacharya & Sakthivel, 2004; Cherodian & Thirlwall, 2015; Ghosh, 2012). This process of uneven growth has, on the one hand, raised the expectations and aspirations for better living standards everywhere, particularly with wider spread of mobile and digital communication technologies. On the other hand, given the geographical unevenness in economic prosperity, there has been a spur in the out-migration of labour, particularly of the youth labour force, from the relatively slow-growing regions of north and eastern India to the relatively fast-growing regions and cities in southern and western India (Government of India, 2017). Second, the prolonged agrarian crisis in much of rural India, in a period of relatively robust growth of the rest of the economy, is among the key factors that have pushed labour out from the rural hinterlands. Agricultural growth stagnated in the post-reform decade of the 1990s, and when it revived, it has failed to raise the earnings of a substantial majority of small and marginal farmers in a sustainable manner (Deshpande, 2012; Reddy & Mishra, 2009; Rupakula, 2016; Vakulabharam, 2013). As part of the process of neoliberal economic restructuring, credit support to the farm sector, in general, and to the small and marginal farmers, in particular, declined and those belonging to the marginalized sections suffered even more (Rao, 2018; Shetty, 2009). Thus, as small and marginal cultivators became a part of the commercialization process in a broader context of selective withdrawal of state support to the farm sector, many of them had to rely on informal credit at exorbitant interest rates (Lerche, 2011). Farmers purchased high-cost inputs using this credit or by entering into

The Economic Survey, 2016–2017, notes that ‘internal migration has been rising over time, nearly doubling in the 2000s relative to the 1990s’. Also, that ‘preliminary evidence in the gravity model study suggests the absence of language as a significant barrier in the movement of people’ (Government of India, 2017, p. 277).

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interlinked transactions and sold their products to middlemen and commission agents (Mishra, 2008). This process created a crisis of survival for many agriculture-dependent households, and one of the responses of the crisis was spatial relocation of family labour, which sometimes took the form of reliance on seasonal migration, commuting or participation in the local non-farm economy. The third process is the role of informality in the contemporary growth process. It is well known that the informal economy is far from being a transitory phenomenon in economies like India (Harriss-White, 2003a). The persistence of the informal economy and informalization of the formal sector points to the significance of informal economy for the ongoing economic transformation in India. Far from being a relic of the past or the results of an incomplete capitalist transition, informal economy is incorporated in to the globally integrated economy. As labour processes are getting fragmented and labour is being employed through layers of intermediaries, non-economic or non-­ capitalist institutions and identities based on language, ethnicity, caste, religion, gender and location are being woven into labour relations for a variety of purposes, including to select, discipline and exploit labour (Harriss-White, 2010). It is in this intersection of identities and economy that informality infuses new meanings to the ‘non-capitalist’ in the process of capitalist transition. The supposedly archaic institutions of identity and difference are not only compatible with the institutions of global capitalism, rather they play a significant role in the process of capitalist accumulation (Basile, 2013; Harriss-White, 2003b). Migrant labour from the marginalized sections often gets integrated into the labour processes under neoliberalism through such identity-based institutions. At times, these institutions are analysed through a highly depoliticized frame of social networks, but the question of power relations inherent in these institutions of identities remains obscured in such analyses.

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THE QUESTION OF UNFREEDOM UNDER CAPITALISM Capitalism is supposed to be characterized by the dominance of free labour, labour that is free in the dual sense of the term. Labour under capitalism is ‘free’ from the ownership of means of production and is also free to sell the labour power to any employer. A distinction is made between exploitation of wage labour through extraction of surplus value and extra-economic coercion. Since free labour relations are thought of as essential characteristics of capitalism, all forms of unfree relations are typically described as being non-capitalist or pre-capitalist. J. Mohan Rao has argued that the distinction between free and unfree labour is important to understand capitalism. He argues, Capitalism may be characterized by three fundamental conditions: (a) labour free in the double sense; (b) private ownership of the means of production; and (c) a substantial absence of non-economic constraints on commodity production and exchanges. If capitalism is generalized commodity production as defined by (a) and (c), then, the commodification of labour power is essential, not peripheral, to its development. Commodified labour is not only free labour in the bourgeois sense, but also labour dispossessed of the means of its subsistence. (Rao, 2014, p. 169)

According to him, unfree labour and capitalism are not compatible in the long run. However, others, including Tom Brass, have argued that unfree labour is not an aberration, rather it is a significant aspect of labour under historical capitalism (Brass, 2000, 2011). Similarly for Banaji, although free labour is a core concept in defining capitalism, various degrees of unfreedom are compatible with capitalism (Banaji, 2003). The binary categorization of freedom and unfreedom has been noted to be of limited use in understanding the nature of labour relations under globalization (Morgan & Olsen, 2014). Rather, labour relations under capitalism are thought to be in a continuum between free wage labour and various degrees

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of unfreedom (LeBaron, 2015). Jan Breman has chronicled such unfreedom as a key aspect of labour relations in India and has termed it as ‘neo-bondage’ (Breman, 2010). With flexible production systems, globally mobile capital attempts to disintegrate production systems under a new regime of global division of labour, and various forms of unfreedom and coercion are being seen as part of global value chains (Westra, 2018). Global capital is not only compatible with such labour relations, it systematically uses such labour relations in an interconnected system of global production networks. The recent focus on modern slavery has further elaborated the range of unfree and coercive labour relations that are part of contemporary capitalism (Lebaron & Ayers, 2013). In this proposition, the role of debt bondage as a form of modern slavery received critical attention. According to Bales, debt bondage should be considered as slavery only when ‘people are enslaved by violence and held against their wills for purposes of exploitation’ (Bales, 2004). LeBaron (2014) argued that ‘the notion that because entry into debt bondage is not physically coerced it is free from coercion is misleading insofar as this overlooks the disciplinary processes of global economic restructuring that have pushed millions into the circuits of capital on highly inequitable and unfree terms in recent decades’. Under neoliberalization, increasing precariousness of employment has emerged as a key aspect of the way labour relations in the global south as well as in the advanced capitalist countries. The intensification of vulnerability through various forms of dispossession, that destroys the basis of livelihoods of petty commodity producers, and the dismantling of state support for the working classes create a circular dynamic in which ‘chronic poverty enhances vulnerability to labour exploitation, and these forms of exploitation themselves act to produce and reproduce chronic poverty’ (Phillips, 2013).

Circular, seasonal and short-term migration, in the context of developing economies, is one of the manifestations of the increasing precariousness of labour. In India, as elaborated in the previous section, on the one hand, the prolonged agrarian crisis has made ­agriculture-dependent livelihoods unsustainable, and on the other hand, the withdrawal of state support from healthcare, education and transport has forced households to spend a higher amount of money for these services. Many of them have started to borrow from the informal credit market to finance these expenditures. In response to the crisis of survival, an ever larger segment of rural workers has started to out-migrate. But as they do not find stable and decent employment in the non-agricultural sector, they are forced to earn precarious livelihoods in the urban informal sector, while continuing their dependence on agriculture. Unfreedom of migrant workers needs to be understood in relation to these structural changes.

