Determinants of Internal Rural-Urban Migration in Odisha: A Case Study


Published On: 2021-06-14 10:51:41

Price: ₹ 500



Author: Mahendra P. Agasty

Author Address: Associate Professor of Economics, Silicon Institute of Technology, Bhubaneswar-751024 (Odisha)

Keywords: Migrants, out-migrants, push-pull factors, rural-urban migration.

JEL Codes: J61, J64.


Abstract

Massive rural out-migration is a common phenomenon, especially in the developing countries of the world. A substantial part of such migration takes place within the country. It involves the migration of the working-age population from the rural areas and agriculture to the urban non-farm sector and is motivated by a complex set of forces. This study examined the relevance of major strands of migration theory to the empirics of internal rural to urban migration of workforce from a coastal region of Odisha state, India. Micro-level evidence revealed that out-migration of the rural labour force was essentially selective, mainly determined by labour market conditions obtaining in the sending rural and receiving urban areas and motivated broadly on economic forces. Age, marital status, educational attainment, household size, ownership of agricultural land, income level of the migrants, migration networks, and contacts with previous migrants were crucial in influencing migration. The findings were suggested that migration was influenced by both “push” and “pull” factors, but “pull” factors were more pronounced and prominent than the “push” factor. Quite surprisingly and contrary to received wisdom, migration from the study area was not a survival strategy out of poverty for many of the migrants.


Description

Indian Journal of Economics and Development
Volume 17 No. 2, 2021, 361-368

DOI: https://doi.org/10.35716/IJED/20116
Indexed in Clarivate Analytics (ESCI) of WoS
Scopus: Title Accepted
NAAS Score: 5.15