Inclusion Of Internal Migrants In India

Photo Source:UNESCO

Free movement is a fundamental right of the citizens of India and internal movements are not restricted. The Constitution states: “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

- Article 19(1) (d) and Article 19(1) (e), Part III, Fundamental Rights, The Constitution of India, 1950.

Approximately three out of every ten Indians are internal migrants! Despite this, internal migration has been accorded very low priority by the government, and existing policies of the Indian state have failed in providing legal or social protection to this vulnerable group.

National Sample Survey Office (2007–08) states that around 28.5 per cent of the 1.2 billion people in India are internal migrants (Census 2011). According to the UNDP Human Development Report (2009), the number of internal migrants (740 million) is nearly four times the number of international migrants (214 million).

 

As per NSSO (2007-08), around 80 per cent of total internal migrants are women. 91.3 per cent of women in rural areas and 60.8 per cent of women in urban areas cite marriage to be the most prominent reason for migration. However, researchers believe that the macro data reports do not capture the complete picture and miss the actual reasons for migration. About 30 per cent of internal migrants in India belong to the youth category (15-29 years age group).    
                

 Urbanization and Migration:

India’s urban population has increased from about 286 million in 2001 to 377 million in 2011, and is expected to increase to 600 million by 2030. This increase migration to urban areas is largely due to an increase in female migration (38.2 %in 199341.8 % in 1999-2000 45.6 % in 2007-08). The main reason driving this migration is expectations of “better employment opportunities.”

The report on Social Inclusion of Internal Migrants in India, UNESCO (http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0022/002237/223702e.pdf) highlights two developments in the evolution of urban centres that absorb the increasing migrant population.

Firstly, influx of people from varied regions poses a socio-economic and environmental challenge to cities. The outcomes are growth of second tier cities rapid urbanisation and the greater challenge to absorb the migrant population that eventually translates into increased poverty and inequality levels.

Secondly, focus of policy making changes from “welfarism to rights based approach” with the goal to ensure that basic services are accessible to all.

The loose definition of migration and the largely ignored concerns that it poses renders the design and delivery of their social inclusion undefined and hence, ineffective.

                                              Internal Migration: Myths and Realities

Despite its contribution, internal migration still suffers from several ill conceived notions. Highlighted below are some myths related to internal migrants that are countered with important realities:

• Myth: Burden on destination cities vs. Reality: Forms cheap labor and thereby contributes to GDP
• Myth Steal local jobs vs.Reality: Migrants typically provide essential services which the locals might not want to engage in

• Myth: Migration can be stopped vs. Reality: Migration and urbanisation are integral part of economic and social development.
• Myth: Inhospitable cities are best deterrents to internal migration vs. Reality: Harsh cities merely increase risks and costs of migration, reducing its development potential
• Myth: Women migrate only for marriage vs. Reality: Women's labour migration and economic contribution

10 Key Areas for Inclusion of Internal Migrants

1. REGISTRATION AND IDENTITY

Migrants lack documentary proof of identity and local residence due to which they are excluded from access to legal rights, public services and social protection programmes (subsidised food, housing and banking services). In response to this, the Unique Identification (Aadhar) programme was created to combat the issue of registration.

2. POLITICAL AND CIVIC INCLUSION
 

A report on  Political Inclusion of Seasonal Migrant Workers in India: Perceptions, Realities and Challenges reveals that many migrants are unable to exercise their franchise because they have to travel in search of work and some return to their villages to exercise their franchise, because of this, they exercise limited political agency.

The Right of Citizens for Time Bound Delivery of Goods and Services and Redressal of their Grievances Bill, 2011 – could ensure a mechanism of accountability of public authorities. It would enable a citizen to file a complaint related to non-functioning of public authorities, violation of a law, policy or scheme or any grievance related to citizens charters, and offending officers could be penalized.
 

3. LABOUR MARKET INCLUSION
 

Migrants are mostly employed in the informal economy, devoid of social security and fair market, often working as construction workers, agricultural labourers,  vendors, etc. There are few Central Labour Laws for regulating conditions of work, but they remain undelivered.
 

