The influence of the Gulf migration on the educational mobility of women in Malappuram

CONTENTS

Acknowledgment

Preface

1 Introduction
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Research Background
1.3 The Key Concept-Social and Economic Mobility
1.4 Rationale of the Study
1.5 Theoretical Framework
1.6 Statement of the Problem
1.7 Malappuram-The Study Area
1.8 Muslim Women in Malappuram District
1.9 Magnitude of Labour Migration from Malappuram
1.10 Significance of Muslims in the Emigrant Population
1.11 Statistical Tools Used
1.12 Coefficient of Correlation
1.13 Objectives of the Study
1.14 Hypotheses
1.15 Data and Methodology
1.16 Selection of the Sample
1.17 Limitations of the Study

2 Studies on Women Mobility-A Review

3 Migration on Women's Mobility
3.1 Role of Education and Economic Development
3.2 Impact of Education on Economic Growth and Earnings
3.3 Women's Education
3.4 Education of Muslim Community in India
3.5 Education Status of Muslim Women in India
3.6 Educational Backwardness of Muslim Women in India
3.7 Educational Status of Muslim Community in Kerala
3.8 Educational Status of Muslim community- The Malappuram Experience

4 Educational Infrastructure and Educational Attainment of Women in Malappuram District
4.1 Part 1- Educational Infrastructure of Malappuram
4.2 Growth of Schools- A Comparison
4.3 Part 2- Mobility of Muslim Women
4.4 Mother-Daughter Shift in Educational Status
4.5 Father-Daughter Shift in Educational Status

5 Summary, Findings and Conclusion
5.1 Major Findings of the Study
5.2 Conclusion

References

Appendix: Interview Schedule

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I wish to express my deep sense of gratitude and indebtedness to my teacher Professor S. IRUDAYA RAJAN, Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, for his constant and inspiring guidance, objective criticism, valuable suggestions,kind treatment and sharing of rich research experience which helped me throughout the course of this work.

I acknowledge with great pleasure Dr. USHA L.R., Retired Associate professor and Head, Department of Economics, FMN College, Kollam and my research guide too for her endless support and guidance throughout my dissertation research.

I am profoundly indebted to the Librarians Mr. AMEER ALI K of the Centre for Development Studies for his sincere help and cooperation in completing this work.

I am really grateful to the Management, Principal, staff and my colleagues of PSMO College, Tirurangadi for their support in various capacities towards completing this study.

Words are boundless to express heartfelt thanks to my beloved parents, wife, son Yaseen, daughter Aaliyah, sister and her family- and other relatives for their affection which has been the most important source of inspiration for me throughout my life. The research would not have been possible without their prayers.

There are many others too from far and wide, who consistently encouraged me to continue despite all adversities that I faced as a new comer to the overwhelming world of research. I thank them all whole-heartedly for all their support.

Above all I would like to thank the Almighty for the tremendous blessings, constant love and grace bestowed upon me for the successful completion of this work.

Dr. Shibinu S.

PREFACE

International labour migration of Kerala has had several salutary effects on the household concerned. One of the basic improvements has been in the field of education. The present exercise endeavours to examine, on the basis of empirical evidence, the educational development in a migration intensive area of Kerala, the Malappuram district. The upward mobility on the educational front taking place among Muslim women in the study area is found to be highly significant and the most important causal factor for the change has been the going on emigration and its repercussions in the community. The Malappuram seems to call into question the general contention that it is the educational status of the parents that shape the educational fortunes of their children.

The main objectives of the study are, to understand the level and nature of women's educational attainment in the district between 1981 to 2001, to identify how the Gulf migration accelerated the growth of educational infrastructure and to analyse and compare intergenerational educational mobility of the female population.

The-age cohort taken in to analysis is women of 20 years and above. Both secondary data and primary data were used in the study. The analysis of primary data has done through the construction of inter-generational mobility matrices.

