Table of Content

Sr No.

Particulars

Page no.

INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION INTRODUCTION

INTERNATIONAL LABOUR MIGRATION

THE BACKGROUND
3

INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION PROGRAM

INTERNATIONAL MIGRATION FROM INDEPENDENT

INDIA

INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR MIGRATION

CAUSES OF MIGRATION

10

DATA AND METHODS

12

IMPACT OF MIGRATION

15

EMPLOYMENT ORIENTED MIGRATION

17

10

TRENDS IN GLOBAL MIGRATION

19

11

EFFECTS OF MIGRATION

21

12

CONCLUSION

24

13

BIBLIOGRAPHY

25

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International Labour Migration

Introduction
International labour migration is defined as the movement of people from one country
to another for the purpose of employment. Today, an estimated 105 million persons are
working in a country other than their country of birth. Labour mobility has become a key
feature of globalization and the global economy with migrant workers earning US$ 440
billion in 2011, and the World Bank estimating that more than $350 billion of that total was
transferred to developing countries in the form of remittances. However, despite the efforts
made to ensure the protection of migrant workers, many remain vulnerable and assume
significant risks during the migration process.

International labour migration is defined as the movement of people from one country
to another for the purpose of employment. Today, an estimated 105 million persons are
working in a country other than their country of birth. Labour mobility has become a key
feature of globalization and the global economy with migrant workers earning US$ 440
billion in 2011, and the World Bank estimating that more than $350 billion of that total was
transferred to developing countries in the form of remittances. However, despite the efforts
made to ensure the protection of migrant workers, many remain vulnerable and assume
significant risks during the migration process.

When properly managed, labour migration has far-reaching potential for the migrants,
their communities, the countries of origin and destination, and for employers. While job
creation in the home country is the preferred option, demographic, social and economic
factors are increasingly the drivers of migration. As a result, a growing number of both
sending and receiving countries view international labour migration as an integral part of
their national development and employment strategies. On one hand, countries of origin
benefit from labour migration because it relieves unemployment pressures and contributes to
development through remittances, knowledge transfer, and the creation of business and trade
networks. On the other hand, for destination countries facing labour shortages, orderly and
well-managed labour migration can lighten labour scarcity and facilitate mobility.

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International migration occurs when peoples cross state boundaries and stay in the host
state for some minimum length of time. Migration occurs for many reasons. Many people
leave their home countries in order to look for economic opportunities in another country.
Others migrate to be with family members who have migrated or because of political
conditions in their countries. Education is another reason for international migration, as
students pursue their studies abroad. While there are several different potential systems for
categorizing international migrants, one system organizes them into nine groups: temporary
labour migrants; irregular, illegal, or undocumented migrants; highly skilled and business
migrants; refugees; asylum seekers; forced migration; family members; return migrants; and
long-term, low-skilled migrants. These migrants can also be divided into two large groups,
permanent and temporary. Permanent migrants intend to establish their permanent residence
in a new country and possibly obtain that countrys citizenship. Temporary migrants intend
only to stay for a limited periods of time; perhaps until the end of a particular program of
study or for the duration of a work contract or a certain work season. Both types of migrants
have a significant effect on the economies and societies of the chosen destination country and
the country of origin.

Similarly, the countries which receive these migrants are often grouped into four
categories: traditional settlement countries, European countries which encouraged labour
migration after World War II, European countries which receive a significant portion of their
immigrant populations from their former colonies, and countries which formerly were points
of emigration but have recently emerged as immigrant destinations.

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International Labour Migration The Background

