SOCIO-ECONOMIC IMPACT OF MIGRATION- A STUDY WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO KUTTANADU TALUK ANDREWS T 1 MANOJ XAVIER 2 1 Assistant Professor, Department of Commerce and Centre for Research, Bishop Abraham Memorial College, Thuruthicad, Mallappally 2 Lecturer, Research and Post Graduate Department of Commerce, St. Aloysius College, Edathua, ABSTRACT Kerala. Migration has been the single most dynamic factors in the development scenario of Kerala in the last quarter of the 20 th century. Indian labour migration to west Asia, especially to the oil exporting countries of the gulf began on a large scale in the mid 1970s. The total foreign remittance to Kerala, mainly from those working in Gulf countries, stood at Rs 72,680 crore in 2013-14, according to a survey by the Centre for Development Studies. It said this amount was about 46 per cent higher than the remittance in 2010-11, when the CDS last conducted a similar exercise. Key Words: Emigration, Migrants, Kerala. Introduction INTERCONTINENTAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE RESEARCH REVIEW Migration is an important factor in the development of Kerala economy. The role of migration in the development of Kerala economy is well accepted. So the study of migration has been accepted as a special item and which will explain how the economy of the country is developing through migration. Migration has traditionally been considered as a theoretical aberration. A person chooses to migrate, because of lack of opportunities at home, and he returns home, when he is able to earn sufficiently. According to the early economics, migration has been considered as an effect of a distortion in development policy, which needs to be corrected. Migration has been the single most dynamic factors in the development scenario of Kerala in the last quarter of the 20 th century. Indian labour migration to west Asia, especially to the oil exporting countries of the gulf began on a large scale in the mid 1970s. The volume of migrants increased rapidly from 154418 in 75 to1505000 in 91. But recent studies show that nearly 1.5 million Keralites now live outside India. They send home more than Rs.4000 million a year by way of remittances. There were 8 countries which accounted for more than 95% of the Indian migrants to West Asia. These countries were Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Oman, Saudi Arabia and us. It was found that the size of migrants continued to increase in the case of Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE. The total workers are now estimated to be around 2 million in the case of gulf countries. Human right in the broadest sense means a change in the spatial distribution of population. Migration studies generally make distinction between push and pull factors operating behind such population movements. Population movements across national boundaries are referred to as international migration. One noteworthy aspect of the international migration in recent decades is the systematic transfer of large number of labour on a temporary basis from developing countries to developed and capital developing countries. This temporary character has no implications. www.icmrr.org 55 icmrrjournal@gmail.com
Migration in Kerala Migration has been the single most dynamic factor in the development scenario of Kerala in the last quarter of the last century. Migration has contributed more to poverty alleviation and reduction in the unemployment than any other factor. As a result of migration, the proportion of population under poverty line has declined by 12%. Kerala is becoming too much dependant on migration for employment, housing, house hold amenities, institution building and many other developmental activities. Statement of the Problem Development of a particular country is characterized by several factors namely social and economic infrastructure, population, foreign remittances etc. of these foreign remittances plays an important role. Foreign remittances help to develop any region or any country than any other factor. Foreign remittances help to improve the socio cultural standard of any country. A country may be developing either from its own resources or by way of borrowing from other countries. Any region of a country is developing with the combined efforts of the factors of production and the development potentials available to that region. In Kuttanadu Taluk the rate of foreign remittances available is higher. Even though there is large amount of foreign remittance in Kuttanadu Taluk, there is no adequate development is taken place in this particular region. Since there is no region wise study is conducted on the topic economic and social impact of migration, I took this region as the topic of my study. The total foreign remittance to Kerala, mainly from those working in Gulf countries, stood at Rs 72,680 crore in 2013-14, according to a survey by the Centre for Development Studies. It said this amount was about 46 per cent higher than the remittance in 2010-11, when the CDS last conducted a similar exercise. Factors Affecting Migration No one will ordinarily like to leave the place of his birth, if friends as well as his kids unless it is absolutely necessary. Yet people from all parts of the world migrate from one country to the other. Sometimes many factors combined together also compel a person to migrate. These factors can be both pull as well as push factors. Pull factors include better education, health, leisure etc. push factors include loss of job accommodation, death of a kin etc. some of the important factors, which are usually responsible for migration, are briefly discussed below: 1. Economic Factors Economic factors are the most important factor in so far as migration concerned. People leave their place, district, state or even country in search of acquiring better economic opportunities. Usually hill people come to plains only in search of plains. Similarly people go from East to West to earn money for themselves as well as for families. It is because West is more industrialized and needs man power of all mankind. Another economic factor responsible for the migration is low per acre yield from the agriculture field, which does not provide sufficient livelihood to the masses. This has become more important in agriculture society. Even in India some states which have uncultivated surplus land invites people from other states which have less land to come and settle and cultivate their land. Of course people who migrate for getting land always see to it that sufficient water and other facilities are available for cultivating land. www.icmrr.org 56 icmrrjournal@gmail.com