INSIGHTS FROM FIELD SURVEY IN THE KBK REGION, ODISHA Odisha’s Kalahandi–Balangir–Koraput (KBK) region in Odisha is known as the epicentre of distress seasonal out-migration. The region has a substantially higher share of the Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Scheduled Caste (SC) population than the state and national averages. Since the early 1980s, the region has been in news for its mass poverty, low levels of development, distress sale of crops and forest products, starvation-related deaths and sale of children (Currie, 1998, 2000; Mishra & Rao, 1992; Rao, 1995). Distress migration has been among the durable responses of the population to recurring droughts and lack of employment during the harsh lean season in this rainfed belt (Gopabandhu Academy of Administration, 2016).

Nature of ‘Unfreedom’ among Migrants

The recent history of out-migration from the region is intertwined with low levels of productivity in the single-crop rainfed agricultural system, food insecurity, destruction of and denial of rights over common property resources such as pastures and forests, slow and inadequate growth of the rural non-farm economy, growing landlessness, governance failure of various kinds as well as the longterm processes of marginalization and social exclusion of the lower castes and tribal populations. The agrarian structure and relations in the region, for a long time, were characterized by the dominance of the local feudal classes, which involved various form of extra-­ economic coercion. The halia or goti systems were part of a system of bondage where the farm servants were tied in a permanent labour contract. In the more recent periods, such extreme forms of coercion and physical violence appear to have declined. The local agrarian economy continues to be characterized by the numerical preponderance of small and marginal holders, dependence on usurious loans from informal moneylenders and various forms of interlinked transactions (Mishra, 2008, 2011). Environmental degradation, particularly deforestation, soil degradation and destruction of indigenous water management systems (such as bandhs and katas) have accentuated vulnerabilities of the agricultureand forest-dependent populations. Despite being the focus of numerous media reports and academic investigations (see for a discussion on the construction of this perception, Routray, 2017, pp. 1–27), seasonal out-migration from the region has increased. There are no reliable estimates of the number of seasonal migrants, and it varies from about 0.1 to 0.5 million persons. Nevertheless, seasonal and circular migration has become a durable livelihood option for a significant section of the poor (Mishra, 2016b). However, the region has witnessed some changes which

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impacted the pattern of out-migration. First, the districts have been brought under a substate level administrative structure called the Kalahandi–Balangir–Koraput region, and special programmes have been launched in these districts addressing the problems of hunger, malnutrition and food insecurity. The public distribution system that operates in these districts is universal, contrary to the targeted approach that is followed elsewhere in the state as well as the country. Second, increase in the area under irrigation in parts of the undivided Kalahandi district, following the completion of the Indravati Dam project, has led to significant changes in cropping patterns, levels of productivity and production relations in the irrigated villages (Patel, 2011). Third, in rainfed parts of the region, there has been significant effort to expand cotton cultivation as a form of commercial agriculture, both by government agencies and by private players. The procurement of cotton has been expanded through layers of commission agents, who advance credit and seeds and offer to buy the output.

The Field Survey The out-migration process has been studied in some detail by a number of studies and government reports (Mishra, 2016b; Parida, 2016). The account presented in this study is based on a field survey undertaken by the author in six villages in the three districts of the Balangir–Nuapada–Kalahandi region. Two villages from each of the three districts were selected purposively on the basis of the following criteria: a history of seasonal out-migration at least for the last five years, representation of different agro-ecological conditions within the districts, and as far as possible, villages within the district represent different streams of seasonal out-migration.2

This is consistent with earlier studies on seasonal migration from the region. Migrants generally move to three major streams from the study region: (a) to the irrigated rural areas of Sambalpur and Bargarh districts; (b) to

2

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

After the selection of villages, a census of households in the villages was conducted to gather information about the basic socio-­ economic characteristics of the households. A separate, detailed questionnaire was administered to sample households having at least one member who had been a seasonal migrant in the last crop year. Depending on the size of the villages, 50–60 households were selected from the migrant households from each of the villages through stratified random sampling.3 The migrating households were stratified on the basis of caste and tribe status, Seasonal migrants were divided into four broad social categories: STs, SCs, Other Backward Castes (OBCs) and Others and total seasonal migrant sample was selected proportionately from these four groups. The total number of sample migrant households was 345. From each of the six villages under study, 20 control households (120 households in total) were selected from among the non-­ migrating households having a similar socio-­ economic background (landholding and caste or tribe status). Thus, in total, 345 migrant and 120 non-migrant households were selected. The questionnaire-based survey was supplemented by in-depth interviews, focus group discussions (FGDs) and participant observations. In this chapter, the results of the survey on ‘unfreedom’ of the migrant labourers are reported. Since unfreedom is difficult to capture in a quantitative analysis, we have relied on the results from the qualitative survey.

The Process of Migration Although seasonal out-migration was found to be a significant livelihood strategy in the selected villages, the migration patterns were not uniform, rather, migration streams were

found to be highly segmented. The main streams of migration that were identified through the field survey are: (i) migration to the brick-kilns (mainly in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, coastal Odisha and Uttar Pradesh) (81.39%); (ii) migration as construction workers to various cities and towns (mainly in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Maharashtra) (5.22%); and (iii) migration as gardeners to various cities (mainly in Chhattisgarh) (11.48%). So far as the major migration destinations are concerned, 24 per cent of migrants migrated within Odisha, 33 per cent migrated to Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, 10 per cent to Karnataka, 9 per cent to Chhattisgarh, 7 per cent to Maharashtra and 3 per cent to Uttar Pradesh. While most migrants in the Balangir and Nuapada districts migrated to brick-kilns in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, the migration destinations for Kalahandi villages were more diverse. Before migration, most of the seasonal migrants were agricultural labourers (67%) and cultivators (27%). In terms of social groups, SC and ST have a relatively high presence among seasonal migrants, followed by the OBC. While migrants to the brick-kilns migrate with families, most of the other migrants do so as individuals. Further, it is the former category of migrants who migrate through labour contractors against advance payments, while the latter migrate with the help of their friends and relatives from the villages. Since the dominant pattern of migration from the region is through labour contractors and their agents, we concentrated on this group of migrants in our subsequent discussions on unfreedom. However, to develop a comparative assessment of the nature of unfreedom associated with this particular form of seasonal migration, we also referred to other seasonal migrants.

the brick-kilns of urban areas in Andhra Pradesh; and (c) to the construction sector in urban areas of Raipur (Chhattisgarh), Bhubaneswar and Cuttack (coastal Odisha), and more recently, to far-flung areas of the country (including Delhi). 3 In villages with more than 100 households with at least one seasonal migrant during the last crop year, 60 households were selected; from others 40 households were selected.

Nature of ‘Unfreedom’ among Migrants

Migration to the brick-kilns has become part of a durable livelihood strategy for a large number of seasonal migrant households, in the sense that they have been migrating year after year during the same season, though not to the same destinations. It is no longer viewed as a supplementary source of income, nor is it only resorted to in years of a transient livelihood crisis, like drought or crop loss. However, during a year of drought, the extent of migration increases. Over the past years, a subtle change was noticed in the relationship between crop cultivation and seasonal migration. Typically, seasonal migration was described as a coping mechanism during lean periods, that is, after the harvesting of crops when there was no work in the villages. The period of return was associated with the cropping cycle as most migrants wanted to return to the villages in time to prepare the fields for the next cropping season. In other words, crop cultivation was central to the livelihood strategy and seasonal migration was aimed at mitigating the consumption shortfall during the period when there was no employment in agriculture. For a large section of the migrating households, particularly those who are landless labourers or have given up cultivation, migration to brick-kilns or construction sites has emerged as a central livelihood strategy. It is the seasonality of employment at the destinations that has shaped their arrival and departure. During the festival of nuakhai, a festival associated with harvesting of the new crop, labour contractors and their agents contact prospective labour households and advance them a lump sum advance against the promise to work at the destination sites. The advance is often given to the male head of household and is against an unit called pathuria, consisting of an adult male, an adult female and a child. While male and female adults complement each other in preparing the soil and the bricks, child labour is used to dry the bricks under the sun. The labour contractors and their agents organize the transport of labourers from the villages to nearby railway stations and from

569

there to the destinations. Once the migrant labour groups reach their destinations, they are regrouped and are sent to various worksites. They live in makeshift accommodations provided by their employers and are paid a basic weekly allowance to cover food and other expenditures. They work under a piecerate system, and the rates are typically negotiated between the employers and the labour contractors before migrants’ arrivals. At the end of the period, the advance that they had taken before their arrival at the destination and the weekly advances during their stay at the destinations are deducted from the total dues. More often than not, the migrants work off the debts that they have incurred before the migration process began and return with a very small amount as compensation.

