Ot 25060 - 62 Oac - 2506

ORGANIZATIONAL ACTION COMPONENT:
Studies on Seasonal Rural Migration from South Rajasthan
by
Anshuman Singh (p25060) Ashwani Kumar (p25062)
ORGANIZATIONAL TRAINEESHIP SEGMENT

PRM 2004-06
Submitted to
SUDRAK/AAJEEVIKA BUREAU, UDAIPUR, RAJASTHAN
Faculty Guide
Prof. H. S. Shylendra
August, 2005
INSTITUTE OF RURAL MANAGEMENT
Executive Summary
Title : Supporting Aajeevika Bureau Field Offices in Providing Livelihood
Services to Rural Unskilled Migrants of South Rajasthan
Organisation : Aajeevika Bureau
Reporting Officer : Rajiv Khandelwal
Faculty Guide : Prof. H S Shylendra
Students’ Name : Anshuman Singh (p25060) and Ashwani Kumar (p25062)
Aajeevika Bureau is a separately registered trust working towards providing livelihood

services to rural migrant labourers and is an offshoot of SUDRAK (a research and
consultancy services organization). Organizational Action Component (OAC) at Aajeevika
Bureau was aimed at organizational and managerial support to the Bureau offices. After a
brief observational period in the activities of the bureau, the following objectives were set in
consultation with the organization:
a) Design and Implementation of a usable and scalable Migration Database

b) Data Analysis and Report generation of Wage Labour and Migration Study at Block
level
c) Study of Financial Flow of Seasonal Migrant Workers
d) An exploratory study on Hotel Workers at Mount Abu
Methodology: The objective wise methodologies are as follows:
Prior to database design a detailed discussion was conducted with the organizational staff so
as to get the definition of ‘usability’ from their perspective. The existing registration, training
and ID card request forms were revised to accommodate the sought data. The design so
obtained was implemented with MS-Access.
For data analysis and report generation, the survey formats were revisited for verification of
data entry. As and when necessary small field visits were done at the origins of the migrants.
Following this, the reports were generated on livelihood profiles of the said blocks.
The format for financial flow study was provided by Aajeevika Bureau, under an on-going
study and followed by a discussion with the Director of the organization; the study was
completed at Ambaji (Gujarat) for a small sample of 22 construction workers. A descriptive
and qualitative report was then prepared for the study. This also captured the migration
processes and needs of labour at destination centres.
The study at Mount Abu was implemented through observation, unstructured interviews with
the workers and an hour long FGD with the Hotel Workers Association there.
Findings: The objective wise findings are as follows:
1) Seasonal migration is under reported due to circular and irregular nature of migration
(Need for Migration Database). The database is required to make provisioning of
services (ID card issuance, training and placement services and financial services) to
migrant labourers in a timely and organized manner. To make the database more user
friendly and ready for decentralization, use of programming language like Visual
Basic will be required.
i
2) Migration is a major livelihood strategy for the growing mass of unskilled rural
people.
3) Based on the study of financial flows at Ambaji and the study on Hotel workers at
Mount Abu, the findings which emerged are (a) the labour force at destinations lacks
shelter, health, financial and social facilities (b) there is a lack of food and health
support to migrants’ families at sources.
4) Training for skill enhancement has the potential to provide vertical mobility to labour
force but the issues faced during placement and training period do not show up any
trend due to diversity of challenges posed.
5) The rural remittances are reduced due to high expenditure on frequent commutation
by the labour itself to the origins, but are unavoidable as labourers need to go back to
the origins to recuperate.
6) The circular migration is a factor dissuading migrants from making savings at
destination.
Recommendations:
1) Integration of financial services information with the migration database.

2) Staff Capacity Building through training in computer usage and accounting systems,
regularizing field work documentation and presentation followed by a group
discussion among staff.
3) Recognition of well placed trained labourers and promoting interaction among these
labourers and potential trainees to enhance training effectiveness.
4) Seeking synergized support from organizations like Gyan Shala, Ahmedabad for
Supplementary Summer Education Camps and ARTH, Udaipur for promoting Health
Security Systems among the migrants and their families at sources and destinations.
Limitations:
1) At present the database developed by us lacks the required level of full-fledged

automation. This gap can be filled by evaluating the future scalability and
decentralization needs.
2) The wage labour and Migration Study at the Block levels fails to capture quantitative
information on seasonal and circular migration.
ii
Table of Contents
Executive Summary....................................................................................................................i
Table of Contents......................................................................................................................iii
List of Tables.............................................................................................................................iv
List of Figures............................................................................................................................v
1. Background............................................................................................................................1
2. Wage Labour and Migration Study .......................................................................................6
2.1 Abu Road Block...............................................................................................................6
Source: Aajeevika Bureau Field Survey Jan. 2005....................................................................7
Source: DCH Sirohi district 1991..............................................................................................8
Source: Aajeevika Bureau Field Survey Jan. 2005....................................................................9
Livestock Possession............................................................................................................11
Source: Aajeevika Bureau Field Survey Jan. 2005..................................................................12
* differs from corresponding value in table 6on the account that responses pertaining to
secondary occupation were not given by the respondents in missing cases........................14
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE................................................................................28
2.2 Dungarpur Block................................................................................................................29
The survey was carried out in the month of February 2005. A set of three schedules were used
to get information from the field – a village schedule, a household listing, and household
schedules. This has been supplemented by a discussion with a larger group in the villages.
Secondary data from census and other sources have been used to gain an overall
understanding of the socio-economic situation of the block....................................................30
Pattern of Migration.................................................................................................................42
3. A Study on Financial Management Practices of The Seasonal Migrant Workers in
Construction Sector at Ambaji.................................................................................................44
4. Exploratory Study with Hotel Workers at Mount Abu.........................................................57
5. Findings, Recommendations and Limitations......................................................................60
iii
List of Tables
Table 1. Name of Villages / Number of Households Surveyed.................................................7

Table 2: Occupational classification of workforce in 2001 .......................................................9
Table 3: Livestock Possession .................................................................................................11
Table 4: Source and end use of loans.......................................................................................12
Table 5: Work participation rates (WPR) ................................................................................12
Table 6: Occupational classification – main workers...............................................................13
Table 7: Occupational classification – secondary occupation .................................................14
Table 8: Changes in occupation profile during 1991-2001......................................................15
Table 9: Changes in occupation profile segregated by gender.................................................15
Table 10: Changes in occupational profile – comparing census with AB data........................15
Table 11: Household Incomes..................................................................................................16
Table 12: Migration Desegregation on Gender for Destination and Occupation.....................18
Table 13: Local Wage Labor Desegregation on Gender for Occupation.................................19
Table 14: Problems faced at Destination by Migrant Laborers................................................22
Table 15: Cross Tabulation for Destination of Migration and Occupation of Workers............22
Table 16: Work Distribution.....................................................................................................36
iv
List of Figures
Figure 1. Land use in Abu Road.................................................................................................8

Figure 2: Literacy Rates...........................................................................................................10
Figure 3: Households reporting income from different sources...............................................16
Figure 4: Sources of Household Income..................................................................................17
Figure 5: Household Incomes..................................................................................................17
Figure 6: Income from Wage Labor.........................................................................................19
Figure 7: Sectoral Employment in Local Wage Labor.............................................................19
Figure 8: Sectoral Employment of Migrant Workers...............................................................20
Figure 9: Destination of Migrant Workers...............................................................................21
Figure 10: Distribution of Occupation.....................................................................................35
Figure 11: Occupational Dependence of Families...................................................................37
Figure 12: Income Classification.............................................................................................37
Figure 13: Income Distribution................................................................................................39
Figure 14: Work done when working as Local Wage Labour..................................................40
Figure 15: Work done when working as Migrant Labour........................................................42
v
1. Background
Rural migration has become an overpowering social and economic reality for populations
residing in marginal, rain-dependent and poorly industrialized regions of India. Southern
Rajasthan is one such region that has been witness to fundamental shifts in the way rural
communities earn their incomes and manages their economic life. Surveys and studies
confirm this shift from traditional farming, forestry and livestock to an increasing dependence
on wage labour and migration.
Rural to urban migration has often been considered to be a negative and undesirable
phenomenon. Many organizations and projects in India specifically work towards preventing
or reserving rural migration. Much emphasis is therefore placed on improving land and
livestock based economic activities or on starting up micro enterprises in rural areas. In
regions such as South Rajasthan the potential for expanding both of this remains small and in
fact migration has become an inevitable strategy for the poor. Indeed migration to urban and
industrial area has helped many rural households escape abject poverty and an oppression
social milieu.
Aajeevika Bureau’s work is premised on the notion that rural migration will remain an
inevitable reality for rural poor and that it has reached irreversible proposition. There is infact
an urgent need to facilitate higher returns and greater security for migrating populations.
Aajeevika is a Hindi word, meaning “livelihood”. The Bureau is a pilot effort in this
direction.
Aajeevika Bureau is a separately registered trust working towards providing livelihood

services to rural migrant labourers and is an offshoot of SUDRAK (a research and
consultancy services organization). It is an innovative programme, dedicated to protecting the
livelihoods and dignity of the thousands of unskilled labour and migrants flowing out of
South Rajasthan. Established in Udaipur in 2004, Aajeevika Bureau is a first attempt to
recognize that wage labour and migration have become an inevitable reality for the poor, who
no longer find gainful employment from land, livestock and other rural activities. The bureau
seeks to provide services and support to assist unskilled labourers and migrants in improving
their social and economic well being.
1
The organization has set some activities to carry out in order to achieve its objectives stated
above. The activities are to be carried out through establishments like Bureau Offices at
Source Centres from where migrants flow out and Destination Centres at the destinations of
the migrants from South Rajasthan. Bureau Offices act as migrant resource centres and are
called as Shramik Sahayata evam Sandarbha Kendra. These are located at block head offices
in southern districts of Rajasthan. Till date two Bureau Offices have been brought under
operations, one at Gogunda block in Udaipur and the other at Kotra block in Udaipur in
collaboration with Adivasi Vikas Manch (Kotra). The activity profile of the Bureau includes:
• Skill training and up gradation of young rural migrants to help them join higher value
jobs in the labour market;
• Information, counseling and placement services for migrants looking for work and
seasonal employment;
• Registration, communication and tracking services;
• Shelter, financial services, health care and education facilities for rural migrants at
destination;
• Legal aid and protection against exploitative labour practices.
The major activities on-going presently are registration and ID card issuance to the migrants.
At the same time the functional Migration Support Fund is being utilized to disburse loans to
the needy migrant workers to fulfill their needs of establishment at work place, food security
at village home, tools needed at work, travel expenses to destination and such.
Organizational Action Component (OAC) at Aajeevika Bureau was aimed at organizational

