Seasonal labour migration in Telangana-A study of Mahabubnagar District

Labour migration which is defined here as a movement of human beings away from home, undertaken with the intention of finding employment. The other fields of voluntary migration (education and marriage) as well as distress migration are considered only in those cases where they are not clearly separated from labour migration. The focus is on the economic and social repercussions of labour migration on the families and communities staying behind. Moreover, the extent, nature, characteristics and pattern of migration have been evolving over time. Seasonal or short duration migration is certainly not a new phenomenon in India. The magnitude of rural labour circulation of recent origin, and a direct consequence of structural changes in the economy. Seasonal or circular migration could be largely distress driven and stimulated by the partial or complete collapse of rural employment generation, economic difficulties of cultivation and absence of alternative employment opportunities in underdeveloped regions of the country. The present study focuses on examining the nature and characteristics of seasonal migrant households and based on a primary level survey conducted in three mandals of Mahabubnagar district of Andhra Pradesh in 2012. It reveals that migration from the village is essentially seasonal and cyclical in nature, and differs for both rural and urban migrants.