Migration trends in Gilgit-Baltistan
Sumama Madni
Migration is a shift of people from one place to another. Migration can be eternal/everlasting, interim, and seasonal. Rural-to-urban movement is primarily driven by the pursuit of tertiary education, employment opportunities, healthcare facilities, better living standards, access to modern technology, and improved socio-economic conditions. The residents of Gilgit-Baltistan, especially far-flung hamlets of district Ghanche including Keris, Hushe, Chorbat, and Ghursay are compelled to migrate towards metropolitan cities owing to poor governance, including subpar service delivery, lack of educational facilities, and climate peril.
The portage of local migrants has boons and pitfalls. Urban crowding, social conflict, strain on infrastructure and housing challenges are significant threats. Although, it stimulates economic growth through market investment, labor force, and promoting entrepreneurship. The migrants from GB play an important role in cultural diversity, fostering the exchange of innovative ideas like handwoven rugs, stone carving, and knitted and crocheted items, promoting creativity, and social integration, and developing the city more vigorous and dynamic.
Rural-urban relocation is immensely contributing to the process of urbanization. The subsistence of two-thirds of the population in Gilgit-Baltistan sustains their lives from farming whether they are small farmer or working on land possessed by other land-owners. The other third are engaged in small-scale activities such as cultivating crops, cribbing livestock, labor force, and enlisted personnel.
Determinants of rural-urban migration are based on push and pull factors. Lack of employment opportunities, extreme poverty, lack of health care facilities, low agriculture yields, and feeble infrastructure, including reprobated roads are push factors leading to the migration of inhabitants. Higher income, social amenities, higher wages, and better access to services such as healthcare and sanitation are pulled factors that have a positive impact on migration.
In Gilgit-Baltistan, 90% of the indigenous community is directly or through the back door dependent on agriculture sector or livestock for its livelihood. Gilgit-Baltistan is an abode of more than 13,000 glaciers prone to glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) and erratic climate change wreaks havoc for indigenous communities, living in jeopardy situation.
The agriculture sector has been devastated on account of fluctuating temperatures, natural disasters, and unpredictable climate patterns led to food starvation and famine. The risk of famine is directly proportional to the population shift. As an illustration, In Ireland, one million Irish migrated from Ireland to the United States in 1845-1852 due to extreme famine and food insecurity led them to relocate. If the GB government does not take this matter seriously by taking a proper action, a large scale migration may have expected and the region could face similar pressures.
The writer is a student, based in Islamabad.
Related Posts
Comments