Impact of Male Migration on Rural Females

Author(s): Surinder Jetley

Source: Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 22, No. 44 (Oct. 31, 1987), pp. WS47-WS53
Published by: Economic and Political Weekly
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/4377662
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 Impact of Male Migration on Rural Females
Surinder Jetley

Male out-migration from the rural poor over extended periods greatly increases women's work burdens and
compounds their difficulties of basic survival. The additional source of income through remittances does not
substantially change the economic status of family nor helps it come out of its subsistence level. A little more
food and a few basic needs to reduce their poverty is all they get in return for prolonged displacement offamily
life, emotional deprivation and insecure future, except for a possible bridge for their children to go to the big
city. The women in these de facto female-headed households project themselves as the 'behind-the-scene' decision-
makers, while trying to live according to the expectations of the patriarchal ideology, conferring the role of major
decision-maker on fhe absentee husband. Thus male migration from the poor peasant or landless households
by itself neither s. -i"s to greater autonomy for women nor pulls the family out of its poverty.

THE sixtees saw a breakdtArough in migrants, but there is hardly any concern maintains itself with whatever work is
agriculture in most c f^ south an," south-east with the village-based family. Furthermore, available in the village. The woman who
Asia, thanks to the discovery of high different patterns of migration are seen remains behind has to assume, in addition
yielding seed varieties and their commercial among certain castes, groups, regions, etc. to her own familial and domestic respon-
application. But this technological pherno- From some regions only males migrate,. sibilities, the role of sole bread-winner; the
menon has wider social implications. The while from others whole families do so. older daughter takes over the household
disquieting feature of the modernisation There are various social and cultural factors chore and plays the role of a 'little surrogate
process is its role in accentuating inequalities that explain the variations in the migration mother' to her brothers and sisters.
rinker, 1976a; Mazumdar, 1979; Boserup, streams to major cities. Emotional attach- The migrating man also suffers harrowing
19701. Developing societies achieved a fair ment to village, home and land, sex segrega- experiences; he works hard, struggling to
amount of success in technological advance- tion and immobility of females (except save something to send home to his family,
ment, but because of neglect to secure social migration subsequent to marriage and but is caught in the vicious cycle of staying
justice by effectively implementing institu- migration due to principles of patriarchy and in the city to find a job and doing a job in
tional measures for the equalisation of op- village exogamy, which account for 58 per order to continue staying in the city.
portunities to all sections of the society, cent of the total female migration), the con- Rural-to-urban migration has been par-
development with its accompanying rapid cepts of purity and pollution and the norms ticularly male-selective and furthermore the
social change has in fact been instrumental regarding work in different castes may pro- pattern seems to be "rich student, poor
in widening the gap between the rich and the vide part of the explanation. 'Male-only' worker" [see Dasgupta, 1978]. But we have
poor. Furthermore, when development intro- migration has been a traditional feature of little information on the consequences of
duces or increases inequality within rural internal migation in India from regions male migration on the family in the village.
societies, women-at least the poorest where local employment opportunities are We do not know how male migration affects
ones-become doubly underprivileged, first scarce to places with greater economic the structure of roles, division of labour bet-
as members of the rural poor and then opportunities. The women remain at home. ween the sexes or the forms of dominance
as women. There is much more evidence in the oral in the village production system. There is
For many people in the rural areas, the tradition and folk-songs than in social- little data to show how women face the situa-
only alternative is to seek a living outside science literature of the sufferings and tion created by the absence of males within
the village. The 'push' factors from the deprivations of the women of such families the family and in the larger community.
village are even more forceful than the pro- whose men have gone to earn a living in the Changes in labour demands, the increasing
mise of a good life in the cities. Until city. The phenomenon of migrant families vulnerability of women, the widening access
recently all internal migration was con- dates back to the pre-industrial period, to developmental and political processes,
sidered beneficent, but this is not so nowthough
[see migration has increased with the conflicting social demands and the
Todaro, 1976]. In the study "Migration from
industrialisation. The folk-songs called economic compulsions may all be critical
Rural Areas" inequality is considered the 'bidesia' and 'birha' of eastern Uttar Pradesh factors affecting the lives of such women.
most important single variable underlying and Bihar, two areas with a high concentra- While we have some idea about the economic
both 'push' and 'pull' factors, the former ap- tion of male migration to cities, refer to the and social deprivations of these women, we
plying to the poor and the latter to the af- beloved living in a far off 'country' and have little knowledge about the precise
fluent in the rural society [Connel et al, reflect the unhappy and lonely existence of extent of exploitation and suffering they
1976]. But the book confines itself to the the women who are left behind [Saxena, 1977]. undergo, or about the views they have on
migrant and his characteristics. The rural One universal feature of the process their situation.
family whom the migrant leaves behind has of migration in the village is that pre- Some observations from a pilot study
not been studied. There are, however, some established ways undergo changes; there are made by the author in a village in western
useful points mentioned in the study: the rises in the levels of aspiration and values Uttar Pradesh may be typical of a wider
majority of the migrants are male, married, of the members of the family, changes in theregion [Jetley, 1979].
have more education, and come from self- occupational structure and economic status - The introduction of advancd methods in
employed or non-agricultural households, and a revision of intercaste relations. The agriculture, achieved through labour-saving
perhaps agricultural labourers (who con- outcome may be enrichment of the village mechanical technology and/or land-saving
stitute only 5.4 per cent of the male migrants due to remittances from the city on the one biological and chemical technology, substi-
to urban areas in this study) migrate to other hand, and impoverishment of the village due tutes other inputs for land and labour. Thus
rural areas, where there is a high demand for to the absence of a large number of able- the traditional activities performed in the
labour. The villages from which they come bodied young men, who leave the village to subsistence economy are affected by the im-
have land shortage, low fertility, skewed the very young, the very old and the women, proved technology, rendering much rural
distribution of land and a high proportion who sometimes have to face great challenges. labour surplus. Many had to migrate for
of landless labour. T4he migrant from the lower stratum sets seasonal employment in brick-making-
Existing studies of migration tell us about out to 'find work in the city without any these are truncated families of a man, his
the destination, occupation, income, visits specific abilities. He is seldom in a position wife and some very young children, while
home and other characteristics of the to support the village-ba-sed family which older children are left behind, in the care of a