2. Geographical Factors Geographical factors considerably help n the migration process. People migrate to places where there is better climate or where minerals are found in abundance. Similarly people do not wish to live at places where the chances of floods and fire are quite frequent. People wish to settle in places, which are comparatively safe and climatically attractive. 3. Social Factors This is an important factor affecting migration process. People leave the place where social barriers are very rigid and do not allow proper development and when social factors are rather unavoidable. The educated and awakened raises their voice against social evils like child marriage, dowry, drinking habits etc. They are resisted by the old orthodox and when young ones find that they are not adjusting on those lines they decide to migrate. 4. Demographic Factors It also goes a long way in deciding in favor of migration. The people from such areas where density of population is more wish to migrate to areas where it is less. Some people migrate where male specific birth rate is high and vice versa. 5. Political Factors These factors play an important role in migration. Some people do not tolerate totalitarian regimes and leave their country to raise protest against the system. In some cases people leave their country when there is a fear of war or when the government of the day has failed to check inflation, price rise of fail maintain security, law and order etc. 6. Religious Factors People migrate to new places when there is religious in toleration and those in position do not allow other than their own religion to function. Similarly in some cases people migrate to religious places where they find religion of their belief is followed. 7. Industrialization Industrialization results both in local as well as out-side migration. Regions which get industrialized receive many migrants who leave their native homes to permanently settle down in newly rising industrial towns and cities. New industrial town attract both skilled, semi skilled workers and moneyed people for making investments. In many cases even agricultural workers leave their ancestral lands to find some employment in industrially developed towns and cities. Causes and Characteristics of Migration One important aspect of migration, which has received maximum attention, pertains to the question who migrates and why? In general migratory movements are caused but economic, social and political conditions prevailing in the areas of immigration and emigration. Studies have shown that migrants strive to enhance their existing economic position and as such, are drawn towards regions where economic opportunities and remunerations appear to be higher. Migration especially across the countries is viewed as the consequence of individual decision to accumulate wealth. In case of rural to urban migration, studies have shown that people mostly move out of their villages due to decreased www.icmrr.org 57 icmrrjournal@gmail.com
availability of land, unemployment and under employment. Migration is thus, a bimodal pattern wherein the poor migrate as part of survival strategy while the rich do so for better economic pursuits. Among the factors some studies cite population as one of the major cause for internal migration. The rapid industrialization and urbanization taking place in developing countries also results in large scale rural out migration. Sometimes irrigation and improved agricultural facility in a particular region caused in-migration and settlements. Studies also point out that migration is influenced by the presence of relatives and friends at the place of destination. A Country may be developing either from its own resources or by way of borrowing from other countries. The borrowing leads to an obligation to repay the amount persuade them to migrate to other countries. Any region of a country is developing with the combined efforts of the factors of production and the development potentials available to that region. Table 1: Districts Wise Migrants, Immigrants from Abroad Sl No. Districts Number of Emigrants 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Thiruvanamthapuram Kollam Pathanamthitta Alappuzha Kottyam Idukki Ernakulam Thrissur Palakkad Malappuram Kozhikode 106728 123285 109139 90723 75953 19769 78470 149202 100451 245850 138875 12 13 14 Wayanad Kannur Kasargode 12385 122856 50968 Source: Report of Department of Economics and Statistics, Kerala 2013 The table shows that the Malappuram district stand first in emigration to various countries in 2013 and Wayanad district stands the lowest position in migration from Kerala. www.icmrr.org 58 icmrrjournal@gmail.com