The Question of ‘Unfreedom’ There are several aspects of the seasonal migration to brick-kilns that point to the exploitative nature of the migration labour contracts. Keeping aside the question of the abysmally low levels of wages that are paid to the workers, the labour recruitment process itself needs to be examined carefully to understand the nature and extent of unfreedom that characterize such ‘contracts’. In the mainstream neoliberal understanding of the term, labourers and labour contractors (or employers) ‘voluntarily’ enter into a contract, out of their free will. Some authors also claim that it is in the enlightened self-interests of both the parties—the labourers are insured against lack of employment and the employers are assured of timely availability of labour. The compulsions inherent on migrant labourers in these contracts form the key constitutive context that shapes the nature and outcome of the contracts. Lack of alternative livelihood opportunities, poor resource endowment positions and the possibility of starvation are at the backdrop of the ‘decisions’ to migrate. So far as the agency of labourers is concerned, in almost all in-depth interviews, they expressed an acute

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awareness of the fact that the labour relations and the wages that they get were ‘unfair’. It is a place, ‘where nobody wants to go out of choice’. In the interviews, the labourers blamed a range of factors, from their ‘fate’, hunger, being born in a poor, landless family, carelessness of their relatives (typically, father or husband) and illness, as the reasons for their migration to brick-kilns; but none of them described such migration in a positive light. ‘Who would like to go to pardesh (a foreign land) to get humiliated?,’ asked a middle-­aged lady who had been migrating since she was a child. Those who owned land or belonged to the OBC or higher castes, never failed to remind the interviewers that they had seen better days in the past, and the fact that they are seasonal migrants now was described as their ‘misfortune’. This may be contrasted with the response of the young migrants from a Kalahandi village who migrate to Bengaluru and Kerala. They also talked about the harsh working and living conditions at their destinations, but were less unanimous when asked about their preferences in the next season. Some of them, at least, were sure that they would like to go back to their maliks, employers (or construction contractors) at the destination with whom they had established a rapport. There are some objective indicators which point to the various dimensions of unfreedom at the destination, particularly in relation to the work at brick-kilns. First, all the migrant workers are indebted to their employers through the labour contractors, and they are not free to sell their labour power to another employer till they pay off the loan. Nearly 88 per cent of migrant workers had taken some advance against their commitment to work. While 78 per cent had taken advance from a sardar or labour contractor, 18 per cent had taken an advance from the agents operating on behalf of the sardars.

A key aspect of the debt-mediated labour contracts was that once the workers take the advance, they have no freedom to work for anyone else.4 The threat of violence against those who do not honour the contract is real. The threat operates at two levels. At the origin, the labour contractors and their agents act against the defaulters—those who do not turn up after taking the advance or those who do not work till the end of the period. Also, at the worksites, the workers are at the mercy of the employers and their managers. There are numerous reports of violence against workers. In one case, the contractors allegedly chopped off the right hands of two labourers when out of a group of 12 migrant workers, 10 escaped before finishing their work (The Hindu, 2013). There are reports of physical abuse and violence against women workers as well. During the field survey, we also heard of stories of ‘disappearances’ of workers from their worksites or while they were returning. Second, the migrant workers do not have any knowledge regarding the place of their work before they arrive at the worksite. It is the labour contractors who contact the employers and often villagers from same villages are sent to different destinations. The fact that the migrant workers do not have any control over their destinations points to the general levels of unfreedom at the worksites. Third, at the worksites most of the brickkiln workers live and work in isolation from the local populations. They do not understand the language and are dependent on their employers for purchasing or accessing the necessities of life. This makes their position extremely vulnerable, particularly during periods of illness and conflicts. The ability to contact relatives at home through mobile phones has certainly reduced this vulnerability to some extent, but the overall dominance of the employers and their agents continues to be very high.

In a few cases, workers reported to have negotiated their way out by returning the advance to the sardars. However, since majority of workers use the advance to pay back old loans or for immediate consumption expenditure, it is not an easy option for them to return the amount to the sardars.

4

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Nature of ‘Unfreedom’ among Migrants

Finally, during the interviews, most of the workers complained about cheating in the ways bricks were counted or accounts were settled. They do not have any control over the evaluation of their work by the employers. The inability to choose an employer or negotiate about the place of work, wages and working conditions, are various aspects of the lack of freedom that the migrant workers face. But, according to them, the main reason for their lack of freedom is the lack of alternatives. In the interviews, most migrant workers were emphatic that they were aware of the exploitation, unfairness and indignity they are subjected to at the worksites. ‘It is not just the maliks and the sardars, everybody treats us badly. The policemen in the trains, the goons who often loot us on our way back to home, all of them insult us. But what can we do? What shall we eat, if we do not go to make bricks?’ These were the words of a migrant worker who had to return home with only `500 after working for nearly 4 months. It is lack of choice at the places of origin that shapes the involuntary entry into such bondage. In order to understand the essential characteristics of such unfreedoms, it is important to go beyond the binary of free and unfree labour. The structural context of limited livelihood options at the places of origin

acts as the driving force behind the repeated cycles of bondage and unfreedom and these structural constraints are created through long-term changes in production relations in agriculture as well as labour relations within and outside agriculture in the region. Lowproductive rainfed agriculture has kept the agriculture-dependent populations vulnerable. The informal credit market in the study region is known to be characterized by high-interest loans (Mishra, 2008; Sarap, 1991). In such a scenario, labour contractors have emerged as the key players in the local economy. The influx of money to the region through them is not only used as advance payment to the workers, but a substantial part of it goes to the layers of middlemen as commission (Table 41.1). This has resulted in a situation where the contractors have consolidated their position in the local economy as well as in politics (Rajshekhar, 2015).

CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS Unfreedom of migrant workers is an important aspect of the labour relations under contemporary capitalism. However, it is erroneous to rely on a binary categorization of labour as

Table 41.1  Migration Processes in the Study Region: Sources of Advance Payment S. No. 1.

2.