EconnmiC__nti Prlitital WPVlt, s'I 1f 7 Is INo

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teen-aged daughter or very old grandparents.
Some of the hypotheses with which the
enquiry was initiated were:
Socio-economic inequalities accentuated
by the process of modernisation lead to male
migration from the poorer strata.
The females in the families, whose males
migrate to the city, have to bear heavier
burdens within the family by having to work
harder to assure the family's economic su;-
vival, among other things.
The longer the duration of stay of the
migrant in the city and the greater the
distance between his home and place of
work, the weaker are his ties with his rural
family and the greater the insecurity of the
woman at home.
The kind of work that the women of these
families can get is low-paid, dull, repetitive
and hazardous. These are most likely the
activities that are the first to be rejected by
men when simplified, mechanised opera-
tions are introduced.
The females suffer from inadequate and
insecure income, uncertainty of life, and
exploitation (economic and sexual), and they
have no protection regarding wages (paid on
piece-work basis rather than on an hourly
or daily basis), working conditions, social
security, etc.
Most of their earnings are likely to be
spent on food, leaving little for education
of children or improvement in the living
standards of the family.
The self-perceptions of these females are
of helplessness and lack of control over their
lives, as any efforts towards self-reliance or
self-employment are'thwarted owing to lack
of capital investment, state recognition of
their role and therefore absence of pro-
grammes recognising their special needs,
capacities and problems.
The state programmes for women are
most likely to be welfare measures rather
than schemes for increasing their earning
power.
The central concern of this research is not
with the process of mrigration as such, but
with the broader objective of understanding
the impact of rapid social change on the life
and work of rural people, especially of rural
females when the males in their families
rnigrate because of urbanisation-a necessary
adjunct to modernisation. The findings are
expected to enrich our understanding of the
sociology of the family in general and the
problems of women in particular.
AREA OF STUDY
To undertake the study of rural families
whose males have migrated to the cities, the
capital of India was selected to trace the
male migrants to their rural homes. By a
snowball-sampling technique, the male
migrants were asked to name other fellow
villagers working in Delhi. Ninety-seven
migrants' families were traced to three
villages in eastern Uttar Pradesh. The state
of Uttar Pradesh is the most populous as
well as one of the most backward states of
India. It has a high density of population,
a highly disproportionate sex ratio, the
highest crude birth and death rates, low
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levels of per capita income, literacy,
industrial development, female work par-
ticipation, etc. Though primarily an agrarian
state, its development in agriculture is tardy.
Both caste and agrarian hierarchies 'are
sharply defined.
With an area of 573 km, the Union Ter-
ritory of Delhi forms only 0.05 per cent of
the total area of India. The density of
population is high, with 2,738 persons per
km. The partition of India in 1947 saw a
great influx of refugees from the western
wing of the new state of Pakistan. Between
1941 and 1951, Delhi almost doubled in size.
Later migration is due to the capital city's
perceived opportunities and the social and
economic changes taking place in the coutry-
side. It is the fastest-growing city of the
country; its population increased frOm 1.5
million to 2.36 million between 1951 and
1961. After another decade it stood at 3.6
million and was 5 million at the time
of the study.
Most migrants to Delhi belong to the
lowest strata of society, and most of them
are classified as workers in category IV,
'other services'* Among those who come
without their families, four larger groups can
be identified along with the region from
which they migrate to Delhi. These are:
Gardeners and watchmen, employed in a
large number of public parks and big private
houses. They come from the eastern districts
of Uttar Pradesh. There are many watchmen
from Nepal too. Peons in the offices, a large
contingent belonging to the Kumaon region.
Road construction/repair gangs of public
works departments, unskilled labourers at
construction sites and loaders in the whole-
sale market, hailing from eastern Uttar
Pradesh and Bihar.
Factory workers from nearby Haryana
and other states.
The sample of male migrants was taken
from one state, Uttar Pradesh. They were
mostly gardeners.
The technique was to talk to groups of
gardeners and ask them where fellow-
villagers worked. By using the technique of
snowball sampling, the number decided on
(i e, 100) was enlisted. Although an effort
was made to select the gardeners from ont
village and one district, this was not possi-
ble. Thus ninety-seven male migrants from
three villages in three districts of the eastern
and central regions of Uttar Pradesh were
selected for the sample, and the women
members of the family were contacted
in the villages. The selected villages and
districts were:
Region District Village