4. LEGAL AID AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION
 

As migrants are predominantly engaged in the informal sector, migrants have no protection under labour laws. Government’s safety measures remain unimplemented, and minimum wages are not delivered. 

Poor literacy levels and no awareness act as an impediment in claiming rights and entitlements.
 

 5. INCLUSION OF WOMEN MIGRANTS
 

The current discourse on migration has failed to adequately address gender-specific migration experiences. The design of the Census and NSSO data surveys should be amended to better capture the actual reasons of migration. Women migrants, especially those in lower-end informal sector occupations, remain invisible and discriminated against in the workforce.

 

6. INCLUSION THROUGH ACCESS TO FOOD
 

In order to access subsidised grain and other supplies under the PDS scheme, beneficiaries must present a ration card that is given to them at their usual place of residence and is not transferrable. Such clauses imply that migrants are unable to access the PDS system at destination.

The National Food Security Bill 2011 passed this year aims to guarantee food and nutritional security in India, recognized that:  “The migrants and their families shall be able to claim their entitlements under this Act, at the place where they currently reside.”
 

 7. INCLUSION THROUGH HOUSING
 

Migrants face difficulties in accessing housing and other basic amenities. They often live in urban slums, facing constant threats of displacement and eviction from government officials. Shelter solutions show little appreciation for the needs of seasonal migrants.

 Suggestions:

• Affordable rental housing to affordable private housing, with an eventual policy shift towards provision of de facto residential rights and housing
• In-situ upgradation of existing slum dwellings could be a first step towards ensuring basic services for migrants living in slums
• Employers and contractors also need to play a role in securing shelter for migrant workers, and experiments with dormitory accommodation provided by employers (as undertaken in China0

8. EDUCATIONAL INCLUSION
 

Seasonal migrants often take their children along when they migrate, which negatively impacts their regular schooling. This is one of the reasons for high dropout rates in schools in many states. This further breeds inter-generational transmission of poverty.

Despite the Child Labour (Prohibitions & Regulation) Act, 1986, children work for long hours as unregistered workers often in harmful industries on piece rate basis

 Suggestion:

• The multiplication of seasonal hostels to promote the retention of children in schools in source areas
• The establishment of worksite schools at the destination with systems to transfer enrolment, attendance at and credits to formal schools, and bridge courses and remedial education for return migrant children
• Establishing peripatetic educational volunteers who can move with the migrating families, initiating strategies for tracking children by issuing migratory cards, and making the school calendar flexible to accommodate migrant children, including in local government schools in both rural and urban areas,

9. PUBLIC HEALTH INCLUSION
 

Migrants are exposed to health risks including HIV, malaria and tuberculosis, and occupational health hazards such as respiratory problems, lung dseases, allergies, kidney and malnutrition.

 10. FINANCIAL INCLUSION

 

Migrants are unable to access banking facilities since they do not have the necessary documentation to fulfil the Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements of banks, including proof of identity and proof of address. Suggestions

• Linking migrants to branchless banking and business correspondents along with incorporating flexibility in bank procedures
• Target banking services in geographical areas with high out-migration

                                                Prepared by Ashwin Varghese and Mahima Malik

 

 

Urbanisation Trend in India and its Policy Challenges

Photo Source: Ace Geography

Global evidence, especially from developed nations, indicates that industrialisation and urbanisation accompany each other (Bairoch 1988). It was expected that the 1991 liberalization reforms, by paving way for greater industrialization, would trigger urbanisation in India just like the 1980 reforms did in China. However, India’s urbanisation post liberalization has been termed as below normally ‘expected’. This could partly be attributed to the rise of high-tech and specialised industries in metropolitan cities that were labour-light as against the expected growth of labour intensive manufacturing sector.