District Balangir

Kalahandi

Village

Grand Total

Agent/Sardar

Subagent

Employer

Other

Tentulimunda

211 (100.00)

201 (95.26)

10 (4.74)

0 (0.00)

0 (0.00)

246 (100.00)

242 (98.37)

4 (1.63)

0 (0.00)

0 (0.00)

Total

457 (100.00)

443 (96.94)

14 (3.06)

0 (0.00)

0 (0.00)

94 (52.51)

49 (52.13)

41 (43.62)

4 (4.26)

0 (0.00) 0 (0.00)

Dongapakhan

93 (64.14)

28 (30.11)

50 (53.76)

15 (16.13)

187 (57.72)

77 (41.18)

91 (48.66)

19 (10.16)

0 (0.00)

Tuthibar

165 (100.00)

155 (93.94)

0 (0.00)

0 (0.00)

10 (6.06)

Botha

183 (100.00)

95 (51.91)

72 (39.34)

16 (8.74)

0 (0.00)

Total

348 (100.00)

250 (71.84)

72 (20.69)

16 (4.60)

10 (2.87)

992 (87.87)

770 (77.62)

177 (17.84)

35 (3.53)

10 (1.01)

Total Nuapada

Advance Received (`) from the

Sorgul

Khaliapali 3.

Received Advance before Migration (`)

Source: Field Survey. Note: Figures in parentheses refer to percentage.

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

being free or unfree. From our field survey, it is clear that the labour circulation process is very much a part of contemporary capitalism. It is the booming real-estate sector that has grown substantially during the post-reform period, which has created the demand for such lowcost migrant labour force. The labour processes in construction as well as in allied sectors, like brick making, are undoubtedly based on layers of intermediaries, and such labour relations are marked by the lack of freedom on the part of the workers. This, however, signifies the continuing significance of coercion and unfreedom in markedly capitalist labour relations. Thus, on the one hand, the unfolding dynamics of capitalist growth in India has unleashed a process of expanding opportunities for some, while for those at the bottom of the social hierarchy, this has led to adverse inclusion in the labour market. Escaping from extreme poverty in low productive agriculture and lack of employment in the local non-farm economy, a vast majority of landless and landpoor population has become part of a mobile army of labour in the informal economy. Such labour circulation processes, signifying India’s low road to capitalism (Basile, 2013), exploit ‘non-capitalist’ institutions of caste, gender, ethnicity and religion to create and sustain bondage and unfreedom of workers, including those working in some of the globally integrated sectors of the economy (Harriss-White, 2003a). Identity and informality are the keys to understand such labour processes.

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42 Climate Change and Migration Nexus Avijit Mistri

INTRODUCTION Nowadays, environmental migration has become a growing concern, particularly in low-lying areas and islands. Nearly 300 million people inhabit 40 deltas globally, with an average density of 500 people per sq. km, including all the megadeltas (Ericson, Vorosmarty, Dingman, Ward & Meybeck, 2006). The most populated delta is the Ganges– Brahmaputra delta and the one with highest density is the Nile delta. Using a coarse digital terrain model and global population distribution data, Ericson et al. (2006) estimated that more than 1 million people would be directly affected by rise in sea level by 2050 in each of the three megadeltas, namely, the Ganges– Brahmaputra–Meghna delta in Bangladesh and West Bengal, the Mekong delta in Vietnam and the Nile delta in Egypt. From different

emission scenarios, it is estimated that by the end of the 21st century, the sea level will be 40 cm higher than it is today, and the annual number of people affected by flooding in the coastal regions is projected to be between 13 million and 94 million, globally. Almost 60 per cent of this increase will be along the coast from Pakistan, through India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh to Burma (Wassmann, Nguyen, Chu & Tuong, 2004). Indian Sundarbans1 is a part of the Ganges– Brahmaputra delta that is comprised of 102 islands. Being an archipelago and coastal location (in the Bay of Bengal), it is highly susceptible to global warming and hydroclimatic events. In the late 2000s, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC; 2007a) had warned that the Ganges–Brahmaputra delta in Bangladesh and in West Bengal in India is in the most vulnerable condition due to climate

Sundarbans in India is comprised of 102 islands, of which 54 are inhabited islands (5,400 sq. km) and 48 are forested (4,200 sq. km) islands. A total 9600 sq. km area of the state of West Bengal in India is recognized as Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve in 2001 by the UNESCO.

1

Climate Change and Migration Nexus

change, rise in sea level and intensification coastal storms. Moreover, studies reveal that environmental parameters in the Sundarbans have been observed to be changing over the years. The sea level has risen at the rate of 3.14– 4.0 mm per year during 1977–1998 (Nandy & Bandyopadhyay, 2011; Singh, 2002), which is higher than the all-India average of 1.0 mm per year and the global average of 1.8 ± 0.5 mm per year during 1961–2003 (Bindoff et al., 2007). Surface water temperature in the Sundarbans has increased at the rate of around 0.04–0.05°C per year during the last three decades (Hazra, Samanta, Mukhopadhyay & Akhandet, 2010; Khan, Singh & Rahaman, 2000; Mitra, Gangopadhyay, Dube, Schmidt & Banerjee, 2009), which is higher than the global average, that is, 0.006°C per year, even higher than the Indian Ocean average of 0.02°C per year (IPCC, 2007b). The frequency of tropical cyclonic storms over the north Indian Ocean during November has increased twofold in the last 122 years, 1877 to 1998 (Singh, Khan & Rahman, 2001). The intensification rate of tropical disturbances in the Bay of Bengal leading to a cyclone (cyclonic stage) and severe cyclonic storm (SCS) has significantly increased by 17 per cent and 26 per cent, respectively, in the past 129 years during 1877–2005 (Singh, 2007). Increasing salinity is one of the major threats to livelihood in the Sundarbans. The Sundarbans has nearly 8.0 parts per thousand (ppt) of soil salinity (Ghosh, 2012), which is higher than the permissible limit (6.0 ppt) for rice cultivation. Rice is the principal crop in this region. The yield rate of rice has been declining gradually at the rate of 0.15 per cent per year from 1990–2000 to 2010–2011 (Bureau of Applied Economics & Statistics (BAE&S), 2011). From 2009 to 2013, there was complete crop failure due to high salinization posed by the SCS Aila in 2009. Moreover, due to riverine erosion, the net loss has been 2.85 sq. km per year from 1930 to 2000 (Ghosh, 2012), which has increased to 5.5 sq. km per year from 2000 to 2008. Every year a substantial proportion of cultivable land

575

is sacrificed to the rivers’ grasp. Apart from farming, fishing is jeopardized by the gradual implementation of environmental legislation for better conservation of the fragile ecosystem (Mistri & Das, 2015, 2018a). The people of the Sundarbans depend highly on natural resource-based activities, like farming (59% worker) and fishing (5% worker) (Census of India, 2011), which are highly susceptible to climatic vagaries. Out-migration is a prominent livelihood strategy in the Sundarbans. At least one member from three-fourths of the households out-migrates from the Sundarbans in search of work (Mistri, 2013). They prefer interstate migration over interdistrict and intradistrict migration (Mistri, 2013). A study by Mistri and Das (2018b) showed that both the migrants and non-migrants perceive the moderate extent of environmental risk in their means of living, such as farming and fishing. They are more concerned about the micro-risks, like their own families and communities, local incidences rather than holistic concerns (the Sundarbans as a whole) and geographically distant people and places, such as people around the world and non-human nature like wildlife and mangroves (Mistri & Das, 2018b). Cyclone, water surge, salinization, rainfall and temperature change are more causes of concern in their means of livelihood compared with other environmental phenomena (Mistri & Das, 2018b). The linkage between climate change and out-migration is hardly linear, rather, it is a multifaceted aspect needed to examine the environment as a cause of migration along a spectrum, such as a wide range of economic, social and demographic factors (ADB, 2009). It is a wide consensus (IOM, 2009; Kniveton, Schmidt-Verkerk, Smith & Black, 2008; Myers, 2005) that environmental migration is the environment-induced migration where environment adversely affects the livelihood, resulting in migration as an outcome. Migration is linked to environment through livelihood issues. When environmental stressors in a certain place influence the inhabitants, the factors associated with livelihood, like assets,