The overall analysis shows that at lower educational levels (primary education) the proportion of women has improved quite impressively and also that the proportion of women having school education increased drastically over the period. At the same time the proportion of women at higher education levels lag far behind that of men; the difference is larger if we compare this to state average. Remittances have been found to have acted as the source for migrants to invest in educational sector since all the unaided schools are either owned or supported by migrants. In migrant households women arc significantly mobile between generations irrespective of their parents' educational status while in non-migrant household the situation is reverse which is contradictory to the common result of educational mobility studies; parents' educational status and daughters' educational status arc closely related. No correlation is however observed between educational level of parents and the performance of their daughters at the SSLC examination in the case of migrant households. The situation is just reverse in the case of non-migrant households. However it is concluded that in Malappuram. the positive externalities created through the process of emigration to Middle East like, improvement in 'household income*, general awareness' and consequently better 'family environment' has been acting as the triggering factor for this upward educational mobility of present generation

List of Tables

4.1 Literacy Rate-Kerala 1951-2016

4.2 District Wise Literacy Rate by Sex for Kerala and Malappuram 2001-2011

4.2a Literacy Rate by Sex for Kerala and Malappuram 2004-2016

4.3 District/Management/State wise Number of Schools in Kerala and Malappuram 2015-16

4.4 Growth of schools in Malappuram

4.5 District wise Details of Government Schools in Kerala Having Pucca Building 2015-16

4.6 Muslim Management Schools in Malappuram

4.7 Mother-Daughter Shift in Educational Status-Mother

4.8 Mother-Daughter Shift in Educational Status-Daughter

4.9 Father-Daughter Shift in Educational Status-Father

4.10 Father-Daughter Shift in Educational Status-Daughter

List of Figures

1.1 Political Map-Malappuram District

4.1 Growth of Schools in Malappuram 1970-2016

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Export of manpower has already been established as one of the most lucrative industry in Kerala. A good number of economically motivated young people all over the state were motivated to more in the direction of the oil rich countries in quest of their fortune, and acquired further momentum through the liberal economic policies of countries of the Persian Gulf since 1970s. This flow of emigration has never been interrupted, not even at the time of economic recession of 1980s and gulf war during the 1990s. Naturally, in a short while the export of manpower from Kerala became an important component of state revenue and the livelihood of millions. _ The role of international migration and foreign remittances in the economy of the state of Kerala in India is widely acknowledged. Migration from India has taken place from the very dawn of civilization. There are hardly any parts of the globe where Indians are not found today. From the early years itself, Kerala has largely dependent on its export earnings from agricultural and agro based commodities like tea, coffee, spices, cashew, kernels, marine products, coir and handloom textiles. From the middle of the 1970s, man power exports have been gradually overtaking commodity exports from the state. After independence, there were large scale emigration of skilled, semi skilled and unskilled man power mainly to the Gulf countries like the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain.etc. Emigration to the Middle East acquired momentum since 1973, consequent on the ever increasing demand for labour of all categories in the Gulf countries to meet their construction activities following the oil price hike. In this outflow to the Middle East from India, Kerala stands at the forefront. In 1977, sixty three percentage total emigrations from India were Keralites. Increasingly a number of economic activities within the state notably commerce, real estate and construction are financed to a certain extend with remittances from abroad. Three rounds of Kerala Migration Surveys (1998,2003 and 2007), conducted by the Centre for Development Studies (CDS), reinforces the fact that migration has emerged as the single most dynamic factor in the otherwise dismal scenario of Kerala in the last quarter of the 20th Century.

