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Migration
Migration is almost as characteristic of Homo sapiens as tool making and
building. Man is the most widely distributed social animal on the earth
From their probable origin in Africa, human groups had spread out to^ occupyi
the major land areas of the earth excepting Antarctica about 20,000years
present (B.P.), long before^ the bcginnings of agriculture and written history.
migration is^ a geographical phenomenon^ that seems^ to be^ a human^ necesity
every age. Since man has a tendency to leave the areas in which life is^ difficul;'æ
migrates to the areas where life may be easy and better.
Migration has been defined differently by different experts. In its mostgeri
sense,migration^ is ordinaril^ defined^ as the permanent^ or semi-^ rmanentche of resi or
Migration may be permanent or semi-permanent. Recently,
concerningthemselveswith population dynamics and the problems
with migration.
Migrationtogetherwith 'fertility' and 'mortality' is a fundamentaleleg
determining population growth and population structure in an area.It is,hovæ
difficult to provide a scientific essentialcriterion for classificationof
Bfigration, in fact, may be international, inter-regional, inter-urban, rural-urbanr
intra-urban.On the basis of time criterion, migration may be temporal
permanent. If we take into consideration the distance, the migration maybe
short. (^) On the basis of number, migration may be individual or mass;it
politically sponsored or voluntary. On the basis of social organization,
may be that of family, clan or individual. On the basis of causes,migrationNY
economic, social, political or religious. Migration may be stepwise, i.e.village
urban hierarchy.
Causes of Migration
Migration depends (^) on various push and pull factors ranging from
civil war to environmental disaster, from disempowerment
in the horneto
ination in the country and each migration flow is helped or
networks and governmental actions. The causes of migration may
Migration (^187)
and these may range from natural calamities, climatic change, epidemics, drought to sc<ial,economic, cultural and political. The overpopulation and heavy pressure
on resourcesmay be the cause^ of permanent or temporary, and long distance or
short distance migration. Many a time the differences between groups in levels of technology' and economic opportunities (^) also cause large-scale (^) migration.
(a) Technology
peope^ more sophisticated^ technology may invade and conquer new areas.
Contrary to this, less advanced groups may be attracted to the greater opportu-
nides provided by a more developed society. For example, ancient Romans
conqueredvast areas in Europe, North Africa and South-West (^) Asia. During this
period, many people migrated to Rome which provided better economic and
employment opportunities. During the medieval period, the Arabs were quite
advancedin education and technology. With this, they conquered large territories in Central Asia, Northern^ Africa, Iberian Peninsula (Spain and Portugal) and easternparts of Europe. In the 14th and 15th centuries, the Europeans had better navigationships and they discovered America, Australia and numerous unknown
islandsof the Arctic, Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans. They colonized and
exploited more populated territories of Asia and Africa. After the Industrial Revolution in 1779,the Europeans emigrated to North
America,Sourth America, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. The
large-scaleemigration from European countries continued up to the first part of
the 20th centyry and the mam reason was to colonize the underdeveloped
countriesand to exploit their resources.
(b) Economic Causes One of the prime motives of emigration seems to be economic. Man's need to have virgin land to till has inspired him to migrate to distant areas. It was because of this reasonthat the slaves (African Negroes) were transported to the plantations in tropical America. European colonialism helped establish islands of development throughout the world. Islands of development are often coastal^ cities becausetheir
developmentand establishment was based on accessto trade, and where infra-
structureis concentrated. These Negroes^ subsequently^ got settled in the United
Statesof America, Latin America and the West Indies. Lust for virgin land also motivated the Europeans to emigrate from UK, Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, Spain,Portugal, Holland, Belgium and Denmark and to settle into the Praries of USAand Canada. In the 17th and 18th centuries, about 20 to 40 hectares of land vas usedto be given free of cost to the emigrants^ in USA who owned nothing in their homeland. The temptation to have land became a great magnetic force for the Europeansto settle in America. Heavy pressure on the land resources^ in the motherland also forced the people to outmigrate and to settle in areas where economic benefits may be achieved. The pastoralpeople and nomads of Central Asia invaded the territories of the sedentary people.The Mongols, Tatars, Uzbeks, Yakuts and Kurds migrated in the medieval periodand got settled in the fertile valleys of Farghana, Panjsheer (Afghanistan), Volga,Armenia and Caucasus mountains.
Non-availabilityof proper jobs and unemploymentare also the economic
reasonswhich compel the youths to leave their home for the places, areas, regions
Migration 189
nationallevels.^ At present, it is most frequently seen in underdeveloped rural areas wherethe outstripping of resources by population growth may be evident in under- nourishmentor underemployment. Throughout the human history, migration took place because of the overpop- ulationin a community or region. In such a case, emigration may affect all social
classes.At present, overpopulation is the most important cause of emigration in
the developing^ countries of Asia, Africa and Latin America. The people of these
countriesare emigrating to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Yemen, UAE, Canada,
USA, France, Germany, Australia and New Zealand. The emigrants include
domestic servants,^ agricultural^ labourers,^ unskilled^ workers, technicians,
engineers,doctors and academicians.Each year, from India alone, about 3 lakh
skilledand semi-skilledpeople outmigrate.