Migration from one area to another in search of improved livelihoods is a key feature
of human history. While some regions and sectors fall behind in their capacity to support
populations, others move ahead and people migrate to access these emerging opportunities.
Industrialisation widens the gap between rural and urban areas, inducing a shift of the
workforce towards industrialising areas. There is extensive debate on the factors that cause
populations to shift, from those that emphasise individual rationality and household
behaviour to those that cite the structural logic of capitalist development.
Moreover, numerous studies show that the process of migration is influenced by
social, cultural and economic factors and outcomes can be vastly different for men and
women, for different groups and different locations. In the past few decades new patterns
have emerged, challenging old paradigms. First, there have been shifts of the workforce
towards the tertiary sector in both developed and developing countries. Secondly, in
developed countries, urban congestion and the growth of communication infrastructure has
slowed down urbanisation. Thirdly, in developing countries, the workforce shift towards the
secondary/tertiary sector has been slow and has been dominated by an expansion of the
informal sector, which has grown over time. In countries like India, permanent shifts of
population and workforce co-exist with the circulatory movement of populations between
lagging and developed regions and between rural and urban areas, mostly being absorbed in
the unorganised sector of the economy. Such movements show little sign of abating with
development. The sources of early migration flows were primarily agro-ecological, related to
population expansion to new settlements or to conquests (e.g. Eaton, 1984). There is
considerable information on patterns of migration during the British period.
Indian emigration abroad was one consequence of the abolition of slavery and the
demand for replacement labour. This was normally through indenture, a form of contract
labour whereby a person would bind himself for a specified period of service, usually four to
seven years in return for payment of their passage. They left for British, Dutch and French
colonies to work in sugar plantations and subsequently for the tea and rubber plantations of
Southeast Asia. Similar demands for labour rose internally with the growth of tea, coffee and
rubber plantations, coal mines and, later, modern industry. Much of this labour was procured
through some form of organised mediation and some portion of it remained circulatory and
retained strong links with the areas of origin. But as it settled down, it provided a bridgehead
to other migrants, whose numbers grew to satisfy colonial demand. Urban pockets like
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Kolkatta and Mumbai attracted rural labourers mainly from labour catchment areas like
Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Orissa in the east and Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and parts of
Kerala and Karnataka in the south. The historical pattern of the flow of labourers persisted
even after independence.
In 2001, Indias population exceeded 1 billion. At that time, 67.2% lived in rural areas
and 32.8% in towns and cities. Between 1951 and 2001, the proportion of the population
living in urban areas rose from 17.3% to 32.8%. Of the total workforce, 73.3% remained in
rural areas, declining marginally from 77.7% in 1991 and 79.3% in 1981; 58% remained
dependent upon agriculture.
In a country of Indias size, the existence of significant regional disparities should not
come as a surprise. The scale and growth of these disparities is, however, of concern. The
ratio between the highest to lowest state per capita incomes, represented by Punjab and Bihar
in the first period, and Maharashtra and Bihar in the second period, has increased from 2.6 in
198083 to 3.5 in 199700. The Planning Commission estimates that 26.1% of Indias
population lives below the poverty line (based on the controversial National Sample Survey
of 19992000). The rural poor has gradually concentrated in eastern India and rain fed parts
of central and western India, which continue to have low-productivity agriculture. In 1999
2000, the states with the highest poverty levels were: Orissa (47.2%), Bihar (41.2%), Madhya
Pradesh (37.4%), Assam(36.1%) and Uttar Pradesh (31.2%) Generally, Indias poor have
meagre physical assets and human capital and belong largely to socially deprived groups such
as scheduled castes (SC) and tribes (ST). Women share an extraordinary burden of
deprivation within households. The poor rely on different types of work to construct a
livelihood; wage labour and cultivation are the most important. Earlier studies have shown
that poor households participate extensively in migration. More recent studies have
reconfirmed that migration is a significant livelihood strategy for poor households in several
regions of India.

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International Migration Program

In this era of globalization, almost all countries in the world are involved in migration
as countries of origin, destination, or transitor all three. Of the several millions of people
living outside their countries of birth, the ILO estimates that almost 90 per cent are migrant
workers and their families. While international migration can be a positive experience for
migrant workers, many suffer poor working and living conditions, including low wages,
unsafe work environments, a virtual absence of the social safety net, denial of freedom of
association and workers rights, discrimination and xenophobia. Therefore, the ILO
approaches international labour migrationinternational migration undertaken for work
from a labour market and rights-based perspective with the intent to promote decent working
conditions for migrants as well as migrants labour and human rights.
As the UN specialized agency on labour issues, the ILO has been dealing with labour
migration since its foundation in 1919. The very Constitution of the ILO specifically
mandates the organization in its Preamble to give attention to the "protection of the interests
of workers when employed in countries other than their own". The International Migration
Branch (MIGRANT) is the main unit responsible for labour migration issues in the ILO.
MIGRANT promotes the ratification and implementation of international standards;
facilitates the participation of ILO's tripartite constituents in formulating and implementing
migration policy; provides advisory services and a forum for consultations; serves as a global
knowledge base on international labour migration; and conducts or coordinates various
projects to strengthen the capacity of ILO's tripartite constituents and other relevant partners
such as non-governmental organizations and migrants' associations, to deal with a wide range
of labour migration issues.

