Marginal but Modern: Young Nepali Labour Migrants in India

Abstract

Migration to India has been one of the key livelihood strategies amongst marginal households in the middle hills of Nepal. Based on an ethnographic fieldwork in western and far-western hill villages in Nepal, including tracing the experience of young men who take on adult responsibility to travel to find work opportunities in Mumbai and Nainital town in India, this article discusses how the steady flow of marginal migrants from the middle hills is shaped and sustained by gendered and generational considerations. An intriguing aspect of young migrants' life in India is their participation in consumption of modern commodities despite their marginal position and difficult working condition.

The Impact of Spousal Migration on the Mental Health of Nepali Women: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Finally, out-migration is a historically common social phenomenon of Nepali societies to generate household income. Seasonal cross-border migration to India for work dates back two centuries [4] and there has been migration out-flux to the countries of GCC and Malaysia since the 2000s [3]. It is plausible that participants could have witnessed or experienced the impact of male migration even before marriage and possibly could be prepared to tackle consequent social and psychological effects from their husband's migration.…”

“…The Ministry of Labour has issued labour permits for 3.5 million Nepali between 2008/09 to 2016/17, of which 86.4% were for Malaysia and the Middle East [3]. It is estimated that an additional one million Nepali work in India as temporary migrants who do not require a labour permit due to the free movement treaty between India and Nepal [4]. The economic contribution of Nepali migrants to the country is highly significant.…”

Migration by Necessity and by Force to Mountain Areas: An Opportunity for Social Innovation

“…Some of the former numerous industrial districts (sistemi industriali locali) in the valleys of the Italian Alps have survived the European deindustrialization (Sega 2017) and attracted foreign workers from the manufacturing sector, for example, Chinese quarry workers who immigrated to the Italian Piedmont (Dematteis 2010). Processes of labor migration can be seen also in other mountain areas of Europe (Sol e et al 2014) as well as in Asia, for example, from Nepal to Indian resort towns as south-to-south migration (Sharma 2013). These migrants are often referred to pejoratively as economic migrants, although they see themselves as forced to migrate by poverty, deteriorating environmental conditions, or destruction of petty trade during conflict (Altai-Consulting and IMPACT-Initiatives, 2017).…”

Marginalised Dalits in International Labour Migration: Reconfiguring Economic and Social Relations in Nepal

“…In examining overseas migration, scholars have considered remittances (Seddon, Adhikari, and Gurung 2002;Thieme and Wyss 2005), gender relations (Kaspar 2005), and livelihoods (Poertner, Junginger, and Müller-Böker 2011). Despite reported practical challenges to the studies of Dalits, for instance, the miserable conditions of Dalits, 'repulsive' surroundings and 'social stigma' (Cameron 1998, 37;Moffatt 1979;Tingey 1994), there is a break in the paucity of studies as Dalit issues have been taken up in some recent research undertakings (Adhikari and Hobley 2013;Pariyar 2011;Sharma 2013). Yet, Dalits have received little attention as a subject of the main focus in the international migration scholarship.…”

“…Over 1700 Nepalis leave the country daily for work mainly in the Gulf countries and Malaysia to improve their livelihoods back home. This new wave of international labour migration has established new transnational links, connecting very distant nations, economies and cultures (Sharma 2013). In the recent years, Dalits 1 have also engaged in international labour migration for 'breaking old social and economic relations' (Adhikari and Hobley 2013, 67).…”