Eastern Jaunpur Amawan Kalan
Eastern Pratapgarh Bhojpur
Central Rae Bareli Bewal
It takes a minimum of twelve hours to reach
the nearest and fifteen hours to reach the
farthest of our selected villages from Delhi
by rail. The data were collected from secon-
dary sources, personal interviews, observa-
tion, group discussions and case studies.
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MIGRANT CHARACTERISTICS
Male migrants in the sample are mainly
from two castes-peasant castes (58.7 per
cent), and low castes (38.1 per cent)-
traditionally held untouchables (but refer-
red to as 'harijans' and listed in the Indian
constitution as castes scheduled for special
protection. The remaining few are from a
low caste (but ritually held clean) engaged
in parching grains (bharbhuja)
The peasants are from two castes-kurmi
and koiri. The former are cultivators and the
latter specialise in growing vegetables. They
are very industrious and are known for their
skills with land. They have small holdings,
which never exceed two hectares per family
and some are even smaller than half a hec-
tare. Almost all of them lease some land and
sometimes work as agricultural labourers
too. Forty-six migrants are drawn from the
families that report cultivation as their main
occupation.
The low castes are chamar, passi and
dhobi, Traditionally they have been pro-
viding agricultural and non-agricultural
labour and other services, and are by and
large landless. Froty-five migrants ate from
families whose main livelihood comes from
wage employment (Table 1).
MIGRANTS' FAMILIES
An analysis of the family in the village,
with the broad objective of observing the
effects of male migration disturbs the tradi-
tional balance of intra-familial dependence,
increases the responsibilities of women for
the subsistence of the family and confronts
them with frequent economic crisis and
emotional insecurity. Does it also bring
about an improvement in their control and
power over the family's resources and an
increasing role in decision-making? Is migra-
tion of the male instrumental in the upward
social mobility of the family? Is migration
the only alternative to cope with the pro-
blems emerging from rapid social change?
These are some relevant questions that may
be difficult to answer within the scope of
this study but have been kept in mind in the
analysis of the data presented below on the
family in the village.
The total population of our selected 97
families is 650 persons, the average size of
the family being 6.7 persons. The sex ratio
is disproportionate (308 females for 342
males) in spite of the migration of several
males. The imbalance is observed in all but
the age-group 35-60. A little more than a
quarter of all the females are below 14 years.
The largest group is between the ages of 14
* Census of India, 1961, Vol XIX Delhi-Part
Il-C Cultural and Migration Tables; Table D-
IV Census of India 1971. Series 27, Delhi,
Part II-A General Population Tables; Jhuggi
Jhopri Settlements in belhi Part 11. Town
and Country Planning Organisation. Delhi,
Mimeograph, 1975. The nine industrial
categories are: cultivators, agricultural
labourers, livestocks, mining and quarrying,
industry (household, and other than house-
hold), construction, trade and commerce,
transport, etc, and other services.
-nitt%kor 11 1QQ'7
and 35-years. The dependent (non-working)
female population (girls below 11 and
women above 60 years of age) form 26.6 per
cent of the total female population, the cor-
responding figures for males being 29.5. This
indicates that the women start working at
an early age and continue to work longer
as compared with the men. Only 4.8 per cent
of the women are literate. But male literacy,
at 25.7 per cent, is higher than the state
average. Only seven girls are in school, as
compared with fifty boys at different educa-
tional levels. None ot our female respon-
dents (wife/mother of the migrant) has ever
gone to school. The structure of the selected
families shows ;i-i-- variations:
incomplete family has a physically separate
7J'pe one: Incomplete simple family made
up of wife and unmarried children only, the residential unit, it is very much a part of the
husband having migrated to the city and re- kinship network with its associated obliga-
maining there for the major part of his life. tions and rights. This is best observed during
7jipe two: Incomplete extended family with marriages, festivals and situations of crisis.
migrant's wife and unmarried children as Every family has an average of 2.5 earners,
well as married sons and their families. with 1.0 female and 1.5 male earners per
7)'pe three: Incomplete extended family with family. In the selected families, the largest
migrant's wife staying with own children as number of persons is engaged in agricultural
well as his parents, brothers and sisters. labour (57 per cent of the females and 36.5
In our sample, 32 per cent,of the familiesper cent of the males). Those who combine
are of type on^. The females are in late cultivation with wage labour are 33.8 per
middle age with married daughters and sons cent of the males and 18 per cent of the
separated with their families. Some of these females. Cultivation as the only means of
families (one-third of them) have very young work is reported by 25 per cent of the
females with small children. Even if a simple females and 22.3 per cent of the males.

