The relationship between international migration and development is now a key area of global, national and regional policy making and migration and development governance, as well as a focus of academic research. This is particularly the case in relation to India. Intense and increasing scrutiny and legislation is being applied to that which is transmitted ‘home’ by Indian diasporic communities living abroad. India is famously the largest foreign remittance receiving country in the world. However, it is increasingly recognised that the Indian international migration-development nexus goes well beyond remittances to encompass transnational financial investments, philanthropy, skills, ideas and knowledge transfer, as well as cultural, religious and political transactions. While dominant discourses within academic and policy discussions tend to celebrate the progressive relationship between Indian migrant transnationalism, this British Academy-funded project is informed by a number of recent academic studies which emphasize the complexity and ambiguity, and call for more nuanced analyses, of the Indian international migration-development nexus. Migrant transnationalism can exacerbate and create social differentiation and inequality within India, undermining inclusive development while simultaneously promoting economic development for some. It is important to examine the impact of Indian transnationalism, with the effects upon those who do not migrate being especially important. This project aims to serve as a catalyst for a series of interrelated discussions, research projects and publications dedicated to: (1) the Indian international migration-development nexus beyond remittances – to include philanthropy, knowledge, skills and social capital transfer, as well as political, cultural and religious transnationalism – and across transnational space, encompassing those who migrate and those who do not; (2) the relationship between international migration and major forms of intersecting social differentiation and inequality in India – based upon caste, gender, class, religion and region; (3) previously under-explored, but nonetheless crucial issues pertaining to the relationship between international migration and inclusive development in India, such as climate change, land financialization and conversion, changing forms of governance in relation to labour mobility and skills, changing forms of inter-generational transfer, patrimony and inheritance.
The above project is focussed around a series of four workshops, the details of which are listed below. All the workshops are free events. Refreshments and lunch will be provided at each of them. Some limited funding to support the travel costs of postgraduate students and early career researchers may be available. If you are interested in either presenting a paper or attending any of these workshops, please email stephen.a.taylor@northumbria.ac.uk to reserve a place.
Workshop 1: Gender, Migration and Development in India
Saturday 3rd November 2018 10am-3.30pm
Room 4426, Russell Square Main College Building, SOAS
Speakers
‘Migration, Protection and Safety: The moral economy of girls’/women’s education in Punjab, India’. Dr. Navtej Purewal, South Asia Institute, SOAS, UK
‘Gender, Migration and Development: Evidence from the Kerala Migration Survey’. Professor S.I. Rajan, Centre for Development Studies, Kerala, India
‘Asymmetrical Therapeutic Mobilities: Masculine advantage in nurse migration from India’. Professor Margaret Walton-Roberts, Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada
‘An Expanding Regulative Infrastructure ? State policy mediations and migration of nurses from India’. Dr. V.J. Varghese, University of Hyderabad, India and University of Edinburgh, UK
‘Gendering International Student Migration: an Indian case study’. Dr. Gunjan Sondhi, The Open University, UK
This is a FREE event. Refreshments and lunch will be available. Some limited funding to support the travel costs of postgraduate students and early career researchers may be available. If you are interested in either presenting a paper or attending please email stephen.a.taylor@northumbria to reserve a place
Workshop 2: Indian Transnationalism, Caste and Regional Inequality
Tuesday 13th November 2018 10am-4.30pm
Centre for International Development, Student Skills Centre 1, Main Campus Library, Northumbria University, Newcastle Upon Tyne
Speakers
‘Dalit Overseas Migration and Inclusive Development: Punjab and Kerala’. Professor Steve Taylor, Northumbria University, UK and Professor S.I. Rajan, Centre for Development Studies, Kerala, India
‘Mapping Caste Abroad: Emerging Configurations of Diasporic Punjabi Dalit/Ravidassia Identity’. Professor Ronki Ram, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India
‘The Migration-Development Nexus, Inequality and Communal Politics in Gujarat’. Dr. Sanderien Verstappen, Leiden University, The Netherlands
‘Remembering and/or Forgetting Caste: Can international migrants choose ?’. Professor Meena Dhanda, University of Wolverhampton, UK
‘International Migration as a Diversification Strategy amongst Jat Farmers in Indian Punjab’. Dr. Shreya Sinha, Cambridge University, UK
‘Dalit Architecture: Regional particularisms in a global context’. Professor Pramod Kumar, Institute for Development and Communication, Chandigarh, India
‘NRIs and Transnational Linkages: The Amaravati Project’. Professor Carol Upadhya, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore, India
This is a FREE event. Refreshments and lunch will be available. Some limited funding to support the travel costs of postgraduate students and early career researchers may be available. If you are interested in either presenting a paper or attending please email stephen.a.taylor@northumbria to reserve a place
Workshop 3: Labour and Skill Mobility From and to India: Contemporary Practice and Governance
Friday 16th November 2018 10am-4pm
Institute of Development Studies, University of Sussex
Workshop 4: Climate Change, Indian Transnationalism and Development
Tuesday 27th November 2018 10am-4pm
International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai
These are FREE events. Refreshments and lunch will be available. Some limited funding to support the travel costs of postgraduate students and early career researchers may be available. If you are interested in either presenting a paper or attending please email stephen.a.taylor@northumbria to reserve a place