Community Welfare Society
Migrants Help Desk (MHD)
Reaching out to those in greater need has been in the DNA of CWS from its very inception. Being true to its tradition, CWS has ventured into a new territory this year- of migrants. Odisha is a migrant sending state. There are lot of people from Odisha working as migrant labourers in the unorganised sector of the economy in different parts of India. They are neither very educated nor technically skilled. Their jobs can be hazardous, working conditions harsh, living conditions miserable, job security scarce and salaries low. Covid pandemic showed that nobody is certain even about the exact number of migrant labourers working in the unorganised sector. CWS has opened the Migrants Help Desk (MHD) to serve the migrants from Odisha working in different parts of India in the unorganized sector of the economy. Our aim is to make the life of the migrants safe, secure, and just to the best possible extent and network with other NGOs to help the migrants when they face problems.
We want to work with people who have already migrated and those who are planning to migrate in search of jobs. We have started a survey to come into contact with people who have migrated. We plan to cover 4000 migrants under this survey. In the beginning the survey will focus on areas in Sundergarh district with large migrant population. Later on it will cover other adjoining districts.
The survey is conducted with the help of religious leaders, panchayat authorities, community elders, influential leaders and anganwadi workers of a locality. We have already surveyed 1251 migrants from 23 places. We get the phone number of migrants who are surveyed and encourage them to become members of whatsapp group of their locality. Eight such groups have been formed for Bihabandh, Kahupani, Kusumdegi, Tangrain, Jhirpani, Nuagaon, Bondamunda and Barilapta.
MHD has a dedicated phone number to answer the queries of migrants and to help them in times of trouble. We have received calls about migrants who have gone missing. Where even the police are helpless, there is little MHD can do to help the family people to trace their missing members. But when it is a question of harassment or above MHD is able to help such migrants with the help of NGOs working in their locality.
Project country: India
Project region/place: Rourkela
Planned duration: On-going Project
From: March 2023 to April 2023
Detailed Project Description
1. Setting of the Project
a. Background Information about the project:
Migration of workers to different cities of India from Sundergarh district used to be a hush hush issue till some years ago. Migration of young women was actively discouraged by the government, church authorities, community elders and social activists due to fear of sexual exploitation. Though the fear was genuine, the opposition to migration did not prevent massive migration of young girls and women from Sundergarh to big metros like Delhi and Mumbai. The opposition made migration of young persons a clandestine business with families of, migrant workers unwilling to share any information about their children’s work, salary, working conditions or the problems they face. Secrecy and lack of information about migrant workers provided a fertile ground to placement agencies working in big cities and their local agents in Sundergarh district to exploit gullible girls and boys with promise of big salaries, comfortable life and freedom from the restrictions of the family and society. In the case of some boys and girls, this lead to physical abuse, hazardous occupations, unhealthy living conditions and at times sexual exploitation. Their condition was similar to bonded labourers.
Progressive legislation on migrant workers, government crackdown on unscrupulous local recruiters, police checks on the group movements of adolescent workers at railway stations and bus stands, and the growing awareness among families about the need to be open about migration has brought about welcome changes in the situation of migrants in Sundargarh though many problems still remain. The willingness to share information about migrant workers has been amply demonstrated by the survey being conducted by Migrants Help Desk (MHD) a project run by Community Welfare Society (CWS) Rourkela.
b. Geographical
The project covers the entire geographical area of Sundargarh district. The Catholic Diocese of Rourkela has 44 parishes in Sundargarh district. The project will cover migrant workers from 40 parish territories of the diocese spread through the length and breadth of Sundergarh District.
c. Economic
People migrate to other places in search of work due to low wages and lack of uninterrupted work in their places. Migrants engaged in work in the unorganized sector almost always belong to the poorer sections of the society.
d. Educational
People with low educational qualification engages themselves in informal jobs with low wages in unorganised sector. People with good educational qualification also migrate in search of jobs, but for well paying jobs in formal sectors of the economy.
e. Socio-cultural
Sundergarh is a predominantly tribal district and is covered under the 5th schedule of the Indian Constitution since more than half the population is tribal (50.75% of the population is tribal). Hence, the majority of migrants are from tribal communities. There are also migrants from scheduled caste and other backward class communities of Sundergarh district.
f. Who initiated the Project?