TABLE 1: STATISrICAL PROFILE OF MIGRANTS

Number Years in the City Number Years in the City

of Up to 5 5-10 10-20 Above 20 of Up to 5 5-10 10-20 Above 20
Migrants Migrants

Caste With whom came

Peasants 57 2 15 23 17 to city
Scheduled castes 37 13 12 6 6 Village friend 15 - 7 6 2
Others 3 - 2 1 - Father 11 7 4 - -
Total 97 15 29 30 23 Relative 50 8 18 15 9
Principal Other person 21 - - 9 12

occulpation of 6 11 9 20 Total 97 15 29 30 23
Agricultural With whom stayed
labour 45 6 16 20 3 in the city
Traditional 6 3 2 1 - Village fellow 20 - 8 10 2
Total 97 15 29 30 23 Father 11 7 4 - -
Operational Relative 41 8 17 11 5
holding (hectare) 10 3 Own arrangement 25 - - 9 16

Less than 1 35 6 11 13 5 Total 97 15 29 30 23

1-2 23 4 3 4 12 Amount earned (Rs)
2 and above 12 - 6 3 3 Less than 200 6 4 2 - -
Total 97 15 29 30 23 200- 250 26 9 8 5 4
Age-group 250- 300 36 1 9 14 12
20-25 13 12 1 _ _ Above 300 29 1 10 11 7
25-30 30 3 26 1 - Total 97 15 29 3 23
30-35 16 - 2 14 -
35-40 13 - - 12 1 Amount send
40-45 20 - - 3 17 home (Rs)
45-50 4 - - - 4 Nothing 17 8 4 3 2
50-55 1 - - - I Upto 50 38 4 12 12 10
Total 97 15 29 30 23 50- 100 25 3 8 9 5
Education 100 and above 17 - 5 6 6
Illiterate 71 6 20 25 20 Total 97 15 29 30 23
Primary 18 3 7 5 3
Secondary 6 4 - - - Attitude towards
College 2 2 - - - present job
Total 97 15 29 30 23 Happy 61 15 20 16 10
Education Partially happy 15 - 7 4 4
Illiterate 71 6 20 25 20 Satisfied 11 - 2 3 6
Primary 18 3 7 5 3 Do not mind 10 - - 7 3
Secondary 6 4 2 - - Total 97 15 29 30 23
College 2 2 - -
Total 97 15 29 30 23 Frequency of
Sotatus before29 30 23 visits to village
Status before No visit 14 12 1 -
migration 8 8 - Once a year 7 - - 4 3
Farmer. craftsman 36 1 7 11 17 Twice a year 19 - 5 10 4
Wage-earner 39 2 12 19 6 Thrice times a yeat57 3 23 16 15
Jobless 14 4 10 - - Total 97 15 29 30 23
Total 97 15 29 30 23 Plans for the future
By whom advised to Permanent return
come to city to village 67 5 15 27 20
Village friend 17 - 3 12 2 Do not know 26 10 14 2 -
Father 11 7 4 - -
Relative 43 8 18 10 7 Bring family
Own decision 26 - 4 8 14 to city 4 - - 1 3
Total 97 15 29 30 23 Total 97 15 29 30 23