and managerial support to the Bureau Offices. After a brief observational period in the
bureau, the following objectives were set in consultation with the organization:
a) Design and Implementation of a usable and scalable Migration Database
b) Data Analysis and Report generation of Wage Labour and Migration Study at Block level
c) Study of Financial Flow of Seasonal Migrant Workers
d) An exploratory study on Hotel Workers at Mount Abu
Apart from the above mentioned action components we also undertook some other minor
tasks. These include:
i) Computerization of one of the Bureau Centres (at Gogunda) by installing computer
equipments there for database recording and maintenance at that block level;
2
ii) Additional computerization of the head office facilitating I-Card issue jobs (printing
and laminating);
iii) Internet website designing for the organisation, to give organisation an electronic
identity on the international network;
iv) Logo and Letter-Head designing for the collaborating organisation (Adivasi Vikas
Manch) at Kotra;
v) Computer Training of the Anudeshaks (Instructors) for Summer Supplementary
Education Camps at the “Anudeshak Dakshta Samwardhan Shivir” (Instructors Skill
Enhancement Camp)
Each of these tasks spanned for a day or two. These tasks gave us more insights into the
design and the kind of work the organisation is involved in, thereby providing more insights
for our organizational task component.
As to why the migration database was identified as a critical action component emerges
clearly from the understanding that the migrant workers on move from whom the services are
designed to be extended, need to be identified and their source and destination need to be
recorded. The database desired to be put in place aims at collection, storage and retrieval of
data regarding the migrant worker, his/her family background, and livelihood profile of the
family. Apart from this basic data the organization seeks to consolidate data on training
requirements of the registering migrants and the prospective recruiters at various destinations
in different occupations in the economy. The database would be a technology based tool
providing customized information to the Bureau Offices and would facilitate identification of
the skill set of the migrants from South Rajasthan going to work at far off places.
It was also required to computerize the ID card issuance and hence shorten the cycle of
obtaining request from the migrant worker on a form and to get a card issued to the worker.
The organization had recently conducted a series of surveys in six blocks of four districts in
South Rajasthan. The data analysis and reports for the three blocks (Abu Road in Sirohi
district, Dungarpur in Dungarpur district and Relmagra in Rajasamand district) were
incomplete and needed finalization. This generated the task (b) listed previously under the
objectives of OAC.
3
At the beginning of the bureau office operations it was realized at the organizational level that
the seasonal migrant workers do have a need for some specific financial services at their
sources and destinations. The loans of various kinds which cater to the specific financial
needs are:
• Food security loans for buying food grains for the family to last up to a month making it
possible for the male worker to migrate for assured wage labour in other locations.
• Movement loans for bus and train fares and for temporary shelter and food needed
during the search for wage labour or employment break.
• Tool and machine loans to enable newly trained and “skilled up” migrants to enter the
labour market.
• Enterprise loans to enable migrants to set up small seasonal or stable businesses in the
location of their usual destinations.
• Breakaway loans for substituting exploitative loans and advances from contractors.
There are loans to provide for establishment of workers at their destinations too. These
products have been disbursed at sources only since at destinations the work of the
organization is at a very nascent stage. However, the crucial thing remains to be done is
testing the diverse use of funds.
One hypothesis that constrained access to financial services at the migration destination is
that it increases the ‘cost of migration’ and creates a preference for seasonal migration is to
be tested and understanding this aspect of seasonal migration will provide useful insights on
high impact financial services strategies for the poor. The almost exclusive rural focus of
microfinance institutions may have to be re-looked in terms of their impact in the context of
facilitating/hindering migration. Can models of urban microfinance that serve migrant
communities at destination be evolved? Can credit, savings or insurance services be
customized in accordance with the seasonal employment and relocation cycles? [Italicized
material’s source: A Proposal to ICICI–SIG to Support Testing, Learning and Rapid Growth
of Migrant Support Services in South Rajasthan and Gujarat, September 2005 – August
2008].
This triggered the need for a financial flow study on migrants. A similar study is being done
at IIM-Ahmedabad. The study was planned in collaboration with Prof. M. S. Sriram (Indian
Institute of Management, Ahmedabad) and after an initial start, was postponed. It was
4
required that the study be revived. Keeping in consideration the time constraint we were
asked to launch a pilot study at a small nearby town in Gujarat, called Ambaji with seasonal
migrants from South Rajasthan in construction sector. The study delves into the financial
management practices of the migrant workers in terms of their income, expenditure, debt
patterns and saving habits.
The idea behind exploratory study with the hotel workers at Mount Abu was to understand
the working and living conditions of the workers there. Also the study was expected to give
insight into the hotel industry at Mount Abu and hence facilitate laying out of placement
strategy for workers being trained in hotel industry skills by the organization.
The need to design and implement database for migrants was required to capture seasonal
migration and at the same time build a usable record of migrants’ personal, occupational and
livelihood profiles ready for services oriented analysis by the organization. At present the
requirement is that of a central database with ID card issuance being computerized. Thus for
its sustainable use, the need is to have a usable and scalable database. “Usability” refers to the
user friendliness of the software as regards data entry, data retrieval and of course the use of
data for report generation. Thus, the database should be able to produce customized queries
and outputs. The “Scalability” hints towards the future up gradation of the database for
having additional features for advanced use.
The Aajeevika Bureau Migration Database (ABMD), essentially a part of the Organizational
Action Component from the point of view of the organization, has been covered in detail in
the Organisational Understanding (OU) Report of Aajeevika Bureau, Udaipur, Rajasthan.
The database to be used for the data management of all the strategic activities of the
organisation, actually works as an interface between what the organization at present is and
what it wants to become in the future. It acts as a tool for manifestation of the milestones to
be achieved. Hence ABMD can be said as the method or the direction i.e. the strategy of the
organization. In this way, it enlightens better from the point of view of understanding the
activities and hence the organiastion. It is for this reason only that it has been covered in the
OU section as a second part.
5
2. Wage Labour and Migration Study
2.1 Abu Road Block
Introduction
The block survey was done as part of the work being undertaken by Aajeevika Bureau to
understand wage labor patterns of the tribal South Rajasthan. The objective of this study is to
understand patterns of wage labor and identify specific services that can be provided to meet
the strategic and practical needs of the migrant and Labour populations.
This block report which was prepared by us, based on the above mentioned Aajeevika
Bureau’s block survey, starts with the objective and study methodology. It next describes the
geography, demography and occupational classification of the workforce in Abu Road. The
survey findings are presented next wherein the social and demographic characteristics of the
population are presented. This is followed by a description of the livelihood scenario. The
major types of wage work undertaken by the workers are presented in a separate section. The
following section tries to capture the wage labor and migration picture in brief by looking at
the impact of migration. The last section presents recommendations or action agendas for
future work.
Objectives of the study
The two overarching objectives guiding the migration and labor research are:
• To construct a profile of unskilled wage labor and seasonal migration in Abu Road
• To ascertain the potential for enhancing social and economic well being of migrating and
wage labor populations
Methodology
The migration and wage labor survey was carried out by the organization in the month of
January 2005. A set of three schedules was used – a village schedule, a household listing, and
a household schedule. This has been supplemented through a discussion with a larger group
in the village. Secondary data from census has been used to create an overall profile of the
block. Census occupational classification data has also been used to look at trends over the
years.
6
Sampling
Eight villages comprising ten percent of the total number of villages in the block were
covered in the survey. The village selection was done through a stratified random method. It
was ensured that villages capture the existing social and geographical divisions in the block.
Thus it was made sure that both the Bheetrot and the Bhakar area are covered in the survey.
Four villages were taken from each of these two distinct areas within the block.
Table 1. Name of Villages / Number of Households Surveyed
Name of the Villages (Hamlet) Number of Households Surveyed*

Deri (Mala phali) 17
Bahadurpura (Sari phali) 10
Chandela (Simbiliya phali) 13
Taleti (Kyara phali) 10
Nichlagarh (Mata phali) 13
Danvav (Jod phali) 7
Bosa (Kalora phali) 11
Awal (Golia phali) 13
Source: Aajeevika Bureau Field Survey Jan. 2005
In the villages thus selected, a household listing was carried out to generate the livelihood
profile of the village and identify households that undertake wage labor and migration.
Around ten to fifteen household schedules were filled for each of the selected village using a
convenient random sampling method*. Thus a total of ninety-three schedules were filled for
the block. Of these one was later rejected.
ABU ROAD - THE BACKDROP
The Abu Road block is part of the Sirohi district (Rajasthan) bordering Gujarat located in the
South West extremity of Rajasthan. The district falls on the border of the Mewar and Marwar
regions. Abu Road is the Southern most block of the district and is bordered by two districts
of Gujarat – Banaskantha and Sabarkantha. The Abu Road block occupies a distinct position
in the state, as the highest peak in the Aravali range is located in this block. The famous
temple town of Ambaji is also located very near the border in Gujarat.
Geography
There are two distinct regions in the block – a plain area called Bheetrot and the hilly country
7
that surrounds this valley called Bhakar meaning hills in the Marwari dialect. The plain area
is the valley of River Banas. The river crosses into the district of Gujarat that derives its name
from it, Banaskantha. There is a dam down stream in Gujarat and this is the source of
irrigation in the area. The hills are on both side of the valley. There is the high range of
Mount Abu towards North West and low lying undulating hills in the South East. The land
use of the block is shown in the chart below. It can be seen that most of the area is classified
as forest. The hill range of Mount Abu is designated as a wild life sanctuary. Only a fifth of
the total area is cultivated. Of this, one fourth is irrigated.
Figure 1. Land use in Abu Road
Land use in Abu Road

Not available for
cultivation
12%
Culturable Waste
3%
Unirrigated
15%
Irrigated Forest
5% 65%
Source: DCH Sirohi district 1991
The hills of Mount Abu receive heavy rainfall. The run off is trapped in a series of check
dams located at the bottom of the hill range. These are used for irrigation. However the
ground water does not get charged adequately as the underlying rock strata is impervious.
Consequently the towns of Abu Road experiences sever water shortage during the summer
season.
Demography
The block is a part of the Tribal Sub Plan area with more than two third of the population
being tribal. Both Garasiya and Bhil tribes are found in the area. The tribes exclusively
8
populate the Bhakar area. The plain Bheetrot area has a sprinkling of other communities also
– Rabari, Meghwal, Chaudhry, and Muslim.
Educationally the area is very backward. Literacy rates in the block are lower than the state
average. Overall only 43 percent persons were literate according to the 2001 census. The
literacy rate for females at 26 percent was less than half the literacy rate for males, which
stood at 59 percent.
Occupational classification of workforce
Cultivation is the main occupation followed by agriculture labor. Together these two account
for 62 percent of the workforce.
Table 2: Occupational classification of workforce in 2001
Figures in percentage
Particulars P M F
Cultivators 45 43 49
Agri-Labour 17 12 28
Household Industry 1 1 1
Other 37 44 22
Total 100 100 100
Total Population i.e. N 38259 27359 10900
SURVEY FINDINGS
A total of 589 people in 94 households were covered through household listing carried out in
the eight villages.
Overall Livelihood Profile of the households listed
The listing data collected for land holdings, occupation and income sources show that there is
very little landlessness in the area. Only 11 percent households reported landlessness.
Average landholding is very low at 1.7 bighas (5 bighas = 1 acre). Seventy three percent
households reported undertaking wage labor locally while another 25 percent reported going
for migration. A significant proportion, at 34 percent, also reported getting income from
animal husbandry. Most households depend on more than one source for their livelihood.
9
Average number of livelihood sources per household was 3. Following this household listing,
household schedules were filled for a sample number of 94 households.
Demographic profile
Of the surveyed households, 87 percent belong to Scheduled Tribe. Four percent belong to
the Scheduled Castes and the remaining nine percent belong to other castes. Of the families
covered under the household schedule, 39 percent were reported as BPL families.
Literacy rates and education levels
Literacy rates amongst the surveyed population are very low. Overall literacy rate is 39
percent only. The male literacy rate is 52 percent while that for females is as low as 26
percent. The education levels of literate population are low. Very few have studied up to 10th
standard or higher. One reason that was cited by the local NGO for lack of higher education
was absence of a college hostel in Abu Road town. This makes it very difficult for tribal
students to pursue studies at college level.
Figure 2: Literacy Rates
Literacy rates
74
80
61 Illiterate
60 48
1to 5th
40 32
26 6 to 10th
19
16
20 6
11 >10
4 2
0
0
Male Female Person
Land Holding
There is very little landlessness. Only two percent families reported that they did not have
any land. The area is characterized by very low land holdings. Average land holding is as low
as 3 bighas (5 bighas = 1 acre) or half a hectare. While the landholdings are very low, there is
significant irrigation. Around 45 percent of the total cultivated land was reported irrigated.
More than two third families (70 percent) reported ownership of irrigated land. The area
under irrigation is high in Bheetrot villages as these receive irrigation from the irrigation
tanks located at the bottom of Abu hills. Another feature of landholding is high incidence of
10
encroachment. Almost one third of the total sample (32 percent) families reported
encroachments in forest areas. This figure can be higher as respondents are at times reticent
of revealing sensitive information like these. The ‘Jungle Jameen Andolan’ that is fighting for
grant of permanent rights to encroachers has a good following in the areas. The mortgaging
of land for raising loans was reported in some villages. In the survey findings there is not
much incidence of it. Only five percent families have reported mortgaging their land.
However its actual incidence could be higher for the same reasons that are cited for
encroachments.
Livestock Possession
There is significant incidence of animal possession. All types of animals are reared except
sheep and camel. Sirohi district is famous for its goat breed. Highest ownership is also
reported for goats. The incidence of ownership and average number of possession for owner
households are shown in the table below
Table 3: Livestock Possession
Animals Buffaloes Cow Bullock Goat Poultry

%age of Households (HHs) 40 57 57 68 32
reporting Ownership
Average holding for owner HHs 1.5 1.7 1.9 7.4 5.6
Indebtedness
Less than half the households at 42 percent admitted indebtedness. Average amount of loan
for indebted households is Rs. 10,590. The average duration for loans outstanding is three
years. Average interest rate is 24 percent though there are cases of interest rate being as high
as 72 percent. Of the total amount taken as loan, 72 percent remains outstanding. The table
below shows the source of loans and the purpose for which it was taken. As can be seen,
traders account for only a few loans. In end use category, social expenses account for a
significant number. Though SHGs and banks are being preferred as major source of loan,
people are not investing the loan amount in business activities or other productive and
profitable activities. This may suggest lack of opportunities or burden of old debts or low
level of awareness about investment options or even lack of capabilities to take risk of
11
investing in productive activities among rural households. But at the same time, one can note
the remarkable pattern that institutional help, for credit servicing, is sought and preferred. The
loan repayment, income-expenditure flow and the pattern of investment need to be studied in
detail if any intervention is required to support financial conditions of migrant laborers and
local wage laborers.
Table 4: Source and end use of loans
Source %age of loans End use %age of loans

Friend and relative 25 Agriculture 36
Trader 18 Animal purchase 11
Bank 25 Social expenses 32
Cooperative 0 Illness 11
SHG 27 Business 2
Other 5 Other 7
Livelihood profile
The livelihood profile of the target population is assessed through two sets of data. The first is
the occupation profile that traces the breakup of work force amongst different occupations.
The National Informatics Center (NIC) occupation classification is used to make the data
comparable with census data. The second set of data is the household income profile. This
looks at comparable contribution of different sources of livelihood to household income. The
attempt has not been so much to get very accurate estimates of household income but to
understand the relative importance of different sources towards household livelihood.
Work Participation Rate (WPR)
Overall work participation rate is 45.8 percent. There is not much difference between work
participation rates of males and females. Male WPR at 47 percent is slightly above that of
female that is 44 percent (see table below). The high participation rate by female is in
keeping with the tribal society where women participate alongside men in outdoor work also.
Table 5: Work participation rates (WPR)
WPR
Male 47
12
Female 44
Total 46
Occupational classification
In keeping with the ground reality, where typically the same worker may undertake more than
one type of work, two responses were generated for the occupation – the main i.e the primary
occupation and the secondary occupation on the basis of respondents’ preference for the
occupation in which they are engaged. Agriculture continues to be the main occupation –
accounting for 55 percent of total workers. Agriculture labor and animal husbandry together
account for 72 percent of the workforce. An interesting finding is that construction emerges
as the second single most occupation where 13 percent of the workforce is engaged. This is
understandable in view of the fact that there are three major towns that generate significant
construction work in and around the area – Abu Road, Mount Abu, and Ambaji in Gujarat.
Quarrying is also a significant occupation accounting for five percent of workforce.
Looking at gender disaggregated figures; the male workforce exhibits a higher degree of
diversification. The segregation reinforces traditional task division where men will go outside
to find work while women remain at home. Thus while 35 percent men have reported
cultivation as their main occupation, the corresponding figure for female is 79 percent. The
female workforce is primarily concentrated in the farm sector that accounts for 82 percent of
the workforce. A surprising finding is that almost 24 percent of male workforce has reported
construction as the main occupation.
Table 6: Occupational classification – main workers
(All figures except for N in %ages)

