The long walk towards uncertainty: The migrant dilemma in times of COVID-19

Abstract

The onslaught of COVID-19 thrust upon humanity two major challenges, that of human health and that of the economy; the migrants are mired in both. It has both pushed the world economic order into chaos and challenged even the mightiest of economies. The initial advent of COVID-19 sowed confusion within systems of governance as countries struggled to deal with its unprecedented threat. The pandemic has both exposed the magnitude of India’s dependency upon internal migrants for low-end jobs and the vulnerabilities they face in spite of such dependency. Migration has a history as old as humanity, and India is no exception to this. India has long been the land of the world’s largest voluntary and involuntary migration. The problems with employment that pre-dated the pandemic continue to remain at play with the added shock to the economy, making re-employment and income generation difficult.