Economic and Political Weekly October 31, 1987 Ue AO

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Finally, 7.4 per cent of the males .are in changed at all. pump each, all families obtain water from
regular service. All the families own houses, which are a common well. Women have to fetch water
The position regarding the female respoii- 'kutcha' (made of mud and thatch) with the from the wells for cooking, washing of uten-
dents reveals that nine of them do not work exception of one 'pucca' house made of sils and drinking and for cattle. This involves
at all; they are either too old or the economic cement and brick. Sixty-two per cent tf the considerable physical labour; A large portion
improvement of the family led to their houses have only one room. The total area of the cash income is spent on food.
withdrawal from the workforce. Those who covered is rather small. Every house has a Cash savings, if substantial (i e, more than
live by agricultural labour are 37 per cent small courtyard and/or verandah where food Rs 1,000) are spent on the purchase of cattle.
and those who combine it with other kinds is cooked, cattle are tied and a dozen daily This is a high priority item, but is optional
of labour and cultivation are 46 per cent. chores are performed. A separate kitchen is coinpared with such exigencies as celebra-
Only 13 per cent report working on their reported by only 30 per cent of our respon- tions of a marriage or the birth of a son,
own holdings. The remainder are engaged dents. The remainder have no separate place and events life the death of an old parent;
in traditional occupations (washer-women, to cook. A corner of the courtyard is used all these call for a feast for the castemen.
grain-parchers). None of our respondents for this purpose. In the rainy season, cook- In spite of poor economic resources, social
has any other skills. ing is done inside the room. None of the ceremonies have an important place in their
Employment in the village is not available houses has electricity. Counting the material life. They even borrow money for these
throughout the year. During the peak possessions of the families, one is struck by events. Fifty-five per cent of the families
season, as in sowing (one month) and an extremely low standard of living. The report having celebrated ceremonies, the
harvest of paddy (fifteen days) and wheat only items they possess are bicycles (65 per average expenditure coming to over Rs 600
(fifteen days), work is available for about cent) and transistor radios (30 per cent). It per family per annum. It is reported that
sixty days. During the rest of the year, they was observed that it is only after at least ten only 40 per cent of the expenditure comes
may work at weeding, hoeing, cleaning years of working in the city that a migrant from the family's own resources, the rest is
foodgrains, grinding spices and plastering is able to purchase such items. In several borrowed. The femakearrange this loan with
floors and walls with cowdung. The families, even with males living in the city the prior permission of the migrant or other
maximum they earn is Rs 5 a day and that for twenty years, hardly any luxury items are important members of the family. The rate
during the short harvest period. On an visible. Items such as a cycle, transistor or of interest varies from 75 to 100 per cent per
average, they earn around Rs 2.50 a day. The watch are purchases for the use of males. annum. They never borrow from an institu-
employers claim that they pay Rs 5, the There is very little evicrence of transfer of tional source, but mostly from a money-
minimum wage fixed by the state, but the urban way of living to the families of lender, who is a big landowner in the village.
the women workers deny this and report the migrants. Such loans are easily available, as a migrant
that the wages in terms of grain have not But for three families that have a hand has a regular source of income and the
moneylender can also pressure the family to
TABLE 2: SUMMARY VIEW OF RESPONSES GIVEN BY FEMALE RESPONDENTS send someone to work on his fields on his
terms. Sometimes the male migrant arranges
Number of Years in the City
for a loan in the city. Though they avoid bor-
Migrants Up to 5 5-10 10-20 Above 20
rowing from a relative, since this brings loss
Purchase of food of prestige, a neighbour or a friend may be
(Rs per month) approached for small sums.
No expenditure 8 6 2 - - The majority of the rural-based families
Up to S0 43 9 18 12 4 (73 per cent) receive some remittances from
50-100 34 - 9 13 12 the city regularly, while a few (27 per cent)
100 and above 12 - - 5 7 do not. Some families have more than one
Total 97 15 29 30 23 person (our selected migrant) working in the
Purchase of clothing city and sending remittances. On an average
(Rs per annum) the amount sent home by male migrants is
Up to 50 16 9 5 2 - Rs 94 per month, the minimum being Rs 25
50-100 35 6 17 1 11 and the maximum Rs 250, depending on the
Above 100 46 - 7 27 12 earnings of the migrant. Those who earn less
Total 97 15 29 30 23 than Rs 200 cannot afford to send any
Travel (Rs per annum)
money at all. Beyond that is their surplus
Upto 50 23 - 11 10 2
from the bare minimum standard of living
they maintain in the city.
Above 50 54 - 13 20 21
Total 77 - 24 30 23 The women in the village do not count the
Education fees distance to Delhi in terms of kilometres, but
(Rs per month) in terms of time. The nearest of the sample
Up'to 5 15 1 5 7 2 villages is 624 km and the farthest 762 km
Above 5 6 1 2 2 1 from Delhi. They know that it takes one
Total 21 2 7 9 3 night and a few'hours more to reach there.
Stationary Asked when the migrant first went to the city
Up to 4 26 1 9 10 6 they recall associated events like the birth of
Above 5 13 - 2 9 2 a child, or a marriage in the family, or some
Total 39 1 11 19 8 natural catastrophe like a flood or drought,
Postage (Rs per month) but not the exact year. Some women said
I to 3 36 1 3 19 13 their husbands were already working in
Above 3 17 1 2 9 5 Delhi when they got married. Thus no
Total 53 2 5 28 18 specific replies were given. They are more
Health and medicine certain in their replies regarding what the
(Rs per annum)
men were doing before they went to seek
Upto20 44 8 17 13 6
employment outside the village. WThile a
negligible number had been studying in the
20-30 16 1 2 6 7
village before going to the city, nearly half
Above 30 14 1 3 4 6
Total 74 10 22 23 19
of them had been trying to support the
family by combining cultivation of their own