The economic power of migrants' remittances, as a source of capital and support affects millions of households around the world. Remittances play an increasingly significant role in many economies by influencing their economic activities. The term, remittances, generally refer to private transfers. These are ‘unrequited transfer’ which unlike other financial flows, create no counter claim by the senders, such as principal repayments and interest charges as is the case of debt and profit repatriations In the case of equity flows. There are three streams of money transfers, included under remittances, as defined in the IMF s Balance of Payments Statistics Yearbook. Worker remittances are the value of monetary transfers to home from workers abroad residing for more than one year. Broadly, there are two strands of theoretical literature on remittances. One is based on the altruistic motive and the other on the self-interest theory of remittance. Migrants send money back home either for their households' maintenance expenditure or investing in profitable ventures. Depending on the nature of remittances and the economic conditions characterizing remittance-receiving economics, remittances affect consumption and investment decisions in receiving economies. Migrants sending money home for family maintenance is based on altruistic motives as their total utility depends on their own level of consumption as well as consumption of their household members. Thus family ties, in the form of mutual caring, are important motivations of remitting funds from abroad (Chami et al 2005). Remittances sent by emigrant workers to support their household members left behind are especially an important source of financial support for many families in the developing world. They directly exert a significant influence on the standard of living of the receiving households. They are spent on education, health, and household consumption or on various forms of human capital formation. In contrast, while households invest remittances on real estate or physical capital, they do so with profit motive, and conform to the self-interest theory of remittances.5 Apart from remittances improving the standard of living and generating human capital in the receiving country, they also produce indirect impact on the local economies. They generate employment opportunities and thereby influence private consumption. Influence on consumption could also lead to economic growth as consumption creates investment demand through its multiplier effect. It is seen that while a very large proportion of remittances is spent on consumption, a very small proportion is also saved or used for productive Investments. Thus, some proportion gets invested in livestock and business. Remittances are also used for other purposes such as repayment of debts, funeral assistance, membership and subscription fees of burial societies, and payment of wages to workers.

Remittances represent the most direct, immediate, and far- reaching benefits to migrants and their countries of origin. They have been a constant source of income to developing economies as compared to other private flows and foreign direct investments (FDIs). Remittances are now second only to FDI by way of capital flows to developing economies. The study takes the perspective of remittances as a critical source of capital and resources that have impacted and would probably continue to impact on the development of millions of households in developing economies. With resources for development finance dwindling, remittances are emerging as a new tool and strategy for uplifting the economic conditions of developing countries. It has been recognized that the increments on fiscal spending have been inadequate to fulfill the needs of wide segments of society. Remittances help in addressing the most basic needs of the migrants' families and their communities. They represent a significant flow of income to poor families. If they could be channeled into more efficient ways, it would contribute considerably to alleviation of poverty and speed up economic development. Therefore, the challenge before developing economies is to transform the potential of remittances into a sustainable input in poverty eradication and development efforts. Thus, it can influence consumption and saving decisions and thereby economic growth.

The World Bank official estimates show that migrants from developing countries resident in developed countries sent home more than US 5223 billion to their families in developing countries in 2005; the corresponding amount was US 558 billion in 1995 and US 5160 billion in 2004. The 2005 figure is more than twice the size of total international aid. Remittance inflows have become an important source of financing current account deficits in many countries, including India. Remittances have emerged as the second most important source of funds to developing countries, after FDI. They are equivalent to about 6.7 per cent of developing countries' imports and 7.5 per cent of their domestic investment, indicating the significance of these inflows for the host economies. Remittances were even larger than total capital inflows in many developing countries in 2004 and exceeded the value of their merchandise exports.

Remittances influence macro activities. The overall economic impact ofremittances depends in part on the propensity of the recipient households to consume and invest. Remittances that are invested in productive activities directly contribute to output growth. The upsurge of workers' remittances to India, following the oil boom in the Middle East during the 1970s and the 1980s and the information technology revolution of the 1990s, has placed India as one of the highest remittance-receiving countries in the world. Remittances include repatriation of funds for family maintenance and local withdrawals from non-resident Indian (NR1) deposits. Inward remittances from Indians working abroad surged from US 52.1 billion in 1990-91 to US 124.6 billion in 2005-06, thereby proving to be a source of stable support to India's balance of payments. The Gulf region continues to be an important source of overseas employment for Indians. An estimated 3-8 million Indians working in the Gulf remitted about dollar 6 billion to India in 1999-2000. Indian Muslims brought in over 52.6 billion from Saudi Arabia alone and if one combines with it the amounts repatriated from other Middle-Eastern countries, the amount Indian Muslims bring would be stupendously high. India has reported a spectacular rise in remittance inflows from $13 billion in 2001 to more than dollar 20 billion in 2003. Several factors account for this remarkable increase. First, the number of emigrants has grown sharply. During the oil boom in the 1970s and the 1980s, thousands of low-skilled Indian workers migrated to the Persian Gulf countries. In the 1990s, migration to Australia, Canada, and the United States, particularly of information technology (IT), workers on temporary work permits, increased significantly. Second, the swelling of migrants' coincided with- 1. Better incentives to send and invest money in India's growing economy and 2. an easing of the regulations and controls, flexible exchange rates, and gradual opening up of the capital account in the balance of payments. The elimination of the black market premium for the Indian rupee and convenient remittance services provided by Indian and international banks have undoubtedly shifted some remittances flows from informal hawala channels to formal channels. Workers’ remittances remained buoyant during 2005-06, benefiting from the robust growth of global output and constant improvement in the domestic infrastructure for transacting remittances. Strong growth in oil-exporting countries consequent on the surge in international crude oil prices also provided support to private remittances. India continues to be one of the highest remittance-receiving developing counties in the world.

