MIGRATION: CONCEPTS, TYPES AND CAUSES
Migration, like fertility mortality, holds a place of
prominence in a geographical analysis of population change in any area. Migration
cannot be considered as a mere shift of people from one place of residence t
other as it is most fundamental to understanding of continuously changing space
content and space relationships of an area.
For geographers it is not merely a reallocation of
human resources but is a process which has a threefold impact
1.
On the area experiencing in migration
2.
On the area experiencing out migration
3.
On the area experiencing migration themselves
The trends of migration have also been considered as
sensitive index of changing pattern of economics opportunities in an area. Of the
three major components of population change, migration is the most difficult to
conceptualize and measure difficulties in conceptualizing and measuring the
phenomenon of migration arise because unlike fertility and mortality, migration
is not just an unequivocal biological event but a physical and social
transaction.
According to LEE, migration defined as a permanent or semi-permanent
change of residence with no restriction on the distance involved in the
movement.
Type of migration:
The phenomenon of migration has often been classified
into various types on the basis of movement, distance and time.
On the basis of motivation , migration has been
classified as economic migration, social
migration,
On the basis of distance , distinction has been made
between long distance, short distance migration
Short term and long term migration have been recognized
depending upon the period of stay of a particular places.
Immigration and Emigration
Immigration is a change of a person’s residence to a new country in which they have no citizenship rights. Immigration can be based on the idea of seeking refuge in another country, seeking work, or family reunification. The process of immigration can be difficult, and involves many factors such as the skill set required for the job, age restriction, and waiting times.
Emigration is the relocation or process of people leaving one country to reside in another. People emigrate for many reasons, include increasing one's chance of employment or improving quality of life.
emigrant vs. immigrant: An emigrant is someone who emigrates—moves away from a country. An immigrant is someone who immigrates—moves to a different country. Both words can apply to the same person—a person must first emigrate to immigrate. However, these terms are often used to distinguish different groups, such as when tracking how many people are moving to a country and how many are moving away.
Internal and external migration
Internal migration: moving within a state, country, or continent
External migration: moving to a different state, country, or continent
Based on direction of movement
Rural to urban migration
Urban to Urban Migration
Urban to Rural migration
Rural to Rural migration
Of these streams, it is rural to urban migration which is the most significant, because it contributes to the transfer of labour force from the traditional agricultural sector to the urbanized industrial sector, and is directly linked to urbanization. Rural-to urban migration is a response to diverse economic opportunities across space (Mitra & Muruyama, 2011).
Income differentials between rural and urban areas is one of the main reasons for this type of migration, since in developing economies like India, agriculture alone cannot sustain rural livelihoods. Deshingkar (2006) argues that in India, the rate of job creation and real wage increases in agriculture have slowed down. Moreover, urban areas attract the surplus labour of the countryside, which is characterized by underemployment or unemployment. Factors that pull the high-income groups in rural areas are availability of a better social infrastructure (education, health, etc.), better amenities and the quest for independence from social, cultural religious and familial shackles.
Likewise, urban to urban migration is also related to the concentration of population in large towns and cities which may be the result of step migration from rural areas to any small towns and then small towns to large cities. However, in many developing countries like India, rural to rural migration is also significant, especially among women who move primarily due to marriage, or familial reasons. Each migration stream has distinct premises, causes and consequences.
Based on spatial dimensions
Internal migration stream based on spatial dimensions may be classified into following categories:
a) Intra-district migration, i.e., migration within the district.
b) Inter-district migration, i.e., migration from one district to another within the state.
c) Inter-state migration, i.e., migration from one state to another.
Based on duration of migration
Here, migration is classified into two kinds:
a) Permanent migration
b) Temporary migration
The migrant’s intention to permanently change his/her residence distinguishes permanent labour migration from temporary migration (Zelinsky, 1971). In permanent labour migration, the usual place of residence of the migrants changes and the chances of returning home are weak. In temporary migration, however, migrants continue to remain a usual member of the household and tend to move circularly between the places of origin and destination. In China, instead of the usual place of residence and duration of stay, a household registration system (Hukou) defines whether a person is temporary or permanent labour migrant. Temporary labour migrants are those individuals whose place of residence differs from their place of registration. Permanent migrants, on the other hand, are migrants who have changed their registration to the place of residence (Goldstein & Goldstein, 1991).