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International Migration From Independent India

In India, the migration of its labour force within and across its national boundaries is
nothing new. Indias geographical position has ensured contact with the Persian Gulf region
and South East Asian countries for trade in goods and movement of people, a contact which
goes back to several centuries. The migration of workers on a significant scale was, however,
to come much later. It began in the colonial era and continues now to independent India.
Migratory flow during the period of colonial domination was very much tied to the
investment interests of the colonial rulers and took place under their aegis. For instance a
great part of the nineteenth century and the early twentieth century witnessed a regular
migration of Indian workers as indentured labour for plantations or mines in the British
colonies; this migration was to faraway places such as Guyana, Jamaica and Fiji, to not sodistant lands such as Malaysia and Singapore and even to neighbouring countries such as Sri
Lanka and Burma.
Since Independence, two distinct types of labour migration have been taking place from
India.The first is characterized by a movement of persons with technical skills and
professional expertise to the industrialized countries like the United States, Britain and
Canada which began to proliferate in the early 1950s. The second type of migration pertains
to the flow of labour to the oil exporting countries of the Middle East which acquired
substantial dimensions after the dramatic oil price increases of 1973-74 and 1979. The nature
of this recent wave of migration is strikingly different, as an overwhelming proportion of
these migrants are in the category of unskilled workers and semi-skilled workers skilled in
manual or clerical occupations.

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International Organization For Migration

IOMs Vision
IOM strives to protect migrant workers and to optimize the benefits of labour migration for
both the country of origin and destination as well as for the migrants themselves.
IOMs Objectives
In its labour migration programming, IOM builds capacity in labour migration management
by:
offering policy and technical advice to national governments;
supporting the development of policies, legislation and administrative structures that promote
efficient, effective and transparent labour migration flows;
assisting governments to promote safe labour migration practices for their nationals;
facilitating the recruitment of workers, including pre-departure training and embarkation
preparedness;
Promoting the integration of labour migrants in their new workplace and society.

Principal Beneficiaries
IOM implements various labour migration programs in 70 countries. The beneficiaries of
these programs include:
migrants, their families and their communities;
local and national governments;
private sector entities such as employers and industry representatives; and
regional organizations.

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IOMs Approach
Through its global network of more than 440 offices, IOM is able to bring together
governments, civil society and the private sector to establish labour migration programs and
mechanisms that balance their various interests, and address migrants needs. The IOM
approach to international labour migration is to foster the synergies between labour migration
and development, and to promote legal avenues of labour migration as an alternative to
irregular migration. Moreover, IOM aims to facilitate the development of policies and
programs that are in the interest of migrants and society, providing effective protection and
assistance to labour migrants and their families.

