An election manifesto is a public document outlining a political party’s vision, intention, and promises. For the first time, the BJP and Congress have expressed concern for migrants, in their manifestos for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
The COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent lockdowns brought attention to migrants and made them visible to the state and policymakers. There are an estimated 600 million internal migrants in India and they contribute significantly to the economy. Yet, they remain highly vulnerable and disenfranchised. In this context, it is important to examine the promises made by the two main political parties to effectively include the huge migrant population.
The BJP’s manifesto
Under the heading, ‘Modi ki Guarantee for Shramik Samman’, the BJP in its manifesto, Sankalp Patra, has made two specific promises for internal migrants and others that will indirectly benefit them. The first is to reach out to migrant workers registered on the e-Shram portal. It is due to the lack of documentation and registration that migrants were rendered ‘invisible’. This was a critical contributor to the crisis during and after the lockdowns. After the Supreme Court directed the Central government to build a national database of unorganised workers, the e-Shram portal came into existence in 2021. More than 295 million workers are registered on the portal so far. Creating a credible database of migrants is a pre-requisite for their meaningful inclusion, but identifying migrants among registered unorganised workers is a significant challenge. The manifesto has rightly identified the need to disaggregate the database. However, issues of e-Shram, such as Aadhaar-seeding and technical and infrastructural problems, have not been addressed. The manifesto ensures the benefits of various welfare programmes to workers registered on e-Shram. We found in a study we conducted many misconceptions among migrant workers regarding e-Shram: for instance, some believed that after registration, money would be deposited into their bank accounts. There is still no clarity from the government regarding the benefits for workers after they enrol on the portal, other than the accident insurance.
The second is to enhance the Special Train Services for migrant workers. Last year, the Railways Ministry said it was planning to run regular non-AC trains to connect major migration corridors in India. Given the high degree of inter-State migrants, these special trains should run throughout the year and not just seasonally.
The BJP’s manifesto also ensures a periodic review of the National Floor Wages considering the minimum living standards of workers. This could be effective as most migrant workers are daily wagers. However, critics are concerned that it could push workers further into exploitative conditions. Also, different floor-level wages for different regions will trigger skewed migration towards the places where wages are higher, as is the case with Kerala now. Sankalp Patra also states that post office savings, accident and life insurance, and social security measures for workers will be implemented using digital technologies. However, without digital literacy, skills, affordability, and infrastructure, the technology will exacerbate the divide. The manifesto ignores women, children, and young migrants who all face unique challenges. In 2021, NITI Aayog had prepared a draft National Migrant Labour Policy, but the manifesto is silent on its implementation. The BJP pushes a ‘city-centric development’ approach and is silent on sustainable village development. This can consequently trigger distress migration to cities. It also promises implementation of ‘One Nation, One Election’, but that may deprive migrant votes.
The Congress’ promises
In its manifesto, Nyay Patra, the Congress has promised to enact a law to regulate the employment of migrant workers and ensure their fundamental legal rights and social security. It assures it will update ration card holders, expand Public Distribution System (PDS) coverage, allocate sufficient funds to PDS and the Integrated Child Development Service, and launch a mid-day meal scheme that would benefit migrants. However, it is silent on the portability of PDS. The party’s promise to increase the wage under MGNREGA to ₹400 per day and keep the same amount as the national minimum wage is crucial for rural migrants. The availability of employment in a locality reduces distress out-migration.
The party has also promised to launch an urban employment scheme for the urban poor, which could eventually be helpful for urban migrants too. The promise of enforcing the principle of ‘Same Work, Same Wages’ to prevent gender-based discrimination is significant. The manifesto focuses on women’s welfare and promises to build sufficient night shelters for migrant women workers and safe and hygienic public toilets for women in towns and cities. However, the manifesto would have been more effective if it had addressed the specific challenges faced by migrant women. It has also missed the opportunity to identify the range of issues faced by internal migrant workers, including the exploitative informal labour market, fragmentation, and forced labour conditions.
While it is good that migrants have found space in the manifestos, both the parties have overlooked critical areas such as public health inclusion, education of migrating children, housing, water, sanitation, and legal aid and dispute resolution. Only political will can only change the lives of migrants and their families.
S. Irudaya Rajan is Chair at the International Institute of Migration and Development, Kerala. Kuldeepsingh Rajput is Senior Research Fellow at the International Institute of Migration and Development, Kerala.
