Census-2011 Snapshot: Out-migration from Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Chhattisgarh

Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh are among India’s eight Empowered Action Group (EAG) states1. These states are also among the economically backward states which witness a higher level of inter-state out-migration for employment and work-related reasons. Another important attribute of these states is that after the North-Eastern states, these are among the states which have a higher proportion of the Scheduled Tribe (ST) population. According to Census 2011, Chhattisgarh has 30.6 per cent of the ST population, followed by Jharkhand (26.2 per cent), Odisha (22.8 per cent) and Madhya Pradesh (21.1 per cent). Against this backdrop, this short paper discusses migration patterns, major interstate destinations and causes of migration from these four states.