(d)Social and Religious Causes Thehuman desire to stay, work and enjoy life with the pepple of his ethnic, social and religious groups is also an important cause of migration. In every period of humanhistory social factors led to large-scaleemigration. In the middle ages, there wasthe emigration of Balkan peoples owing to the dominance of Muslim Turks. In the 20th century, -there has been expulsion of Jews from Germany, Spain and Russia(erstwhile USSR). There is large-scale outmigration^ of Muslims from Bosnia and Serbia (erstwhile Yugoslavia). Muslims are moving out from Afghanistan, Syria,Yemen, Iraq, Myanmar (Burma). The feeling of insecurity is compelling manyof the Kashmiri Pandits and Punjabi Hindus to outmigrate from Jammu & Kashmirand Punjab respectively, while the Muslims prefer to migrate from the
Hindu dominated areas to Muslim localities and vice versa, irrespective of the
socialamenities. Many of the well-off Muslims are moving towards the Muslim
slumlocalities in Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmadabad, Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Allahabad, Agra,Kanpur, Lucknow, Varanasi, etc. because of social and religious persecutions
and same is the case of Hindus as they are outmigrating from the Muslim
dominatedareas to Hindu dominated areas. Health, climate, education and other socialamenities are also responsible for migration at the regional, national and international levels.
(e)cPoliticalCauses One of the important causes of migration, especially after the Second World War, is the (^) political one. Political refugees is a worldwide phenomenon today. One can list numerousexamples of political migration. These included, Turkish, Armenians. and white (^) Russians (^) early in the 20th century; European Jews after the Second World War, Palestinians, Chinese, Hungarian (freedom fighters), Cubans, Indians, Pakistanis,Bangladeshis, Kashmiris, Tamils, Vietnamese, Syrians, Iraqis, Kurds, Afghans,Myarmanian Rohingya Muslims, Iranians, Somalians, Kurds, Serbians, Bosnians,Kosovos and Albanians. All these are the examples of forced migrations inducedby political factors.
Another form of involuntary migration is the expulsion or exchange of
minorities by nations. For example, the Sudeten Germans repatriated from
Czechoslovakiaafter the Second World War, and the Muslims and Hindus
exchangedwhen India and Pakistan were created by the partition of the subcon-
tinent (^) in 1947.Following the collapse of Soviat Union in 1991,thousands of Jews
Migrat:on 191
Demographic Causes A number of demographic factors also play a vital role in the migration pattern. For example,age has been recognized as one of the important demographic factors
controllingthe degree^ of desire to move among the potential migrants,^ It is not
surprisingthat adults are more migratory than other age groups. It is the rate of
growth of population that determines the extent of population pressure in an area. The great historic movement of the Europeans across the Atlantic Ocean was an expressionof increasing^ pressure of population on the resource base of Europe. Similarly,in India, the large-scale^ outmigration from the overpopulated parts of Odisha,Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal,^ Kerala, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh is largely due to a poor population-resource ratio in these areas.
(g) Diffusion^ of Information The availabilityof information^ ough education, cultural contacts and spatial interaction also increase the chances of population migration. The communities that are ruled by orthodoxy, conservativism, rigid traditions, customs and strong
communal ties are less mobile than those which are socially more awakened,
progressiveand have more contacts and exposure with the outside world. The
informationnetwork and cultural contact increase the honzons of job opportu-
nities. Thus, migration generates more^ migration, which^ signifies the role of
informationnetwork in the stimulation of migration. In India, the Sikhs are the
most adventurous and well-informed people, who^ migrate even to the less
developed and less attractive areas like Bolivia, Columbia, Ecuador, Honduras, Nicaragua,Central African Republic, Chad, Sudan, Ethiopia, Yemen, etc.
(h) General^ Rise in the Level of Aspiration
With the advancement in science and technology, new items of comfort and luxury
appearin the market and the level of aspiration of the educated and uneducated
peoplegoes up. Everybody is tempted to enjoy a better standard of living. In India and Pakistan as well as in all the developing countries, the young men who were better-offthan their fathers were nonetheless dissatisfied,and many sought to better
themselvesoverseas.It is mainly because of this reasons that Indian engineers,
managersand doctors are emigrating to USA, Canada, and in large number profes- sional (^) unskilled and semi-skilled labour inmigrating towards Saudi Arabia and the Gulf countries.
(i) Wars
Warshave been one of the important causes of human migration. Wars have always involved (^) upheavals, particularly in the regions where these have been fought. The
First World War (1914—1919AD) involved the displacement of about 6 million
people, and the Second World War (1939—1945AD) involved the involuntary
displacementof about 60 million people. Some people were forced to move to avoid politicaland religious persecution even long before the war. Millions were moved in the forced transference of ethnic minorities, millions more in evacuation and flight
from the battle fronts. Forced labour movements and deportation accounted for
several millions, and subsequent resettlement involved still further^ movement. Nearly a million Poles and Jews were deported by. Germany during the war, another