The project is initiated by the Secretary of CWS, Fr. Bennichan K. Peter SVD. The project has received necessary permission and support from the Catholic Diocese of Rourkela. The project also has the blessing and support from Society of the Divine Word, Jharsuguda.
g. Assessment of the need of the project
The problems faced by migrant workers has been a matter of public discussion for many years. The efforts to address this problem has been sporadic and rather ineffective due to the difficulties involved in gathering data about migrant workers.
CWS has undertaken an ambitious project to conduct a survey of migrant workers in 40 parish territories of Rourkela diocese. Survey has been completed for Kalunga and Jhorabahal. The survey is going on in 13 other places currently. The present project is a pilot project to understand the condition of migrant workers through the survey and to take measures to ameliorate their condition and make things better for future migrants. Before conducting the survey in a place, co-operation and support is sought from church leaders, community elders and local leaders. The survey is co-ordinated by two social workers of the project and is conducted by local village youth who are familiar with the people and the area. (See Annexure-1 Questionnaire on Migrant Workers).
h. Similar projects in the region:
We are unaware of anybody carrying out a similar project, in an organized manner covering almost every part of Sundergarh district, excluding Rourkela city.
2. Target group/ beneficiaries
The primary target group are men and women who have already migrated for work or are planning to migrate in future.
We hope to cover 4000 people who have migrated from the district in search of work. These are the initial beneficiaries of the project. More beneficiaries will be added to the project when new migrants seek the help of MHD, Rourkela to make their migration more safe and secure.
People from all age groups are involved in the project with preponderance of younger people.
Only criterion used in the selection of the target group was their willingness to respond to the survey and readiness to be associated with the project by providing their Whatsapp number to us. There has been no discrimination based on caste or creed.
3. Problem Analysis
The problems which the project tries to deal with are as follows:
a. To uncover the secrecy and shame that shrouds the issue of migrant labour and make it an open and normal activity necessitated by the economic condition of the migrants.
b. To prevent unsafe and underage migration without proper identity documents and registration on government portal with the help of unreliable local agents who work for corrupt placement agencies based in big cities.
c. To put migrant workers in touch with N.G.Os working in big cities and towns who could provide assistance to them if and when they face problems in their places of work or in their personal lives like illness, accidents and death.
d. To create awareness about various government welfare schemes for migrant workers in the unorganised sector and how to benefit from them.
e. To extend a helping hand to the family members of migrant workers living in Sundergarh district during serious and life-threatening diseases.
4. Strategy
4(a). Overall objective
The overall objective of the project is to make migration of workers outside Odisha a normal, safe and secure economic activity and not a secret, shameful or illegal activity.
The project will deal with the problems mentioned in point 3 in the following manner:
Big hoardings mounted on iron structure will be permanently displayed in 40 places of the district from where most of migration takes place which will provide information about ‘dos and don’ts of safe migration in local Odiya language ( Annexure-2 Content of hoardings in English)
The survey we are conducting all over Sundergarh district excluding Rourkela city, puts us in touch with 4000 migrants and their families. We are collecting the whatsapp phone number of 4000 migrants. We will form different whatsapp groups of migrants according to the area where they have migrated from. This puts migrants in touch with MHD Rourkela and among themselves. These groups will be very helpful in information sharing and troubleshooting. The survey, besides putting us in touch with such a large number of existing migrants, provides comprehensive data to fine tune the project for future migrants.
The survey which started in January 2023 is coordinated by two qualified female social workers who travel to easily accessible areas on their two-wheeler to meet church leaders, community elders and influential people of the locality to seek their support in conducting the survey. Local youth are selected and trained to conduct the survey in a professional manner. On Saturdays our social workers travel to distant and interior areas of the district by a four-wheeler to organize the survey in those places.