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

occupations and capabilities of inhabitants and other factors, like transforming structure and processes (i.e., governmental and non-governmental rules and regulations, policies and programmes) play a vital role in the decision for out-migration (Camber & Conway, 1991; Department for International Development (DFID), 2001; Krantz, 2001). This multidimensional concept is highly advocated by the widely popular proposition of the sustainable livelihood approach (SLA). The five assets that are in the possession of a household, such as human, natural, financial, social and physical capital, constitute an asset-pentagon (Figure 42.1). The asset-­pentagon internally compensates, if any of these is deteriorated. Assets are adversely influenced by vulnerability contexts like shocks, stresses and seasonality. In the Sundarbans, the environment is considered a predominant stressor. Another external factor, comprised of structures and

processes (institutions, rules and regulations and policy), influences both the assets and the vulnerability context. Interaction between the livelihood assets and influencing factors produces different proactive or reactive livelihood strategies. Out-migration is one of the important livelihood strategies among them. In the Sundarbans, a huge number of people are out-migrating, and its nexus with environmental change is hardly explored with empirical rigour. The present study, therefore, is an attempt to provide more insight into the nexus between livelihood issues and out-­migration from the Sundarbans, where the environment has been given special consideration. An inductive approach (bottom-up approach) is followed to examine the SLA empirically, which begins with the observation of out-­ migration, then investigates the patterns, interaction, association, and finally, ends with general conclusions. It is a comparative

Key H = Human Capital N = Natural Capital F = Financial Capital

S = Social Capital P = Physical Capital

LIVELIHOOD ASSETS

H VULNERABILITY CONTEXT

TRANSFORMING STRUCTURES N AND Influence PROCESSES & access

S

P

F

Figure 42.1  Sustainable Livelihoods Framework Source: DFID (2001, Section 2, p. 1).

LIVELIHOOD STRATEGIES

in order LIVELIHOOD OUTCOMES to achieve

Climate Change and Migration Nexus

577

study between migrants (exposed group) and non-migrants (control group).

Mathurapur-II and Bijaybati (7) and Amrabati (8) from the Namkhana block.

DATA SOURCE

RESULTS

This study is based on the field investigation conducted through a structured questionnaire schedule. Total samples were equally divided into two equal groups—a control group and an exposed group. The control group is that group of the households where no member had migration experience during the last 365 days before the date of survey. The exposed group is that group where at least one member of the household had experienced or was experiencing migration in the 365 days before the date of survey. Total 400 respondents, 200 from each group and all in the working age (15–59 years), were selected. The head of the household or any working person in the absence of the head of the household was considered as a respondent in the control group. In the exposed group, the only migrating person who was present at the time of the survey and bearing the migration status till date, that is, he or she came home for an occasion or a purpose not to return permanently, was considered as a respondent. Migrating households were identified with the help of snowball sampling. A total of 9,600 sq. km wide Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve (SBR) is spread over 19 administrative blocks (Figure 42.2) in two administrative districts in West Bengal, namely South 24 Parganas (13 blocks) and North 24 Parganas (6 blocks). A total of 400 respondents (from 400 households) from eight census villages (50 respondents from each) distributed over four selected administrative blocks were surveyed. The selected census villages are Lahripur (1) and Sonagar (2) from the Gosaba block, Parbatipur (3) and Joygopalpur (4) from the Basanti block, Radhakantapur Abad (5) and Pashchim Jatardeul (6) from

Processes of Migration Interstate and interdistrict migrations from the Sundarbans are observed to be 49 per cent and 48 per cent, respectively. Only 4 per cent migrants prefer intradistrict migration. Considering individual preference at the places of destination, Kolkata ranks top (32%), followed by Tamil Nadu (13%), Karnataka (7.5%), Kerala (6.5%), Gujarat (6%) and Bardhaman (5%) (Figure 42.3). Kolkata urban agglomeration (UA) is the all-time best option for the migrants as it is adjacent to the SBR, the distance varying in the range 35–125 km. Three Southeastern Railway networks, namely Sealdah– Canning, Sealdah–Dimond Harbour and Sealdah–Namkhana, and many road networks connect Kolkata to the interior parts of the Sundarbans. On an average, trains are available every 30 minutes. Even some of the islanders commute 1.30–3 hours to work in Kolkata. Another destination of interdistrict migrants, Bardhaman, is characterized by seasonal pull. Bardhaman district is the ‘rice bowl’ of West Bengal. Nearly 78 per cent migrants who prefer to migrate to Bardhaman, reported that rice harvesting, especially in winter season, was the main attraction, and all of them had good contacts with landowners before the move. It is a long-standing practice which is now facilitated by telephone and mobile networks. On the other hand, a substantial proportion of migrants (49%) prefer to move out of the home state. Wage rate differences and job opportunities at the places of destination are the major pull factors for interstate migration, around 49 and 37 per cent migrants advocated these facts, respectively. Furthermore,

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Figure 42.2  Schematic Plan of Sampling, Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve

interstate migrants are ­well-informed regarding job availability at the places of destination, reducing insecurity in the labour market. Around 30 per cent interstate migrants received information from relatives or friends and co-villagers or neighbours. Nearly 34 per cent migrants were observed to be well-attached with the middlemen or contractors (locally called thikadar), and

they migrated to take up a job at the destination. Intermediaries contact the workers and fix the wage rate, form a group and take them to the worksite. Therefore, migrants are 100 per cent informed about the expected wage rate and job availability. Not a single day is wasted on the wait. Operations of middlemen suggest that they give `1,000–`2,000 cash in advance for family expenditure, though it is

579

Climate Change and Migration Nexus

Place of destinations (Migrants in %)

Tamil Nadu

13.0

Karnataka

7.5

Kerala

6.5

Gujarat

6.0

Inter–state

Other States

15.5

Kolkata

Inter–dist.

Bardhaman

32.0

4.5

Other districts

S 24 Pgs

11.0

4.0

Figure 42.3  Migrants’ Places of Destination Source: Field Survey.

deducted later on from the migrants’ wages. In some cases, the transportation cost is borne by the contractor, especially one side travel cost to go to the worksite. Migration from the Sundarbans is characterized by a circular pattern. Circular migration is the repeated movement from and return to a place of origin and destination, and the repetition must be more than once (Hugo,

2013). In the Sundarbans, around 62 per cent of migrants experienced more than one return to the place of origin and movement to the same place of destination. The mean number of returns were 7.0 times during the last 365 days. Circularity is the indication of strong ties with the place of origin (or family) and conduciveness to the remittance flow.

