Despite outreach from the government in recent years, migrant labourers—especially dependent migrants—continue to face social, economic, and political hardships that make integration challenging. Athira writes about these hurdles, focusing on the experience of women and children who often accompany the employed men.
Athira Sugathan
“It was a Thursday evening in July we reached Ernakulam Junction, after two and half days of travel by train from Patna. People from different regions of our state were in our compartment, some new to Kerala like me. The weather was splendid and it was drizzling too. I couldn’t contain my excitement and happiness; I haven’t been to any city except the ones in our place” – Mridula1
Every year, many migrant workers like Mridula travel from different parts of the country to Kerala, looking for employment and fairer wages. The Labour Department of the Government of Kerala states that there are 5.2 lakh registered migrant workers in the state. Unofficial statistics estimate a higher count of 7.5 lakh and the authorities are uncertain about tracing those who are unregistered. Taking into account the migrants’ contribution, they are addressed as athidhi thozhilaikal or guest workers, a term introduced by the Kerala Government during the lockdown induced by COVID-19. Following the unfortunate incident of rape and murder of a 5-year-old migrant child in Aluva, the State has introduced the “Athidhi” web portal, designed to simplify the registration process for migrant workers who work and reside in Kerala. But to ensure the security of migrants, registering only the workers themselves is insufficient. The portal enquires only basic details like the name, contact number, and Date of Birth of the migrant labour, and there is no option to fill in the details of those who accompany them. Neglecting the registration of dependents could result in their exclusion from Kerala society, eventually impacting their social security and well-being.
Stories of Transition
Women dependants who accompany their husbands, their social security, and their assimilation to new culture, environment, and well-being are much to be concerned about. Leela Gulati, an Indian Author and Anthropologist, has written extensively on women and children left behind by the Malayali men who migrate to Gulf countries. The impact of migration on women and children and the change in the role and status within the family and household have been discussed. Nevertheless, the narratives on the women and children who accompany the migrants as dependants to Kerala remain scarce. To understand their experiences, I spoke to Anita, Mridula, and Meena who migrated to Kerala from Bihar two years ago, and Nita and Priti who moved from Assam a year and a half ago.2
This essay focuses on these overlooked aspects of migration discourse, shedding light on the experiences of women and children. I spoke with five didis who are dependent migrants who reside near my home in Kochi. Meena, who maintains our apartment’s common areas, migrated from Bihar last year. Sometimes, she collects old utensils and saris to distribute to the didis living nearby. Anita’s spouse migrated to Kerala from Bihar, with the aid of his neighbour, and initially worked on a construction site before securing a position in a hotel. Anita and her children joined him a year later and found Kerala better as compared to their villages when it came to education and employment prospects. In the case of Mridula and her spouse, they moved to Kerala with the assistance of an agent, and her husband is employed in construction work. The other three women–Meena, Nita, and Priti–migrated at different points in time after their spouses had already moved.
Contours of Social, Economic, and Political Position
The social, economic, and political statuses of migrant children and women are vulnerable especially when they are undocumented. The lack of gender-based policies and accurate data, deprived living conditions, and a lack of policies aimed at addressing the needs of migrant children lead to their exploitation and social exclusion. This not only deprives them of their social rights but also hinders their integration into society. It is with the intent to address these issues, that Roshni, an educational project was initiated by the Kerala Government to ensure the educational and social participation of migrant children. The Ernakulam District administration launched the program with the support of the Educational Department, SSA, District Panchayat, and NGOs’. The volunteers who are proficient in Hindi, Oriya, and Bengali made sure the communication with the children remained uninterpreted and inclusive. But do these children have a secure environment at home for their emotional and academic upbringing? Are they getting enough nutrition? Do their mothers have the ability to assist them in studying? These questions need more reflection.
Anita: Back in our village people knew that we existed, it was all our people and we could run next door for any sort of help, be it personal or otherwise, here nobody knows even our names, we all are Biharis.
