THE DYNAMICS AND CHANGING PATTERNS OF INTERSTATE MIGRATION IN INDIA

Abstract

The dynamics and changes in the pattern of the interstate migration system in India during the post-Independence period are explored. Three major perspectives, namely (i) the demographic effectiveness of net migration in changing the regional and ethnic balance of population distribution, (ii) the principal components or regional subsystems of in- and out-migration based on similarities in the origin and destination areas of migrants, and (iii) the shift-share components of the change in net migration are adopted to provide insight into the changing structure of interstate population movements in India. The major findings are compared with those of other similar studies done in the context of developed countries. The post-Independence development policies have had a significant impact in diffusing the highly polarized pre-Independence pattern of interstate migration in India.