Deconstructing Migration: Gender Identity Transformation and the Negotiation of Agency: a Case Study of Jharkhand (India)

It is a common practice among women in tribal communities Jharkhand, India to adopt short-term labour migration as part of households' livelihood strategies. In recent time, a new phenomenon has emerged that involves the practice of sending girls in their teens and younger to metropolitan areas and cities for longer periods to work as domestic servants. This book analyzes the social, economic, cultural and institutional environment in which the migration of young women from Jharkhand to urban areas is taking place. Particular attention is given to intra-household dynamics and community responses to this phenomenon to provide new insights into the transformation of cultural and economic values attached to particular capabilities of the girls, and how transformation in a particular direction may affect practices of initiation and migration facilitation adopted by different actors, including the returnees. The author also explores the significant changes in perception of the community towards these migrant girls and returnees, and how these affect their personal lives and re-integration in the communities.