Male Female Total
Agriculture 35 78 55
Agri-Labour 13 11 12
Animal Husbandry 7 2 5
Quarrying 8 2 5
Household industry 0 0 0
Construction 24 0 13
Trade 1 1 1
Govt./ Pvt. Service 4 4 4
Other 8 2 5
Total 100 100 100
Total Population i.e. N 144 126 270
13
The occupational status of the workforce becomes further clear by looking at the distribution
of secondary occupation (see table below). While cultivation continues to hold its dominant
position, animal husbandry and construction both occupy second place – accounting for 16
percent of the total workforce. A surprising finding is the low place of agriculture labor in the
secondary occupation table. Only two percent workers report it as their secondary occupation.
This is because most of the agriculture labor work is generated in Gujarat. The holdings in
Abu Road are small and there is no significantly large landowning class. Workers have to
migrate to Gujarat – often for the whole season – to find work in agriculture. The negligible
proportion of workforce participation in quarrying indicates the specialized nature of work in
quarries. Gender desegregation of secondary occupational classification shows significant
diversification amongst female work force. A significant proportion of female workforce has
reported working at construction sites.
Table 7: Occupational classification – secondary occupation
(All figures except for N in %ages)

Male Female Total
Agriculture 60 39 52
Agriculture labor 1 5 2
Animal Husbandry 15 17 16
Quarrying 0 0 0
Household industry 1 0 1
Construction 19 9 16
Trade 2 2 2
Govt./ Pvt. Service 0 0 0
Other 2 28 11
Total 100 100 100
N 113 66 179*
* differs from corresponding value in table 6on the account that responses pertaining to secondary occupation
were not given by the respondents in missing cases
Changes in occupational classification
How have the livelihoods been changing over the years? The table below gives changes
reported for major occupation groupings during the 1991-2001 period using census data. The
table also shows changes that have taken place in the Sirohi district as well as the state of
Rajasthan to provide reference for the changes taking place. As can be seen, the Abu Road
block has seen a rapid decline in cultivators. This has been accompanied by increase in non-
farm sector employment.
14
Table 8: Changes in occupation profile during 1991-2001
Abu Road Sirohi State

Cultivators -14 3 -6
Agri-Labour 0 -10 0
Household Industry 0 0 0
Other 14 7 5
Source: Census 1991 and 2001
The changes are desegregated for male and female workers in the two tables given below.
Surprisingly while male workforce shows a reduction in proportion of cultivators, the female
workforce shows an increase. However while looking at the table below, it needs to be kept in
mind that the 2001 census has registered a massive increase in female WPR. This is an issue
of definitions, as census enumeration has historically been charged with under enumerating
women’s work. The authorities tried to set this right in the 2001 census. This has resulted in a
large number of women being registered as cultivators.
Table 9: Changes in occupation profile segregated by gender
Changes in male occupational profile Changes in female occupational profile

1991 2001 Change 1991 2001 Change
Cultivators 61 43 -18 Cultivators 42 49 7
Agri-Labour 14 12 -2 AL 39 28 -11
Household HHI 1 1 0
Industry 1 1 0
Other 24 44 20 Other 18 22 5
Source: Census 1991 and 2001
How do census classifications compare with the data generated through field survey? This is
shown by comparing 2001 census data with the AB survey in the table below. This shows that
the AB survey has come up with a higher proportion of cultivators. This is quite a major
change. The reasons for this lie in higher enumeration of female workforce in the AB survey.
While the AB survey has a female WPR of 49, the census gives a female WPR of only 44.
Table 10: Changes in occupational profile – comparing census with AB data
Census 2001 AB survey 2005 Change

Cultivators 43 55 +12
Agri-Labour 12 12 0
Household Industry 1 0 -1
Other 44 33 -11
15
If we compare only the data for males then we come up with a decline of eight percent that is
in keeping with overall trends.
Household Incomes
The second major tool of enquiry to assess livelihood profile of the region is the household
income. The household schedule elicited information as to different sources of income and
the contribution made by each. Six categories were used – agriculture, animal husbandry,
forest, local wage labor, migration, and other sources. The chart below shows incidence of
households reporting income from different sources. Agriculture is a source of income for
nearly all households except those that are landless. Animal husbandry is also a significant
source of income. This is in keeping with the data on animal holding which shows significant
goat holdings. Forestry is also a source for nearly half the households at 48 percent. Wage
labor whether done locally or outside is another significant source.
Table 11: Household Incomes
Household incomes
Average
Source Agriculture AH Forest Local wage Migration Others Total
income
Total income 375785 247100 30106.4 727420 535960 464200 2380571 25876
No. of HHs reporting 88 59 44 51 35 18
Agriculture AH Forest Local wage Migration Others
Incidence of HHs
96 64 48 55 38 20
reporting income
Figure 3: Households reporting income from different sources
Proportion of households reporting income from different sources

Percentage households
120
96
100
80 64
55
60 48
38
40 20
20
0
Agriculture AH Forest Local wage Migration Others
The table above mirrors the information generated through occupational classification.
However the key issue is the respective share of different sources to total household income.
16
This is shown in the chart below. This chart shows the respective share of different sources to
total household income. The findings are quite revealing and present a contrast to the picture
revealed through occupational classification. Whereas 55 percent of the workforce reports
cultivation as the main occupation, only 16 percent income is derived from agriculture.
Animal husbandry contributes another 10 percent while forestry accounts for a minor figure
of one percent even though nearly half the households have reported undertaking income
generation from forestry. The low share of agriculture is surprising but in keeping with the
very small land holdings – an average of half a hectare. The chart clearly establishes that
wage labor is the main source of income for the surveyed population in Abu Road. There is
significant availability of local wage labor opportunities. This accounts for the highest share
at 31 percent. However migration also takes place and accounts for 21 percent of the
household incomes.
Figure 4: Sources of Household Income
Sources of household income

Agriculture
Others
16%
19%
AH
10%
Migration Forest
23% 1%
Local w age
31%

The average income per household is Rs. 25,876/-. This is fairly high considering that the last
BPL count postulated an annual income of Rs.20,000 as the cut off mark for poverty line.
However a frequency distribution exhibits large pockets of poverty amidst this overall picture
of comparative well-being. The distribution of households by income category is shown in
the chart below. This shows that almost half the households fall below the poverty line of Rs.
20,000/-. A significant number – 14 percent - have income lower than Rs. 10,000/-.
Figure 5: Household Incomes
17
Household incom es
27
income bracket
25-30,000 8
16
15-20,000 15
20
less than 10,000 14
0 5 10 15 20 25 30
%age of households
Wage labor in Abu Road
A critical objective of the survey exercise was to explore the patterns of wage labor in the
block. Where do people find work, what is the nature of work, what are the average wage
rates and work conditions? Looking at the counts (from sampled households) of males and
females regarding migration and wage labor with reference to occupation one can easily note
that male workforce migrates more in number and exhibits occupational diversification.
Moreover, 33 percent females migrate along with the men of the households to work as farm
labours in Gujarat (outside state). The migration to farms in Gujarat is that of a longer period
and women accompany their men mostly to handle household chores (Cooking etc) at the
destination too. In terms of sectoral distribution, construction (apart from being the preferred
sector of migrant workers and local wage laborers) provides the major share of income
earned through wage labor. It accounts more than half of the
total income earned through wage labor – whether local or migrant. Quarrying and
agriculture come next accounting for 19 percent and 18 percent, respectively, of the total
wages earned.
Table 12: Migration Desegregation on Gender for Destination and Occupation
MIGRATION
Destination Within District Within State Outside State
Male 19 6 15
Female 4 1 8
Occupation Agri-Labour Mines &Quarries Construction Hotels
Male 15 5 17 3
18
Female 11 2
Table 13: Local Wage Labor Desegregation on Gender for Occupation
Local Wage Labor

Occupation Agri-Labor Mines & Quarries Construction Driver Others
Male 6 7 39 5 3
Female 4 5
Figure 6: Income from Wage Labor
Income from wage labor

Hotel Other
2% Agriculture
2%
Driver 18%
8%
Quarrying
19%
Construction
51%
Local wage labor
The workers have the option of finding work locally or going outside to find work. There is
some distinction in both the patterns. Construction is the major source of employment locally
i.e. the nearby areas from where the workers commute on daily basis. Nearly two thirds of the
respondent who reported undertaking local wage labor worked in the construction sector.
Quarrying comes next at 14 percent. Average wage rate is Rs. 67. The reason is that a
significant proportion of the workforce is employed in the construction sector as masons –
earning Rs. 100 per day and upward. The average wage earned excludes income earned
through agricultural labor (on ‘part produce earned’ method) since the earning is dependent
on production on farms which itself is so uncertain in most of the cases.
Figure 7: Sectoral Employment in Local Wage Labor
19
Sectoral em ploym ent in local w age labor
Other Agriculture
Driver
4% 9%
7% Quarrying
14%
Construction
66%
Migration
Working Definition of a Migrant
For migrant workers i.e. for those who went to far-off places and come back once in a month
or may be once or twice in a year, agriculture is the main sector. It accounts for 49 percent of
the total migrant workforce. Construction at 32 percent and quarrying at 13 percent are the
other main sectors providing employment. The average wage rate for migrant workers is Rs.
50. Though, on an average, a migrant worker toils for 209 days on work, the average earning
per migrant worker in a year is Rs. 8,936. At the same time, average earning per wage laborer
in local labor work is Rs. 11,528 despite average number of labor days being only 165 in a
year. The fact owes this to higher wage rate in local wage labor work while on migration the
workers work on lower wage rates. Here the nature of occupation also decides the daily
earning. The consideration for expenditures at destination (in case of migration) and also
expenditure on daily transportation (in case of local wage labor) cannot be ignored here for a
detailed study on financial flows of wage laborers (local or migrants).
Figure 8: Sectoral Employment of Migrant Workers
20
Sectoral employment of migrant workers
Hotel
6%
Construction
32% Agriculture
49%
Quarrying
13%
In terms of destinations, migrant workers find work within the district as well as go to the
neighboring state of Gujarat. Local work is in quarries in the neighboring block of Revdar
and to the tourist destination of Mount Abu. In Gujarat migrants mostly work in agriculture
as tenants.
Figure 9: Destination of Migrant Workers
Destinations for migrant workers
Outside state Within district

43% 44%
Within state
13%
Most migrant workers go out for long periods, not returning to their homes during the period
of their stay. This pattern is determined by the nature of their work. The tenant farmers will
typically migrate with their whole family and stay at the field. Similarly the migration to
Mount Abu is for specific work period – mostly coinciding with the tourist season after
Navratri and after Holi. However some people do come back more than once.
21
Nearly 90 percent people said that they migrate every year. When asked as to when did the
first migration take place, more than half said that this was more than five years ago. Only
one respondent said that the first migration took place last year. The migrants bear almost all
their expenses. Only some contractors provide for shelter.
Table 14: Problems faced at Destination by Migrant Laborers
Agricultural Labour Quarrying Construction

Particulars
(No. of responses)
Problems faced at destination
Uncertain work days 1 -- 7
Climatic Challenges 2 -- 1
Insufficient and Irregular Payment 1 2 4
Lack of facilities (food, finance and
9 5 13
housing)
Health -- -- --
Others (travel expenses, bondage etc) 3 1 7
Clearly from the survey done in Abu Road, the lack of facilities, financial and information
support poses the major chunk of problems to the migrant workers across various sectors of
work. Uncertainty in getting work for a day is yet another major problem in the construction
sector. The migrants usually complain of heavy travel expenses between source and
destination. The responses from quarry workers are not representative enough to draw
conclusions. Regarding health the responses never came or were not so clear.
Major Patterns of Wage Labor in Abu Road
There is abundance of wage labor availability in and around Abu Road. This reduces the
incidence of migration. Most people are able to commute daily. The options available can be
classified into two – the destination and the type of work as shown in the matrix below
Table 15: Cross Tabulation for Destination of Migration and Occupation of Workers
Ambaji Palanpur Revdar Mount Abu Road