However, post 2001 India witnessed greater private investment in areas such as industries, information technology, services sector and infrastructure. This has been reflected in rising share in non-agricultural industries in the GDP since 2001. The increased investment largely flowed into urban areas and triggered the much delayed urbanization phenomenon. This has added 90 million people to India’s urban areas in 2011 over last decade. (Census 2011, 2001 report). A McKinsey Report (2010) on India’s urbanisation prospects  projects that during the period 2010-2030, urban India will create 70 percent of all new jobs in India. The labour-intensive manufacturing, construction, and services are further expected to drive greater migration to India’s urban areas as per various projections (HPEC Report). Population estimates show that another 55 million will be added to India’s urban areas by 2021 and another 100 million by 2026. At this pace, India’s urban population will exceed its rural population by 2045.

These statistics highlight that India is at a critical juncture where its traditionally rural characteristic, best captured by Gandhi’s observation “true India lies in its seven lakh villages”, is set to undergo a historic transformation. This rapid urbanisation couldn’t have come at a more crucial time. With 69 percent of India’s 1.2 billion people expected to be between the ages of 15 and 65 by 2035, India needs to create enough productive employment opportunities to reap the benefits of this demographic windfall. World over, urban areas tend to be invariably more productive due to economies of agglomerations. In line with this trend, McKinsey’s report not only estimated that Urban India will create 70 percent of all new jobs but also that these jobs would be twice as productive when compared to rural employment opportunities. With urbanization poised to play a crucial role in India’s growth it is imperative that policy makers and urban planners embrace this phenomenon by gearing policies towards accommodating and facilitating this transformation with proper social protection and due rights to its people.

 
Contemporary Challenges
 

India so far fares poorly in most of the elements of a successful urban development strategy including land use, affordable housing, transportation, access to basic services like water and sanitation and social security. The following sub-section delve into policy distortions that are hindering economic and spatial transformation in India.

 
 
Urban Housing

Restrictive land use policy and high property prices have given rise to ‘shelter poverty’ in the form of slum and pavement dwellers. One estimate (World Bank Report)) suggests that 25 percent of urban population in India resides in slums and the figure escalates to a staggering 54 percent for Greater Mumbai. As cities expand, policymakers need to develop an inclusive urban design which provides low income housing to economically weaker sections (EWS) of society. Related to this is the problem of rigid land use policy. Floor Space Index (FSI) limits in India have historically been set way below international standards thus hindering urban densification and making the process of urban expansion expensive. In actual practise low FSI restrictions also encourage illegal construction. Thus current land use policies fail to reflect market realities and socio-economic demands.

 

Mobility
 

Easy mobility and an efficient transport system are essential for successful urbanisation. From 1951 to 2004, road network had expanded only 8 times while vehicle numbers have increased by 100 times. Thus limited road carrying capacity has increased journey times in India’s mega cities by more than 30 percent compared to smaller cities (World Bank 2013). Further, public transportation which is the only form of mobility for the poor accounts for a mere 22 percent of the urban transport system; a figure much below the average 40 - 50 percent observed in other middle income countries (World Bank 2013). Public transportation in Indian cities is also one of the most unaffordable in the world with Mumbai’s cost being twice of London and five times that of New York.
 

Sanitation

 

To make cities liveable it is essential that they be clean and have reliable water supply. In Indian cities, it is a common sight to see slum dwellers stand in long queues to fill buckets of water whenever there is intermittent water supply; this involves an economic trade-off between going to work and accessing an essential necessity like water which the poor cannot afford. Further, poor waste water management leads to an annual expenditure of nearly $15 billion to treat water-borne diseases (CII and CEEW 2010).

Urban areas by their very nature of large population and high density are susceptible to adverse effects of poor sanitary conditions. According to the HPEC report nearly 50 million people in urban India are forced to defecate in the open due to a combination of poor sewerage network, shortage of public toilets and lack of running water in toilets. Further, there are spatial disparities in access to services such as drainage and sewerage which tend to worsen as one moves towards the suburbs and as the size of the city reduces.
 

