Back to the Roots: A sociological study of reverse migration in the hills of Uttarakhand

A research proposal

Submitted by: Garima Bhandari

Submitted to: Prof. R.M Singh and Prof. L.K Das

Motivation and study background

Uttrakhand, a state in the mountainous lap of northern India has always been a source of out-
migration due to geographical hardships, presented by hilly terrain and crisscrossing rivers,
converting into Economic and Social hardships. So much so, that many of the villages are
experiencing the Ghost village phenomenon (Umar, 2012; Outlook, 2013).

The problem of migration is so intertwined in Social, Economic, and Political frameworks that
the intelligentsia of the region presented it as a Governance challenge, which led to the creation
of the state in 2002 bi-furcating it from Uttar Pradesh and bringing the governance closer to the
people. The steps have brought some dynamism in the economy of the state with many
manufacturing industries being set up in the region but still, the migration has not slowed down.

On the other side, there are many villages in hilly regions where people are actually coming back
to their homes after spending considerable time in cities that are facilitating their reverse
migration. In recent times, we have seen this process of Reverse migration owing to various
factors, like, gig economy, economic opportunities induced by government policies, Tourism,
retirement etc.

This rate of reverse migration has increased immensely due to the pandemic induced lockdown
and resulting hardships which has created major havoc in the lives of migrant workers, who work
in the informal and unorganized sectors in urban areas, expect to suffer long-term unemployment
and a loss of their livelihoods (Prakash, 2020, para.2). In the present times many of the ghost
villages are becoming the quarantine centers and it becomes undeniable situation for the state
governments to ignore their returned migrants. It has established a Return migration commission
in order to bring or retain the migrants in the region.
Return migration is a process of going back to the place of origin or being taken back to the point
of departure. Similar to out- migration it plays an important role in the distribution of the
population of any country & determines the growth of the labor force and economy in any area.
After the partition of 1947, India is witnessing the second largest migration currently in the form
of return migration in its history. (Mishra, 2020, pg.3)

Dipankar Gupta observes at the migrant’s mobility in the times of pandemic from the
sociological lens. He observes that migrant workers, especially single men, prefer to migrate,
they are not seeking material help from villages but what disturbs him profoundly is the fear of
dying alone. In every religion, mortuary rituals play a central role and he wants these to be
performed correctly which could be performed by family only so that he can rest in peace
afterlife (Gupta, 2020).

Rajendra Mamgain looks at the implications of reverse migration —both progressive and/or
regressive which ultimately shape the pattern of their livelihoods. He finds retirement is the
major reason for the return of half of the migrants in the hilly areas of Uttarakhand. Return
migrants bring with them both skills and savings, which they invest in the local economy.
(Mamgain, 2004, p.198).

There are infrastructural reasons as well which the facilitate the reverse migration such as
making Gairsain state’s capital due to its geographical location currently it is state’s summer
capital, rail connectivity between hills and plain region, completion of Chardham Yatra. These
projects have ability to curb the out-migration of people for longer time.

Proposed research shall seek to conduct a study on the people who have returned back. It will
focus on various aspects of reverse migration and study its effect on rural transformation.
Conducting study on reverse migration not only helps in what facilitates it but also helps in
investigating the question what made them to migrate earlier.

Being a native of the region allows me to have the geographical knowledge of the region along
with the people a necessary connect to conduct the sampling activities smoothly and more so, the
emotional connection with the research.
Research questions:

The research shall try to ascertain certain aspects related to reverse migration, some of which are:

1. Is there a substantial case of reverse migration?

2. What factors influenced the return decisions of migrants?
3. How does it influence the social mobility of returned migrants?
4. How does it alter the social system (cultural, economy, political and environment) of the
villages?
Novelty of study

The Limited literature which is available has not explored the aspects of social mobility with
respect to reverse migration and how the native places and migrants adjust themselves. Hence
the proposed research shall assess the people’s migration from urban to rural areas and its
relation to the social mobility and structural transformation of villages. .

Research objectives:

a. To explore the socio-economic and political causes of contemporary reverse migration of

the people.
b. To explore the social mobility of the returned persons.

c. To find out how reverse migration influences the social structures of villages.

As a research project, it is vital to make it an essential part of the existing academic work on
reverse migration in the context of Uttrakhand. The long-term objective of the research is to
become an essential reading on social mobility and migration, which should be taken into
account while planning for the region. The medium and short term objective is to add a regional
perspective to the discourse on reverse migration and body of knowledge in this particular area
of research.

Research Methodology:

To achieve the above objectives, I would be using both primary and secondary data collection.
 This research will use triangulation methods. Qualitative research would capture the
experiences of people who have returned back. The most important part of data collection
will be done through interviewing the key informants who would be selected through
purposive sampling and further added through Snowballing.

 The approach would be to choose the different village cluster of hilly districts of the state.
I would like to conduct my research in the district of Chamoli and Pauri .

 A brief Socio-economic survey would also be used as quantitative method in order to

analyze the socio-economic locations of the respondents.

 Secondary sources for the research would include literature available, social media
websites, news-media reports and audio- visuals.
References:

 Gupta, Dipankar. (2020), the urban migrant and the „ritual‟ tug of home, The Hindu.

 Mamgain, Rajendra P. (2004), Employment, Migration and Livelihoods in the Hill

Economy of Uttaranchal, Ph.D. Thesis, Centre for the Study of Regional Development,
Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.

 Mishra, A. K. (2020).Socio-Economic Status and Issues of Reverse Migration in

Varanasi District of the Eastern Uttar Pradesh.

 Prakash, M. (2020). COVID-19 spurs return of the natives to Uttarakhand ghost villages.
Retrieved from https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/health/covid-19-spurs-return-of-
the-natives-to-uttarakhand-ghost-villages-70008

 Umar (2012), “The Ghost Villages of Uttarakhand”, Tehelka Magazine, Vol. 9, Issue 27,
7 June.