and Disa Abu
Construction √ √ √
Quarrying √ √ √
Agriculture labor √ √
Stone carving √
Hotel industry √
22
A destination wise study regarding the number of people engaged in various occupations will
reveal the occupational diversification, and level of skills possessed by the migrant and local
wage laborers. This study will definitely unveil avenues where innovative and relevant
interventions can be designed and implemented.
The main types of wage work undertaken by wageworkers are described below.
Agriculture labor in Gujarat
The rich agriculture lands of North Gujarat in the neighboring districts of Banaskantha and
Sabarkantha provide work opportunities to tribal migrants from Abu Road. The Banaskantha
district is comparatively richer; more prosperous and therefore attracts more labor. The
employment is primarily in two modes –
Wage tenants
The worker is employed for the whole season as a tenant. He provides wage labor for all
agricultural functions and is given a share in the harvest. Mostly this is fixed at 25 percent.
Typically the whole family migrates and stays at the farm of the owner. In between if any
wage labor is employed, the wages are paid out of tenant’s share. Mostly there is a system of
taking advance. If the tenant is not able to pay back the advance taken at the beginning of the
year, the balance gets adjusted against the advance taken for the next year. The settlement
process has the potential of becoming disputed. The farmers will often claim employment of
more wage labor than actual. However odds are stacked against the wage tenant.
The system also degenerates into a type of bondage. If the tenant wants to shift, he can do so
only if he pays back the employer the full advance. Often the tenants will take advance from
a new place and pay back the owner. While the villagers at a number of places mentioned the
possibility, no cases came up during the survey. It needs to be noted that the investigators had
to rely on secondary sources, as the tenant farmers were all away at the farms in Gujarat.
Besides the possibility of disputes and the state of bondage, living conditions are also not
good. Tenant families have to live in makeshift accommodation. Education of children gets
completely neglected.
Long-term wage work against advance
23
In this instance, the workers will take a loan from a rich farmer in Gujarat. They will then go
to work on his field for a continuous period at the time of busy season in agriculture. Both
husband and wife (along with children) may go to work. This may happen when the migrant
male needs some help in terms of cooking at the farms or when the family does not have
enough grains back at its village to sustain the left back members. Often the farmers will visit
the village at the time of agriculture season and take back the worker with him. This type of
work pattern was visible in the Sibliya phala of Chandela village.
Construction
As reported, construction is the major source of employment for manual workers in Abu
Road block. It accounts for nearly half the income generated from wage labor. The main
towns where wage work is available are Abu Road, Mount Abu, and Ambaji. The first two
attract commuter wage labor from nearby villages. However finding work in Mount Abu
involves migration, as it is not possible for laborers to commute daily. The construction sector
has also seen a number of workers turning into skilled laborers. Significant numbers have
obtained skills in masonry. Some have specialized in specific works like RCC work.
Mount Abu
The tourist town of Mount Abu attracts significant wage labor from the villages that are
located below the Abu Ridge. The workers will often climb up the hill. It takes nearly half a
day of climbing. Work is available in Mount Abu in construction and in the hotel industry in a
variety of jobs. The hotel jobs range from cooks to bellboys to driving around an assortment
of vehicles for tourists. The work is seasonal and the demand shoots up during the tourist
season. The present wage rate is Rs. 60.
The main problem faced by workers in Mount Abu is lack of accommodation. This being a
hill station, accommodation is not easily available. Further most of the hillside falls under
forestland and is protected where it is not possible for workers to erect temporary dwellings.
The cold causes another set of problems.
Quarrying
There are significant deposits of building stone – marble, granite – in and around Abu Road
block. The marble is found in Abu Road itself, at Ambaji, and in Revdar block. Revdar also
has major deposits of granite. The workers going to Ambaji marble quarries mostly commute
24
from the neighboring villages. However Revdar is further away. Workers going there migrate
for long periods. It was reported that working condition at quarries are difficult and there
might be bondage like conditions also prevailing. The sarpanch of the Ambaji panchayat who
met the team during a village visit spoke aloud about there being bonded laborers in a Revdar
quarry. Others also reported that the quarries are owned by feudal elements that keep the
workers on a tight leash. Working conditions are tough in quarries almost everywhere and
there is some possibility of truth in all these stories. However these definitely need to be
verified.
WHAT DOES MIGRATION AND WAGE LABOUR ENTAIL FOR THE PEOPLE IN
ABU ROAD?
The people of the area are engaged mainly in agricultural labor and construction works. The
employment in these sectors clearly shows the low-end jobs the people do. This leaves them
vulnerable to the instability, informalisation and contractualisation (even bondage) like
situations in employment, which entail deeper and persistent problems for the wage laborers.
How do such situations arise for the toiling mass of people? The phenomenon has a trace in
the capital intensive business environment. The cheap labor availed does not have the
privilege to organize themselves for strengthened negotiation power and this is due to the
absence of a system of protective legislation. The existing and functional legislations do not
recognize the employee-employer relationship in the unorganized sector. Further, any
legislation aiming at protecting rights of wage laborers (local or migrants) goes to doom
under the political setting of capitalist economy spreading across the globe. So what can a
responsible society do towards the betterment and protection of wage laborers? Shall it right
away strike at the roots of capitalism or shall it begin with certain relevant interventions in
form of support and information services to the wage earners?
To find answers to this ponderings one need to look at the working conditions the laborers are
subjected to in the various sectors or occupations they engage themselves in.
In construction sector, with shift to capital intensive and mechanized works, the requirement
for fewer skilled workers has gone up and demand for unskilled force has sharply declined.
This has pushed the labor force to unemployment or movement to yet another sector where
low-end jobs prevail for them. Apart from the irregularity at job and uncertain conditions in
terms of wage payment and instability of job, the legal regime in the country is tardy and
25
ineffective in providing the legal protection to the construction workers. The workers also
face information asymmetry at the workplace. To make matters worse, workers on migration
have to face multitude of difficulties at the destination. Lack of awareness and organization
powers is the major problem of workers.
In quarrying and mining, the backbreaking work is lowly paid and the long strenuous hours
of work are unsafe for the workers. In Abu Road, many of the leased quarries employ skilled
laborers from South India. The 75 percent of the labor in quarries in this area is unskilled and
is from Rajasthan itself. Further 50 percent of this population is female labor force. The
reason being that the marble quality in the quarries of Abu Road and adjoining areas is not
good and the traders majorly deal in marble chips. Now the women work in shaping out chips
out of larger chunks of marble. The wages earned by women are ranging from Rs. 35 to Rs.
40 while the men earn no more than Rs. 50 while the on-going minimum wage as per the
government norms is Rs. 73. The discrimination in wage payment is the result of different
kinds of work being done by men and women. While men work in loading, unloading and
moving slabs of marbles women make chips out of marble pieces.
The working condition at the mining and quarrying site is devoid of any shelter, drinking
water source or any other desired facility. Regarding the terms of employment and payments
to the workers, the skilled laborers take advance payments against their work and the
unskilled laborers usually take payments after the work period. Payments are not made daily.
They are usually made in a month.
The marble business works in a setting of multi-layered contracting where the contractor
appointed by the lessee of the quarry further sub-contracts the work. This hides the identity of
the real owner of the mine site and hence any regulation of the employment and work at the
sites becomes even more difficult for the judiciary. The sub-contracting nature of the business
has even caused problems like sub-contractor running away with the payment money. The
unskilled laborers suffer the real brunt. The contractor or the sub-contractor does not keep
any register or muster roll. Moreover, the unaware laborers are mostly concerned with the
payments and not the true payment they deserve. The quarrying work being a seasonal work
is preferred by local labor as they can go back to their farms during agricultural seasons. But
the mine owners and contractors fear this unpredictability of local labor being absent on any
day without notice and hence they prefer in-migrant labor. The local labor remains unskilled
26
at the quarry work and keeps earning dismally low wages. (Source: Mine Labor Protection
Campaign, Udaipur)
The conditions of agricultural labor have already been discussed in the previous section. The
work at farms is contractual and earnings are uncertain, the incidences of which were not
revealed much and are rather underreported for unsaid reasons. Absence of farm labor
families from the villages posed a limitation in gaining information regarding their real
conditions. A destination study is to be initiated if the requirement emerges. The living
conditions are inhuman and the workers are left to vagaries of weather. Bonded labor
incidences were also reported.
Impact of Migration
Impact is the change (positive or negative) arising in the situations of various aspects of a
context due to a human or a social process. When we talk of impact of migration, we try to
see the changes arising on three fronts of migrant population – economic, social and familial.
The survey done by the Aajeevika Bureau team kept the question of impact open to the
migrant workers and their family. The responses hence became more descriptive of the
prevailing situation and details of the impact in quantitative terms were not found out, as the
focus had been to capture the broad patterns related to migration.
On economic front the perspectives of the people generally portray status quo situation for
families. According to many the earning from migration are not sufficient for a significant
impact on the economic status of the migrant families. Travel and other expenses at the
destination dwindled the earnings. Many of the interrogated people also expressed their
inability in looking after their village agriculture and animals. The farm based production at
their homes being neglected is in a way changing their livelihood base. In absence of
quantitative data regarding this, the economic value of impact cannot yet be ascertained.
However, close observation of the households unveils things in a different way and there we
digress from the normal anti-migration view held by many. As per the survey almost 30
percent of the households’ incomes come from migration and commuting wage labor.
Moreover, these are the major cash earning livelihood sources adapted to by the people in the
region. Had people not gone for migration, the economic situation at the households have
been even dire than existing. It is well accepted that the migration strategy is at a subsistence
level but this does not suggest that migration is bad. Rather there are problems of hindered
27
vertical mobility of migrating and labor population, which mars their earning capability. The
room for intervention is here – empowering the wage earning mass of people in local or on
migration and enhancing their opportunity grabbing capabilities so as to promote their social
and economic well being.
On the social front, most of the respondents said that their social network in the village has
undergone dramatic change in terms of the nature of societal relationships and the roles
played in the society.
Family situations too undergo multitudes of changes. The left behind members of the family
are not taken enough care of and the rural society in which they live is also not a surety for
their well being. The grain stock back in the village at migrant’s home may not be enough to
sustain the family for the period when the migrant is out. The education and care of children
is also neglected.
All these issues are a matter of deeper empirical study through fieldwork and are in no way to
be assumed a priori.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FUTURE
As expected, the Abu Road is an area with surplus wage labor. A vibrant local economy
provides significant employment opportunities locally, reducing incidence of migration. This
is still significant. However even the migrant workers do not have to go very far. They find
employment in the mountain resort town of Abu, the quarries of neighboring Revdar block or
the agriculture fields in the neighboring Banaskantha and Sabarkantha districts of Gujarat.
The following action agendas emerge.
A detailed study of the wage tenants in agriculture in Gujarat followed by ameliorative

action
Large numbers of tribal households work as tenants in the farms of the rich peasants of
Gujarat. By all indications, their status is bad. There is hardly any protection for these
workers in cases of dispute. There is no law on the pattern of Kerala to protect the interests of
the tenants. In fact tenancy is not recorded and therefore not recognized any more. There is
need for a more in depth inquiry into their status. The inquiry should estimate their numbers
in the region, work conditions, and wage payments. However most importantly it should
28
ascertain if the tenants are working under conditions of bondage. If latter is the case, then
action should be initiated to get these workers released. Even if there is no bondage, steps
should be taken to ensure that the children of the tenant farmers get educated properly.
Skill up gradation in construction work
The construction industry is almost like a boom industry providing employment to a large
number of tribal workers. There is need for skill up gradation. The unskilled workers can be
trained in masonry. However there is also scope for more specialized training for existing
masons and skilled workers. These workers can be taught new techniques. They can also be
financially supported to become petty contractors.
Study of wage labor in Abu and provision of workers’ shelter at Abu Road
There is large-scale availability of wage work in the hill station of Abu. This attracts workers
from the neighboring villages in the foothills. However there is no provision of shelter for
them. There is urgent need of a temporary shelter for wageworkers in Abu. The municipal
corporation can be persuaded to undertake this.
Skill up gradation in marble carving
Marble carving is a flourishing industry at Ambaji and Koteshwar in Gujarat and Pindwara
block in Sirohi district. Significant number of tribal workers has also got trained as carvers.
There is potential to train new workers in the trade as this is a well-paid job and the market
for stone carving is expanding.
2.2 Dungarpur Block
This survey conducted at Dungarpur block is an attempt by Aajeevika Bureau to understand

