(iii) What is the impact of rural-urban migration on the age and sex structure of the place of origin and destination?
Answer
Young males migrate from rural area migrate to urban places in search of employment thus, number of young males reduced in rural areas and increased in urban areas. The number of females, children and old people increased in rural areas.
3. Answer the following questions in about 150 words.
(i) Discuss the consequences of international migration in India.
Answer
The consequences of international migration in India are:
• A major benefit for the source region is the remittance sent by migrants. Remittances from the international migrants are one of the major sources of foreign exchange. These are mainly used for food, repayment of debts, treatment, marriages, children’s education, agricultural inputs, construction of houses, etc.
• The loss of human resources particularly highly skilled people is the most serious cost. The market for advanced skills has become truly a global market and the most dynamic industrial economies are
admitting and recruiting significant proportions of the highly trained professionals from poor regions.
• The illegal migration from neighboring countries of India caused population explosion and laid great stress on the available resources.
(ii) What are the socio-demographic consequences of migration?
Answer
Social Consequences:
• Migration leads to intermixing of people from diverse cultures.
• It has positive contribution such as evolution of composite culture and breaking through the narrow
considerations and widens up the mental horizon of the people at large.
• But it also has serious negative consequences such as anonimity, which creates social vacuum and
sense of dejection among individuals.
• Continued feeling of dejection may motivate people to fall in the trap of anti-social activities
like crime and drug abuse.
Demographic Consequences:
• Migration leads to the redistribution of the population within a country.
• Rural urban migration is one of the important factors contributing to the population growth of cities.
• Age and skill selective out migration from the rural area have adverse effect on the rural demographic structure.
• However, high out migration from Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Eastern Maharashtra have brought serious imbalances in age and sex composition in these states.
Short Answer Type Questions.
Question 1.
Define migration. What are the bases of enumeration?
Answer:3
Migration is the movement of people from one place to another in search of better opportunities with an intention to settle. In the Census of India migration is enumerated on two bases:
- Place of birth: If the place of birth is different from the place of enumeration (known as life-time migrant);
- Place of residence: If the place of last residence is different from the place of enumeration (known as migrant by place of last residence).
Question 2.
What are the causes of migration?
Answer:
People leave their place of birth and residence for better opportunities in order to settle with or without family. The reason for movement can be categorized into two factors: Push factors and Pull factors. Push factor force the people to leave their place of origin while the pull factors attract people from different places to settle there. Pull factors are dominant in place of destination while push factors are dominant in place of origin.
Question 3.
Write a note on spatial migration within India.
Answer:
In India there is a wide spatial variation in migration. Some states like Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat and Haryana attract migrants from other states such as Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, etc. Maharashtra occupied first place in the list with 2.3 million net in migrants, followed by Delhi, Gujarat and Haryana. On the other hand, Uttar Pradesh (-2.6 million) and Bihar (-1.7 million) were the states, which had the largest number of net out-migrants from the state.
Among the urban agglomeration (UA), Greater Mumbai received the higher number of in migrants. Intra-states migration constituted the largest share in it. These differences are largely due to the size of the state in which these urban agglomeration are located.
Question 4.
What are the streams of migration? Why is it important?
Answer:
Migration can be permanent, temporary or seasonal. There are generally four streams of migration.
- Rural to rural
- Rural to urban
- Urban to rural
- Urban to urban
Migration is important because it is a spontaneous effort to attain a better balance between resources and population. There are push and pull factors working together behind migration.
Question 5.
Statistics were collected on migration since first survey but many modifications have been introduced since then. Explain.
Answer:
Actually migration was recorded from the very beginning of the first Census of India conducted in 1881. The data were recorded on the basis of place of birth. However, there have been many modifications since then.
- The first major modification was introduced in 1961 Census by bringing in two additional components viz place of birth, i.e. village or town and duration of residence (if born else where).
- Further in 1971, additional information on place of last residence and duration of stay at the place of enumeration were incorporated.
- Information on reasons for migration were incorporated in 1981 Census and modified in consecutive Censuses.
Question 6.
Which urban agglomeration of India has the highest share of migrant population? Why?
Answer:
Greater Mumbai has the highest share of migrant population. It is due to following reasons:
- More employment opportunities.
- Urbanization and industrialization.
- Relatively higher wages.
- Better educational facilities.
- Other civic amenities.
Long Answer Type Questions
Question 1.
Why do people migrate?
OR
Explain the factors behind migration.
Answer:
People migrate to places different from their origin for a variety of reasons.
Push factors: Those factors which make the place of origin seem less attractive are called push factors. The factors of unemployment, poor living conditions, political turmoil, unpleasant climate, natural disasters, epidemics and social-economic backwardness.
Pull factors: Those factors which make the place of destination seem more attractive than the place of origin are called pull factors. The place of destination provides better job opportunities and living conditions, peace and stability, security of life and property and pleasant climate.
