With four in every five households below poverty line, Thuamul Rampur has the highest incidence of poverty among the community development blocks of Kalahandi district of Odisha. The block, which also has the largest proportion of Scheduled Tribes among the community development blocks in Kalahandi, has been witnessing substantial migration of young men for work, particularly to the southern Indian states. With its presence in Thuamul Rampur since 1984, Gram Vikas has been closely observing the ever-increasing migration from the block. Verifying the insights gathered from a qualitative exploration conducted in 2018, Gram Vikas, in partnership with Centre for Migration and Inclusive Development (CMID), undertook a comprehensive study of the labour migration from Thuamul Rampur during 2019-2020. Although for households of Thuamul Rampur, migration is an avenue towards empowerment, currently it is unsafe and informal given their limited agency, poor access to public services and lack of social security at the destination. This calls for concerted efforts of the state and non-state actors to promote migration as a safe and informed choice for improving the resilience of the households and reviving the village economies. At the same time, diverse opportunities need to be created locally to prevent distress migration.
URL : 181120041829.pdf