Objectives of the Study The broad objective of the study is to analyze the economic impact of gulf migration. The other main objectives are 1. To estimate the expenditure pattern of the migrants 2. To estimate the investment pattern of the migrants 3. To estimate the standard of living of the migrant Methodology of the Study Methodology is a way to systematically solve the research problem. It may be understand as a science of studying how research is done scientifically. Research methodology is a step by step study of a problem. The methodology of our study is classified under two heads: 1. Primary Data: It includes the information collected through a. Structured questionnaire b. Personal interview with the respondents c. Observation 2. Secondary Data: It includes a. Internet b. Books c. News Papers Method and Tools of Analysis Data collected is analyzed manually with the help of tables, charts and graphs. The data were organized, edited, tabulated and analyzed using simple mathematical tools such as percentage analysis, composite indices etc. Sample unit: The selections of sample were made randomly from the locality of Kuttanadu Taluk of Alleppey District Sample Area: The study is limited to Kuttanadu Taluk of Alleppey District. Sample size: 150 respondents Period of the study: The study covers almost four months from June 2015 to September 2015. www.icmrr.org 59 icmrrjournal@gmail.com
General Terms and Concept The meaning of terms and concepts used in the study of migration are distinct from those used in common parlance. It is customary to study migration with respect to (a) Internal migration (b) International migration. Internal migration is the migration of persons within a country, while international migrate on refers to the movement of people from one country to another. The UN Multilingual Demography Dictionary defines migration as follows, Migration is a form of geographical mobility between one geographical unit and another, generally involving a change in residence from the place of origin or place or departure to the place of arrival such migration is called permanent migration and should be distinguished from other forms of movement which do not involve a permanent change of residence. Immigration and Emigration The term immigration and emigration refers respectively to movement into or out of a particular territory, and are used only in connection with international migration. Thus migrants leaving India to settle down in the USA are immigrants to the USA and emigrants to India. In-migration and Out-migration In migration refers to movement into a particular area, both referring to movements within a country that is internal migration. Thus migrants who come from Tamilnadu to Maharashtra are considered to be in-migrants for Maharashtra and out-migrants for Tamilnadu. Place of Departure and Place of Arrival The place, from which a movement is made, is the place of origin or departure. The place of arrival or destination refers to the place at which a movement terminates. Gross and Net Migration The total of the arrivals of immigrants and in-migrants and departures of emigrants and outmigrants is known as gross migration or the volume of migration. Net migration is the difference between the total number of persons who arrive and the total number of persons who leave. This is also referred to as the balance of migration. Migration Streams Strictly speaking the phrase migration stream refers to the total number of moves made during a given migration interval which have a common area of origin and a common area of destination. Consequences of Migration Each migration takes place with some expectations. In some cases these might not materialize while in others these may fully or partially materialize. Usually a migrant was found it difficult to adjust themselves to their new environments. They are likely to cause pressure on population of the area and their coming may also result in rise in prices. The value of land and real estate can go up. The receiving region will be benefited by gaining labour and wisdom of migrants during their productive year without spending much on them. If the areas too which the people migrated is under populated then net in-migration can help the area is achieving economies of trade that is reduction in the cost of goods obtainable by increasing www.icmrr.org 60 icmrrjournal@gmail.com
the scale of production and that of marketing. This will in turn help in rising living standard of the people. Migration of population thus causes serious problems both for the migrants as well as the areas to which the people come to settle down. Of course, there is desire to have better economic gains but the problems of adjustment, particularly in a new culture, without frends and kids are no less serious. Future Trends in Emigration There are reasons to believe that emigration from Kerala would continue at a relatively high level for some more decades. One distinguishing feature of the emigration process is that the future course of emigration is determined to some extent by past emigration. The time series of emigration is characterized by a high positive auto-correlation factors which were a consequence of migration during a period become determined and of migration in the next and subsequent periods. The increasing preference the the sons of the soil in matters of employment prevailing in most states would be another factor to be considered in making any conclusion about the future of Kerala out-migration. After having discussed about the magnitude and trend in the emigration pattern a number of attributes of the migrant like age, sex, marital status, education, religion, family spending pattern etc were examined. Table 2: Age-Wise Distribution of Emigrants Age Number Percentage 20-30 36 24 30-40 84 56 40&abve 30 20 From the table it is clear that 24 percentages of the emigrants belongs to the age group of 20-30, 56 percentages belongs to the age group of 30-40 and 20 percentages of the emigrants belongs to the age group of 40 and above. The majority of the people belong to the age group 30-40. Table 3: Distribution of Emigrants According to Gender Sex Number Percentage Male 105 70 Female 45 30 From the table we can observe that 70 percentages of the emigrants are male and 24 percentages of them are female. Majority of emigrants are male. Table 4: Education Status of Migrants Education status Number Percentage Below SSLC 15 10 SSLC 90 60 Pre Degree 21 14 Degree and above 24 16 www.icmrr.org 61 icmrrjournal@gmail.com
