Marital Distress among Migrant

Workers Spouses
in
Gopalpur

PRESENTED BY

K. DANDASI
Berhampur University

In collaboration with:

ELINA RATHA
Berhampur University



Contents

Marital Distress
Causes
Migration
Survey in Baxipalli
Pros and Cons
Objectives for Baxipalli
Migrant Workers
Features
Observation Report
Exploitation Of Women
Facilities available at worksite
Health status of the Migrant Women
Availability of government facilities at the worksite
Problems of migrant women
Social Problems





Marital Distress
Marital relationship is commonly initiated with the belief
that both the marital partners are entering into the
relationship is defined by love, sharing caring for each
other, intimacy and confidence.
Marital distress is one of the most frequently
encountered and disturbing human problems.
Everyone who is married experiences difficulties, but for
some, these troubles reach the point that partners
become profoundly disappointed and upset about their
marriages and may even come to question whether they
want to continue to remain married.
CAUSES
Marital problems are purely about problems in the
relationship such as communication, solving problems,
arguing, intimacy.

MIGRATION
Migration denotes any movement of groups of people
from one locality to another and takes different forms. In
this movement of people, womens location and spaces
are defined by their positioning within the society and
state.
The Process have been categorized into :
1. Permanent
2. Semi Permanent
3. Temporary

Important factor is AFFAIR.
Survey in Baxipalli

In survival migration, economic gains are minimal; there
is little improvement in the economic status of both men
and women. Besides, there is a reinforcement of
traditional gender roles, and an increasing subordination
of women.
Poverty and search for employment have been the
predominant propellants of survival migration of people.
Migration has contributed to increase in number of
women headed families.
Pros and Cons
Decreasing time for leisure.
Joint family system is breaking up.
Numbers of people living below poverty line
have increased.

Women have stepped out of the four walls of
household for economic contribution.
industrialization and urbanization have
resulted in migration of young family
members to urban centers in search of better
livelihood options.
Objectives for Baxipalli

1. To achieve social peace in my working
area namely New Baxipalli.
2. To obtain healing and to set right the
broken relationships in the 8 families of
the area.
3. To consents the society on right living
through family life.

Migrant workers
Migration has been one of the oldest
survival strategies in the history of
mankind.
Push/Pull factor for Migration:
1. Search of better livelihood option has
been the prominent pull factor.
2. Dehumanizing conditions due to poverty
is the major push factor.

Features
One vital impact of migration on family is
change in its structure and functioning
depending the age, sex of migrating
member.
Most of them belong to poor socio-
economic strata and have to take shelter
in slums and ghettos characterized by
dingy congested unhygienic places that
are often a hub of anti-social activities.
Observation Report

Factors influencing Marital Distress:

1. Dowry abuse
2. Violence
3. Extramarital affairs
4. Character deformation


Exploitation of women

Compulsory work for 12 to 16 hrs
everyday.
Hard work resulting in frequent fever and
poor health condition.
Working under the sun resulting in fatigue.
Language abuse while taking rest in case
of illness or during pregnancy.
While traveling to and back from the
site of work, women have been
subjected to molestation; rape and
even kidnapping.

Facilities available at worksite

Accommodation
In Barang, Orissa (brick kiln work site of migrants), the chhanchua
families live in the workplace and their houses are spread out in
different directions of the workplace.

In AP, the chhanchua group first makes the raw bricks, which are
used for the construction of temporary low-roofed and thatched
houses in the worksite where they stay.
Contd

Food

For Barang, the rate of rice is high, they purchase low grade rice
and by its consumption, they suffer from dysentery and different
nutritional deficiency diseases.

In Andhra Pradesh, from the discussions with the migrant women, it
is revealed that they eat one type of broken rice (the migrants call
these Kanaki) which is available @Rs 5/- to Rs6/- per kg in the
market.
In AP, the brick-kiln factories use the polluted discharge water from
the factories for making bricks and the migrant workers suffer from
various skin diseases and colic by using such water.


Health status of the migrant women

The health status of the migrant women is
generally weak due to their low economic
status.
They are affected by different diseases
like diarrhea, dehydration and fever
frequently.
The migrant women do not have money to
purchase nutritious food and good
medicines to recover early.
Availability of government facilities at the
worksite


All the respondents of Bolangir and Nuapada told that no facilities
from the government side are provided to the migrants at the work
site.
As they do not have any insurance or registration, on death, the
owner of the brick kiln or the government gives no compensation to
their family.
The rate of rice, kerosene etc is high and the migrant families end
up spending all the weekly earnings in the purchase of food items.
Problems of migrant women


Adjustment problems - The women do not know Hindi and Telugu
language and it is very difficult for them to communicate with others.
Loss of status - The migrant women are looked down upon in their
own community and village.
Health hazards - Hard work results in frequent fever and poor health
condition, which increases the incidences of maternal mortality rate
and low birth weight children.
Social problems


In the absence of her husband, the woman/ wife manages the
household with much difficulty.
For schooling of the children, the expenditure on books and clothes
is high, for which she has to take loan from others.
For the health and education of her children, she has to face
difficulties alone.
Overall she is faced with difficulties in the absence of her husband
due to lack of money, lack of wage labour to support the family
needs, lack of security etc.

CONCLUSION
So conclude with gratitude for this
opportunity given to me and thank to ordinance
for their very presence. I invite all of you in your
daily life to become part of this mission.
To restore families to challenge the society for
a better living. Because family is the basic unit
of our society. Family welfare must become our
focal point to experience peace and happiness
in the family and society.






THANK YOU