Abstract
Seasonal migration of labour force from rural to urban areas in the third world countries has been observed in the last few decades, and is not a new phenomenon. In the rural areas, one of the forms in which diversification, particularly of the distress nature takes place is by way of seasonal migration to urban areas. The migration shifts temporarily the rural households' dependence on livelihood from local to external and far-off places. Such a migration is of a 'circular character', wherein the rural migrants do not settle permanently in cities but continue to maintain close links with their areas of origin, where they return regularly and remit substantial parts of their income. The continued interaction of migrant households with the urban world may bring in significant changes of socio-cultural nature, which may also lead to changed attitude towards local community and institutions. At the same time there also exists the harsh reality of migrants who work and live in inhuman conditions at the destinations where basic civic amenities do not exist for them, which needs to be addressed. In this context, the paper makes an attempt to look at the seasonal migration in a tribal village of Dahod (erstwhile Panchmahals) district of Gujarat. The study analyses the nature and extent of migration over two time periods, the migrants' activities, and their working and living conditions at the place of migration. The present study addresses the extent to which the phenomenon of migration can be reversed or arrested through appropriate interventions by developmental agencies. It also focuses on the implications of rural-urban migration on the rural livelihood and resource base. The study tries to show how in the process of development, rural-urban migration and its concomitant urbanisation have been viewed only partially as indicators of economic growth, without taking into consideration the harsh realities faced by the migrants at their destinations.