Gender, Migration, and Precarity: A Case Study of Migrant Women Waste Pickers from Assam

Abstract

Rural to urban migration is rampant in India. Cities that are Petri dishes for rapid neo-liberal development can be unforgiving places for the vulnerable migrant population. The question we are looking forward to answering here is, how does neoliberal development in the cities affect and shape the lived experience of the vulnerable in-migrants in the growing cities of India? To explore this question, we have taken the case of migrant women to waste pickers who originate from Barpeta, Assam, and have settled in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. These women are placed at the lowest link in the hierarchy of power and economic structures in the urban spaces. They have been working for years, contributing significantly to the waste management of cities by segregation, cleaning, and recycling waste. Under the changing forms of governance, they have been facing a threat to their livelihoods. The paper is based on qualitative data collected through a field study conducted between December 2018 and December 2020 in villages in Barpeta as well as in slums in Lucknow inhabited by these Bengali-speaking Muslim migrants from Barpeta in Lower Assam. Data for this study were collected through the survey (n = 200) including semi-structured interviews (n = 100), follow-up visits (n = 70), and focus group discussions and case studies (n = 30). This paper is an attempt to present a gendered perspective on the trials and tribulations of women waste pickers and their place in the expeditious city space. In addition to the modality of statecraft, we have also explored various social, political, and economic dynamics that further affect them. Based on the findings that emerge from the qualitative data collected from the field, the paper has concluded with some policy recommendations that will help improve the lives of these women waste pickers.