The above table shows that 10 percentages of the emigrants are having below SSLC, 60 percentages of them having SSLC, 14 percentages of the emigrants are having pree degree education, 16 percentages of them belongs the degree and above qualification. Majority of the emigrants are having SSLC. Table 5: Employment Status of Emigrants Types of works Number Percentage Self employment 45 30 Employment in private sector 30 20 Employment in agricultural sector 6 4 Students 9 6 Employment in non-agricultural sector 39 26 Job seekers 21 14 It is clear from the table that about 30 percentages of the people are self employed prior to emigration, 20 percentages were employed in private sector, 4 percentages are employed in agricultural sector, 26 percentages of them are employed in non agricultural sector, 6 percentages are students and 14 percentages are still job seekers. The majority of the people were self employed prior to emigration. Table 6: Duration of Stay in Host Country Number of years Number Percentage 1-5 75 50 5-10 39 26 10-15 27 18 15 and above 9 6 From the table we can observe that 50 percentages of the emigrants are worked outside the country between 1-5 years, 26 percentages of them worked between the period 5-10 years and 18 percentages of them belongs to15 and above group. The majority of the emigrants worked in the host countries between 1-5 years. Table 7: Household s Amenities of Emigrants Items Number(each out of 150) Percentage Scooter 129 86 Mobile 150 100 TV 150 100 Refrigerator 129 86 Computer 30 20 Car 30 20 Oven 60 40 It is clear From the that about 86 percentages of the people have scooter, 100 percentages of the migrants have mobile and TV in their home, 86 percentages of the migrants have car and 40 www.icmrr.org 62 icmrrjournal@gmail.com
percentages of them have refrigerator, 20 percentages of them having micro wave oven. The majority of the people have TV and mobile. Table 8: Nature of Housing Items Number Percentage Concrete 99 66 Tiled 51 34 From the table we can observe that majority (66 percentages) of the migrants house are concreted and 34 percentages of the migrants house have tiled. Table 9: Household Expenses Items Number(each out of 150) Percentage Education of children 69 46 To purchase land 36 24 Renovation of house 126 84 To repay debt 96 64 To maintain agriculture land 15 10 In the table 46 percentages of d emigrants are spend their income on education of children, 64 percentages are spend to repay the old debt. 24 percentages are for the purchase of land. 84 percentages of them are spending on renovation of old house and only 10 percentages to maintain agricultural land. The majority of d emigrants are spending their income for renovation of old house. Table 10: Current Income of the Migrants Income Number Percentage Below 30000 99 66 30000-50000 30 20 50000 and above 21 14 From the table 66 percentages of the emigrants have below Rs.30000 income, 20 percentages of them earn an income level between Rs.30000-50000 and another 14 percentages of them draw a salary above Rs.50000. The majority of the emigrants have below Rs.30000 income level. Table 11: Health Status of Migrants Health status Prior to emigration After emigration Number Percentage Number Percentage Good 78 52 48 32 Satisfactory 54 36 66 44 Bad 18 12 36 24 150 100 The table shows that 36 percentages of the emigrants have satisfactory health status, 52 percentages have good health condition and only 12 percentages of them have bad health status before migration, 32 percentages of the emigrants have good health status after migration, 44 www.icmrr.org 63 icmrrjournal@gmail.com
percentages have satisfactory health condition and 24 percentages of them have bad health status after migration. Majority of them have good health status after migration. Findings of the Study The major findings of the study are as follows: 1 Emigration has resulted in the overall development of the economy 2 Majority (70 percentages) of emigrants from Kerala are males. 3 The study found that the majority (56 percentages) of emigrants are in the age group of 30-40. 4 The majority (84 percentages) of the emigrants use their current income on renovation of old houses. 5 The health status of the migrants is satisfactory after emigration. 6 The study finds that majority (76 percentages) of the migrants are married. Recommendations of the Study 1 The government of Kerala should follow a policy conducive to attract NRI investment. 2 The functions of the department of Non-Resident Keralities affairs (NORKA) may be expanded to include promotion of NRI investment in its portfolio. 3 The government of Kerala should concern the formulation of savings and pension schemes for the NRIs and particular attention should be given to the development and stream lining of credit, labour infrastructure, higher education and information technology to promote NRI Investment. 4 The state government should request the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation to institute an inquiry in to the irrational framing of ar fare by Air India and also India Airelines and the corrupt practices in the issue of air tickets on these routes. 5 The government should also confirm the healthy working conditions of Indians in host countries and also fix working hours and job security. References INTERCONTINENTAL JOURNAL OF HUMAN RESOURCE RESEARCH REVIEW Alenjandro Portes and JohnWalter,(1981), Labour Class and the International System, NewYork,p.26 BA Prakash 1998. Gulf Migration and its Economic Impact, The Kerala Experience. Economic and political weekly 33(50):3209-2013 Commerce Research Bureau, (1978), Emigration: Inward Remittances and Economic Growth of Kerala Report of a survey, Bombay Government of Kerala, (1987), Report on the utilization of Gulf Remittances in Kerala, Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Trivandrum Joseph K V, 1998. Migration and Economic Development of Kerala www.icmrr.org 64 icmrrjournal@gmail.com
Kerala Economic Review, State Planning Board Trivandrum: Government of Kerala (2004-07) Principles of Population Studies with special reference to India: Hans Raj (2001) Principles of Demography: Asha Kanithkar (2001) www.icmrr.org 65 icmrrjournal@gmail.com