Once the survey is complete our social workers with the help of a resource person will travel to different cities and towns where most of the migrants from Sundergarh work and live. The purpose of this travel is to establish personal contact and rapport with important functionaries of organizations who work for migrants in those places. This will help our social workers to liaise with functionaries of different organizations on behalf of migrants from our place. They will also extent assistance to family members of migrants in times of serious illness. This is eminently doable since practically every family living below the poverty line in Odisha is covered by free government health insurance scheme called BSKY. They will also make the migrants aware of various government schemes for life insurance, accident insurance, old age pension and delivery of social security and welfare schemes through e-SHRAM portal. This portal is a national data base of unorganized workers launched by the Government of India on 26th August 2021, and by 4.02.2022, 240.98 million unorganized workers have registered on this portal.
Migrant Help Desk will have an office in Basanti Colony, Rourkela, manned by an office secretary. He will attend the phone calls of the migrants and provide information about the services rendered by MHD. He will correspond with various organisations in different cities on problems faced by migrant workers associated with MHD and pursue different Government officers with regard to documents necessary for migrants. He will also be in charge of all documentation work related to the project.
What would be the long term implications of the project for the region and beneficiaries?
This project can serve as a model for who wish to work with migrants in other districts of Odisha. It will bring about attitudinal changes among the people of the region with regard to migration. It will increase the knowledge and confidence level of the migrants to deal with problems they face on their own.
4(b). Project results
Results
Activity
Indicator
Time
Resources (costs)
40 hoardings erected on permanent structures in 40 places
Survey of 4000 migrant families
10 cities and town visited by the social worker team
Number of migrants helped in their places of work to deal with problems.
a. Number of phone calls received and answered by MHD. b. Number of migrants helped with regard to documents and registration on e-SHRAM portal.
a. Preparation of hoardings and iron structure b. Erection of hoardings at 40 places
a. Appointment of two social workers to coordinate the survey. b. Selection of local youth and training as surveyors.
a. Travelling to different places. b. Establishing contact and rapport with officials of organizations engaged in migrant ministry.
Contacting the organizations in the migrants place of work to help migrants to deal with their problems.
Appointment of a Office Secretary Pursuing the application of migrants with various Government departments.
Number of hoardings erected at various places
a. Number of migrant families surveyed. b. Number of whatsapp groups of migrants and their total membership.
Number of visits made, and contact established
Actual member of migrants helped to overcome their problems.
a. Actual number of phone calls received and attended. b. Number of people who received identity documents and registered on e-SHRAM portal.
Aug 2023
Sep 2023
Oct 2023
Dec 2023
Dec 2023
a. Cost of hoarding and iron structure b. Cost of transport and erection of hoardings at various places
a. Salary of two social workers. b. Travel expenses of social workers. c. Remuneration of local surveyors.
Travel and accommodation costs of three people
Social workers will liaise with functionaries of organizations on behalf of migrants.
Salary of Office Secretary
5. Project Budget
Sl. No
Particulars
Amount in INR
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
Salary of two social workers (20,000 x 1 x 12=240,000.00, 15,000 x 1 x 12= 180,000.00)
Salary of one office secretary (20,000 x 1 x 12=240,000.00)
Daily travel expenses of two social workers for a year
Travel and accommodation expenses of three persons to 10 cities
Cost of 40 hoardings.
Cost of iron structure for 40 hoardings, transportation, and erection.
Payment to surveyors in 40 places
Stationary
Computer
Office rent, Furniture, Filing system
Evaluation of the project by an external agency involved with migrants
Total
4,32,000.00
2,40,000.00
1,20,000.00
1,00,000.00
1,00,000.00
3,00,000.00
1,00,000.00
10,000.00
50,000.00
1,50,000.00
25,000.00
16,27,000.00
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