Page 93 - IJPS-10-3

International Journal of
Population Studies Pandemic spurs interstate outmigration in India

and lack of industrialization, have explained the heavy Conflict of interest
outmigration (economic-related) from these states.
Unless these problems are promptly addressed, the trend The authors declare that they have no competing interest.
of outmigration, primarily in the informal sector, will Author contributions
continue. As a result, informality in economic activities
will increase. The problem is that these migrants within Conceptualization: All authors
our country struggle with various challenges ranging from Formal analysis: Manas Kumar Pedi
housing to mental health, which has not been a serious Investigation: Manas Kumar Pedi
discussion from the perspective of policymakers. Migrants, Methodology: Manas Kumar Pedi
particularly women and children, endure a multitude of Writing – original draft: Manas Kumar Pedi
difficulties (physical assault, mental illness, forced child Writing – review & editing: Manas Kumar Pedi
labor, etc.) at their destinations. Ethics approval and consent to participate
Despite the pressing issues faced by migrants, there
remains a conspicuous absence of specific policies aimed Not applicable.
at addressing their challenges. Although the previous Consent for publication
studies by Srivastava (2012; 2020a), Roy et al. (2015),
and Srivastava and Sutradhar (2016) have extensively Not applicable.
examined various migrant-related issues, a tangible and
comprehensive policy solution remains elusive. The Availability of data
current crises involving migrants, both in general and Data can be accessed through the respective ministries
interstate migrants in particular, have become a highly of the Government of India (https://censusindia.gov.in/
debated topic among politicians and policymakers. census.website/).
Consequently, both central and state governments have
implemented a range of short-term policy measures, Further disclosure
coupled with the announcement of long-term strategies A preliminary version of the paper was presented at the
such as “One Nation, One Ration Card,” in an effort to National Seminar on “Changing Characteristics of the
alleviate the migrant problem. Indian Labor Market: Issues and Challenges in the Backdrop
Nevertheless, certain critical areas necessitate more of Covid-19” organized by Sardar Patel Institute of Economic
effective policy measures from the government, including and Social Research, Ahmedabad on July 7–8, 2022.
the compilation of migrants’ data, provision of housing,
healthcare, and educational facilities for migrants References
and their children, creation of rural employment Aggarwal, V., Solano, G., Singh, P., & Singh, S. (2020). The
opportunities, and bolstering the agricultural sector. integration of interstate migrants in India: A 7 state policy
Despite the initiatives undertaken, there is a recognized evaluation. International Migration, 58(5):144-163.
need for enhanced policy implementation in these https://doi.org/10.1111/imig.12701
specific domains.
Agnihotri, I., Mazumdar, I., & Neetha, N. (2012). Gender and
The present study extensively delves into the issue Migration: Negotiating Rights, a Women’s Movement
of interstate outmigration based on available literature. Perspective. Delhi: Centre for Women’s Development
However, it is imperative to acknowledge two specific Studies. Available from: https://www.cwds.ac.in/wpcontent/
limitations within this study. First, an age-specific analysis uploads/2016/09/GenderMigrationNegotiatingRights.pdf
of migrants has not been undertaken. Second, the absence [Last accessed on 2020 Dec 20]
of a field-based survey represents a potential limitation, as Awasthi, I., & Mehta, B.S. (2020). Forced out-migration from
such an approach could have added significant value to the hill regions and return migration during the pandemic:
depth and comprehensiveness of the analysis. Evidence from Uttarakhand. The Indian Journal of Labour
Economics, 63(4):1107-1124.
Acknowledgments
https://doi.org/10.1007/s41027-020-00291-w
The authors would like to thank Keshab Das for his support.
Behera, M., Mishra, S., & Behera, A.R. (2021). The COVID-19-
Funding led reverse migration on labour supply in rural economy:
Challenges, opportunities and road Ahead in Odisha. The
None. Indian Economic Journal, 69(3):392-409.

Volume 10 Issue 3 (2024) 87 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.0916