Abstract
This presentation is from a study that attempts to understand the process of rural-urban migration, that is, the movement of workers away from agriculture towards industry. The process of industrialisation is expected to draw workers, who would otherwise be in agriculture, to industry as industry is seen as being both more productive and remunerative. This study attempts to understand the extent to which benefits of industrial growth are transmitted to the rural poor through the process of migration. The study is based on a survey of migrant workers in Ludhiana, a well-known vibrant industrial city in Punjab with several industrial clusters. The survey, conducted in 2012, covered 480 workers employed in diverse industries such as hosiery, garments, bicycle manufacture, automobile components, iron and steel (production and rolling of steel and forging) and the construction sector. Besides examining in some detail the conditions of work and terms of employment of migrant industrial workers, the study is focused on the process of migration and workers’ ties with their village. The issues examined are processes related to migration such as direct and step migration, types of migration including seasonal migration, process of skill acquisition of rural workers with agricultural backgrounds and so on. The nature of workers’ ties with their village is also examined to fully appreciate the migration story. An important finding of the study is that migrant workers continue to keep strong links with the village. Further, all indications are that a typical worker returns to the village at the end of his or her work life thus leading to what we call a process of “incomplete urbanisation”.
Bio note
Jesim Pais is currently at the Institute for Studies in Industrial Development (ISID), Delhi. His PhD is from the Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR), Mumbai. Jesim Pais has a graduate degree in Mechanical Engineering from University of Mysore. He has previously worked at the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata.
His general research interests are in the areas of industry and employment. Specifically he is interested in issues related to labour productivity, wage rates and minimum wages, work place and working conditions. He is currently working on two sets of issues. The first is on agriculture-industry linkages and the second on understanding the services sector in India. His recent research work has been on Labour and Industry Regulations; the Informal Sector and the Unorganised Sector (employment and enterprises); Small- scale industrialisation; Linkages between the formal and informal sectors; between large and small industry and between the State and informal enterprises. Besides this, he has also attempted a small and interesting study in behavioural economics. Besides he has taught at the face-to-face programme of the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) at the master’s level.