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small plot of land with whatever other alter- misinformed the researcher, as the social having obtained credit. This was usually
native was available, such as share cropping expectation from a male is that he should arranged by a male member of the family;
and agricultural labour. More than one-third maintain his family. It cannot be easy for only four females took the initiative in doing
tried to survive in their own labour, but work them to admit that they are not able to fulfil so. To supplement their meagre resources,
was not available throughout the year. One- this obligation. There are also differences in the peasant families have been taking land
tenth were engaged in providing services to the two versions about the amount remitted. on lease from bigger landowners. At the time
the village at the dismally low customary Whereas thirty-eight migrants reported of our inquiry, only seven families reported
payments in kind. For example, a washerman sending Rs 50 per month, only twenty-four having taken some land on lease. There is
gets 5 kg of foodgrains twice a year, at the females mentioned receiving that much. Butsome degree of underreporting regarding the
time of the harvest, from the family or more females than 'males report that the amount leased, either for fear of the lanid-
families he works for. He may work in this remittances are between Rs 50-100. Again owers refusing to renew the contract for the
way for ten to fifteen landowning families. those women who reported having received following year or because there is an actual
There is no cash payment for any kind of more than Rs 100 are fewer in number than decline in the amount of land being offered
labour or service. On computing the value the migrants who reported thus. This may for lease. The fields are generally irrigated
of payment in grains, the wage received was be due to the fact that in many cases the by rainwater, though some families irrigate
equivalent to Rs 1 to 1.25 twenty years ago. money is not received by the females at all their land either by private wells or by pur-
Today it is Rs 2.50. The payment varies from and their information is only secondhand. chasing water from rich cultivators' tube-
15 'chatak' to 6 'pao' (less than 1 kg to 1.5 Male migration is viewed as unavoidable, wells, or from the state canal. Women
kg). The price of foodgrains has gone up, and the women are reconciled to it, especially seldom decide what crops are to be sown.
and in that ratio the wages has increased. as it means regular employment for the man This is done by the men in view of the
There is, however, higher payment for the and a cash income for the family. One-third availability of family labour. Since most
'harwaha' (ploughman), who may get Rs 4 are positively unhappy about the arrange- families keep cattle, chaff-cutters are a
and some food at the start of the day, as well ment and half of them regret the long common implement in these families.
as a small piece of land. This has to be sur- absence of the male member of the family. None of our selected respondents are
rendered when he ceases employment with Tradition bars these women from expressing members of any village organisation. In fact,
the landowner. personal emotions towards the husband. It there were no women organisations in any
In the initial years of struggle in the city, is in fact considered shameful and immodest community. This does not mean that they
a migrant does casual work and thus going to express love for the husband and to conm- have no occasions for coming together.
home means the loss of daily wage. It is only plain of loneliness in his absence. Yet 43 perThere may not be any specific purpose, but
when they obtain regular work that the cent said they felt lonely. They feel helplesswomen do tend to sit together and exchange
migrant start visiting the family, at least once gossip during, as well as after, work.
in this situation, as they do not have any pro-
a year. Holi (a festival in which people play spects of joining the husband or of his com- Numerous social ceremonies also provide
with colours) mark the end of the harvest ing permanently to the village, as long as he occasions for coming together. There is
season and offers an occasion on which increasing emotional interdependence and
is fit to work in the city. There were, however,
most migrant pay a visit to the village. A 21 per cent who were positively happy that physical co-operation between neighbours.
little after Holi is the wedding season; so their husbands were in the city; they enter- Since most of the male respondents left
they combine the two occasions. Since the tained the hope that some day they too the village family early in life, the females
female respondents were interviewed only would migrate to the city. At least one case cannot recall if they had ever helped in
two months after the festival, 65 per cent was reported of a young bride who refused taking care of the children. Home remedies
reported that the husband/son had visited to return to her husband's home from her and medicines are used to cure minor
them a couple of months before. The visit natal village; her husband has not visited his ailments. A doctor may be consulted for
may last from fifteen days to a month. Those village for the last three years. None of the more serious problems, and for this a
who have permanent employment come women complained of men's faithlessness in distance of 3 to 10 km may have to be
once a year but for a longer period. Those spite of their long residence in the city. covered. The commonest problem cited by
whose employment is not secure come more In half of the families, the females, in our respondents is financial. They somehow
frequently but stay for shorter periods. most cases the wife of the migrant, shoulder cope with the problems regarding household,
Death of a relation, a major illness of a the major responsibility of taking care of the children and others. But coping with poverty
member of the family, a serious quarrel with children. They manage the several minor and is a'major problem and to overcome it they
a neighbour, a summons from a court of law, some major crises in the family, sometimes borrow from the cultivator-moneylender
necessitate an emergency visit. These were single-handedly. Though agriculture is a on his terms.
reported by only nine respondents. familial activity, there is sexual division'of There is, however, mutual help extended
Women expect the migrants to bring labour for various agricultural activities. For between neighbours, kinsmen and relatives,
presents for the family. They like to show example, preparation of soil, ploughing of since so many families have a male member
off all that is brought. It is the measure of land, arranging inputs for land and other in the same city. Yet a migrant who is better
the migrant's success in the city. One-third purchases are undertaken by males, while off than others may be the cause of jealousy,
of the women said that their men bring transplanting, hoeing, weeding, husking and and his family may then face much hostility
clothes when they pay a visit. They also winnowing of foodgrains and storage are in the neighbourhood. By and large, there
bring utensils, perfumed soap, oil, plastic typically female activities. Men and women is a common sympathetic bond between
buckets, etc. From the city, five per cent work together during harvest. Produce is families in which male migration has
reported that the migrant never brought any carried to the house by males. Tending cattle taken place.
presents with him when he visited the is shared with females, males look after There are hardly any material possessions
village, as he was still struggling to get bullocks, and females take care of milch in these families. The major worry is
a decent salary. cattle. The repair to houses and equipment physical survival. When the family can
There is a discrepancy between male and is undertaken by males, while females cook afford it, they may buy clothes, utensils or
female reporting about remittances. While the food, wash utensils and clothes and fetchother articles of necessity and, if they are
one may expect differences in the average water for domestic use and for cattle, in lucky, cattle. Even items like kerosene oil and
amount of remittances there is no such scope addition to arranging fuel and fodder with spice are considered a luxury. Since the deci-
for those who did not send or receive any the help of children. In the absence of males, sions are forced on women by circumstances,
money at all. Whereas only seventeen the work-load for women and children is they are hardly significant of their position.
migrants stated that they do not remit any increased, as they have to take over many In the absence of males, women have control
money home, twenty-seven of the females male-specific activities. over what they earn in kind, but it is doubt-
reported that they have never received any Because of lack of security and credit- ful they gain any substantial power in the
money. The migrants may have purposely worthiness, only nineteen families reported family. More often it is the male who decides