the labour-based sources of livelihood in the Scheduled Tribes (ST) dominated areas of South
Rajasthan. The ST dominated areas of South Rajasthan are limited in natural resources and
people are dependent on labour works for their livelihood. The absence or low availability of
labour jobs in the local areas has also resulted in their migration to Gujarat and farther areas
in large numbers.
After describing the methodology of the study, a brief note on socio-economic profile of
Dungarpur block precedes the survey findings and conclusive part of the draft report.
29
Methodology
The survey was carried out in the month of February 2005. A set of three schedules were used
to get information from the field – a village schedule, a household listing, and household
schedules. This has been supplemented by a discussion with a larger group in the villages.
Secondary data from census and other sources have been used to gain an overall
understanding of the socio-economic situation of the block.
Sampling
The data have been collected from the eight villages in the block. These villages have been
carefully selected as to fully represent all the areas of the block. The selected villages were –
Taplara, Kherwara Sulehi, Karahata, Shankar Ghati, Naya Gaon, Talaya, Malota and Dara
Hatai. After enlisting all the families in each of the selected villages, the information as
regards their livelihood base were collected. Then in each village a detailed survey of ten to
fifteen families were carried out. For that household schedules were filled up for each family.
In total ninety household schedules were filled up.
Socio-economic profile of the district
The Dungarpur district is situated in the southern Rajasthan, bordering the Gujarat state. The
place gets its name from the fact that most of its area is covered with hills, called as Dungar
in the local language. Geographically and culturally Dungarpur is a part of Vagad. The local
language is also called Vagadi.
The district comprises mostly of tribal communities. About two-third population of this area
is of tribal population. Bhil is the main tribe. Our study area of the Dungarpur has got many
other tribes also. The study area is a home to about 71.6 percent tribal population. The
literacy rate in the Dungarpur block is 51.7percent. It is 69.01 percent for males and a 34.4
percent for women.
The occupational segmentation in the area tells that most of the people here are agriculturist.
The 2001 census of India reveals that 67 percent of the people consider agriculture as their
main occupation. Three percent agricultural labour, 1.7 percent household work and rest 27.6
percent consider other activities as their main occupation.
30
Survey results
Out of 779 enlisted families in the eight villages only three percent are landless. The average
land holding per household is 2.8 bighas. Labour work is an important alternative source of
income to the households. While men migrate for wage labour, most of the women engage
themselves in local governmental construction works as wage labour. Members of about five
percent of the households, work in the organised sectors.
Sex ratio
The sex ratio is 919:1000. That is, for every 1000 males there are only 919 females in the
population.
Literacy rates and education levels
The literacy rate for the population is 50 percent. Of the total literates, two third are educated
up to primary level. Only about 10 percent of the literates have got educational qualification
up to 10th or higher.
There is a remarkable difference between the literacy rate of males and females. While the
literacy rate for males is 62 percent, it is just 38 percent for females. The percentage for
higher education is also very low for females as compared to males.
Land holding
There are no cases of landlessness here. Though everyone has got some land, the size of the
land-holding is very low. On an average, the land holding per family is 3.6 bighas. The total
irrigated land out of the total cultivated land is only 15 percent. About 40 percent of the total
households have got irrigated land. But because of dismally low land holdings, even these
households are not totally food secured. Very less (only about four percent) incidences of
forest land encroachment have come up. Land mortgaging cases are also very low.
Livestock Possession
Animal husbandry is very limited in this area. As the agriculture requires ox, one can find
oxen in most of the houses. Almost 83 percent of the households keep oxen. In about more
than two-third of the households, goats are also reared. Cows can also be found in about this
31
much of the households. The main purpose of rearing cow is for reproduction of male calves.
In about less than half (46 percent) of the total households, buffaloes were also found.
Indebtedness
The debt details of 28 percent (27 out of 95 households) of the households were reported in
the survey. The average loan per household is around Rs. 9420. The main reason for which
loans have been availed are social expenses. Around 43 percent of the total loan taken by 27
persons is for social consumption. However 38 percent of the total loan taken by these people
is for miscellaneous expenses. The main sources of their debt are the local traders or money
lenders. 12 out of 27 households report taking loans from money lenders and 7 out of these
12 households took the loan for social expenses. Relatives and banks are other important
sources of credit. Though the interest rates charged by banks are less than that of money
lenders and relatives, the factor of accessibility (accessibility also contains the factor of paper
work involved in the institutions like banks) forces the households to borrow from
moneylenders. These money lenders are also owners of local shops and hence there is a
continual lender-taker relationship between villagers and the money lenders. Generally the
interest rate charged by money lenders is between 24 percent and 60 percent per annum. As
per the available debt details, there is high variability in the annual interest rate being
charged. The reasons for this might have the bearing on the village and social context of the
loan deal. Non-reporting of the correct situation could be one of the reasons for the low levels
of indebtedness observed.
A separate pilot destination study (sample size 22; mainly with people from Dungarpur
district) in concern with the financial management services of the seasonal migrant workers
in construction at Ambaji (Gujarat) portrays a slightly different picture. Though this study
does not claim to put up a complete picture in this regard it does reflect that the major source
of debt for the people is the social network they belong to and the reason being no or low
interest rates charged, no collateral and easy access. For marriages and other social
expenditure, multiple friends and relatives are approached to generate the adequate amount
required. The noticeable point is that a very few take loans or credit at destination and this is
due to mainly two reasons (a) circulation to new destinations and jobs under variant
conditions of employment and (b) fear of bonded sale of the labour to one contractor or the
money lender who might be related to a contractor. Also, access to institutional financial
services is dismally low. At destinations the labourers prefer taking money from friends and
32
relatives. Loan advancement from the employer is not reported much, because of the
aforesaid reason of debt bondage and also for the reason that the employer/contractor
disburses loans cautiously to his permanent worker. The system of advance payments to
worker is an escape from the debt bondage for the workers.
Savings
The pilot study at Ambaji, despite being statistically insufficient to provide base for any
quantitative analysis, was helpful in getting glimpses into the penetration of the idea of
savings among the seasonal migrant workers and the nature of savings prevalent among them.
Out of the 22 respondents only 9 of them reported to have made savings in financial
institutions like banks, mini banks and SHGs at their origin place. The point to be noted is
that none of the 9 respondents have made any savings at their destinations. One common
pattern among the eight of the nine respondents is the circular nature of their job where they
reached different destinations every year. The rationale behind the circulation is invariably
dependent on variable factors influencing individuals and their families. A couple of
respondents said that their uncertainty of stay at a particular destination dissuades them to
make any savings.
Any cash saving at destination is remitted back to their origins. The expenses at the origins
are mainly for house consumption, social obligations and debt repayment. A few households
where people have other earning members or have higher earnings at destination due to
employment as skilled workers or have assets in possession make savings with institutions
offering financial services. The amount of savings and periodicity do not exhibit any pattern.
Savings with SHGs at source is done by women of the households who have joined NGO
promoted women savings groups at their villages. The accounts in the banks are mostly
current except one skilled RCC worker who also operates a fixed deposit of Rs. 5000 with
Bank of Baroda at Dungarpur.
If one were to consider insurance policy as savings, it was interesting to find that five people
reported having opted for life insurance policies from LIC. They were not able to tell the
surrender value and other such features of the policy. All of them have opted for six monthly
premium and 5 or 10 years maturity period. The value of insurance ranges from Rs. 25000 to
Rs. 50000. Again, high wage earning skilled workers, workers whose family members are in
33
salaried jobs or on migration and those who have access to information and sources opt for
the insurance policies.
Livelihood profile
The livelihood profile of the target population is assessed through two sets of data. The first
one is the occupation profile of the working people. The second set of data is the household
income profile. This looks at the different sources of livelihood for the households and their
comparable contribution to the household income. Mostly people engage themselves in more
that one occupation in any given year. Therefore, there are two main categories of occupation
– main and secondary.
Work Participation Rate (WPR)
The work participation rate of the population is 45 percent. This is related only to main
works. The WPR for females is 35 percent and for males it is 53 percent. This stark
difference can be an indicator of (a) low participation of females in wage labour works; or (b)
confinement of women to household or home based agricultural works which are not
accounted for in the formula for work participation rate. As we will see later under a
subsequent heading that, the work participation rate for women is high in secondary works.
Also their participation rate is high in agricultural works as main work.
Occupational classification
Segmentation of the population based on main occupation is shown in the chart below. The
attached table shows the classification of the main and secondary occupation both for males
and females. Though agriculture is the main occupation, only 39 percent of the people are
engaged in it. Second to agriculture comes the construction work, which engages about 27
percent of the population. People in large numbers go to Ahmedabad and do the job of house-
keeping. A large number of construction workers also work at Ahmedabad. Aggregating the
figures of population engaged in construction and other occupations, it is observed that
basically these are the cases of migration, which accounts for more than the agriculture
engaged population.
34
Figure 10: Distribution of Occupation
Distribution of Main Occupation
Others
Govt./Pvt. Job Agriculture
Trade/Business
Construction Work Agricultural

Labour
Animal Husbandry
Traditional / Mining
Parental Job
Source
Agriculture is the major secondary occupation in terms of number of workers it engages.

About 59 percent of the workers are engaged in agriculture. If we compare the work profile
of males and females, we find that only 21 percent of the males have reported agriculture as
their main occupation, while this figure is 68 percent for the females. Mostly male members
migrate and females look after the agriculture and also work as wage labour in the local
areas. During rainy season, the male members do come back home, but their involvement in
agriculture is limited to main works like sowing and harvesting. Agricultural labour and
construction labour are other major secondary occupations. The main reason of agriculture
being the major occupation is the employment of children in the cotton-fields of Gujarat. On
inclusion of governmental works, construction has come up as a major secondary occupation.
Gender perspective of the difference in occupational profile
There is a remarkable difference in the kind of jobs undertaken by males and females. In the
table shown below, the different classification of main and secondary occupation for males
and females has been depicted. For males, construction work has come up (as reported by 38
35
percent of males) as the main occupation, rather than agriculture. Opposite to this, 68 percent
of the females have reported agriculture as their main occupation. For males, occupations in
‘Others’ category, which mainly consists of working at Gujarat, is the next preferred main
work. For females, construction work is the second important occupation. In the secondary
category of occupation, agricultural labour has gained significant importance, which is
mainly the involvement of young children in the cotton fields.
Table 16: Work Distribution
Main Work Secondary Work

Male Female Male Female
Agriculture 21 68 64 54
Agricultural Labour 3 5 13 14
Animal Husbandry 0 9 4 9
Mining 9 1 1 1
Traditional / Household
industry 1 0 0 0
Construction Work 36 10 15 18
Trade 2 0 0 0
Government / Private Job 3 5 0 1
Others 26 1 2 3
Total 100 100 100 100
Total Population i.e. N 159 97 97 95
Values are in percentage except values in N
Household Income
The household income is generated from six sources – agriculture, animal husbandry, forest,
local wage labor, migration, and other sources. Agriculture is the source of income for almost
98 percent of the surveyed households. But the income from agriculture is just 13 percent of
the total income of a household. The different sources of household income can be better
understood from the chart below. The first chart shows the sources of income for the
households. The second one shows the contribution of each source to the total income. If we
see the contribution to the income, we find migration as the major contributor. Over three
fourth (76 percent) of the households migrate. And half of the income is from migration only.
Other sources are on the third place, though only 12 percent of the households are getting
income from these other sources. The reason for this is the presence of service-engaged
people in this category, whose income is very high. The number of people getting livelihood
36
from forests is also significant but their income from the produce is very less. Local wage
labour is the second most significant contributor to the household income and about 70
percent of the households are engaged in local wage labour.
Figure 11: Occupational Dependence of Families
Occupation (Dependent Families)
98
76
Dependent Families
68
38
21
12
Animal Forest Migration

Agriculture Local Labour Others
Husbandry O ccupation
Wage based labour (either local or migration) is the main base for livelihood. Around 5
percent of households have service holding members. But even in these households,
migration and local wage labour were reported. Of the total income, over two-third of the
income comes from wage based labour. As a matter of fact around 90 percent of the
households have member(s) engaged in local labour or are migrating for work. Though
agriculture is the source of livelihood for all, its contribution to the total household income is
at secondary level.
Figure 12: Income Classification
37
Income Classification
Others Agriculture
Animal Husbandry
16% 13% 4% Forest

0%
17%
50%
Local Labour
Migration
Disparity in Household Income
Average household income in the surveyed area is Rs. 25,505. The point to note here is that
this is the total income for the whole household. A part of this is spent for earning the income,
which has not been accounted for. A major chunk of the income from migration is spent on
commuting between source and destination and boarding - lodging expenses at the
destination. Secondly, there is a wide disparity in the annual household income. For almost
one-third (31 percent) of the households it is less than Rs. 15,000. On the other hand, there
are 16 percent of the households for which this figure is more than Rs. 40,000. The chart
shown below shows that the concentration of the households is more on both the ends of the
total income spectrum while there are very few families in the middle income segment. This
chart indicates increasing disparity in the economic situation among the tribal population.
This is a natural phenomenon which lends itself to the interplay of various socio-economic
and family factors. Unique situations prevail for each individual and the family. This has a
bearing on the livelihood and income of the family.
Here since the expenses are not accounted for, actual picture of the net income, savings and
debts cannot be portrayed. The Ambaji pilot study tried to capture the expenditure pattern at
the destination. The expenses are high in regular journeys back to the origin places and in
intoxicants (mostly unrevealed and concealed). Leaving apart the expenses on intoxicants,
huge expenses on travel back to home, reduces the value of remittance by Rs. 500 for migrant
workers from Dungarpur, working in Ambaji. Yet, these workers visit their villages every
38
month or every two months for almost a week. This serves for them a couple of necessary
purposes. A regular visit keeps them ‘alive’ in their village’s social setup and they are able to
meet their family. This all provides them the most wanted recuperation which they rarely get
at their places of work. Moreover, they are assured that the remittance is safely and regularly
delivered in right hands.
Figure 13: Income Distribution
16% 19%
> Rs. 40000
< Rs. 10000
12%
Rs. 30000 - 40000
Rs. 10000 - 20000