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Causes of migration
Given the diversity in the nature of migration in India, the causes are also bound to
vary. Migration is influenced both by the pattern of development, and the social structure.
The National Commission on Rural Labour, focusing on seasonal migration, concluded that
uneven development was the main cause of seasonal migration. Along with inter regional
disparity, disparity between different socio economic classes and the development policy
adopted since independence has accelerated the process of seasonal migration. In tribal
regions, intrusion of outsiders, the pattern of settlement, displacement and deforestation, also
have played a significant role. Most migration literature makes a distinction between pull
and push factors, which, however, do not operate in isolation of one another. Mobility
occurs when workers in source areas lack suitable options for employment/livelihood, and
there is some expectation of improvement in circumstances through migration. The
improvement sought may be better employment or higher wages/incomes, but also
maximization of family employment or smoothing of employment/income/consumption over
the year At one end of the migration spectrum, workers could be locked into a debt-migration
cycle, where earnings from migration are used to repay debts incurred at home or in the
destination areas, thereby cementing the migration cycle. At the other end, migration is
largely voluntary, although shaped by their limited choices.
The NCRL has recognized the existence of this continuum for poor migrants by
distinguishing between rural labour migration for survival and for subsistence. The landless
poor, who mostly belong to lower caste, indigenous communities, from economically
backward regions, migrate for survival and constitute a significant proportion of seasonal
labour flow.The growth of intensive agriculture and commercialization of agriculture since
the late 1960s has led to peak periods of labour demand, often also coinciding with a decline
in local labour deployment. In the case of labour flows to the rice producing belt of West
Bengal, wage differentials between the source and destination have been considered as the
main reason for migration. Moreover, absence of non-farm employment, low agricultural
production has resulted in a growth of seasonal migration. Migration decisions are influenced
by both individual and household characteristics as well as the social matrix, which is best
captured in social-anthropological studies.

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Factors such as age, education level, wealth, land owned, productivity and job
opportunities influence the participation of individuals and households in migration, but so do
social attitudes and supporting social networks. Where migration is essentially involuntary, it
makes little sense to use voluntaristic models to explain the phenomenon. In Dhule region
sugarcane cultivation leads to high demand for labour, but landowners recruit labourers from
other districts for harvesting as they can have effective control over the labour. Local
labourers are thus forced to migrate with their households to South Gujarat.
Labour mobility is one of the key features of economic development and its
characteristics are closely tied with the nature of this development. Historically, development
is associated with unevenness and structural change, giving an impetus to the movement of
workers from one region to another, and from one sector to another. Even within the macrostructural features which determine the supply of, and demand for, certain types of migrant
labour, the pattern of migration depends on a host of factors determined by labour market
characteristics, together with individual, household and community level features, and the
existence of social networks, among other things. These factors cumulatively determine the
causes of migration. On the other hand, labour migration plays a key role in influencing the
pattern of development, through its impact on a host of economic and non-economic
variables, both in the origin and destination areas.
Labour migration does not recognize bordersbut borders, whether urban, state, or
international influence migration through a host of policies and regulatory measures. A key
distinction between internal and international migration is the existence of national regulatory
frameworks such as immigration controls (which leads to a distinction between regular and
irregular migration). But regulatory frameworks and restrictive policies also operate within
nation states.
Early development literature conceptualized labour migration as occurring from the
rural to urban, agricultural to industrial, and informal to formal sectors. However, the
workforce pattern has changed across the world in favour of the services sector, and the
informal sector is more prominent today, both in developing and developed countries than it
was twenty or thirty years ago. In developing countries, the informal sector is no longer
conceived as a temporary destination for migrants but in most cases, as a final destination.
The (changing) structural features of world capitalism have an important bearing on both
internal and international migration.

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The theme on labour migration will explore all types of labour migration-internal,
inter-state, cross-border and international. It will encourage cross disciplinary studies and
papers based on both fieldwork and secondary data.
We would welcome papers which explore not only economic issues but also historical,
political, sociological and psychological factors affecting labour migration and the
consequences of migration at more disaggregate levels, viz., for various socio-economic
strata and segments of the population and for women, men, the elderly and children
separately, wherever possible. The contributors should confine themselves to the issue of
worker migration, as conventionally defined in SNA accounts, and to leave out those types of
forced labour migration, which are not conventionally included in work but are covered in
international conventions on forced labour and trafficking. The paper contributors should not
be concerned with other forms of non-labour migration (such as refugee or student migration)
or with population mobility, which is important for an understanding urban growth.

