The Covid-19, Migration And Livelihood In India: Challenges And Policy Issues
The Covid-19, Migration And Livelihood In India: Challenges And Policy Issues

Author(s): Ram B. Bhagat, Reshmi R.S.
Subject(s): Social Sciences, Economy, Psychology, Essay|Book Review |Scientific Life, General Reference Works, Geography, Regional studies, Sociology
Published by: Transnational Press London
Keywords: China; Wuhan; migration; mobility; COVID-19; India; basic amenities; lack of health care; economic stress; internal migrants; migrants
Summary/Abstract: The worldwide spread of COVID-19 first reported from Wuhan in China is attributed to migration and mobility of people. This paper presents how our understanding of migration and livelihood could be helpful in designing a mitigating strategy of economic and social impact of COVID-19 in India. The paper concludes that there are many challenges migrants face during the spread of COVID-19 resulting from nation-wide lockdown. Many internal migrants faced problems such as lack of food, basic amenities, lack of health care, economic stress, lack of transportation facilities to return to their native places and lack of psychological support. On the other hand, COVID-19 has also brought into sharp focus the emigrants from India and the major migration corridors India shares with the world as well. Although state and central governments have adopted various strategies to deal with these issues, there is a huge uncertainty about how long this crisis will last and what damage it would do to the economy and livelihood of people. This paper further provides some immediate measures and long term strategies to be adopted by the government such as improving public distribution system, strengthening public health system, integration of migrants with development, decentralisation as a strategy to provide health services, and providing support to return migrants to reintegrate them, and alsostrengthen the database on migration and migrant households.

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