Economic and Political Weekly October 31, 1987 WS-51

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the expenditure on different items. for both the community of origin and the in highly congested, dreary and ill-ventilated
Women take great interest in match- point of destination. The concern here is dwelling places with no amenities and
making for marriages. It is the daughters- with the families left behind and the females. facilities, these women spend most of their
in-law and the married daughters wfio sug- The selected male migrants in the study lives in finding food, fuel for cooking, and
gest eligible bachelors in their respective are the migrants from the backward eastern fodder for cattle. They have very few
families. But here, too, the decisions regar- region. Not all of them are from the poorest material possessions and only few new pur-
ding the amount of expenditure on marriage strata of society though 40 per cent come chases made by the families in the previous
and the amount of money to be borrowed not only from the poorest landless agri- year. Social obligations and basic needs may
are taken by the males. Distress loans for cultural category, but are also place at the force them to incur expenditure far beyond
food are negotiated by the females. They bottom of the ritual-caste hierarchy. The re- their earning power, for which they have get
borrow foodgrain too, and pay off with their maining are from the poor peasantry. Since into debt. During the first few years of
wages or when the migrant remits money. the age of marriage is low, all of them are migration, the males are hardly in a posi-
Thus the long absence of these m- does not married, nearly illiterate and employed as tion to help the family. It is the women who
perceptibly alter the authority structure of gardeners or watchmen with cash incomes assume the additional responsibility.
the family. ranging from Rs 200 to Rs 600 per month. A lifetime of loneliness and struggle for
Working outside the home, whether on The migrants are closely tied to the rural bare survival by these women is interspersed
one's own or another's farm, means an early roots, and even a lifetime of urban residence with short visits by their husbands, when
start. Before beginning work outside the does not lend them urbanity. But there are many important decisions are taken. In their
home (by 7 am in summer and 8 am in several push factors for migration: For the day to day life, the wives cope with problems
winter) women have to make some arrange- landless agricultural labourers from the related to children, other members of the
ment for food for the family. The day begins harijan caste they are the extremely low family, financial breakdowns and complica-
for them at 5 am when they have a breakfast wages, the lack of available work throughout tions regarding employers, neighbours, rela-
of parched gram or rice and some salt. the year, and the social oppression. For the tions, etc.
Sometimes left-over bread from the previous small peasants they are the diminishing The migration of males not only increases
evening is eaten with pickles. They work in availability of land that can be taken on the burden on women, but affects even the
the fields for four to five hours. In the after- lease to augment the yield from their own children. Their educational opportunities do
noon, they go home and cook rice for the dismally small holdings, the inability to use not increase. In fact, in the village they help
family, which is eaten with some lentil soup the advanced technology for cultivation of the family and in the city then are, at best,
(dal), or with salt and pepper. Those who land, and the desire to improve the standard absorbed in the unskilled labour force. Most
work at a distance from their -home cannot of living or at least to maintain the same of the young boys hope to migrate to the city.
go home; for them food is brought to the level with a growing family. The husbands and sons maintain a visiting
fields by some member of the family, usually The pull factors are the economic oppor- relationship with the women and exercise
a woman. The main meal is cooked in the tunities arising from Delhi's unprecedented authority in major decisions in the family.
evening which is again rice and/or 'chapattis' physical expansion, with its emphasis on The females seldom visit the city. The
with lentils (rarely a vegetable) and/or salt huge building complexes, sprawling lawns reasons are segregation of the sexes, desire
and chillies. Older girls look after younger and gardens and unending construction by the older members to keep the male
siblings when the mother goes out to work. activity, both private and governmental. migrant tied to village home (which is possi-
Younger daughters-in-law do the bulk of the There is no waiting period for the unskilled ble if the wife and children continue to live
housework. Young boys take out the cattle and semi-skilled labour in the city. Daily- in the village) and the perceived inability of
for grazing. Girls help the mother inside the wage labour is procured through the caste/ the females to get work in the city. The most
home while the boys work outside. Other kinship network. In due course regular commonly available work in Delhi is that of
males work as labourers if they are from employment is ensured. Living in congested domestic servants. The harijans have a sym-
landless, or on their own landholdings when quarters in Delhi's new settlement colonies bolic inferiority as untouchables and do not
they have any. During the slack season one (earlier in improvised huts) since 1975, they offer their services for cooking food and
can see clusters of men, women and children lead a dull life, flocking together and sav- wahing utensils, while the peasant women
languishing in the afternoons. ing every paise to provide basic maintenance think that such a mental task pollutes their
The male migrant is home for a fortnight for the family, arrange family social ritual purity. There seems to be some kind
or a month. He too helps in the fields, ceremonies, buy cattle and, if they are lucky of satisfaction in working the land, which
especially during harvest time, which is in enough, purchase a little land. is perceived as more dignified.
fact the period when the migrants visit their We may, therefore, say that male-only In spite of the long absence of males there
families. They seldom help in the household migration from the rural areas of eastern is little change in the authority structure of
duties, though they all do their own cook- Uttar Pradesh in India has accelerated the family, and major decisions regarding
ing, washing, cleaning, etc, in the city. because of advanced agricultural technology, purchase of household items, cattle, inputs
land-reforms measures, and the general or land, credit, expenditure on ceremonies,
CONCLUSION social oppression resulting from the inegali- etc, are postponed till the migrant's visit.
tarian social structure. The underutilisation Women, however, take decisions on problems
Social change is a complex phenomenon of the manpower (and womanpower) in the regarding the daily subsistence of the family,
in Asian societies historical traditions, countryside may contribute to an increase and keep it from slipping into deeper
vestiges of colonial rule, development in male migration to urban areas as well as poverty. Whatever wages the women get are
experiments, modernising forces and a host to the increase of female-headed and females of use value whereas the migrants' remit-
of other factors disrupt the societal balance. in it shoulder a double burden. Private tances have exchange value. Thus the power
One outcome is the movement of population ownership of major economic and techno- base remains with the males.
from one region to another. The increasing logical resources and their restricted use will The contact with the male migrant is one
pressure on land had led to outmigration continue to accentuate inequality. The male way, the females spending most of their lives
from all classes from the village. Where as migrants are attracted to Delhi for the managing the home front, in many cases
in the upper landed groups the desire to perceived benefits in its expanding labour single-handedly. Since,the family does not
migrate is facilitated by a certain level of market. Living at a subsistence level in the have enough of a material base of withdraw
education and other skills and prompted by city, they try to save as much as they can to her from the workforce, she continues to
the wish to strengthen the capital base in thesend remittances to the family in the village. work till she is quite old, though the adult
rural area, the lower marginal landowners Yet the net improvement in the family's stan-sons assume the power and authority.
and landless migrate with little skill and for dard of living is minimal. The ability to The community life is punctuated with
marginal gains or sheer survival. survive is perhaps their major achievement. ceremonies, which they can ill afford, yet do
UJsually males migrate without their For the females in the family, work is not not grudge performing. The boredom of the
families. This has significant implications a privilege but a traditional hardship. Living daily routine is broken only by these occa-

