Development Research Institute (DRI), the research wing of the Odisha Gabeshana Chakra, a think tank, has urged the State government to work on employment creation in villages to check distress migration.
In its study, ‘Rights of migrant workers in pandemic context and building a post-COVID economy in Odisha’, the DRI said the problem with out-migration from Odisha is that much of it is distress-induced. Public policy should work towards reducing the vulnerability of migrants who migrate under duress. The best guarantee against such distress migration is employment creation at the origin, it said.
It emphasized on the State’s role in post-production processing and marketing intervention in the farm sector.
“Farmers typically face difficulties in getting remunerative prices for their products. The paddy procurement process should be expanded. Cotton should also be procured and processed by the State agencies. For vegetables, a localised value chain approach linking farmers to markets should be designed and implemented,” it recommended.
Advocating inclusion of tenant farmers in the State-supported programmes, the think-tank said a flexible approach towards the identification of such farmers, such as self-certification, rather than a written contract or consent from the landowner should be followed to include tenant farmers.
The DRI warned that land alienation is likely to increase during the pandemic because of loss of income, rise in the catastrophic health expenditure, deaths and lack of employment.
“Specific measures to redistribute land and safeguard the rights of vulnerable groups, such as Scheduled Tribes, Scheduled Castes, and women, over land and forests will help reduce the livelihood shock induced by the pandemic,” it said.
Emphasising on the need to organise migrant workers and other vulnerable workers to strengthen their workplace and citizenship rights, the DRI said there should be coordination between trade unions, peasants organisations, and civil society organisations. The pandemic should not be used as an opportunity to dilute labour rights and democratic rights of the citizens, it said.
As part of immediate measures suggested by the DRI, a universal public distribution system with a minimum of 10 kg wheat or rice per person per month and other essential food items, such as pulses, oil, soaps and sugar should be provided to avoid food insecurity.
Before addressing the issues of migrant labourers, the State should focus on collecting, processing and analysing disaggregated information on migrant workers, the DRI said.
The government should considering setting up a special centre for migration research to develop an adequate policy response to the problems faced by migrant workers. Universities should also be encouraged and funded, researchers said.