Governance
 

The 74th Constitutional Amendment Act of 1992 led to decentralization of powers through the constitution of urban local bodies (ULBs) as ‘institutions of self-government’. This was aimed at strengthening urban service delivery. However, in practice, this decentralization has not progressed as envisaged. ULBs are plagued by partial devolution of power, inadequate finances and limited capacity.

 

The Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) of 2005 which was supposed to be a game changer for pan India urban development has failed to implement many infrastructure projects because of abysmal capacity of personnel at local government level in preparing and implementing projects (Planning Commission). Also, funds released under JNNURM show insignificant correlation to poverty levels in a city in addition to a bias towards big cities (Kundu and Samanta, 2012).
 

Safety and Security

 

     Cities that attract economic power and foster growth also spawn crime, violence & and an overall sense of insecurity. Today’s cities face a wide spectrum of threats ranging from terrorism to rising crime rates, civil unrests, shootings, natural disasters and other emergencies. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), the rate of incidences of crime (cognizable offenses under IPC) has seen a major upward trend. Foremost among these is rape, the number of incidences of which has risen by 873% since 1953. It is followed by kidnapping and abduction (749%) and murder (250%). The impetus for urban growth will depend much upon India’s ability to sustain its homeland security.

 

To prove well prepared against these threats there is growing demand for cities to be equipped with new and emerging technologies that can ensure safe and secure cities. Security experts propose that government strategies need to move beyond enhancing its defence preparedness against crimes and acts of terror to provide integrated public security infrastructure solutions which should include real time visual, audio and location-based information.

 

 Strengthening Policy Making Processes and Outcome

Remarkably, India has not updated its definition of “urban” in 50 years leading to a downward bias on India’s urban statistics. Therefore even though some areas might display urban features, the stringent definition of “urban” would exclude these settlements from urban statistics, hindering the integration of fast expanding peri-urban areas through good urban planning (World Bank 2011). Further, the data pool on housing is characterised by poor timeliness, coverage and inaccuracy; this has serious implications for making effective policies and fund disbursement.

Indian cities and towns lack basic amenities and services because the paradigm of urban planning in India has mostly focused on providing investment and infrastructure without adequately addressing concerns of governance and service delivery. The institution of urban governance is compromised by multiplicity of agencies, fragmented and often overlapping authority without adequate coordination and lack of accountability. Undoubtedly, urban governance needs major policy reforms.

As urban population is likely to increase by at least 250 million by 2030, it is expected that the number of urban poor will rise too (Planning Commission). Modern planning has failed to include the concerns of the poor who provide much needed unskilled and semi-skilled services to support skill based activity and capital. The process of urban planning must be inclusive and cater to housing and transport needs of the poor and not just be a technical and dehumanized exercise in urban design. Such an exercise must reflect the voice of all the affected stakeholders in an urban setting.

Twenty first century India is increasingly marked by inequality, political unrest and environmental degradation. Considering contemporary challenges the objective of Indian urban policy must be redefined to help cities steer towards economically, socially, politically and environmentally sustainable and not just be limited to mere provision of public services and infrastructure.

The process of framing urban policy in India so far has adapted a top down approach despite laws contrary to that. It does not have a mechanism to involve the voice of stakeholders in its formulation. In addition to this democratic-deficit, India’s approach towards urban policy is characterised by a failure to make use of sound statistical and scientific evidence. These factors combined with less than robust implementation mechanisms and weak accountability structures have resulted in nearly a complete breakdown in the functioning of Indian cities. Reforming and strengthening the foundation of urban policy making process will foster formulation of comprehensive urban policies capable of nurturing inclusive progress.

In its ‘Approach to the 12th five year plan’ the Planning Commission of India said, “it took nearly forty years (1978 to 2008) for India’s urban population to rise by 230 million. It could take only half the time to add the next 250 million. If not well managed, this inevitable increase in India’s urban population will lead to an implosion of urban infrastructural systems”. Undoubtedly, this is a challenge that cannot be ignored at policy level.

 

Karishma Mutreja