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Labour Migration to the Construction Sector in India and its Impact on Rural Poverty

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  • Ravi Srivastava
  • Rajib Sutradhar

Abstract

The present article studies the impact of migration to the construction sector on rural poverty in India based on field survey. The survey has been carried out in two phases, the first phase involving the survey of construction workers in National Capital Region and the second phase comparing the well-being of migrant households with non migrant households in selected source villages. The study finds that at destination, workers have poor living and working conditions, lack citizenship rights, entitlements and voice. However, at the cost of hardship, low consumption levels, and possibly a smaller working life span, they manage to save a good portion of their income which they remit or take back home. At origin, migrant households report higher expenditure on consumption, residential housing, and children’s education, as well as some other assets. These differences are a result of higher employment and wage incomes among migrants. However, we were not able to control for differences in initial conditions, and life cycle and other issues, which influence both participation in migration, as well as long-term impacts.

Suggested Citation

  • Ravi Srivastava & Rajib Sutradhar, 2016. "Labour Migration to the Construction Sector in India and its Impact on Rural Poverty," Indian Journal of Human Development, , vol. 10(1), pages 27-48, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:inddev:v:10:y:2016:i:1:p:27-48
    DOI: 10.1177/0973703016648028
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    1. David Mosse & Sanjeev Gupta & Mona Mehta & Vidya Shah & Julia fnms Rees & KRIBP Project Team, 2002. "Brokered livelihoods: Debt, Labour Migration and Development in Tribal Western India," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(5), pages 59-88.
    2. Ben Rogaly & Daniel Coppard & Abdur Safique & Kumar Rana & Amrita Sengupta & Jhuma Biswas, 2002. "Seasonal Migration and Welfare/Illfare in Eastern India: A Social Analysis," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(5), pages 89-114.
    3. Kundu, Amitabh, 2009. "Urbanisation and Migration: An Analysis of Trends, Patterns and Policies in Asia," MPRA Paper 19197, University Library of Munich, Germany.
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    1. Afsal Kalangadan & Muhammad Thalil & Muhammad Rishad & Reshmi Ramachandran Sukumari, 2024. "Standard of Living of Migrant and Non-Migrant Households in Kerala: a Comparative Study Based on Migration Survey 2018," SAGE Open, , vol. 14(3), pages 21582440241, September.
    2. Zovanga L Kone & Maggie Y Liu & Aaditya Mattoo & Caglar Ozden & Siddharth Sharma, 2018. "Internal borders and migration in India," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 18(4), pages 729-759.
    3. Md. Selim Reja, 2022. "Out-Migration of Muslim Youth from Rural West Bengal to Other States in India: Reasons and Role of Social Networks," The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Springer;The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), vol. 65(4), pages 1137-1154, December.
    4. Sudipta Sarkar, 2021. "Indian Construction Industry: Employment Conditions of Migrant Male Workers of Uttar Dinajpur, West Bengal," The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Springer;The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), vol. 64(2), pages 461-484, June.
    5. S. Irudaya Rajan & P. Sivakumar & Aditya Srinivasan, 2020. "The COVID-19 Pandemic and Internal Labour Migration in India: A ‘Crisis of Mobility’," The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Springer;The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), vol. 63(4), pages 1021-1039, December.
    6. Margubur Rahaman & Avijit Roy & Pradip Chouhan & Kailash Chandra Das & Md Juel Rana, 2021. "Risk of COVID-19 Transmission and Livelihood Challenges of Stranded Migrant Labourers during Lockdown in India," The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Springer;The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), vol. 64(3), pages 787-802, September.
    7. Bhan, Tanushree & Patel, Amit, 2023. "Migration and health: Exploring the effect of destinations on the health outcomes among rural-urban migrants in India," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 331(C).
    8. Leena Bhattacharya, 2019. "Short-Term Migration and Children’s School Attendance: Evidence from Rural India," The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Springer;The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), vol. 62(4), pages 659-691, December.
    9. Puja Krishna & Aditya Raj, 2022. "Health Condition of Internal Migrants in India: A Review," Indian Journal of Human Development, , vol. 16(1), pages 169-179, April.
    10. Deepak K. Mishra, 2020. "Seasonal Migration and Unfree Labour in Globalising India: Insights from Field Surveys in Odisha," The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Springer;The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), vol. 63(4), pages 1087-1106, December.
    11. Ravi Srivastava, 2019. "Emerging Dynamics of Labour Market Inequality in India: Migration, Informality, Segmentation and Social Discrimination," The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Springer;The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), vol. 62(2), pages 147-171, June.

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