Introduction

India is witnessing one of the largest internal migrations in the world, with nearly 450 million internal migrants as per Census 2011. Rapid urbanisation has drawn vast populations into cities in search of livelihoods. However, migration has also exposed gaps in urban governance, service delivery, and social protection. The COVID-19 pandemic starkly highlighted these vulnerabilities. Ensuring equitable inclusion of migrants is therefore not only a policy necessity, as emphasised by the ILO (2020), but also integral to achieving SDG 11: “Make cities inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable.”

Redirecting migrant potential toward sustainable urban growth requires data-driven planning, portability of entitlements, inclusive education, participatory governance, climate resilience, and affordable housing.

Migration Data and Enumeration

• A major hurdle in migrant inclusion is the lack of reliable data. Without enumeration, migrants remain invisible in policies.

• The Kerala Migration Survey (KMS) since 1998 provides a successful model. By producing disaggregated data, it shaped migration governance and helped during COVID-19 crisis management.

• Replicating such state-level surveys nationwide would enable evidence-based policies.

Tracking Migrants through State Initiatives

• Odisha: Panchayat-level tracking of seasonal migrants, creating village databases.

• Chhattisgarh: Palayan Panji (migration register) to record migrant details.

• Maharashtra: Maha-MTS (Migration Tracking System) for women and children, enabling service portability.

• Gujarat: Migration Card to ensure continuity of children’s education.

These efforts show how state-level tracking can protect migrant rights and ensure service delivery.

 Portability of Entitlements

• Migrants often lose access to rations, healthcare, and welfare schemes at their destinations.

• The One Nation, One Ration Card (ONORC) scheme under the NFSA (2013) is a landmark step, ensuring food security irrespective of location.

• States like Chhattisgarh have pioneered universal food security laws, extending subsidised food and nutrition to migrants.

Portability addresses hunger, malnutrition, and ensures the Right to Food.

Educating Migrant Children

• Migration disrupts education, violating the Right to Education Act (2009). Many children either drop out or enter informal work.

• The Kerala Roshni Project (2017) and the Jyothi Initiative (2025) enrol migrant children in schools and provide healthcare support.

• Ensuring inclusive and alternative learning systems is critical to breaking the cycle of poverty among migrant families.

Participatory Urban Planning

• Urban planning often excludes migrant voices.

• Incorporating migrants in ward committees, municipal councils, and city consultations can ensure policies reflect ground realities.

• Such approaches enhance trust, transparency, and accountability while strengthening social cohesion.

Climate-Resilient Infrastructure

• Migrants, especially informal workers, face disproportionate climate risks.

• The NDMA advisory (2025) recognised migrants as a vulnerable category in Heat Action Plans.

• Innovative steps like Chennai’s air-conditioned rest stations for gig workers offer replicable models of climate-sensitive infrastructure.

Affordable Housing and Livelihood Security

• Migrants often live in slums due to high rents and exclusion from formal housing schemes.

• Policies like Affordable Rental Housing Complexes (2020), Kerala’s Apna Ghar, and Maharashtra’s Housing Policy (2025) are steps forward.

• However, fragmented efforts need integrated city-level planning combining housing, skilling, legal aid, and healthcare access.

Conclusion

Internal migration is integral to India’s economic growth, but migrants remain among the most vulnerable groups in urban spaces. Redirecting their potential requires a holistic approach: robust migration data, portability of entitlements, inclusive education, participatory governance, climate resilience, and affordable housing.

As the pandemic demonstrated, migrants are not burdens but contributors to urban resilience. A migration-responsive city is one that transforms vulnerability into capability, ensuring migrants are equal stakeholders in India’s urban future.

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