Q. What are the major problems faced by the labour migrants while working in informal sectors of Indian States? Discuss.

Model Answer:

Internal migration supplies India’s informal sector with “footloose labour” (Jan Breman). This phenomenon is deeply embedded in the caste-class nexus, resulting in multifaceted vulnerabilities.

Dimensions of Migrant Precarity

• Economic Exploitation: Migrants face irregular wages and debt-driven neo-bondage. They function as a highly disposable reserve army of labour.
• Caste-Class Overlap: Gail Omvedt notes that traditional hierarchies reproduce occupationally; the majority of informal migrants belong to marginalized SCs/STs.
• Nativism and Spatial Segregation: Migrants endure “Sons of the Soil” hostility (Myron Weiner) in host states and inhabit overcrowded slums mirroring rural residential segregation.
• Gendered Precarity: Neetha N. highlights the invisibility and “double burden” of female migrant workers who face severe wage disparities and exploitation.

Post-pandemic initiatives like the e-Shram Portal and One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) attempt to address migrants’ institutional invisibility and historic denial of entitlements.

Conclusion

While urbanization promises social mobility, migrants remain trapped in informal precarity. Enforcing portable social rights is vital to transition the migrant subaltern from systemic marginalization to inclusive citizenship.