Rs. 20000 - 30000
34%
19%
Main Sources of wage labour
Wage labour is the main source of livelihood for the tribes in the Dungarpur block. It
contributes for more than two-third (68 percent) of the total household income. Due to the
limited opportunities available at the local level for wage labour, migration is a massive
phenomenon in the area. Also the income from migration is about four times the income from
the local wage labour. While only 50 man days employment were available at the local level,
the employment from migration was available for 169days. Generally it is seen that it is only
the male members who migrate, while the females work locally as wage labourers. There is
difference in the wage rate at these two places. While the wage rate was Rs. 49 at the local
level, it was Rs. 64 per day at the migrating destinations.
Now, whether to stay or to migrate is the lingering question in the minds of the migrating
population. Do delve deeper into the decision making of migration may release a horde of
39
situational aspects over a very long period of action-based research and which may be
difficult to understand. So the study at Ambaji tried to find out the reason which stimulated
the migrant workers to migrate at the first instance from their villages. While many of them
moved out in search of better job opportunities and supplement the cash incomes at their
households, evidences of young people migrating out for various reasons also emerged.
Youngsters leave their villages to earn just because they do not find themselves fit in
education or customarily they set out to find a life mate and settle while working.
Local Wage Labour
The main source for local wage labour is the governmental works and construction, where
around 70 percent of the local wage labourers are engaged. The drought relief works in the
area are continual generators for man days of employment. In the year in which the survey
was carried out, though the total rainfall was near to average, the interruptions in the rains
resulted in bad maize crop. The opportunities for agricultural wage labour are limited. In
some parts of the block, work at marble and rock mines is also a source for wage labour. Of
the surveyed local wage labour population, 15 percent is employed in rock mines.
Figure 14: Work done when working as Local Wage Labour
Agricultur
Others
14% 7%
e
31% Mining
48% Construction and Govt. Jobs
Migration
The workers migrating to Gujarat find work in mainly three type of jobs - construction,
household work and hotel jobs.
Construction
40
Most of the wage opportunities are available in the construction sector. Of the total work
days, 39 percent were generated in construction works. Most of the workers do menial jobs.
Very few engage themselves as skilled workers. In the construction work, the average wage is
Rs. 63. The sector employs workers at three levels which are stratified according to the skill
level involved in the job, the experience possessed by the workers and their contacts at work
place with agents or contractors. The daily wages are decided by these factors. Other factors
too come into play. A labour contractor at Ambaji says, “Quite an experienced (say 3 to 7
years) skilled worker is usually paid Rs. 110 per day but if the worker is my brother or some
close kin I usually pay him in the range of Rs. 125 to Rs. 150. But to say that this high wages
are paid just for the sake of familial ties would be a misnomer. The higher wages for the
worker involve the monitoring of labour work at the sites. Also the search cost for a skilled
worker is saved in this way.
The migrant workers from Dungarpur are employed through various channels. Mostly a
skilled worker is an old acquaintance of the contractor. The worker serves as the agent of the
contractor and is handed over the responsibility of hiring and managing labour at work. He is
also responsible for payments made to the labour and their to and fro travel arrangements.
Usually these contractors have a set region in the rural Dungarpur from where they hire
workers. Some skilled workers have the responsibility to get the assisting labour along with
for his work.
The daily wages earned by them ranges from Rs. 60 to Rs. 170 per day.
Household Works
A large number of migrating population from this area works as house servants in the city of
Ahmedabad. They do the job of house keeping, dish washing and likewise. Generally one
person works in three to four houses. From each house the income is about Rs. 400 – 500 per
month. In household works, the average wage is up to Rs. 60.
Hotel Jobs
Of the total labour days available for labour, 20 percent is in the hotel jobs. In hotels, the
average wage is just Rs. 41. This is due to the deductions made in the wages earned for the
food the workers take at their employing hotel. Apart from hotels, the labourers work in
factories and agricultural fields. In factories, the wage rate is comparatively higher. The
41
people working in the fields are mostly children and their average wage rate is very low. They
do get some boarding and lodging facilities. The kind of difficulties faced by workers at
agricultural fields is very complex and deep. A deeper probe into their lives will throw more
light on their issues.
Figure 15: Work done when working as Migrant Labour
Others Agriculture
5% 6%
Domestic 20%
Servant
41%
Private 9% Construction
Factory
19%
Hotel Work
Pattern of Migration
Migration in the area is seasonal. The average period for which people of Dungarpur migrate
is 6 to 9 months. Of the total migrating households, 94 percent confirmed this. The migrating
labourers come back to their home many a times.
In the Dungarpur area, migration had started long back. The previous generation of present
migrating labourers to Gujarat had also migrated and worked at Gujarat. The generation prior
to that did not go to Gujarat. Mostly only males migrate. Of the total man days generated
from migration, the females were employed only for 9 percent of the days.
Construction Labour Migration Pattern
Refer to Section 3 titled “A Study on Financial Management Practices of The Seasonal

Migrant Workers in Construction Sector at Ambaji”
Problems associated with migration
The life of the migrants is tough and troublesome. Most of the labourers are engaged in the
construction works or household jobs at Ahmedabad. The biggest problem they face is of
boarding and lodging. They do not have any fixed place for staying. Because of the tough
42
circumstances they have to visit their home frequently and this involves expenses for fares
and miscellaneous expenses attached to commuting. At the destination the labourers have to
spend on food materials which seems to cost dear to them.
Talking about the problems faced by workers in the construction sector may require a
separate report but here it is attempted to put the situation in brief from the findings of the
Ambaji study. The working conditions are very dusty and dangerous. No safety equipments
except boot and gloves worn at time of RCC work were to be seen. Minor injuries are a daily
occurrence and mostly go unreported. Emergency medical expenses are paid for but
deductions are made or advances are asked for by the workers. The construction site is their
dwelling place and is open to all vagaries of nature. Food is cooked collectively by the
workers at a site. The work starts early at 8 am. The workers get up by 4 in the morning and
prepare food for their breakfast and lunch. They get to sleep only by 11 in the night. This
leaves them with just five hours at hand for rest. This plays havoc with the workers’ health
and they generally complain of fever and body pain.
The payment schedule is very irregular though a yellow card issued to the workers by the
employer and maintained by the agent, forces the workers to say that the payments are made
monthly. It is also found that the payments are made as advances and usually workers ask for
it for their food expenses, intermittently. The study of the whole setup of this sector, its
business, its financial structure and the management will reveal the reasons for an irregular
payment schedule. However, a visible pattern consequential to the workers is that the piece-
rate payment arrangements lead to withholding of the payments with the contractor and
workers (unable to claim back money in absence of any organized muster roll and records)
finally desert the workplace, suffering losses. The employing agents are paid Rs. 10 per
worker per month/week commission. This amount is deduced from the workers’ wages and
amounts to hidden losses of a worker. Overall situation will seem to pull the workers away
from the destinations but this being their sole source of cash income is a Faustian
employment for the worker.
Child Labour
In the cotton season, many young boys and girls from the Dungarpur block migrate to Gujarat
to work at the farms of rich Patels. For seed production of Shankar Cotton, a type of cotton,
cross-pollination is required. In the local language it is called “Dudhi” tying. Children are
43
preferred for this work. Their labour is cheap. From September to December, children
migrate in large numbers for these jobs.
The field owners depute contractors to employ these children. The contractor is generally
from the origin place of the migrating population. The contractor earns a commission of Rs 5
on one labour each day for the period of employment. The responsibilities of the contractor
include – to get the children to the fields, get the work done by them, arrange for their foods
and stay and get the children back to their homes. Normally one contractor brings along with
him 30 to 60 children. The field owner pays for the transportation charges.
The children start working from the adolescent age only. More than half of the children in the
range of 12 to 15 years start working in the fields. This percentage increases to about 83
percent for the age group of 16 to 18 years. For girls the work engagement is more than the
boys.
Conclusion
The study reveals a lot of issues which endorse for relevance of providing financial services
to the workers at their destination. The kind of intervention required will draw from the
facilities the workers require at the work place and what financial arrangements do they need
back at home.
3. A Study on Financial Management Practices of The Seasonal Migrant

Workers in Construction Sector at Ambaji
The study was imperative keeping in view the fact that financial services are relevant and
critical to the migrants. The opportunities are there in the financial services both in terms of
demand and supply but for generating the required broad support a study was required. The
study was planned to be of pilot nature keeping in consideration our time limitations at the
organizational action component. The study captures the working and living conditions of the
seasonal migrant workers at construction sites in Ambaji. It delves into their financial
management practices so as to elicit their requirements on financial front and endorse for an
appropriate package of financial interventions.
Methodology
44
The format for financial flow study was provided by Aajeevika Bureau, under an on-going
study and followed by a discussion with the Director of the organization; the study was
completed at Ambaji (Gujarat) for a small sample of 22 construction workers. A descriptive
and qualitative report was then prepared for the study. This also captured the migration
processes and needs of labour at destination centres.
Background
Ambaji, a religious place in Banaskantha district of Gujarat is six kilometers from the
Gujarat-Rajasthan border. The tiny town does not pose a static picture in terms of the
concrete jungles coming up and extending into the hilly forests surrounding the town. A small
protected area of the forest on way to Gabbar mountain top does inhibit the town’s growth on
one side, up to an extent.
The bustling main road due to continual influx of Hindu and Jain pilgrims is an abode for
hotels, restaurants, tea stalls, telephone booths and variety of shops. The town, in the wake of
its growth is witnessing heavy construction works going on all over the map of the town.
There are two big shopping complexes coming up near the Ambaji temple. There are around
five guest houses being built under funds from various trusts of communities and the temple.
There is an isolated site which is bearing four constructions. One of them is a Gayatri Temple
and the two guest houses attached to it. At a diametrically opposite site, Satyam City many
private houses are being built or extended in addition to a girls’ school and a Adivasi Adarsh
Shala (Residential). Other than this there are extensions being constructed at the Ambaji
temple. Temple construction and extensions also involve marble sculpting and fitting works
on a large scale which was on a hold for the need of funds and labour.
The jewellery and gift shops surrounding the Ambaji temple are almost completely owned by
Rajasthanis from Banswara, Chittorgarh, Udaipur and Marwar regions. Apart from the
enterprises the large number of population from South Rajasthan is a participant in the labour
force at Ambaji. A small population of skilled labour and labour contractor hails from Barmer
and Alwar.
This study was conducted as a pilot study to get insights into the financial management
practices of seasonal migrant workers in the construction sector. The target population for the
45
study was decided to be that from the Southern districts of Rajasthan. The study is supposed
to reveal the income-expenditure pattern, loaning and savings practices among the seasonal
migrant workers. It studies rural remittances too. Along side, it also tries to capture the
process and pattern of seasonal migration. The site of Ambaji was selected for reasons of
upcoming construction sector here, easy access, time available to the study team and presence
of South Rajasthanis in the town. A small sample of 22 was completed.
The month of July when the pilot study was conducted at Ambaji witnessed a very low
population from South Rajasthan in the labour force. The reason was return of the migrant
workers back to their village farms following the monsoon showers and the shortage of raw
materials at the site where the South Rajasthan’s migrant workers were employed. There are
presently two sites where our target population (Migrant workers from South Rajasthan)
works – Satyam City and Kailash Tekri (Gayatri Temple).
The Construction sector at Ambaji
The construction business at Ambaji is amazingly and predominantly composed of labour and
raw material contractors from Western Rajasthan (Barmer and Alwar). These people are
settled in Ambaji for more than a decade. The contractors from Gujarat take up work at
Ambaji but they hail from other towns like Himmatnagar, Visnagar and Palanpur. The
resident contractors prefer to hire comparatively cheap labour from local areas but on
contract. The contractors from other towns tend to take up large and long projects so they
prefer a distant and migrant labour. There may be a correlation between the period of the
project being undertaken and the distance from which the labour is brought in. The Gayatri
temple project and Rajput guest house project were supposed to extend up to two years and
they accordingly hired people from Dungarpur-Udaipur and Bihar respectively. One another
factor playing role in these hiring was the kind of establishment the contractor had in the past
and in the area of work. There are many other contractors associated with the construction
business but the study tried to target the labour contractors in masonry, RCC, tiling and other
such activities of construction.
The sector employs workers at three levels which are stratified according to the skill level
involved in the job, the experience possessed by the workers and their contacts at work place
with agents or contractors. The daily wages are decided by these factors. Other factors too
come into play. A labour contractor at Ambaji says, “Quite an experienced (say 3 to 7 years)
46
skilled worker is usually paid Rs. 110 per day but if the worker is my brother or some close
kin I usually pay him in the range of Rs. 125 to Rs. 150. But to say that this high wages are
paid just for the sake of familial ties would be a misnomer. The higher wages for the worker
involve the monitoring of labour work at the sites. Also the search cost for a skilled worker is
saved in this way.
Construction Labour Migration Pattern (Dungarpur)
The males migrate alone from the family. When migrating in a collective the migrant workers
usually accompany their friends or an agent of their own village to the destination. It is
observed that they usually change their destinations every year. Himmatnagar in Gujarat
being close to Dungarpur is a magnet for the workers in construction job. By a rough
estimate, around 1000 workers of Dungarpur work at Himmatnagar in the construction sector.
Other major destinations are Ambaji, Khed and Ahmedabad. The pilot study was conducted
in the month of July which is a lean season for construction at Ambaji. Hence, an estimate of
Dungarpur labour at Ambaji could not be made.
The workers usually accompany an agent deputed by the contractor and are ensured of
regular job at destination. That is, most of the workers are employed as contract labour. But
there are cases of getting laid off for a few days of a year in which these people have to
depend on the local labour market to trade their labour. Also there are evidences to show that
over years a worker might change his work in terms of skills. But rarely does a skilled worker
works as a semi or unskilled person. All this depends on the type of contact the worker is able
to establish in the work place with the employers and other players.
Whether to stay or to migrate is the lingering question in the minds of the migrating
population. To delve deeper into the decision making of migration may release a horde of
situational aspects over a very long period of action-based research and which may be
difficult to understand. So the study at Ambaji tried to find out the reason which stimulated
the migrant workers to migrate at the first instance from their villages. While many of them
moved out in search of better job opportunities and supplement the cash incomes at their
households, evidences of young people migrating out for various reasons also emerged.
Youngsters leave their villages to earn just because they do not find themselves fit in
education or customarily they set out to find a life mate and settle down while working.
Construction work and its implications on lives of the workers
47
As usual the construction work is carried out on the predominant rule of sub-contracting. The
owner deputes a contractor to carry out the work. The contractor so deputed on big sites
appoints contractors each for masonry, Sanitary works,RCC, shutter fitting, plumbing,
electrical fitting and marble fitting. These small contractors may also sub-contract for labour.
There is usually a contractor for labour supply. This contractor identifies, works with, test and
establishes a mini region for his supply of labour. He then appoints an agent in each village to
hire labour as per the need. At times these agents may also ask an old acquaintance (who is
also a skilled labour) to hire labour as per the requirements. All this structure is commission
based. On enquiry it was revealed that an agent may receive Rs. 10 per month per labour
hired. This payment is sourced through deductions made to the monthly pay of the labour.
The labour force is provided with a yellow card which is mainly intended to provide an
identity and also keep record of the attendance of the labour at work site. The time regulation
is tight. The labour has to reach the work site sharp at 8 am though the work may resume at 9
or later. The yellow card however does not assure regular and full payment to the workers.
One incidence which was not unobtrusive was that of a contractor putting attendance for the
workers in the evening and when one of the workers asked for payment of Rs. 80 towards
daily expenses, the contractor pulled out a Rs. 50 note for the worker. However, Rs. 80
towards cash payments was recorded in the card. The worker could not say anything and the
contractor assured him the rest of the payment by the end of the month. The irregularity in the
payments to the workers is not purely a matter attributable to the process of exploitation. It is
more of a structural matter relating to financial flows of a contractor. There is also a fear
among the contractors that a worker might run away if paid in full. To mention of gender, the
observations could reveal only this aspect that the females are considered, notionally, to do
less work than men and hence are recruited on lower-paid, minor and tough routine jobs like
carrying bricks to the workplace, carrying other raw materials at heights and mixing concrete
and cement paste.
The working, apart from being body-breaking task for the construction workers is also
insecure and unsafe. The work requires quick movements and any sloppiness can also result
in lay off. The work being more of casual does not provide regular and sufficient work days
for the workers. For workers under contract the work hours often extend beyond eight hours
and many a times the extra hours are not accounted for as overtime. The work and life at the
48
work place of the construction workers is replete with multitude of harsh and appalling
conditions which can not be captured in an earnest way in this report.
The working conditions are very dusty and dangerous. No safety equipments except boot and
gloves worn at time of RCC work were to be seen. Minor injuries are a daily occurrence and
mostly go unreported. Emergency medical expenses are paid for but deductions are made or
advances are asked for by the workers. The construction site is their dwelling place and is
open to all vagaries of nature. Food is cooked collectively by the workers at a site. The work
starts early at 8 am. The workers get up by 4 in the morning and prepare food for their
breakfast and lunch. They get to sleep only by 11 in the night. This leaves them with just five
hours at hand for rest. This plays havoc with the workers’ health and they generally complain
of fever and body pain. This is one of the major reasons why these workers travel frequently
to their villages to recuperate and as will be evident that the high cost incurred on these
monthly journeys to origins reduce the value of remittance to the rural areas.
Financial Management Practices of the Seasonal Migrant Workers in Construction