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Data and methods

The paper uses data from Census of India 2001 as well as data from the National
Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) 55th Round on Migration. According to Indian Census,
a Person is considered a migrant if birthplace or place of last residence is different from Place
of enumeration. The National Sample Survey Organization of Government of India Carried
out an all-India survey on the situation of employment and unemployment in India during the
period July 1999-June 2000. This 55th Round Data was published in August 2001. In this
survey, data was collected on migrants as well. It defines a migrant as a member of the
sample household who had stayed continuously for at least six months or more in a place
other than the place of enumeration. It collects the reasons for leaving the last usual place of
residence under the following heads: (a) in search of employment (b) in search of better
employment (c) to take up employment/better employment (d) transfer of service/contract (e)
proximity to place of work (f) studies (g) acquisition of own house/flat (h) housing problems
(i) social/political problem (j) health (k) marriage (l) migration of parent/earning member of
the family and (m) others.
Migrant Category approvals by source country, 2008/09 - 2010/11

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Principal applicants aged 20-29 gain the maximum points (30 points) for age. This is
reflected in Figure 6.3 with 40 percent of principal applicants aged 20-29 and 37 percent aged
30-39 in 2010/11. The small proportion of principal applicants aged more than 50 years (5
percent) reflects the maximum age limit of 55 years under the SMC.

A simple analysis using vicariate tables has been carried out in the paper to bring out
the extent of employment oriented migration in India. Moreover, the paper also attempts to
study the difference between the stated reasons for migration and the labour force
participation, taking into account duration and educational qualification of the migrants.
Employment oriented migration.

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Impact of migration
On migrants and their families
Poorer migrant workers, crowded into the lower ends of the labour market, have few
entitlements visa their employers or the public authorities in the destination areas. They have
meagre personal assets and suffer a range of deprivations in the destination areas. In the
source areas, migration has both negative and positive consequences for migrants and their
families.
Living conditions: migrant labourers, whether agricultural or non-agricultural, live in
deplorable conditions. There is no provision of safe drinking water or hygienic sanitation.
Most live in open spaces or makeshift shelters in spite of the Contract Labour Act which
stipulates that the contractor or employer should provide suitable accommodation (NCRL,
1991; GVT, 2002; Rani and Shylendra, 2001). Apart from seasonal workers, workers who
migrate to the cities for job live in parks and pavements. Slum dwellers, who are mostly
migrants, stay in deplorable conditions, with inadequate water and bad drainage. Food costs
more for migrant workers who are not able to obtain temporary ration cards.
Health and Education: labourers working in harsh circumstances and living in unhygienic
conditions suffer from serious occupational health problems and are vulnerable to disease.
Those working in quarries, construction sites and mines suffer from various health hazards,
mostly lung diseases. As the employer does not follow safety measures, accidents are quite
frequent. Migrants cannot access various health and family care programmes due to their
temporary status. Free public health care facilities and programmes are not accessible to
them. For women workers, there is no provision of maternity leave, forcing them to resume
work almost immediately after childbirth. Workers, particularly those working in tile
factories and brick kilns suffer from occupational health hazards such as body ache, sunstroke
and skin irritation (NCRL, 1991).
Changes in migrants attitudes: Exposure to a different environment, including the
stresses that it carries, has a deep impact on the attitudes, habits and awareness levels of
migrant workers, depending upon the length of migration and the place to which it occurs.
Changes are more dramatic in the case of urban migrants. Migrant workers develop greater
awareness regarding conditions of work (Srivastava, 1999). Life style and changes in
awareness may lead to a mixed impact on family members. The increased awareness which
migrants, especially in urban areas, gain often helps them realise the importance of their
childrens education.
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Impact On Source Areas