Inflow of remittances has offset India's trade deficit to a large extent, thus enabling it to keep its current account deficits at modest levels in the 1990s. The sustained expansion of remittances since the 1990s has been underpinned by structural reforms including the switch­over to market-based exchange rates and current account convertibility, as well as by a shift in the pattern of labour outflow from semi-skilled workers to increasingly high-skilled categories of professionals and technicians. Policy Initiatives have facilitated remittance flows through speedier and more cost-effective money transfer arrangements like banking channels; money transfer agencies and post offices have also contributed to stable and sustained rise in remittances. While banking channels account for the bulk of inward remittances to India, the Money Transfer Service Scheme (MTSS) and Rupee Drawing Arrangements (RDA) are also assuming increasing significance. These schemes provide the benefits of easier and speedier services and play a crucial role in expanding the outreach of remittance services to remote locations in the country.

Non-resident Indians have also responded to several attractive deposit schemes and bonds offered by the government of India. These schemes offer attractive interest rates and an appreciating rupee. While non-resident deposits are conceptually different from remittances (they are liability items in the capital account), evidence suggests that a large part of such deposits is converted into local currency. For example, in the case of the Resurgent India Bond that matured in 2003, most of the redemption value stayed in India to meet various local currencies needs of the non-resident depositors and their households. Nevertheless, remittances in the form of foreign currency deposits may become speculative and may lead to reverse flows to the rest of the world in the event of deterioration in the investment sentiment. India's liberalization of the exchange rate in 1991 has been linked to a decline in the use of illegal transfer channels to the state of Kerala (World Bank 2006).

The central bank is facing difficulties in controlling the reserves, because in order to meet the demand for domestic currency it has to purchase increasing amounts of foreign exchange, much of which stems from remittances, FDI and FII. The large inflows of remittances have been partly responsible for the appreciating rupee against the US dollar in some periods. The economy is showing signs of robust growth of GDP resulting from an expanding service sector and good performance of the industrial sector. The authorities are, however, lately facing difficulties in containing the inflation. The impact of remittances on the exchange rate has been ambiguous; strong appreciation pressures that emerged in early 2004 and 2007 could have teen the result of inappropriate monetary management that tried to constrain cash in circulation, rather than a result of inflow of remittances. At the same time, during most of the period of 2004-2005, the foreign exchange market seemed to be close to its equilibrium and only some nominal depreciation of the exchange rate was experienced. Therefore, in India the impact of remittances through the monetary channel has so far translated mainly into additional inflationary pressures rather than into real growth. The inflationary impact has not been pronounced and has affected only land and real estate prices and private sector wages severely. It is argued that remittances substitute for lack of financial development in developing economies, thereby promoting their economic growth. They constitute a significant proportion of total capital flows. In an economy in which the financial system is weak and fragile, remittances provide entrepreneurs who lack collateral credit and serve as an instrument to start high return projects.

