The Plight of Migrants during COVID-19 and the way forward

Migration from rural to urban areas has always been increasing with the rise in urbanization and modernization. The lack of development and excessive pressure on the limited agricultural fields in rural areas have pushed the male members of families to urban areas in search of jobs and livelihood. While the migration helped in the overall economic development it also imposed certain problems. The family structures and the sex ratio has been affected since there are a greater number of females than males in rural areas, and also with the migration of male members, there are security issues and emotional instability for the spouse and the kids who live alone. Towns turned into bustling cities with the continuous movement of people from rural to urban, but at the same time, it has also created problems of congestion, slums, and social tensions in cities.

To fulfil their aspirations and to access opportunities that promise them decent work, they come to these unknown big cities. They generally work as a daily wage worker, mostly recruited through unfair channels. Most of them are either underpaid or overworked, engaged in an environment compromised of occupational safety and hazards. They have no entitlement to basic amenities and are forced to live in slums with no proper food and water. There is no guaranteed social protection to them, often they are stigmatized or ill-treated because of their income or social status.

Coronavirus and India wide lockdown compounded their difficulties. These daily wage workers were unable to wait out the unavoidable pandemic related lockdown due to lost jobs, income, food insecurity and uncertainty about when the normalcy will return. Hence these workers desperately sought haven in their villages and in their homes there. The Government is also not able to help them because of the larger good of society which is to stop the spread of the rampant deadly coronavirus. The survival instincts of many led them to walk miles in peak summer loaded with their luggage and children. After walking thousands of kilometres bare-footed when they reached their village they were quarantined and stigmatized as a result of their migrant status and perceived to be carriers of diseases. They signalled that they be assured the trinity of economic, social and health security, if the Indian economy is to benefit from their labour because as we can observe that migrant workers don’t want to return to where the journey started as it will be a long process to reestablish what they have created for themselves there in the big cities and towns they were working in, to recreate those things they will have to struggle again. But what if they never returned?

“The irony of fate is that when these very nation-builders sought a little assistance from the country in their quest to reach their homes, we failed to provide them food, shelter, and conveyance"

Despite high levels of economic growth, India still is mostly an informal economy. There is a growing rural-urban divide in the form of economic development, digital literacy and standard of living. People in rural India still lack basic amenities such as good schooling, healthcare, and alternative sources of employment other than Agriculture. More than 70% are engaged in Agriculture and are therefore disguised unemployed, there is a need to reduce the pressure from the already stressed agriculture. There are socioeconomic inequalities associated with poverty in rural India and needs to be acknowledged. At the same time, it is also a need of the hour to reduce the pressure on urban cities by checking and organising migration in a more efficient way.

Migrant labour is vital to every sector of the economy and MSMEs, constituting nearly 50% of India’s GDP. The sudden reversal of this cumulative migration will, in my opinion, result in flattening the curve of the graph of the socio-economic development of the country. COVID has affected the livelihood of millions and they have been forced to return to their roots and are unlikely to come back given the amount of distress they had while working in urban cities and also the trauma they had faced during the lockdown. The country now has a good chance to address the rural-urban divide, to uplift the rural areas by tapping into the rural demographic dividend and by providing them with employment in their homes. Also, the government can help address the informality of the Indian economy and avoid the socio-economic inequalities. The productivity of millions can be improved if they get employment in their homes and therefore don't have to leave their families for work in urban areas. The Sex ratio will be maintained and the families will be happier.

While the Covid-19 has created a mess globally and has led to economic and mental problems for many. The economy has completely been shut down and there is a large-scale movement of people. The government should now look for how they can re-correct the things which were earlier impossible. Indian economy is a rural economy and if we can provide growth and development in our backward areas, we will step into a new world where India can lead as a superpower. The following are the ways in my opinion which are essential to boost our rural growth and development and should be a way forward post COVID.

1. Role of MSMEs:

MSME’s are the pillars of economic growth and development. They are labour-intensive units and account for the major share of industrial production and exports. With reverse migration, there are ample labourers in rural areas and the government can tap them and provide them with assistance so that they can restart their business and invest in boosting the skills to meet the changing needs of an economy. The Government needs to provide them access to credit and an enabling environment so that they can start and run smoothly.

2. Importance of Financial Inclusion

While there have been many schemes introduced by the current Modi Govt such as Jan Dhan Yojana and the JAM Trinity for achieving financial inclusion, the schemes have not been implemented and many rural families are unbanked. The Central and the local government have to ensure that the rural population has access to banks and finance and can have sufficient cash for carrying out their occupational activities. There is also a need to provide digital literacy to rural people and diminish the digital divide between rural and urban India.

3. Solving Infrastructural bottlenecks:

While the government has emphasized on the Atma-Nirbhar Bharat, to support the domestic industries, it does not imply we will focus any less on FDI. Because of various infrastructural bottlenecks in rural areas such as lack of access to electricity, proper roads, and technology, FDI generally comes in urban places and therefore gives rise to further inequality. To boost the rural economy, the government needs to address these bottlenecks and should promote domestic as well as foreign companies to invest in rural India.

4. MGNREGA and NABARD:

NABARD is a refinancing institution and provides finance for agriculture and rural development. The agriculture sector in India is unorganized and is subsistence in nature. The establishment of NABARD was a good step to boost the rural economy but the implementation part is very poor. It needs to ensure that the people get access to credit without difficulties for the promotion of agriculture, small scale industries, and handicrafts sector. MGNREGA is a social security employment act that guarantees employment to the poorest people in India. It also creates infrastructure development by providing employment for infrastructure creation. One of the aims was to curb the flight of rural labours to cities by providing jobs in rural areas, but the wages are quite low so the labours are attracted to the city job. There is also widespread corruption in its implementation. MGNREGA has the potential to provide economic and social relief for the rural people by addressing its drawback and the government at the local and central levels should work in coordination to address these concerns.

5. Improving Healthcare and Educational institutions:

There is a lack of private hospitals and schools in rural areas and to provide basic healthcare and education the government has to run them which is often lacking in terms of quality or basic amenities. Government schools are infrastructurally challenged, lack good teachers and academia due to which parents often send their children to cities for getting quality education in private schools. The percentage of GDP for healthcare and education is minimal and therefore it needs to be increased to provide the most basic needs to the people which is access to good quality education.

The primary healthcare in rural areas lack good doctors and has no advanced instrument and technologies due to which they often have to move to urban areas for quality treatment. The Government needs to ensure the availability of good doctors and basic healthcare technologies so that immediate treatment can be given to the poor people and reduce their distress and suffering.

While India is poised to reap the demographic dividend, our fertility rates are decreasing the young and skilled labour force is growing faster than the dependent population, freeing up resources to invest in people, technology and capital, withstanding the economic ravages of COVID-19 with public and private investment it should lead to rapid poverty reduction and there should be rise in the living standards and GDP. But to achieve this we have to work upon the multi-sectoral upgrade and valuable skill set of these people, they are mobile aspirational risk-takers and entrepreneurial – ideal for providing the Atma Nirbhar Bharat engine.