Re: 'Oriya migrants' project in Gujarat /TAHA details requested

[Guest guest]

Dear FORUM,

This message ref: Dr. Rajesh'S posting on, " Oriya migrants' project in Gujarat

/TAHA details requested "

Thanks for the information on the welcome developments. My best wishes for that.

Just to re-iterate, you may be aware that a MOU was signed, with objectives

similar to the current one, by the respective SACS of Orissa and Gujarat a few

years back. This was when I was in SMA Orissa and we thought we had made an

important beginning. However, the MOU remained on paper and migrants & their

families kept on getting infected.

I am happy that there is involvement of the chief secretaries and ministers for

sanction and continuity. Also the involvement of other agencies for an enabling

environment. However, the project if it wants to avoid the pitfalls of the past,

and make a long term sustainable difference, the following needs to be taken

care of.

The most important issues concerning the migrants (or any vulnerable group) are

structural issues. These issues like they being part of the unorganized labor

force, Lack of access to legitimate entitlements, Lack of power to negotiate for

their term of employment, etc. These in turn make the migrants vulnerable to

physical and psychological pressures (which in turn determine the risk of HIV).

Further, the unorganized nature of this group stands as a barrier not only to

their effective response to HIV, but also to all other issues. Unless we address

these, we are not going to achieve much in the long term. Whether we have more

hoardings or more effective BCC, would not matter in the long run if it is

focussed on HIV. We might win some battles, but that all that we will achieve.

These are usually the most neglected aspects of HIV intervention because;1. Our

lack of understanding of the structural issues and their impact on the migrant.

2. Our perception that it is difficult to address / achieve. 3. Our perception

that we have to do everything.

If we really think that the project can make a difference, we have to think and

do differently. It can be done. It can be done by building the agency of

migrants.

We need to re-orient our strategies to put the migrant at the center of the

intervention. To re-orient the HIV intervention to focus on having an effective

workplace intervention, which enables workers to access and utilize the

entitlements that are already provided by law to her/him all over India.

Regards

Nabesh Bohidar

E-mail: <n_bohidar@...>