WS-52 Economic and Political Weekly October 31, 1987

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sions. These, however, eat up a substantial
portion of the remittances sent by migrants.
The poorest consume most of the additional
income by way of food, whereas the peasants
may be able to improve their land and
buy cattle.
Both for the male migrants in the city and
for the family in the village, the caste/kin-
ship network proves highly functional. For
the former, it provides a buffer against the
urban encounter, as well as an entry point
into the occupational structure, whereas for
the latter it provides emotional and social
support in adversity. There is, therefore, an
increase in the degree of dependence on
family, kin and neighbours, who are often
helpful in offering moral support, being
themselves in no better position financially.
There is no denying the fact that the long- Census of India (1961a), "Cultural and Migra-
term male migration improves the economic
prospects of the family, and this is the prime
motive behind the decision to migrate. But
for the poorest, it only means that the family -, (1961b), "Social and Cultural Tables" Vol I,
manages to fulfil the minimum needs at the
cost of family disintegration. There may be
some improvement in regard to the educa-
tion of the male children. For the daughters,
however, a male migrant is expected to spend
more on her wedding than a non-migrant in
the community, thus increasing his financial
burden. The chamars have yet to realise the
potential of government protection in educa-
tion and jobs intended for them. The pea-
sant who stay away for a lifetime in the hope
of acquiring more land, have never been ab;e
to do so.
Thus, the root of the problems of male
migration and female suffering lies in the
structural inadequacy of the rural society.
For this reason, the solution to the problems
must also be found in the rural areas. It is
there that the human power, both male and
female, should be better equipped with new
skills to become part of the development
process. India is basically a rural country.
Any plans for development must emphasise
the modernisation of rural society in a
manner that promises increased oppor-
tunities for all strata. Catering to the landed
groups will only push large number of per-
sons out of the village, and India's urban
industrial complex is inadequate to absorb
this influx. When such a trend affects the
rural family, the women in the village suf-
fer the most; they are forced to lead a
life of prolonged hard work, loneliness
and powerlessness.
[Fhis paper is a shorter version of the full report Vol I, Lucknow, Department of Planning.
on the research project which was part of a
cross-cultural study of 'Impact of Male Migra-
tion on Rural Women in Five Asian Countries:
Bangladesh, India, The Philippines, South
Korea and Thailand'.]
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