The major impacts of migration on source areas occur through changes in the labour market,
income and assets, changes in the pattern of expenditure and investment.
Although seasonal outmigration potentially has the effect of smoothing out
employment over the annual cycle, rural outmigration could cause a tightening of the labour
market in some circumstances. However, empirical evidence from out-migrant areas does not
often attest to this. This may be because outmigration often takes place in labour surplus
situations. There is also evidence of the replacement of out-migrant male labour by female
and even child labour. Study of seven villages in Uttar Pradesh showed some variation over
regions. While the situation in the study villages in Eastern and central Uttar Pradesh
conformed to a situation of labour surplus, this was not the case in Western Uttar Pradesh
where seasonal migration coincided with the agricultural peak season (Rabi) and employers
complained of labour shortages. Significantly in all the regions studied, labourers on their
part gave uncertainty of employment along with employment conditions and poor relations
with their agricultural employers as the major reasons for outmigration.
Even if labour tightening is not an outcome, outmigration may still speed up
qualitative changes in existing labour relationships in rural areas, and thereby affect the pace
of change. This may occur in several ways. First, there is the well-documented impact of
migration on attitudes and awareness as migrant labourers and return migrants are more
reluctant to accept adverse employment conditions and low wages. Secondly, outmigration
leads to a more diversified livelihood strategy. Combined with some increase in the income
and employment portfolio of poor households, this may tend to push up acceptable level of
wages (reservation wages) in rural areas and may make certain forms of abour relationships
(as for example, those involving personalised dependency) less acceptable.
Outmigration as a result of debt at home, or debt-interlocking (i.e. the repayment of
debts through advance labour commitment) involving employers in the destination areas or
their middlemen, is quite common. Such outmigration may or may not eliminate the causes of
debt. The reduction of personalised dependencies or interlocked relationships may also
accelerate labour mobility and migration as labourers seek out alternative sources of cash
income.

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Employment oriented migration

Employment oriented migration is obtained by combining the migrants that have
given work/employment and business as their reason for migration. It is found that
employment oriented migration is quite small, particularly among female migrants with just
around 2 percent of total female migrants giving employment or business as the reason for
their migration.
Employment Oriented Migration (in %)

Total

Rural

Urban

Male

31.1

39.8

36.0

Female

1.9

1.7

3.3

Total

10.4

10.3

17.2

As shown by above Table, it is however clear that migration towards urban areas
are still more likely to be associated with employment oriented reasons. It is also seen that the
percentage of employment migration for males are quite high, whether it is rural-bound or
urban-bound migration. It is interesting to observe that out of the total rural-bound
Male migration, 40 percent have moved for work related reasons.

Labour Migration (% of migrants)

Employment oriented*
Total

Rural

Labour force participant

Urban

Total

Rural

Urban

Male

45.5

33.3

51.9

70.0

70.1

70.0

Female

2.2

1.4

3.5

26.0

31.9

15.8

Total

13.6

6.6

22.3

37.5

38.1

36.9

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Employment Oriented* : (a) in search of employment (b) in search of better employment (c)
to take up employment/better employment (d) transfer of service/contract (e) proximity to
place of work
Table gives the percentage of migrants who have given employment related reasons for
Migration vis--vis labour force participation by sex and rural urban status. Table gives the
percentage of migrants giving employment and related reasons for migration vis--vis the
labour force participation of the migrants. It is clearly seen from the table that nearly 46
percent of male migrants have reported employment related reasons as their motive behind
migration, while it is just above 2 percent of female migrants that have reported employment
and work related reason for their move.
Comparison with census figure in table, it is learnt that the sample survey data (7%) shows a
smaller percentage of employment oriented migrants in rural areas than the Census (10%).
This could be the result of the difference in the definition of migrants in the two data sources.
Circular migrants and temporary migrants could not be captured by the present dataset of the
NSSO.

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Trends in Global Migration

Mankind and migration have been linked to each other since the beginning of time; life
without migration could not be thought of. Migration has a history of its own, both at the
national and international levels. The mobility of capital and technology has indeed changed
the history of peoples. At the same time, migration has created a greater impact on history.
In India, the cultural ethos of the country has actually dissuaded people from going
abroad. There are myths and superstitions surrounding migration in almost every Indian
tradition. The fear of kala-pani, literally translated as black waters, which meant ostracism,
was a strong deterrent. Such myths were prevalent also in other ancient cultures like China
and Japan, preventing people from going abroad. For a variety of reasons, be it economic or
cultural or personal, the concept of we and they, and the notions of individual, intellectual
and spiritual pollution and the fear of consequent ostracism prevented people from leaving
their home soil until the advent of the Europeanswhich in turn stimulated an interest for
Indians to migrate overseas.
Characteristically, most of these migrants were poor, illiterate and unskilled. It was
supposed to be a voluntary system, but there are horror stories about coercion, and how these
people were picked up literally from the streets of their hometowns, collected at various
embarkation points, and forced to go to a foreign land, of which they knew nothing about.
Gender did not come in the way, and women picked up as indentured labour were made to
stay with men. Many were declared man and wife, and packed off to foreign destinations. All
said and done, this can be considered as a precursor to the global migration of Indians.
However, there is the problem of Indian embassies in most of these countries not being
very cooperative towards the migrant community. The embassies are not exactly attuned to
the needs of these people, nor are the officials always aware of their problems, their issues
and their needs be it in terms of their labour contracts, or the laws of the land. There is
greater room for the Indian embassies to play a more effective and cooperative role in this
context. Many a time, because of the indifference and the ignorance of the Indian missions in
these countries, the migrant workers are almost always at the mercy of the employers and the
laws that they adhere to. It is only in recent years that the Government is waking up to the
need for appointing a separate Labour Attach in the Indian embassies in these countries, to
cater to the demands of the workers, and to take care of their needs.