Sector at Ambaji
A pilot study was undertaken at Ambaji to understand the financial practices of the target
population from South Rajasthan. The sample being very small, the findings have been
illustrated through descriptions of some respondents based on their responses to the questions
in the questionnaire and interactions with them. General description of the group of workers
from Dungarpur is also incorporated herein.
Out of 22 questionnaires filled for individual workers from South Rajasthan, five cases have
been built to illustrate the situations among these workers. These five cases were picked up so
as to give the following composition: two out of five respondents work as skilled workers,
two workers are unskilled and one is a semi-skilled worker.
Case 1: Heavy Social Expenses and Indispensable Expenditure on Travel Back to Origin
49
Babulal (22), a Meena by caste hails from Nayatalab village in Dungarpur district of
Rajasthan. For last seven years he has been working in RCC works of buildings at
Ambaji. He came out from his village, in search of employment to generate some cash
income for the family and sustain the family for the whole year, with the help of his
uncle who too lives in Ambaji. Newly married, Babulal along with his younger brother
shoulders the responsibility of running the household. But soon, when the younger
brother gets married, there will be changes and both the brothers will have their own
families to look after. Parents will remain back at the village while the two brothers
move out for work.
Babulal’s family owns 1.6 acres of land which produces food for up to four months for
the family if rains are good. Being only one crop land, the employment generated at the
fields is just ninety days for the family. The livestock does not generate any income for
the family. “Rather we have to make sure that they do not die for the want of fodder”,
says Babulal.
Babulal and his brother together earn Rs. 25,200 per annum after 210 days of annual
employment with a contractor. His brother works in some other city. Babulal and his
brother are able to remit Rs. 800 each to the house per month. This cash income is used
to pay for the household consumption at the village. On being interrogated about his
expenditure he was worried about the recurrent costs he has to incur on minor medical
expenses (the actual amount he seemed to forget). “The commuting expenses back to
home every month, though high, are unavoidable. If I do not go home I will be
physically broke and I will be constantly worried about my family”, Babulal asserts.
Babulal did not reveal his expenses on intoxicants.
Babulal has to repay Rs. 6500 debt to his friends, relatives and a village fellow. He took
Rs. 3000 for his marriage in 2003. Later in 2004, he again took Rs. 3500 for his second
marriage when his first wife left him as she did not find her new home financially stable.
Babulal says, “Social expenses are heavy in our society… what can be done? Nothing.
But yes, I make sure that the debt I take does not become my shackles”. [Babulal
declined to reveal details of other loans he had availed].
Case 2: Withheld Payments and “Will to Save”
50
Inder (19), a Prajapat (potter) by caste, hails from Kacholi village (Pindwada block) in
Sirohi district. He plasters marbles together on floor at temples, houses and other
buildings. He is a semi-skilled worker. He learned this work at KhedBrahma (also known
as Khed) in Gujarat with his brother who works as a skilled worker in marbles at Khed.
Inder left home because he was not interested in studies and he could not sit idle at the
age of 15.
The family is of 9 members and owns no land. There are only two earning heads.
Together the two brothers earn Rs. 59,700 per annum. Inder earns Rs. 100 daily and
works for almost eight months in a year. Inder saves money on travel back to Pindwada
by not spending on food items on the way or by remitting money through his brother.
Inder is able to remit up to Rs. 4000 every two months to his home, while his brother
remits up to Rs. 3000 every month. The family being large, the good amount of cash
remittance is also consumed in the household expenses for food and clothes. “Apart from
the uncertain expenses at the destination, we suffer losses too. Last to last year, Rs. 5000
of my brother’s income, were withheld with the contractor under whom we worked and
we were helpless. What can we do? We have to work and keep earning under the same
set of people. We somehow meet these same people within three four years”.
Last year, Inder borrowed Rs. 20,000 from his friends and relatives at the village to build
new house. Inder says, “Though it may seem that we two brothers earn well but we have
lots of requirements back at home… and we are making all efforts to divert the savings
out of our earnings to build assets and maintain savings that generate returns”. Inder’s
brother opted for life insurance policy from LIC, two years back at Rs. 25,000 value and
10 years maturity period.
Case 3: A Female Migrant
51
Manisha (16) is the eldest child among five children of her parents. Her father works as a
wage labour locally at Kherwada in Udaipur district. The work available at Kherwara is
irregular and low paying (only Rs. 50) to unskilled workers. 0.6 acres of land at home is
not sufficient to run the family. Manisha has been migrating since last year. Bansilal, a
skilled mason worker from a nearby village hired her for assisting him at work at Ambaji.
Being the eldest and physically able she had to come out for work. “Do aur ladkiyan
hain mere saath ki yahan” [Two more girls of my village are here with me], adds
Manisha to her description of how she came to Ambaji.
Manisha was “offered” an advance of Rs. 300 when she left her village for work to
Vijaynagar (Gujarat) last year. At Vijaynagar, she earned Rs. 60 per day and worked there
for six months under a contractor. “Hum ladkiyan saste kapde khareedti hain aur humara
nashe mein bhi kharcha nahi hota. Shringaar ka to koi matlab nahi kaam pe par haan
tyohaaron pe thoda khrach ho jaat hai. Is wajah se humari kaafi bachat ho jaati hai,
warna saath rupay se kya hoga? Ladkiyon ko aise bhi kam paise milte hain kyunki
humara kaam bhi chota hota hai.” [We girls save a lot of money on clothes. We do not
use any intoxicant. We do make annual expenses on beautifying ourselves during
festivals; else on work any beautification is futile. Thus we save a lot; otherwise Rs. 60
per day is a very less amount. Usually we girls are paid low because we do small works].
She was able to remit Rs. 1500 on her return to the village. She has also been able to run
a current account in a local bank at Dungarpur which stands at Rs. 2000. She deposits
money in the account based on the availability of cash.
[Manisha was the only girl to whom we were able to talk to. Later when we approached
other girls, two boys of their gang did not respond and were silent. This inhibited other
girls from responding. Information elucidated above resulted from the small and quick
discussion we had with Manisha, till Bansilal came and started answering on her behalf
and nudged her when asked about her credits and loans. The females are relegated to
minor jobs of taking raw materials to the place on the site where needed, mixing the
concrete paste for masonry and likewise. The daily wages hence are very low. Another
notion is that females are capable of less work and therefore for the same work the males
and females do at a site, there may be a wage differential of up to Rs. 10. The labour
agents say that women work in all the routine jobs but they are not capable physically for
much hence we pay them less.
52
The particular gang of 10 girls and 6 boys which we met lived in a room of size 11 feet by
20 feet. This kind of life at the work place which leaves no scope for privacy may be a
vulnerable ambience for females, of which could not collect any evidence.]
Case 4: Recurring Expenses and Growing Debt
Bansilal (22), a married man from Bokhla village in Dungarpur district is a skilled mason
worker. His family consists of seven members. Less than half acre a land in ownership
implies wage labour for Bansilal and his brother. While he keeps on moving from one
destination to other in Gujarat for work his brother is back at home working as casual
labour in local area at Rs. 100 per day. The work availability is irregular in and around
the village.
Bansilal left village when his father suffered a serious injury at the work site and broke
his hand. Bansi came to Patan first with the help of an acquaintance who helped him get
work with a contractor. Bansi learned masonry at Patan. Bansi works for up to seven
months in a year at Rs. 100 per day. On deeper probing he revealed that at times he also
earns commission on recruiting labour.
Bansi toils hard at work and every year has to religiously pay visits to the doctor. This
costs him up to Rs. 400. “Itne paise mein to mein ghar jaa kea a sakta hoon. Ghar jo
paise bacha ke le jaata hoon who bhi kam pad jaate hain” [The money which I spend on
medicines if saved can enhance my remittance]. Despite this he is able to remit Rs. 1500
every two months to his home in the village. The cash he takes back is utilized in
servicing old debts and house consumption. Last year Bansi had to borrow Rs. 10,000
from his contractor for house maintenance. He has already paid off Rs. 4000 of the total
loan. Bansi denied of any interest rate being charged by the contractor but interactions
with other people revealed that usually the interest on loan from the contractor or the
agent is a deduction on the monthly settled payments. Bansi also has outstanding loan of
Rs. 70,000 he borrowed from relatives for treatment of his sister-in-law last year. Usually
the relatives charge 3 percent interest on money lent but Bansi again denied of such a
case for him.
53
Commenting on interest free loan from the contractor, Bansi specified, “Permanent
majdoor ko contractor udhari de deta hai aur bolta hai ki jab ho to chukka dena nahi to
agle saal mere hi site pe kaam karma”. [The contractors lend money to their permanent
workers on condition that the worker will pay them back as they earn else next year the
worker will have to work with him at the said site].
Case 5: Migration with Family; Peep into Contractor-Worker Relationship in Finances
Suraj (25) belongs to Bhil tribe and hails from Mandav village of Aspur block in
Dungarpur district. He works as a skilled worker in masonry and is also capable of
generating designs for school buildings and houses of small scale. Suraj has been
migrating with his family for last two years. His wife and three small children were left
alone at home and then Suraj decided to take them along while leaving one acre village
land under his brother’s supervision. Suraj goes back to the village for farm work
whenever possible. “Pariwar ke saath bahar rehne se taqleef thodi kam rehti hai” [Our
difficulties at work place mitigate when we are here with our families]. This is so
because wife cooks food for him and also at times she assists him at work for which she
is paid only if the contractor comes and sees that his wife is working.
Suraj changes his destination every year and looks for better wages and more work days
every year. Mostly he is able to get 300 work days at Rs. 150 to Rs. 170 per day. Though
he works for a contractor and is assured of regular work for 10 months, at times in big
destinations like Himmatnagar he has to find an employer at the labour market as casual
labour but there too he can bargain for good wages as he is proficient in his work.
Suraj earns up to Rs. 48,000 annually and since he is living with his family at the
destination his expenses are quite high but he has been able to save around Rs. 16,000 at
the destination. Suraj remits up to Rs. 2,200 to his family at the village where the
remittance money is consumed in social obligations. Heavy social expenditure in his
community bothers Suraj and he expects NGOs to intervene on this front.
Despite his good earnings and his capability to save and remit good amount of money,
Suraj is not able to pay small debts. He gave details regarding one such debt of Rs. 500
which he took five year back for medical expenses and due to heavy interest rate (120
54
percent per annum) and recurrent needs at the village in social and household
obligations, today his outstanding for the particular loan is Rs. 800. Suraj has also
managed to maintain a current account in Harijan bank at Dungarpur. He deposits up to
Rs. 500 in the account as and when the money is available for savings. At present, Suraj
is also the president of “Navik Mandal” (a savings group) promoted by some local
agency at his village where he monthly deposits Rs. 50.
Suraj talked openly about the kind of deductions made by the employer from the
workers’ payments. He said that usually the travel, lodging and medical expenses are
straight away deducted and also there are hidden deductions which vary from situation
to situation. Suraj concludes, “Yeh contractor kya kya karte hain main apko kya bataun?
Kaam hume chahiye aur baaki sab to inhi ke haath mein hai. Mahine bhar talte rahenge
ki baaki paise kal le lena aur jab mahina khatm ho tab kya pata paise leke bhi bhaag
jaayein?! Phir hum doosre jagah kaam dhoondhne chale jaate hain.” [These
contractors play many games for we need the work and money is in their hands. They
keep on making excuses regarding our payments. They pay us in small amounts and ask
us to lift the rest of the amount later. At the end of the month they may also run away
with our money. Then we just move to other place and contractor for work].
Conclusions
There are certain observations which emerge from the study and illustrated cases:
1. Most of the workers have no institutionalized savings either at source or destination.
Those who have made any savings are either earning better or have other earning heads in
the family and the savings have been made at the source either in local banks or SHGs.
2. Loan and credit services availed by the workers are mostly at their origin from money
lenders/shop owners, friends and relatives. The main purposes for which the loans are
availed are social obligations, marriages, health services and house consumption. Access
to the loan source is very important to the people. The cost of loan and its adequacy are
secondary to the availability of money at the time of requirement.
3. Expenditure is heavy in commuting to and fro between the origins and destinations. This
has a direct bearing on the amount of remittance flowing back to the villages. But this
expenditure is indispensable in light of the fact that the workers need to go back to their
village to recuperate. Then, why don’t these people come along with their families to the
workplace? There are evidences that people migrating along with their families tend to
55
stay back for longer. Yet they are seasonal migrants because going back home is still
necessary. They have land at the village and a good part of their livelihood base is still
established in the village. Their social networks exist in the village.
4. The expenses are also high in medical but are mostly unestimated as the workers were not
able to remember their expenses on medicines for recurrent fever and body pain.
5. There are recurring needs among workers for small amount of money to run daily
expenses which they arrange from their fellow workers, friends and relatives, if any, at
the destinations.
6. The contractor makes deductions which at times are not justifiable in terms of the
amount. There are deductions for dwelling charges if provided separately for. The
contractor also makes deductions on any other facilities he extends to the workers at the
work place.
7. The seasonal migrants have a very circular nature of migration wherein they change their
destinations, year over year and hence are not able to make savings at destination.
Recommendations
Based on preliminary observations, interactions with the workers and data collected some
financial services can be formulated. A skeletal description of the ideas for such financial
services is presented here.
Health is a major concern and needs quick attention for these workers. A health insurance
scheme can be drawn out which has features of current savings. Now since the expenses are
recurrent, to meet large demands of small quantum of money in the beginning may be
difficult, a fund can be allocated (this fund can be withdrawn on receiving equivalent amount
through premium) to start with and this can be used to fund the scheme. The premium
payment can be made flexible and the worker can be asked to pay it whenever the money is
available with him. In case of default over a defined period, the scheme can be withdrawn for
the said person.
A destination based mobile banking system can be put into place which will carry out all
the banking activities like savings, deposits and remittances. The system can look after the
loan disbursements through migration support fund account in the bank. The families of the
workers back at the village can also be served through remittance services provided by the
mobile bank itself. This bank needs to be run in collaboration with an established and
56
interested bank of national presence. After doing the feasibility study, if feasible then each
worker may have an individual account with a locker like box named after him in the mobile
bank. This box will contain his savings and the box will be the unit of issue, withdrawal and
deposit in the bank. This bank can also monitor the attendance card of the workers to estimate
the income for a month, expected deductions by the contractor and hence make an estimation
of the amount which a worker can deposit in the said month. This way a counsel and
information service for workers regarding their savings account maintenance and
management can be made available.
4. Exploratory Study with Hotel Workers at Mount Abu
The rationale behind undertaking the study has already been discussed. The same is being
restated here for convenient reference. The idea behind exploratory study with the hotel
workers at Mount Abu was to understand the working and living conditions of the workers
there. Also the study was expected to give insight into the hotel industry at Mount Abu and
hence facilitate laying out of placement strategy for workers being trained in hotel industry
skills by the organization.
Methodology
The study at Mount Abu was implemented through observation, unstructured interviews with
the workers and an hour long FGD with the Hotel Workers Association there.
Findings
Mount Abu is a hill station in the Aravali Ranges. Teeming with varied groups of tourists, the
town is an abode for hoteliers catering to varied range of boarding and lodging for the
tourists’ influx. The result is a business structure that classifies the hotels into four classes
based on the turnover, the range of rooms available and the star services being provided by
them. The four classes are namely, A, B, C and D. There are around 15 hotels in class A and
40 each in class B, C and D. There are around 32 Paying Guest Houses in Mount Abu where
workers work in a concealed manner as no information could not be availed regarding them
and they are very few in number in each PG house.
For class C and D hotels, the turnover of the season may go up to Rs. 10 to 15 lacs while for
class B it may go near to Rs. 50 lacs (The data is for hotels having 20 rooms). The turnover
57
may go in crores for class A hotels annually. Each hotel except in class A, employ canvass
boys to get tourists for lodging. These canvass boys in addition to room boys and kitchen
workmen in the hotel fall under the hotel workers category. Our focus being these people who
actually make the hotel work go on incessantly, we need to look into their living and working
conditions at Mount Abu.
As per a small discussion with the members of Abu Road Hotel Workers’ Union some facts
and stories came to light. The members of this association mainly worked as canvass boys for
class C and D hotels. The canvass boys earn Rs. 2500 to Rs 4500 depending on the number of
tourists they bring to the hotel. Canvassing involves dangerous working conditions. The
canvass boys wait on the roads and handover pamphlets of their employing hotels to the
potential customers traveling in running vehicles. Many a times they suffer injuries which are
not covered by any medical assistance from the employer. The employer rather pays for a
first aid kind of treatment and a pittance is paid to the injured person in order to avoid any
hassle. Vacations are not granted to the workers. During peak season of tourism, there are
evidences that the seven to ten days of payment of workers is withheld and is paid later on the
condition that the workers do not leave the place during season.
The workers inside the hotel have a very tight and packed schedule for their day at the hotels.
In off- season the usual timings are 4 am to 11 pm. During tourism seasons, the timings are
from 3 am to 1 pm. At the end of any day throughout the year the amount of the rest they get
is not sufficient keeping in mind their strenuous work conditions. The kind of food they get in
the night is at times uneatable or indigestible. The workers also reported physical assault by
hotel owners on them. The workers, though, said that many of the hotel owners now do not
resort to any physical abuse but in many hotels the working conditions are in no way
complying with eight hour standard duty hours. The unregulated duty timings put a lot of
pressure on the workers. The existence of the union since 2000 has put a check on the
undesirable activities of the hotel owners to a large extent.
Case 1
Khanga Ram of Nagan Village, Reodar (Sirohi district) has been working in the hotel
58
industry of Mount Abu since he was 12 years old. He was brought to work in a hotel as
an exchange labour for the unpaid debt. The days passed at the young Khanga’s new
place where he worked in dish washing. One day, for a mistake at the work, Khanga was
beaten and his hands were broken. Horrified Khanga ran away back to his village and
never left his home to work out. Eight years later the young man, Khanga retraced his
travel to Mount Abu and to the same hotel from where he fled. Why did Khanga get back
to the same hotel? He was still tied back to the owner and had no other option but to work
there. Today he is working but the embitterment lives within him.
The cases like the one illustrated above have not come to light in last five years.
Almost all the union members shared the fact that they were unable to get hold of a new
opportunity somewhere else or move up in the employment market for the labor. They faced
the problem of inadequate facilities at the workplace.
The president of the union said that they have tried untiringly to make appeal to the top
echelons in the state capital to address the issues concerning hotel workers at the Mount but
in vain. He added that despite the Governor’s notice (1981) to the hotel owners directing
them to put a display in the hotel regarding names of the workers, their duty timings, payment
schedules, salary scales, holidays and benefits to the workers, no such action in the required
direction has been taken or ensured.
Now we will have a brief look at the financial position of the hotel workers in class B, C and
D hotels.
Class of hotels A B C D
Regulated duty PF (limited); Limited
Very limited
Facilities timing; PF Limited medical medical
expenses for
available (limited); Medical expenses paid expenses
medical paid
expenses paid for for paid for
Salary to the
Minimum
workers (dish
monthly wages Rs 800 to Rs 600 to Rs 600 to
washers, room
paid to all hotel Rs 1000 Rs 800 Rs 800
cleaners and
boys
service boys)
Turnover (In In tune of a crore Up to 50 10 to 12 12 to 15
59
season; In Rs.
Lacs)
A normal class C and class D hotel would employ up to 10 workers for a 20 room hotel. The
room charges in the hotels are up to double the government stipulated charges. But the
salaries paid to the workers are inadequate and payments are often made irregularly. The
salary which is paid to the workers also carries deductions if they reside in the hotel premises
or they eat at the workplace.
Many workers live alone in Mount Abu and their families live in villages. The average
remittance of a canvass boy to his home in the village is Rs 800 to Rs 1000 per month. The
average remittance for other hotel workers (dish washers, room cleaners and service boys) is
Rs 500 to Rs 1000. The remittance depends on the expenditure quantum of the workers at the
destination. But one thing is sure that the overall remittance is low and also the expenditure at
the destination does not ensure a good enough life for the worker. The remittance is mostly
used up in repaying old debts and in buying consumption articles at the origin places of the
workers.
Looking at the table above, we find that up to 10 percent of the turnover (in season) amounts
to the annual salary of the workers. Before leaping to any analytical draw out of the limited
data available we need to be aware of the fact that there is no statistical base on which we can
attach accuracy to our conclusions. As seen in the restaurants, the salaries paid to the workers
can also fluctuate according to the season.
The prospects of intervention on the lines of Aajeevika Bureau’s philosophy are there at
Mount Abu but the nature, scope and scale of intervention needs a much more detailed study
into the economic and social conditions of the workers in the hotel business context of Mount
Abu.
5. Findings, Recommendations and Limitations
Findings : The objective wise findings are as follows:

• Seasonal migration is under reported due to circular and irregular nature of migration
(Need for Migration Database). The database is required to make provisioning of services
60
(ID card issuance, training and placement services and financial services) to migrant
labourers in a timely and organized manner. To make the database more user friendly and
ready for decentralization, use of programming language like Visual Basic will be
required.
• Migration is a major livelihood strategy for the growing mass of unskilled rural people.
• Based on the study of financial flows at Ambaji and the study on Hotel workers at Mount
Abu, the findings which emerged are (a) the labour force at destinations lacks shelter,
health, financial and social facilities (b) there is a lack of food and health support to
migrants’ families at sources.
• Training for skill enhancement has the potential to provide vertical mobility to labour
force but the issues faced during placement and training period do not show up any trend
due to diversity of challenges posed.
• The rural remittances are reduced due to high expenditure on frequent commutation by
the labour itself to the origins, but are unavoidable as labourers need to go back to the
origins to recuperate.
• The circular migration is a factor dissuading migrants from making savings at
destination.
Recommendations: The objective wise recommendations are as follows:

• Integration of financial services information with the migration database.
• Staff Capacity Building through training in computer usage and accounting systems,
regularizing field work documentation and presentation followed by a group discussion
among staff.
• Recognition of well placed trained labourers and promoting interaction among these
labourers and potential trainees to enhance training effectiveness.
• Seeking synergized support from organizations like Gyan Shala, Ahmedabad for
Supplementary Summer Education Camps and ARTH, Udaipur for promoting Health
Security Systems among the migrants and their families at sources and destinations.
Limitation
• The wage labour and Migration Study at the Block levels fails to capture quantitative
information on seasonal and circular migration. The Aajeevika Bureau Migration
Database (ABMD) is an attempt to capture some quantitative information at the
61
organization level. It is this further Quantitative Information on seasonal and circular
migration which can help the organization in better understanding the dynamics of labour
and migration in South Rajasthan. And with the help of this the organization can attempt
further developmental interventions.
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ORGANIZATIONAL ACTION COMPONENT:

Studies on Seasonal Rural Migration from South Rajasthan

ORGANIZATIONAL TRAINEESHIP SEGMENT

Aajeevika Bureau is a separately registered trust working towards providing livelihood

a) Design and Implementation of a usable and scalable Migration Database

Methodology: The objective wise methodologies are as follows:

Findings: The objective wise findings are as follows:

1) Integration of financial services information with the migration database.

1) At present the database developed by us lacks the required level of full-fledged

Table 1. Name of Villages / Number of Households Surveyed.................................................7

Figure 1. Land use in Abu Road.................................................................................................8

Aajeevika Bureau is a separately registered trust working towards providing livelihood

Organizational Action Component (OAC) at Aajeevika Bureau was aimed at organizational

2.1 Abu Road Block

Objectives of the study

Table 1. Name of Villages / Number of Households Surveyed

Name of the Villages (Hamlet) Number of Households Surveyed*

ABU ROAD - THE BACKDROP

Figure 1. Land use in Abu Road

Land use in Abu Road

Source: DCH Sirohi district 1991

Occupational classification of workforce

Table 2: Occupational classification of workforce in 2001

Source: Aajeevika Bureau Field Survey Jan. 2005

Overall Livelihood Profile of the households listed

Literacy rates and education levels

Figure 2: Literacy Rates

Source: Aajeevika Bureau Field Survey Jan. 2005

Table 3: Livestock Possession

Animals Buffaloes Cow Bullock Goat Poultry

Source: Aajeevika Bureau Field Survey Jan. 2005

Table 4: Source and end use of loans

Source %age of loans End use %age of loans

Work Participation Rate (WPR)

Table 5: Work participation rates (WPR)

Table 6: Occupational classification – main workers

(All figures except for N in %ages)

Table 7: Occupational classification – secondary occupation

(All figures except for N in %ages)

Changes in occupational classification

Abu Road Sirohi State

Table 9: Changes in occupation profile segregated by gender

Changes in male occupational profile Changes in female occupational profile

Table 10: Changes in occupational profile – comparing census with AB data

Census 2001 AB survey 2005 Change

Table 11: Household Incomes

Proportion of households reporting income from different sources

Source: Aajeevika Bureau Field Survey Jan. 2005

Figure 4: Sources of Household Income

Sources of household income

Source: Aajeevika Bureau Field Survey Jan. 2005

Figure 5: Household Incomes

Source: Aajeevika Bureau Field Survey Jan. 2005

Wage labor in Abu Road

Table 12: Migration Desegregation on Gender for Destination and Occupation

Occupation Agri-Labour Mines &Quarries Construction Hotels

Table 13: Local Wage Labor Desegregation on Gender for Occupation

Local Wage Labor

Figure 6: Income from Wage Labor

Income from wage labor

Source: Aajeevika Bureau Field Survey Jan. 2005

Local wage labor