ABSTRACT
Motivation: COVID-19 has disrupted the lives of millions of people worldwide. Migrants in developing economies have been among the most affected. This vulnerable population faces a threat to their livelihood and way of life. Hence, there is an urgent need to understand the impact of pandemic on their lives to be able to tackle subsequent waves of the pandemic or similar exogenous shocks in future. Purpose: We delve into the economic and social disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic on employment, sources of income, and lives of different categories of migrant labourers in the Indian state of Kerala. Methods and approach: Using the livelihood portfolio theory, we dissect this impact in relation to a wide range of issues. This was corroborated by the in-depth semi-structured interviews with three categories of respondents. The interview data was analysed by using the directed qualitative content analysis method. We created themes from the data and juxtaposed them with the livelihood portfolio theory in addressing the research objectives. Findings: Results highlight the impact on livelihood, lifestyles, migration prospects and gender aspects. First, the households dependent on international migrants were more severely affected than those with family members who were internal migrants. Second, a considerable lifestyle change (more reliance on a plant-based diet) and borrowing patterns (more reliance on informal money lending) was reported. Third, opinions on future migration prospects were pessimistic, and a trend in favour of reverse migration was noted. We also captured the resilience measures for each of the themes. Policy implications: We find that blanket responses to mitigate migrants' hardships could be counterproductive. Policy-makers ought to implement tailor-made policies keeping in mind the migrants' classification and socio-economic demographics. Further, we recommend specific measures to address challenges that women face, to ease their workload and mitigate the loss of income. Specific measures aimed at initiating attitudinal change such as creating mental health awareness, curbing misinformation and providing counselling services could also add immense value in tackling the pandemic.
ABSTRACT
The onslaught of COVID-19 thrust upon humanity two major challenges, that of human health and that of the economy;the migrants are mired in both. It has both pushed the world economic order into chaos and challenged even the mightiest of economies. The initial advent of COVID-19 sowed confusion within systems of governance as countries struggled to deal with its unprecedented threat. The pandemic has both exposed the magnitude of India’s dependency upon internal migrants for low-end jobs and the vulnerabilities they face in spite of such dependency. Migration has a history as old as humanity, and India is no exception to this. India has long been the land of the world’s largest voluntary and involuntary migration. The problems with employment that pre-dated the pandemic continue to remain at play with the added shock to the economy, making re-employment and income generation difficult. © 2021 selection and editorial matter, Asha Hans, Kalpana Kannabiran, Manoranjan Mohanty and Pushpendra;individual chapters, the contributors.
ABSTRACT
The genesis and evolution of the COVID-19-led migrant crisis in India, along with the institutional responses, is discussed. The focus is on the shortcomings of the response, especially taking into consideration the curtailment of human mobility, which pushed migrants into enormous physical, psychological, and economic vulnerability, and the short-, medium-, and long-term measures provided by the government in order to alleviate them. Alternate policy measures to ensure migrant welfare in the immediate future are suggested. © 2020 Economic and Political Weekly. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
This paper examines the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on migration. The rapid spread of the pandemic caught countries across the world off guard, resulting in widespread lockdowns that clamped down on mobility, commercial activities and social interactions. In India, the pandemic precipitated a severe 'crisis of mobility', with migrant labourers in many major cities seeking to return to their hometowns. Their desperate attempts to return home by any means available rendered the lockdown ineffective in several areas, prompting clashes with authorities, last-minute policy relief and, eventually, the arrangement of transport measures. This paper aims to shed light on the vulnerability of India's internal migrants in terms of their mobility, gender and mental health. In addition, it critically analyses the limitations of public policy in addressing migrants and suggests recommendations for the way ahead.