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In 2000, the high-powered Indian Diaspora Committee, chaired by the jurist, Dr.
L.M.Singhvi, recommended the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas celebrations on January 9 each year,
and also contributed to the setting up of a full-fledged Ministry for Overseas Indians at the
Centre. Following up on this report, the Prime Minter of the day announced the institution of
the Prabhasi Bharatia Samman awards in recognition of the contribution made by the Indian
Diaspora, to the nation. The report also raised major issues of concern to the Diaspora -- from
consular difficulties to larger and abiding issues pertaining to culture, economic development,
education, health, media, science and technology, philanthropy, and dual citizenship. Based
on carefully-gathered statistics on overseas Indians, the Singhvi Committee report is the first
ever-comprehensive statement of the Indian Diaspora, and provides a comprehensive
framework for discussing Indias relations with Indians overseas. Till now, these relations
had been discussed in a tentative and casual manner. The report is full of highly novel and
important practical suggestions, including special economic and political concessions to
overseas Indians all leading to effective NRI contribution to Indias economic, political,
cultural and other areas of development. The report will increase the general level of
consciousness in India about the countrys overseas connections, going back to several
centuries. We tend to think of ourselves as a people 7 whose history was made only in India.
The report shows how wrong this view is, and how PIOs are a part of the body politic in 119
countries
There is the possibility of migration from India growing in the coming years and decades.
The probability of a younger age population in India coupled with declining birth-rates in the
developed world leading to a labour shortage, be it unskilled, skilled or professional, are
among the causes. The interface between outsourcing, migration and growing social networks
are also contributory factors. There is also the factor of newer destinations, Japan, for
instance, emerging on the horizon. In this, the Indians abroad have transitioned from being
dependants to being dictators through their significant presence, positional clout and
numerical strength coupled with effective networking, and coordinated organisation. There is
now the Global Organization for the People of Indian Origin (GOPIO), which has set its
priorities in pooling resources, both financial and professional, for the benefit of PIOs, in the
countries they come from, and in India. In all this, India derives material support from the
Diaspora, and they derive psychological satisfaction of being a part of the Indian nationhood,
and in the process of crafting a resurgent India.

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Effects of Migration
Migration of labour has its positive as well as negative effects both on native and host
countries. We will examine these effects as under:
POSITIVE EFFECTS:
1. Wage Rate: Labourers usually migrate from low wage counties to higher wage nations.
Unless prevented or guarded by law, wages will change in both countries. Such an effect on
wages is brought out in Home country and foreign. It is also possible that over a period of
time real wages may increase both in host countries and native countries. A case study by
Jeffery G. Williams, of eight countries, host countries Argentina, Australia, Canada and
United States of America and native (home) countries Ireland, Italy, Norway and Sweden
between the period 1870 and 1913 has come to the conclusion that real wages during this
period had increased in all the countries, but substantially in the home countries.

2. Supply of labour: Developed countries like Canada, Australia, some European countries and
USA have experienced scarcity of skilled as well as unskilled labour. Many Asian doctors
and engineers, nurses and teachers are employed in developed countries. Unskilled labour
migrated from developing countries, provided labour to those areas where the native people
would not wish to take up the jobs. This is more evident in the so called dirty jobs. In USA
such jobs are taken up by labourers from Mexico, South American, Africa and Asia.

