Most residents of Uttarakhand have left their homes and higher ground for better opportunities. Swagata Sinha Roy and DK Budakoti suggest action points to reverse the crisis of migration
A demographic shift in recent times has left the hilly region of Uttarakhand with hundreds of ghost villages. Mass migrations by highlanders to the plains for greener pastures have meant the end of human settlements as we knew them and diminishing prospects of agriculture. About 1.18 lakh people have permanently abandoned their ancestral village in the past ten years to settle in new locations. A total of 3,946 village panchayats remain badly affected by the exodus. In the 6,338 other village panchayats, over 3.83 lakh people have migrated but continue to maintain some links with their villages.
As per the 2011 census, of Uttarakhand’s 16,793 villages, 1,053 have no inhabitants and another 405 have a population of less than 10. The number of such ghost villages has reportedly risen particularly after the earthquake and flash floods of 2013. Recent media reports put the number at 3,500.
First, we must examine the pattern of socio-economic development in the hills to comprehend the emergence of ghost villages. This region was always dependent on the “money order economy” from the 1960s to the late 1980s, families thriving on the income of members who had the good fortune of being employed in the big cities. But the problem with this model was that while some families could improve their individual socio-economic benchmarks, there was no holistic development of the region. Rural development schemes were but faulty. Migration trends from the 1980s, as shown in several census reports, establish the fact that the hills lacked infrastructure facilities such as roads, even basic amenities like drinking water and electricity besides accessibility to health services. Standards of school education, too, were much compromised. Limited economic prosperity and lopsided development forced the young people to fan out to different towns for work, leaving the old or the infirm, in short an unproductive workforce, behind.
Although people thought that the bifurcation of Uttar Pradesh and the creation of a new State would give locals a sense of ownership and a chance to rewrite their destinies, the rate of migration increased. As the ‘pension generation’ moved to urban centres to join their offspring who chose to settle there, the natural outcome was the degradation of land, which made the villages unliveable. A report last year said that due to attacks by wild animals and low yields, even the remaining farmers were forced to abandon their native villages. It is estimated that 5.61 per cent villagers were forced to move out after facing heavy losses in agriculture, with wild animals regularly damaging their crops. Altogether 5.44 per cent decided to migrate due to low yield in agri fields. Simply put, agriculture in the hilly districts has become unremunerative and unviable.
Historically, agriculture in this region was never a strong point, merely existing at the subsistence level with locals supplementing it with animal husbandry and processing forest produce. Land holdings were small and scattered and land consolidation — chakabandi — was never done to avail of reformatory technology. Due to this, the growers could never achieve economies of scale in agriculture and relied mostly on horticulture and other plantation activities as the main source of livelihood. As no surplus came from agriculture or animal husbandry, villages remained poor and under-developed. Similarly, tourism has been a revenue earner in the State for many generations but has not generated enough jobs for locals as an industry should. The ramifications of these developments were either ignored or remained beyond the cognitive framework of policy makers and planners.
Despite many schemes being launched to help improve connectivity, health and educational accessibility to improve living conditions of the residents, the migratory trend has not stopped. It is now up to the State Government to take cognisance of the crisis and act swiftly. The draft land consolidation (chakbandi) bill to push for revitalisation of barren agricultural land holdings in the hills by consolidating small and scattered holdings still lies in cold storage.
Once land is consolidated, the Government should offer incentives to promote agriculture, horticulture, floriculture, herb production, dairy farming, aromatic plant cultivation, poultry and so on. Although no large industries can be set up in the higher reaches, research and development-oriented units, like those related to the pharma sector and food processing, can be set up here. A focus on small, cottage-based units, skilling locals for applying and diversifying their traditional crafts for a wider use, connecting small businesses with local needs and demands, incentivising investment in small and medium scale units and expanding market scope need to be prioritised. Otherwise we may lose a way of life forever.
(The writers are freelance commentators)
