Analyzing Push and Pull Factors Among Bheel, Bagri, and Sheikh Nomadic Tribes of Qasimabad, Hyderabad
Aajiz Hussain Siyal
This research has been conducted on economic push and pulls factors behind migration in nomadic tribes of Qasimabad, Hyderabad. It focuses on the causes of nomadic migration and also on the economic survival of nomadic people in Qasimabad, Hyderabad. As a way of life of peoples who do not reside continually in the same place but move cyclically or periodically, nomads are traditionally associated with so called primitive societies and considered incompatible with the system of control imposed by nation person with no settled states.
Here, the scheduled caste Hindus are basically nomads. As we know that Pakistan is a third world country and now at this time Pakistan is a poor country many other aspects are found in Pakistan like Pakistan is highly indebted. ‘According to the UNDP Human Development report 2006 that Pakistan ranks 134th out of 177 countries in the human development index (HDI).’ It must be understood that development in Pakistan has been unequal and there is a growing gap between the rich and the poor there are also major rural-urban and provincial differences.
Rural-urban migration is a continuing phenomenon. Although it has declined in percentage terms, in terms of numbers it has increased substantially. Due to the country’s expenditure on military and other state institutions, the taxes are greatly imposed in increasing amounts on people which has overall resulted in a growing ratio of poverty. To compensate at this, masses are migrating to cities from all social classes for sustainability. ‘The physical impacts of migration are visible in both rural and urban. In all urban areas where populations are increasing, the result has been the creation of un-serviced or under-serviced informal settlements both within and on the periphery of the urban areas or along the corridors that exit the cities and towns.’ Among these migrant communities, the nomads have been subjected to permanent settlement convictions which have changed their age old tradition of who wants to settle in order (haphazardly) around and within cities.
It must be understood that development in Pakistan has been unequal and there is a growing gap between the rich and the poor there are also major rural-urban and provincial differences
‘Nomade (French) or nomos gypsyism (Greek) refers to people wandering in search of pastures.’ The nomadic tribes are found everywhere in Pakistan. Sizable numbers of engaged in migration from one place to another place for earning and survival, and it is the main factor behind their migration from place to place, also to search for livelihood, and also a place for temporary settlement to fulfill their needs. Nomads nowadays are living in homes or as homeless in shelters, slums, and ghettos of the cities. Before the time nomadic people migrated traditionally traveled by animal, canoe, or on foot in which animals include camels, horses, and alpaca but in modern times some of them are traveling by motor vehicle. Their routine of changing places patterns are different some of them move due to rain, some of them move seasonally and some of them move due to find food, livestock, or other reason is that they migrate because of the economy so they can be making living. ‘Most nomadic groups follow a fixed annual or seasonal pattern of movements and settlements.
Migration from one place to another place for search of livelihood is an important feature of history. While some sectors and regions fall behind their capacity to help the population due to this problem others move ahead and peoples migrate to access emerging opportunities. Migration has become a global trend in modern times due to the expansion of transport and communication and it has become part of the global process of urbanization. ‘In most countries, it has been observed that industrialization and economic development have been accompanied by large-scale movements of people from villages to towns, from towns to other towns and from one country to another country (R. Lusome and R.B. Bhagat).
Sindh has remained a primitive agricultural society for a long. Travelers’ accounts affirm this fact till the growth of urban society in the 20th century. A large part of it is still agricultural and nomadic, depending upon the geography of the area. A number of economic, social, cultural, and political factors play an important role in the decision to move. The effects of these factors vary over time and place.
These nomads are related to the labor market place, and the employment situation and they all depend on the state of the economy. Another reason for migration can be the aim for higher wages, better employment opportunities, and fulfilling their needs and desires of their, and causes of escape from the origin place of nomads people is the domestic social and political situation.
‘In weber’s view, the Germanic tribes of Caesar’s day were not nomadic nor were the freemen a stratum of landlords (Grundherren) who left most work to slaves and women; slaves were not a substantial part of the workforce and the status differentiation between warrior and peasant did not exist at the beginning of recorded history; rather, the Germanic freemen were very gradually into the politically disenfranchised and economically harassed peasants of the middle ages. (P. 44). This reference explains that in primitive societies peoples not were nomadic and nor were freemen to live because of that were landlords who left all work slaves and women. There was no distinction between labor and warrior at that time. However, the class systems emerged from the joining of power systems based on the economy which lead to the weak economic communities being labeled as nomads.
In primitive societies, livelihood depended on primitive tools like hunting and gathering, among which, beggary is also classified as a kind of gathering. ‘Primitive economic order was depended upon weather conditions like rain, sun, and flood. The division of labor was based on age and seu. The concept of personal property was at the initial stage. The primitive society was self-sufficient in fulfilling its economic needs. Therefore the system of commerce did not develop in these societies from whatever was left from the hunting and collection of food, developed the customs like gifts or presents, hospitality, free lending, free borrowing, and common use. In these communities, individual prestige or familial prestige was considered more valuable than property. In primitive society, exchange was chiefly based on barter system.
Rural-urban migration is a continuing phenomenon. Although it has declined in percentage terms, in terms of numbers it has increased substantially
The economy of society depends on production and the economic distribution of every geographic unit and is distinguished on its basis. ‘The economy within the society deals with three key issues such as what is produced, how it is produced, and who gets what is produced. An economy consists of the production, distribution or trade, and consumption of limited goods and services by different agents in a given geographical location. Despite the power hierarchy systems, religion, and availability of resources, some of the nomad migrant communities still prefer their ancestral lifestyle. However, there is occurring a recent shift in their choices and preferences of settlement patterns with the increase of economic resources in the newer generations of nomadic communities of Qasimabad. Most of them have chosen to settle permanently, own property and quit nomadism.