3. Employment: Migration takes place primarily in search of employment, to earn, more

income and to enjoy better quality of life. While enjoying these benefits in the host countries
the migrants at the disguised unemployment. In the early stages of large scale migration from
Europe to North America, it helped in mitigating population problem of European countries.

4. Remittance: Emigrants remit a part of their income back to their families in their native
country. Many of the European countries, Mexico and Asian countries have benefited from
the remittance of their emigrants. It helps the home countries reduce their balance of payment
problem or increase investment at home; import capital goods thus promote development of
their economies. Remittance would reduce over a period of time as the emigrants settle in the
migrated country along with their families. The size of the remittance depends on the number
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of emigrants from a country and the nature and duration of employment. Many countries
including India, offer additional incentives to the emigrants to remit and keep the money back
in their home country.
NEGATIVE EFFECTS
1. Brain Drain: Emigrants comprise people educated and trained at different levels. Majority of
the emigrants are of low education and unskilled. Emigrants also include highly educated
professionals such as doctors, engineers, professors and other technically and professionally
trained people. A good number of medical, engineering and management students from India
migrate to countries like USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Germany, France and to
some rich gulf countries. These students take the advantage of subsidised education financed
by tax payer money and leave the country when they become productive agents or labourers.
Ts is also argued that educated emigrants help the home countries when these countries rare
not in a position to employ them. Beside it also reduces the claim on goods and service of the
home country when labourers migrate.

2. Problem of social Integration: Immigrants in a country belong to different countries, race,

religion and culture. They form their own groups based on the above factors. In the initial
stages these groups live in ghettoes. Social assimilation with the people of the host country
becomes difficult. In USA, Canada and Australia or in countries dominated by white
coloured people, social integration becomes difficult due to colour complex. Religion is
another factor which makes immigrants identify with the host country where the majority
belong to another religion. Cultural differences also deter the process of integration specially
when each group develops a complex of cultural superiority. At times ethnic and religious
differences create a problem for the host country as it happens in UK and India.

3. Illegal Immigrants: It is a serious problem for many countries. USA has a large number of
illegal immigrants from Mexico. Similar problems are faced by Canada, Australia and some
of the European countries. Illegal migration to a neighbouring country is a common
occurrence due to political, economic, social and religious factors. India is facing such a
problem with illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

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4. Cheap Labour: Developed countries, specially organise labour through their Trade Union
oppose the liberal migration policy. They argue that the migrant labourers who are willing to
work at lower workers. However this argument does not merit serious consideration wage
rate in such economies is determined by market forces, Exploitation can be prevented through
minimum wage law, which also safeguards the interest of migrant labourers.

5. Fiscal Imbalance: Immigrants positively contribute to the growth of the host country. When
immigrants constitute in large numbers, the host country requires to spend huge amount of
capital to provide the required economic and social infrastructure. As they settle down
permanently, the government requires to spend for providing social security benefits.
Expenditure on all these counts may create fiscal imbalance in the form of increased
budgetary deficit.

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Conclusion
Migration has become a global phenomenon. As discussed earlier people migrate to
another country for a number of reasons of which economic and political are the important
ones. From our earlier explanation it is evident that migration has positive as well as negative
effects both on the host and native countries. In a globalised world, the number of migrants is
bound to increase. However in the larger interest of nations and people (migrants) involved it
is necessary to introduce measures so that the positive effects are maximised while the
negative ones are minimised if they cannot be totally eliminated.
The suggestions in this direction are to promote labour rights to immigrants. Allow the
migrant workers to join Trade Unions. Treat immigrants on the same level as those of
workers of host country. Safety conditions should be made applicable even if they are on
temporary work. Promote ethical recruitment. Prevent exploitation and discrimination.
Reform work permits schemes to reduce powers of employers. Legislate to prevent
employers from withholding migrant workers passport. Initiate international action to
regulate the activities of private recruitment agencies. All the countries should ratify 1990
UN convention on the protection of rights of all migrant workers and their families.

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Bibliography

www.google.com
www.iom.int
www.en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_migration
www.ilo.org ILO home Topics

Journal of Ethics and Migration Studies

Economics of global trade and finance Dr.G. Rajalakshmy

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