CONDITIONS OF WORK AND POLITICAL CONSCIOUSNESS AMONG MIGRANT DAILY WAGE WORKERS: A Study of Three States

Description

Migration is a central part of India society today. However, despite the importance of migration to India’s economy, and an increasing number of studies and media reports, the debate around migration in the country has remained conceptually limited.

In this study, our focus is on addressing two lacunae: the geographical limitaions of prior literature and the lack of attention to migrants’ own political consciousness. Our study covered three field areas – one urban conglomeration where migration has already been studied to some degree, namely Delhi; and two areas where migration has received almist no academic attention, namely the city of Dehradun in Uttarakhand and the districts of Coimbatore and Nilgiris in Tamil Nadu. In all three areas we sought to examine both primary and secondary data to understand both the working conditions of migrations and the political dynamics that develop around them.

Shankar Gopalakrishnanis a researcher and activist based in Dehradun, Uttarakhand. He has written extensively on issues of development, political econmy, workers’ rights, and contemporary politics.

Trepan Singh Chauhanis a well-known Hindi writer and literary figure based in Dehradun. He has been associated with research, policy and social change work in Uttarakhand for decades.

Ramendra Kumaris based in Delhi and is well known for his decades-long involvement in policy and social discussions and change efforts in the capital city.

M.S. Selvarajis based in Coimbatore, TN and has both worked on and written extensively (primarily in Tamil) on a range of social issues, from resource rights to agriculture to workers issues.