Nita: Are we aliens or what? They stare at us as if we are from some alien place
Both Anita and Nita say they used to work in agricultural fields in their village and took their children to distant preschools and hospitals, and travelled together in groups to the nearby town for shopping. They had access and acceptance in the public spaces, felt safe, and had a sense of belonging. But now in Kerala, they depend on their husbands even to get groceries from the nearby store. The difference in language, attire, and culture often hinders and escalates the sense of being “an outsider”. The language barrier also affects access to public transport, shops, markets, etc. Meena narrated how a few months after her migration to Kerala, she had to travel from Aluva to Broadway to do some shopping. But her constant fear of being watched by others and of being misguided, and her inability to find her way to the bus to Broadway meant she eventually cancelled the plan.
Meena: I was on the verge of tears. I felt all alone and abandoned. After that I never went alone anywhere.
“Back in our village, we worked on the kheth (field); here it’s hard to find work of that sort, but for men Kerala offers many opportunities with reasonable wages”, says Nita. There is a clear disparity when it comes to the position of migrant women and men. Although some of them worked as domestic help initially, they discontinued due to various reasons. Hurdles included communication gaps in the workplace, the feeling of being constantly monitored, not being them to help in cooking, or sometimes even not being allowed to enter the kitchen.
Cultural differences hinder their integration at workplaces, but also with the Malayali community at large. Meanwhile, men get settled and build a community at work soon. Priti from Bihar worked as a domestic help in a house for a month. She and her family are vegetarians and have never had meat. The dilemma she encountered in her workplace was when asked to clean utensils with fish and chicken. The first two times she made excuses by engaging in other chores but the third time she had to say no. “It was a Thursday, even the non-vegetarians in our village refrain from eating meat on Thursdays. How can I touch fish on such an auspicious day?” says Priti. Such disagreements compelled her to leave the job. Men at the same time aren’t judged on what they follow and her husband is served vegetarian food at the workplace as per his needs.
Beyond Schemes and Portals: Navigating the Path Ahead
None of the five women I spoke to had heard about Adithi Portal and they weren’t sure whether their husbands had registered in the same. But the agent or the contractor who employs them has their details. In situations where women have accompanied their husbands, no data regarding them is maintained, thus denying them their rights as a citizen. These women and their children aren’t brought under any schemes of government whatsoever, many haven’t cast their votes in the local elections at the village since their migration, and they are also denied the benefits and assistance from Anganwadi.
The sense of security, the support network, and familiarity that existed in their village are what they lack in the new location. Health schemes, Roshni, and Adhithi portals are indeed helpful to a certain extent, but to address the needs of the dependent women and children more needs to be done at the ground level. It shall begin with Ward-level tracking of details of dependent migrants is a start. This data can be used in multiple ways to ensure their welfare, like facilitating job opportunities in the municipal corporation and effectively placing migrant women who are willing to work. Another possibility is to ensure their access to supply chains, public distribution systems, and childcare facilities (anganwadis) by simplifying and assisting them through bureaucratic procedures. Addressing the emotional distress caused by migration and subsequent changes is equally important. Providing these women and children with emotional support through counseling can help them feel a sense of belonging. This can be done by organizations like the Community Development Society (CDS). Ensuring their participation in the smallest political gathering and emphasizing the importance of exercising their voting rights can be empowering to avail their political rights. Moreover, providing proper housing, sanitation facilities, and a peaceful environment is vital for the well-being of women and children. An inclusive celebration of festivals like Diwali, and Onam evoke a sense of home, by bringing together Malayali families and migrant families within a ward or residential area will significantly contribute to community building, a platform for social interaction, to foster a sense of unity among different cultural groups and strengthening the overall fabric of the society. Hence, in addition to gathering data, both the government and civic community should make an effort to ensure the execution, evaluation, and reflection of the programs and initiatives.
Well written. Keep it up.
Kerala is a severely patriarchal society. The grosser discrimination migrant women face compared to men, stem from that. Every malayali woman can also relate to being stared at or toyed with on the streets. But lately it has become more difficult to do this to Malayali women as we have become more empowered. So these sickos do this to migrant women who have no kind of social, economic or political capital here.
One of the points the article missed mentioning is to enable migrant women to create or discover a community of other migrant women here. That too will help give them a sense of security.