wl-6920-Borderland Mobility: Understanding Migration Patterns from Hills to Lowlands in Arunachal Pradesh

Migration is crucial for understanding the continually changing space content and space relationship of any area. In the peripheral Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, internal migration of indigenous people from hilly border villages to foothill plain areas have been intense and critical. According to official estimates, more than five hundred villages along the Indo-China border in the frontier state have been depopulated and are turned into ‘ghost villages’ as not a single being found residing in those villages. This article attempts to analyze the factors that have a role in influencing migration of people and their implications. It also intends to explore the various policy interventions required to address these issues.