The reason for migration of males and females are different. For example, work and employment have remained the main cause for male migration (38 per cent) while it is only three per cent for the females. Contrary to this, about 65 per cent of females move out from their parental houses following their marriage. This is the most important cause in the rural areas of India except in Meghalaya where reverse is the case. In comparison to these marriage migration of the male, is only 2 per cent in the country.
Question 2.
What are the consequences of migration?
Answer:
Migration is a response to the uneven distribution of opportunities over space. People tend to move from place of low opportunity and low safety to the place of higher opportunity and better safety. Consequently it can be observed in economic, social, cultural, political and demographic terms.
Economic Consequences: A major benefit for the source region is the remittance sent by migrants. Remittances from the international migrants are one of the major sources of foreign exchange. Punjab, Kerala and Tamil Nadu receive very significant amount from their international migrants. The amount of remittance sent by the internal migrants is very meagre as compared to international
migrants, but it plays an important role in the growth of economy of the source area. Remittances are mainly used for food, repayment of debts, treatment, marriages, children’s education, agricultural inputs, construction of houses, etc. Unregulated migration to the metropolitan cities of India has caused overcrowding.
Development of slums in industrially developed states such as Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Delhi is a negative consequence of unregulated migration within the country. Demographic Consequences: Migration leads to the redistribution of the population within a countify. Rural urban migration is one of the important factors contributing to the population growth of cities. Age and skill selective out migration from the rural area have adverse effect on the rural demographic structure leading to serious imbalances in age and sex composition.
Social Consequences: Migrants act as agents of social change. The new ideas related to new technologies, family planning, girl’s education, etc. get diffused from urban to rural areas through them. Migration leads to intermixing of people from diverse cultures. It widens up the mental horizon of the people. But it also has serious negative consequences such as anonymity, which creates social vacuum and sense of dejection among individuals. Continued feeling of dejection may motivate people to fall in the trap of anti-social activities like crime and drug abuse.
Environmental Consequences: Over crowding of people due to rural-urban migration has put pressure on the existing social and physical infrastructure in the urban areas. This ultimately leads to unplanned growth of urban settlement and formation of slums shanty colonies. Due to over-exploitation of natural resources, cities are facing the acute problem of depletion of ground water, air pollution, disposal of sewage and management of solid wastes.
Others: Migration (even excluding the marriage migration) affects the status of women directly or indirectly. In the rural areas, male selective out migration leaving their wives behind puts extra physical as well mental pressure on the women. Migration of ‘women’ either for education or employment enhances their autonomy and role in the economy but also increases their vulnerability.
If remittances are the major benefits of migration from the point of view of the source region, the loss of human resources particularly highly skilled people is the most serious cost. The market for advanced skills has become truly a global market and the most dynamic industrial economies are admitting and recruiting significant proportions of the highly trained professionals from poor regions. Consequently, the existing underdevelopment in the source region gets reinforced.
Question 3.
What description is found in Indian diaspora? What are its implications?
Answer:
- First wave: During colonial period, millions of the indentured labourers were sent to Mauritius, Caribbean islands, Fiji and South Africa by British from U.P. and Bihar to work as plantation workers. All such migrations were covered under the time bound contract known as Girmit Act (Indian Migration Act). The living conditions of these labourers were not better than the slaves.
- Second wave: The millions of profess -ionals, artisans, traders and factory workers in search of economic opportunities migrated to Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Brunei and African countries. It led to steady outflow of India’s skilled and semi-skilled labourers in the wake of oil-boom in West Asia in 1970s. There was also some outflow of entrepreneurs, store owners, professionals and businessmen to Western countries.
- Third wave: It comprises professionals like doctors, engineers, software engineers, management consultant, financial experts, media persons to countries such as the USA Canada, UK, Australia, New Zealand and Germany. These professionals enjoy distinction of being highly educated and the highest earning and prospering groups.
Implications:
- Brain-drain: The highly qualified and skilled people are moving out of the country leaving unskilled and illiterate stuff for domestic economy. It has created scarcity of qualified manpower.
- Indian diaspora is playing an important role in the development of the countries of destination.
Question 4.
What are economic consequences of migration?
Answer:
Economic Consequences:
- A major benefit for the source region is the remittance sent by migrants. Remittances from the international migrants are one of the major sources of foreign exchange.
- In 2002, India received US$ 11 billion as remittances from international migrants.
- Punjab, Kerala and Tamil Nadu receive very significant amount from their international migrants.
- The amount of remittances sent by the internal migrants is very meagre in comparison to international migrants. But it plays an important role in the growth of economy of the source area. Remittances are mainly used for food, repayment of debts, treatment, marriages, children’s education, agricultural inputs, construction of houses, etc.
- For thousands of the poor villages of Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, etc. remittance works as life blood for their economy.
- Migration from rural areas of Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha to the rural areas of Punjab, Haryana, Western Uttar Pradesh accounted for the success of their green revolution strategy for agricultural development.
- Apart from this, unregulated migration to the metropolitan cities of India has caused overcrowding. Development of slums in industrially developed states such as Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Delhi is a negative consequence of unregulated migration within the country.