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Occupational Issues in the Sundarbans According to the Census of 2011, nearly 59 per cent of workers were engaged in farming and 5 per cent of workers in fishing activity. From the field investigation, it was observed that nearly half of the respondents reported themselves as marginal workers (Table 42.1), whereas main workers were around 39 per cent and non-workers were 11 per cent. Most of the migrants (54%) were marginal workers engaged for less than 3 months in work at the places of origin during the last 365 days before migration, whereas around 45 per cent non-migrants were marginal workers. The per centage of main workers (51%) was comparatively higher among the non-migrants, but a substantial proportion of marginal workers (45%) was also observed among them. Nearly 18 per cent of migrants reported that they were not working at the places of origin before they migrated. Agriculture in the Sundarbans is very seasonal. Due to lack of irrigation

facilities, most farmers practise monocropping (rice) in the monsoon season. The people who are engaged in farming face a long lean period. Likewise, there is also 3 months (April–July) of restriction on fishing on the ground of breeding period of fish. Moreover, fishing is severely hindered by environmental legislations. Environmental conservation in the Sundarbans is highly skewed towards environmental sustainability hardly balancing the socio-economic counterparts (Mistri & Das, 2018a). The people, therefore, who are willing to stay in the Sundarbans, hardly manage to get a job for more than 6 months in one single occupation. They always diversify their jobs at the local level. Nearly 44 per cent of non-migrants were observed to have changed their occupation during the last 365 days. The change highly persists in farming (38%), followed by fishing (28%). However, job diversification highly depends on the availability of employment opportunities. The inadequacy of that leads to out-migration to cope with economic needs.

Table 42.1  Work Status of Respondents during the Last 365 Days

Types of Workers Main worker

Marginal worker

Attributes

56

Expected count

78.5

78.5

Percentage within workers

28.0

50.5

Adjusted residual

−4.6

4.6

Count

101

Total 157 157 39.3

108

90

198

Expected count

99

99

198

Percentage within workers

54.0

45.0

1.8

−1.8

49.5

Count

36

9

45

Expected count

22.5

22.5

45

Percentage within workers

18.0

4.5

Adjusted residual Total

Non-Migrants’ Work Status during the Last 365 Days

Count

Adjusted residual Non-worker

Migrants’ Work Status before Out-Migrating during the Last 365 Days

4.3

11.3

−4.3

Count

200

200

400

Expected count

200

200

400

Percentage within workers

100.0

100.0

100.0

Source: Computed from field survey data.

581

Climate Change and Migration Nexus

Environmental Threat on Farming and Fishing

Total 17 distinct perceptions of climate change consequences were collected from respondents. The index score for risk perception in farming is 2.95. It infers that respondents perceive moderate risk in farming in the current climatic condition. Six incidences, such as long periods of heavy rainfall (x = 3.12), high temperature in summer (x = 3.90), severe winter (x =  3.40), high rate of pest incidence in farming (x = 3.29), loss of soil fertility (x = 3.20) and increase of soil salinity (x = 3.33) are significant causes of concern in framing. The mean score for migrants in risk perception in farming was 2.883, which is significantly (t = 3.017, p = 0.003) lower than the normal level of concern (µ = 3). Non-migrants’ (x = 3.012, t = 0.356, p = 0.722) perceive moderate risk in farming. Comparatively slightly higher perceived risk among the non-migrants can be attributed to intense attachment with places of origin by occupation. It is also an indication of potential out-migration from the Sundarbans. The fishermen’s concerns in the Sundarbans can be attributed by two

Farming and fishing are confronted by the climatic change in different ways, like deteriorating environment, declining production or collection, degrading quality of production, increasing diseases, pests and other infecting agents and reduced productivity of labourers (Di Falco, Yesuf, Kohlin & Ringler, 2011; Farauta, Egbule, Idrisa & Agu, 2011; Juana, Kahaka & Okurut, 2013). However, people’s concern about their occupation is the outcome of their continuous observed experiences. In the study, last 5 years’ (recall period) experiences of the respondents were collected using different sets of questions designed with a fivepoint Likert-type scale which ranged from 1 (to no extent) to 5 (to a very great extent). In the study, the incidences of environmental change in the agriculture (Figure 42.4) manifest through uncertainty in the onset of the season (incidences 1–6), the effect of extreme climatic events and processes (7–11) and increase in farming problems (12–17).

Risk Perception (Mean Score)

5.00 3.90*

4.00

3.40* 3.12* 3.00 2.79* 2.75*2.75* 2.50* 2.18* 2.00

2.74*2.76*

3.29* 2.95 2.86* 2.97

2.65*

3.33* 3.20* 2.95

17 In de x

16

15

14

13

12

11

10

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

1.00 S. No. of Incidences

Figure 42.4  Environmental Risk Perception in Farming Source: Computed from field survey data. Note: * Statistically significant (p < 0.05) difference from µ = 3.0 (average concern). Incidences:1: Delay in onset of monsoon, 2: Unusually early monsoon followed by weeks of dryness, 3: Erratic rainfall in monsoon season, 4: Long periods of heavy rainfall, 5: Less rainfall in monsoon, 6: Long period of dry season, 7: High temperature in summer, 8: Severe winter, 9: Long spell of fog/smog, 10: Overflowing of streams/rivers (flood), 11: Increasing risk of cyclones (number/intensity), 12: Declining yield rate, rice (kg/bigha), 13: High rate of pest incidence in farming, 14: Increasing diseases in farming, 15: Rotting of rice (Aman) saplings in monsoon, 16: Loss of soil fertility, 17: Increasing soil salinity.

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Risk Perception (Mean Score)

5.00 4.00

3.76*

2.94 2.84* 2.92 3.00

2.62*

3.49*

3.34* 2.95 2.76*

2.81* 2.92

2.96

1.96*

2.00 1.00

3.18*

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13 Index

S. No. of Incidences

Figure 42.5  Environmental Risk Perception in Fishing Source: Computed from field survey data. Note: * statistically significant (p < 0.05) difference from µ = 3.0 (average concern). Incidences: 1: Increasing risk of cyclones/low pressure/gusty wind, 2: Increasing risk of flash-floods/high tides, 3: Increasing risk of tidal force or river or ocean current, 4: High humidity and temperature in summer, 5: Severe winter (windy and low temperature), 6: Declining depth of rivers and creeks, 7: Declining fish (fish/prawn/crab) production, 8: Reduction of fish/prawn/crab stocks and varieties, 9: Increasing trash fish, 10: Faster spoilage of the catch, 11: Increasing salinity of river/ocean water, 12: Decrease in water transparency (or green colour), 13: Environmental regulations affecting fishing.

categories (Figure 42.5), such as worsening of the collecting environment (incidences 1–6) and effect on production (7–13). Fishing in the Sundarbans includes catching fish, prawn, crab and other aquatic animals, and collecting non-timber forest products (NTFPs), such as honey, beeswax, firewood, tannin bark and nypafruticans (locally golpata). The mean score (x ) for risk perception in fishing is 2.96 (Figure 42.5). The respondents perceived moderate level of risk in fishing. Fishermen are highly concerned regarding the declining fish production (x  = 3.76, p = 0.000). Reduction of fish stocks and its varieties are also a great concern (x  = 3.49, p = 0.000). Increasing trash fish2 (x  = 3.34, p = 0.000) decline both the quality and quantity of production. Moreover, it is an established fact that environmental legislation is one of the great barriers to fishing in the Sundarbans (Mistri & Das, 2018a). This phenomenon also resonates in the concern of

fishermen (x  = 3.18, p = 0.024). Both mig­ rants (x  = 2.916, t = −1.810, p = 0.073) and non-migrants (x  = 3.003, t = 0.068, p = 0.946) perceive more or less equal environmental risk (moderate extent) in fishing.

Household Assets Possession and Migration Assets possessed by the household are broadly classified into five groups, like human capital (household size, age, education, knowledge and skills of members, ability to work and good health), financial capital (income, remittances, livestock and other tangible assets), physical capital (transportation and communication, basic amenities and secure shelter or housing), natural capital (land possession, forest resources and ecotourism) and social capital (social networks and aspirations) (DFID, 2001). These capitals are not mutually exclusive. Assets help people cope

Trash fish or rough fish are those which one are less desirable to the catchers in a region. Environmentalist suggests that the production of rough is increased due to the climate change.