During my field my respondents Nomads said that they migrate because of economic resources, this is the main cause of their migration and the other major reason is that landlords, where they were settled previously they worked in the field of landlords as farmers, harvesters and keepers of animals, gave them high loans which turned them indebted so they were forced to migrate in order to lend their loans. Landlords provided them a places where they settled but they could not meet their expenses due to a lack of wages so they used to take loans from landlords. Third of the reasons was the lack of resources, mainly water because without water the lands dried so they could not sow on dry land that’s why they could not repay the loans to landlords and so some of them migrate to earn more income to support their families and where they have found good income they would stop there for some time and then move to next place when some other crises arise. Some of them migrate with their whole families and some of them were nuclear families whose extended families stayed in their hometowns to care for domestic animals and work as farmers.
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When they reach the place where they can earn some money, they stay at that place for earning and their women also support men in earn economy some of women works as housewives but some of them go to nearby houses to work as maids and some of them beg. The problem is that where they earn our livelihood they only stay there and when they fall into any kind of problem they move, therefore, cannot settle permanently because those lands are not theirs. Those lands belong to the government or belong to the local people. Being in the land of the locals, they do not stay there much time because land owners tell them to get out of there. If those lands are of government, then they get more time to live there. When the government changes, the goons, comrades, and local mafia kick them out.
When they settled in this place, they found different kinds of work in which some of them work as security guards at parking and they get monthly salaries, and some of them collect trash from the houses and make money. Some of them are sweepers and beggars. Some of them who don’t find any work, start to collect cardboards and scrap to sell for money but don’t sell them all at once but save some to sell next time when they need in an emergency, either, they sell some of it monthly for more money to pay off their debts, even though they sell as much as their survival the family system could go on. So their sale is on a daily, monthly, and emergency basis.
Push and pull factors
In this research respondents shared many ideas with me, I found in the push factor and pull factors many which I describe that the push factor said there are many aspects behind the migration one of them is a security issue which they said if they settled in one place which does not belong with so scared that any time any person which belongs that place come to them and said to them that you should migrate from this place because this place doesn’t belong with you so they have no safety in any place and the second issue was that where they settled before they work as a farmer on landlords lands but unfortunately there they has water crises which they had not cultivated crops on their lands since lands had dried and feeding the cattle with water and these issues were increased and they did not fulfilled their need so they take loans from landlords they were indebted so they decide to migrate from this place to another place to earn economy for fulfill their needs and they also said that they did not migrate voluntary. In pull factors, we found that they said they have migrated for facilities and also they have economic crises so they didn’t fulfill their needs, they migrate in those cities in which they found many facilities and earning money from that place.
Professions and living
Before where they lived, they worked as labor, farmer but their earning was less so it didn’t fulfill their needs of living so they migrate to this place for earning to living so they started working for a living, men work as sanitary, trash collector, cardboard collector and begging, and women also support us to earn they work as maid and which has no work so they started begging.
Attitudes
When I took interviews from participants in their behavior I found many attitudes towards government, Coronavirus, politics, local comrades, weddings, religion and also caste. I found that they said about government that they every government has not supportive towards them because they can’t take benefits from them but they said the government of Imran khan was supportive in this government they take many benefits like selling iron in high rate as compare to other governments. Their attitudes towards covid said in covid-19 was that their trade was down because lockdown held everything was closed and peoples were afraid for how they survive in that situation but fortunately some peoples support to give us food but covid19 couldn’t affect us because our people live in warm area and we believe in God because we know God will save us and that’s fact our peoples live yet. I found through the interviews that they socialize in that sense if they were caught in any problem or police disturbed them they will go to politician or comrade in group to help them and I found that in their community they don’t have dowry system they said their economy is very less (primitive economy) so they can’t give dowry so they did only simple wedding without dowry in their community some of do intermarriages and some marriages out of caste. When I got interviews we start to talk about the their religion and they said some time off ago they were Hindus but now some of them are Muslims they convert their religion from Hindus to Muslim and also they don’t have permanent caste as we saw that in that community which has been converted in Muslims they have no idea what they called themselves before conversation In religion they know that they are Bheel and Bagri but after conversion they can’t identify what they called themselves like They said That they called themselves as Shaikh, Memon, and Maachi or Solangi.
Conclusion
After the getting all data and observations of interviews I get conclusion that the behind of push and pull factors the reasons was indebted, crisis of water, crises of land, security issues, but main cause we found that economy if they have economy as much as they need so they can fulfil their needs and can fulfill their facilities we found that they didn’t migrate volunteer if they have all facilities in one place so they didn’t migrate from one place to another place. I also found that they have identity crises they don’t know what should they after conversion as Muslims and another other thing I found from participants that they didn’t have dowry system they follow primitive system their elders also don’t have dowry system so also they follow the simple wedding system in their community.
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Aajiz Hussain Siyal is an independent researcher and social worker. Holding a Bachelor’s in Anthropology from the University of Sindh, his areas of interest are Anthropology, Folk Medicine, Healthcare, Culture and Social Change. He has also worked with NGOs, INGOs and multiple voluntary teams during COVID-19 and flood 2022. Previously, he served as Research Assistant under Sindh Higher Education Commission at Pakistan study center University of Sindh, Jamshoro. He can be accessed at email: aajiz.anthro@gmail.com