International Migration
An international migration occurs when people cross the political boundary of their home country and enter another. International migration is as old as human history, whether voluntary or forced upon people by famines, conquests and diverse types of persecution. Unfortunately, because of lack of precise information, the size and nature of such migrations are not exactly known. Today, statistics on international migration are maintained by various countries for their own use and hence, comparisons based on such statistics become difficult because of lack of uniformity.
Factors
Migration is a global phenomenon caused not only by economic factors but many other factors like social, political, cultural, environmental, health, education are included under the broader classification of Push and Pull factors of migration:
here are many economic, social and physical reasons why people emigrate and they can usually be classified into push and pull factors.
What are push and pull factors?
Push factors are those associated with the area of origin
Pull factors are those that are associated with the area of destination
Economic reasons
Economic motives loom large in all human movements, but are particularly important with regards to migration.
Pull Factors
More jobs
Better jobs
Higher wages
The promise of a “better life”Sometimes this is encouraged by the destination country for example, the 1960’s employment campaign in the Caribbean by London bus companies that actively recruited young men to move to London to work as bus drivers, who were then often followed by their families.Another example might be the “brain drain” to America that occurred in the latter half of the 20th century from several other western countries.
Push Factors
Economic push factors tend to be the exact reversal of the pull factors:
Overpopulation
Few jobs
Low wages
This lack of economic opportunity tends to push people to look for their futures outside the area of their origin.An example of this is the migration of Mexicans and people from other Central American countries into the US, where they often work low-wage, long-hour jobs in farming, construction and domestic labour.
It’s difficult to classify this case purely with push factors though, because often the factors associated with the country of origin are just as important as the factors associated with the country of destination.
Forced migration has also been used for economic gain, such as the 20 million men, women and children who were forcibly carried as slaves to the Americas between the 16th and 18th centuries.
Social reasons
Social reasons tend to involve forced migration
Pull factors
Principles of religious tolerance
For example the US attracted religious refugees, such as the Mennonites, who settled in Pennsylvania.
Push factors
Intolerance towards a certain cultural group
Active religious persecution
Examples being the Huguenots in 16th century France, the Puritans in 17th century England and the Jewish refugees from Nazi Germany.
Physical reasons
Pull factors
Attractive environments, such as mountains, seasides and warm climates
For example the Alps pull French people to eastern France. Spain attracts migrants, especially retirees, who seek warmer winters
Push factors
Natural disasters
Examples would be the east African drought of 2011 and the mass exodus from the island of Montserrat leading up to the eruption of the *La Soufriere Hills volcano in 1995, which led to two thirds of the population abandoning the island.
India's urban population is expected to grow from 410 million in 2014 to 814 million by 2050.
Causes
Employment: Basic reasons for intrastate, interstate (migration from rural to urban areas, urban to urban areas) and external migration can be attributed to the search for better employment in industries, trade, transport, and services.
Seasonal Migration: People seasonally migrates for employment in different areas and different industries for short time period
Circular Migration or Repeat Migration is the temporary and usually repetitive movement of a migrant worker between home and host areas, typically for the purpose of employment.
Education: Due to the lack of educational facilities at their place of residence, people migrate to urban areas in case of internal migration and other countries in the case of international migration for better academic opportunities. By 2020, India will become the world’s largest pool of young people, in contrast, there is a lack of opportunities for employment in India, this leads to the emigration of qualified people.
Lack of security: Political disturbances and inter-ethnic conflicts are also one of the reasons for internal and external migration.There can also be forced displacement due to reasons like wars, and internal political instability.
Marriage: Marriage is one important social factor for internal migration and in case of intra-state migrants majority of the migration is from one rural area to another, due to marriage in the case of females.
Environmental and Disaster-Induced Factors: There are migrants who are forced to move from rural to urban areas or from one country to another as a result of an environmental disaster in the form of drought, floods, heatwaves etc, that might have destroyed their homes and farms.
MIGRATION DATA
1. NCERT
2. RC CHANDRA BOOK
3. DRISTIAS
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