2

Climate Change and Migration Nexus

with adverse situations. Hence, the decision to out-migrate is immensely influenced by the possession of different assets. The association between asset possession and migration in the Sundarbans is discussed as follows.

Human Capital Nearly 4.4 million people reside in the Sundarbans and the number has increased from 3.7 million in the previous Census of 2001. The growth rate is 17.8 per cent (geometric growth 1.65) whereas the state average is 13.9 per cent (geometric growth 1.31). The faster pace of growth poses immense pressure on carrying capacity of the marginal landholdings in the islands. Like other parts of India, migration is very male selective in the Sundarbans. The working-age population (15–59 years) is 68 per cent, which precedes the state (64%) as well as national (61%) average. More than three-fourths (77%) of respondents were observed to be literate. Nearly 68 per cent of the respondents reported good health, not suffering from serious health issues during the last 365 days.

583

or a paddle van (46%), fishing contrivances (30%) and television sets (29%). The households hardly possessed comparatively costly assets like two wheelers, four wheelers and computers or laptops. Around 12 per cent of households possessed none of the above specified assets. Nearly 59 per cent of the migrants sent remittances and the average frequency of remitting was five. A fair amount of remittances regularly flows into the Sundarbans. Around 42 per cent of migrants remit `15,000 and above in a year.

Natural Capital Landholding in the Sundarbans is attributed by ‘marginal size class’ that is less than one hectare. Around 43 per cent of respondents were landless, which is highly prevalent among migrants (46%). Ecotourism in the Sundarbans has huge potential and can be the best alternative for means of living. But it is seasonal, lacks community involvement and is overwhelmingly dominated by outsiders or multinational corporations (MNCs) (Bhattacharya, Bhattacharya & Patra, 2011).

Financial Capital

Social Capital

Households in the Sundarbans possess a very minimal amount of livestock and durable assets. The livestock sector contributes around 6.8 per cent of GDP in India and employs 8 per cent of the labour force (Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 2005, p. 6). Livestock is a very important liquid asset. Rural migrants often sell their domestic animals to meet the costs incurred for migration, or when they need to suddenly move. Economically valuable domestic animals, such as cow (38%), buffalo (32%), pig, sheep and goat (9%), were very less. On the other hand, only one durable asset, telephone, especially the mobile phone, was possessed by most of the (78%) households. The other major assets were a bicycle

In the Sundarbans, the social network is an intrinsic part of migration. Almost all migrants had a social connection before they decided to out-migrate (Table 42.2). On the other hand, 73 per cent non-migrants did not have any connection outside the area they reside for finding jobs and other help when the survey was conducted. The social network was significant (x2 = 242.08, df = 5, n = 400, p = 0.00) and strongly associated (Cramer V  = 0.78) with the migration status of the respondent. No source/asking to find jobs at workplace contributes most (Adj. R = −14.8), and it advocates in favour of non-migrants. The middleman or contractor (Adj. R = 6.9) followed by co-­ villagers/neighbours (Adj. R  = 6.7)

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Table 42.2  Sources to Find Jobs Sources Relatives/friends

Migrants

Non-Migrants

Total

Count

68.0

42.0

110.0

Expected count

55.0

55.0

110.0

Percentage within source

34.0

21.0

27.5

2.9

−2.9

Adjusted residual Co-villagers/neighbours

Count

59.0

9.0

68.0

Expected count

34.0

34.0

68.0

Percenatge within source

29.5

4.5

17.0

6.7

−6.7

Adjusted residual Middlemen/contractor

Count

45.0

1.0

46.0

Expected count

23.0

23.0

46.0

Percentage within source

22.5

0.5

11.5

6.9

−6.9

Adjusted residual Contact himself/contact by employers

Other

No source/asking to find jobs at the workplace

Total

Count

17.0

2.0

19.0

Expected count

9.5

9.5

19.0

Percentage within source

8.5

1.0

4.8

Standard residual

3.5

−3.5

Count

8.0

0.0

8.0

Expected count

4.0

4.0

8.0

Percentage within source

4.0

0.0

2.0

Adjusted residual

2.9

−2.9

Count

3.0

146.0

149.0

74.5

74.5

149.0

Residual

−71.5

71.5

Adjusted residual

−14.8

14.8

Count

200.0

200.0

400.0

Expected count

200.0

200.0

400.0

Percentage within source

100.0

100.0

100.0

Expected count

Source: Field Survey.

and contact himself/contact by employers (Adj. R = 3.5) are also major contributors and argue in favour of out-migration. Members of a formalized group often share mutually-agreed views, rules, norms and sanctions. It may be the cause of migration or may strongly favour retention. In the Sundarbans, non-migrants (41%) are more likely to attach to formalized groups, such as non-governmental organizations (NGOs), village clubs, self-help groups (SHGs), cooperative societies, political institutions and religious groups, compared with migrants (29%) at the places of origin. There is a high aspiration for urban life (75%), especially for the Kolkata UA. Migrants

aspired more (86%) to live in urban areas for better quality of life and opportunities than non-migrants (65%) did. A ­generation-wise occupational shift from farm to non-farm sectors is visible. A substantial proportion of respondents, around 57 per cent, did not prefer to continue their parents’ or guardians’ occupations which were either farming or fishing. Younger respondents below age of 30 years (56%) expressed strong unwillingness to continue with their parents’ occupations compared with respondents (42%) aged above 30 years.

Climate Change and Migration Nexus

Physical Capital

585

Household size under human capital is one of the significant predictors in the model. For Telecommunication in the Sundarbans is a every addition of a member in a household, great inducement for out-migration. Mobile the odds of migration increase by a factor of connectivity reaches into every nook and 1.324 or around 32 per cent. Studies suggest corner in the Sundarbans. The Sundarbans is (Massey, 1990; Stark & Lucas, 1988; Speare, well-connected by road, rail and water net- 1974) that large families diverse the labour works. But modes of transportation are slow portfolio through out-migration. Work status and not available round-the-clock. Most of the of the respondent (dummy, main worker) islands in the Sundarbans are connected to each based on the duration of work engagement other by ferry boats or vessel services, which at the place of origin makes a significant are available until 9.00 pm. After that, they are contribution to the model. For a respondent arranged on a demand basis with additional who is the main worker (works more than 6 late night charges. Furthermore, vast areas months) in the household, the odds of migrastill lack electrification through the conven- tion are around 88 per cent lesser than those tional grid. Accessing healthcare services in the of a non-worker (R). Social network is the Sundarbans causes great agony to all classes strongest predictor in the model. For every of people. A substantial proportion of people one unit increase of social network that has (65%) still depends on quack doctors. Most of every additional social connection to find a the households enjoy the provision of drink- job (over not having the same), an increase in ing water, but the quality is questionable. The migration by 3.640 log odds can be expected Sundarbans is a severely arsenic-affected (more while other predictors remain constant. Social than 300 µg/L) area or red-alerted zone (School group in terms of the caste of the respondent of Environmental Studies [SOES], 2010). Most is also a significant predictor under social of the houses are either temporary (45%) or capital. The likelihood of out-migrating semi-permanent (44%) and only 50 per cent are among the Scheduled Tribes (STs) is nearly in livable condition. Average person per room six times higher than that of non-SC/ST(R). (person/room ratio) is 3.5 or around 4.0. It is around three times higher than even Scheduled Castes (SCs). This higher probability of out-migrating within the ST community raises the question of social inequality Sustainable Livelihood Model in terms of asset possession and access to The sustainable livelihood model (SLM) other facilities. Association with formalized helps investigate which factor or group of fac- group at the places of origin (β = −1.439) is tors significantly influence the probability of inclined in favour of non-migration. It leads out-migration from the Sundarbans. A binary to less likelihood of reporting as migrants. logistic regression technique was incorpo- Household type is characterized according rated to examine the SLM empirically. The to the source of income that contributes ≥50 variable to be investigated was respondents per cent income. The variable is comprised with migrant status, which is coded as non-­ of three dummies, such as farming, fishing migrant = 0 and migrant = 1. Total observed (including NTFPs) and daily or casual labour, cases (n) are 400, which is equally distributed where the reference category (R) is non-farm among migrants and non-migrants. The prob- activities. Daily or casual labour (β = 2.928) ability of out-migration is investigated under exerts huge push on migration while farming the 21 predictors (excluding dummies) in six (β = −1.365) and fishing (β = −1.469) deter categories (Table 42.3). These predictors are the same. If the people of the Sundarbans incorporated from different levels, such as get enough support from principal activities individual, household and community level.

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

of farming and fishing for maintaining their livelihood, the chances of out-migrating will decline. On the other hand, daily or casual labour influences out-migration in two ways. Most of the migrants are attached to daily or casual labour either at places of origin or of destination. When they are attached at the places of origin, they suffer extreme marginality (get a job for less than 6 months) that pushes the migrants. When they are attached at the destination, they earn more compared with that at the places of origin that pulls the migrants. Structures and processes include the intervention of different governmental and non-governmental policies and programmes for livelihood promotion, such as job creation, credits, subsidies, relief and other financial assistance. The livelihood promotional index (LPI) is constructed to combine of six aspects, namely prior work experience in the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme, uptake of public distribution system (PDS) facilities by households on a regular basis during the last 365 days, receiving any credit by households during the last 365 days, receiving any subsidized credit during the last 365 days, receiving (Aila) relief packages and any assistance from eco-development committees or forest protection committees during the last 365 days. For every one unit increase in LPI score, the odds of being migrants declined by a factor of 0.805. It can be inferred that if the scope of earning a livelihood increases in the Sundarbans, the probability of out-migration may decrease by around 20 per cent. Environmental change is considered to be a major threat to livelihood in the model. People’s overall concern regarding changing environment in the Sundarbans positively influences the likelihood of out-migration. With one unit increase in the risk perception index score, out-migration increases by three times (OR = 2.582). But perceived risk in the means of living, especially farming, showed a negative relation with the probability of out-migration (OR = 0.306 or β = −1.186). In

the Sundarbans, a substantial proportion of farmers are landless, and farmland is marginal in size. Most of the non-migrants reported a higher concern in farming compared with migrants. Hence, the mean score (x) of perceived risk in farming for non-migrants (x = 3.01, SEM = 0.035) was higher than the migrants (x = 2.88, SEM = 0.039). This phenomenon leans the odds ratio in favour of non-migration. Another principal means of living in the Sundarbans is fishing which was excluded due to the low number of observations (n = 268) as all the respondents were not experienced in fishing. However, the influence of environment was significant yet ambiguous.

DISCUSSION Labourers from the Sundarbans circulate over the year at different places of destination. The nearest metro city of Kolkata is their alltime favourite option. Apart from Kolkata, interstate migration is highly preferred, and it is influenced by intermediaries or contractors. Lack of job opportunities and the low wage rate at the places of origin lead to out-­ migration from the Sundarbans. Most of the migrants were either farmers or fishermen who have suffered severe marginality in their respective activities before the move. On the other hand, those who stay in the Sundarbans diversify their activities at the local level to sustain. While principal activities, farming and fishing, face different sorts of constraints, ecotourism can be a viable alternative. But local people show extreme reluctance due to its seasonality and little incentive in terms of income generation. In these circumstances, out-migration is the best option to cope with the situation. In addition to that, households of the Sundarbans possess minimal assets in terms of land, livestock and durable assets, and have very poor services for livelihood derived from natural resources. But the islanders possess

587

Climate Change and Migration Nexus

Table 42.3  Sustainable Livelihood Model by Binary Logistic Regression Dependent Variable Respondents with Migration Status: Non-Migrant = 0 and Migrant = 1

Log Likelihood = −84.712101 Observation (n) = 400 LR Chi2 (28) = 385.09 Prob > Chi2 = 0.0000 Pseudo-R2 = 0.6945

Category

Coefficient (β)

Standard Error

Odds Ratio (OR)

p

HH size

Number of family member

0.281

0.138

1.324

0.042

Age

Above 30 years

0.791

0.489

2.205

0.106

0.522

0.757

1.685

0.491

Independent Variable A. Human Capital

R

30 years Marital status

UnmarriedR Married

Education

IlliterateR Up to primary

Work status

Health condition

−0.943

0.696

0.910

0.892

Middle and secondary

0.180

0.685

1.197

0.793

Above secondary and other

0.093

0.838

1.097

0.912

Non-workerR Marginal worker

−0.778

0.820

0.459

0.343

Main worker

−2.100

0.826

0.122

0.011

0.232

0.495

1.261

0.640

ST

1.775

0.823

5.903

0.031

SC

0.682

0.553

1.978

0.217

3.640

0.065

38.075

0.000

−1.439

0.492

0.237

0.003

0.588

0.559

1.801

0.292

0.751

0.471

2.118

0.111

Optimistic

0.657

0.710

1.929

0.355

Pessimistic

0.411

0.825

1.509

0.618

NoR Yes

B. Social Capital Social group

Social network

Non-SC/STR

NoR Yes

Associated with formalized group

NoR Yes

Aspirations for urban life

NoR Yes

Generation-wise Aspiration to work in non-farm sectors Aspiration for economic well-being

NoR Yes Do not knowR

C. Economic Capital (Financial and Natural Capital) HH types

Non-farm activitiesR Farming

−1.365

0.595

0.255

0.022

Fishing (including NTFPs)

−1.469

0.680

0.230

0.031

2.928

0.907

18.683

0.001

−0.0001

0.000

1.000

0.157

Daily labour/causal labour HH income

Rupees/month

(Continued)

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HANDBOOK OF INTERNAL MIGRATION IN INDIA

Table 42.3  (Continued) Coefficient (β)

Odds Ratio (OR)

p

0.316

1.133

0.692

0.199

0.485

1.221

0.681

0.375

0.862

1.454

0.664

Amenity Index

−0.339

0.580

0.713

0.559

Livelihood promotional index

−0.216

0.078

0.805

0.005

0.949

0.287

2.582

0.001

−1.186

0.427

0.306

0.005

−6.103

2.200

0.002

0.006

Independent Variable

Category

Livestock of HH

Standard livestock unit index

0.125

Durable assets of HH

Durable Assets Index

Agricultural land (ha.) possession

Standard Error

D. Physical Capital Basic infrastructure and amenities E. Structures and Processes Livelihood promotion F. Vulnerability Context Environmental concern in the Sundarbans

Risk perception index

Risk perception in farming

Risk perception index for farming

Constant

Source: Computed from field survey data. Notes: HH implies household. Rreference category, p