Migration and remittances discussion is key discussion topic for Kerala because non- residential Keralites (NRKs) is the first in terms of total emigrants from India. In the post­independence migration from Kerala, the 'Gulf Boom' and the Information Technology (IT) revolution have played important roles. While in the early 1950s and 1960s it was mostly the professionally qualified persons who migrated from India, the Gulf boom opened up the Middle East for the unskilled and the semiskilled migrants from India, especially from south India. The IT revolution has ensured that Indians are in demand as knowledge workers' throughout the world. Migration has brought rich dividends to India in the form of remittances. In a country of India's size, scarcity of labour in the domestic market stills seems a remote threat. Ensuring a safety standard for the vulnerable unskilled and semiskilled migrants appears to be an area of concern. A good number of migrants from Kerala to the countries of the Middle East is Muslims. Finally, it may be concluded that migration, as a tool for development for both the individuals and the society appears to be a viable option if managed in a proper manner. Keeping this view in mind, present research attempts to shed light on the question: what the consequences of migration on women mobility? and, how is it likely to affect the educational infrastructure and educational attainment of women in the study area?

Research Background

International labour migration of Kerala has had several salutary effects on the household concerned. One of the basic improvements has been in the field of education. The present exercise endeavors to examine, oil the basis of empirical evidence, the educational development in a migration intensive area of Kerala, the Malappuram district. The upward mobility on the educational front taking place among Muslim women in the study area is found to be highly significant and the most important causal factor for the change has been the going on emigration and its repercussions in the community. The Malappuram seems to call into question the general contention that it is the educational status of the parents that shape the educational fortunes of their children.

Migrants make valuable economic, political, social and cultural contributions to the societies they have left behind. They bring with them various socio-economic returns as well as human capital to their families. The inward income flow in the form of remittance is one of the most important economic impacts of international labour migration. Remittance' refers to the part of income earned by the migrants abroad which they send home to support their families and to make investment in desired lines. Remittances thus constitute a personal and private source of income of the migrants and a source of social and economic mobility of their households.

Migration causes significant improvement in the economic status of the people and that lead to an educational renaissance (Salim, 1999). Migration influences the mobility of women in several ways. The migrants receive 'social remittances' in terms of newer ideas, beliefs, attitudes and broader cultural understanding that lead to significant transformation in the orthodoxy and rigidity in the communal outlook.

The emigration of male members of the household has important effects on the autonomy and outlook of the women left at home (Gulati L, 1993). Women develop self-confidence. They develop better adjustment with their routine works in and outside the house. They get used to increase responsibilities of running the house on their own. They develop the skills of managing their funds and properties. They become efficient in taking care of the health and educational requirements of their children. In short, the social mobility of the women gets enlarged.

The Key Concept: Social and Economic Mobility

The term, 'social and economic mobility refers to the level of change an individual attains in the social or economic status in one's lifetime (intra-generational) or the level of change in the social or economic status that an individual's offspring or the subsequent generation attains (inter-generational mobility). The income and educational attainment of the family are the important explanatory factors of social and economic mobility.

Social mobility has been very slow among the Muslims in India. The women in the Muslim community have been disadvantaged in terms of educational development very much. But the scenario in Kerala is different from that of the country. The literacy level, one of the key indicators of social development, of various social groups is much higher in Kerala than the rest of the country. The literacy rate for Muslims is 89.4 percent in Kerala js against 59.1 percent in the country (census of India 2001). The literacy rate for Muslims in Kerala is the second highest one after that of Andaman and Nicobar Islands (89.8 percent).Because of the high literacy rate; Muslims in Kerala are in an advantageous position as compared to Muslims in other regions of India with regard to international migration. The high literacy rate itself could be considered as the effect of international migration on the Muslim community in Kerala. This requires further probe. Since substantial part of migrant from Kerala is Muslims, it is appropriate to examine the effects of migration in the educational upliftment of Muslim community, particularly its women.

The Rationale of the Study

The labour migrants are the largest from Kerala as compared other states in India. Majority of them go to Gulf countries. Proportionately Muslims are more among the labour migrants. Muslims are educationally backward. Women's education is very poor in the Muslim community. Muslim community does not attach much importance to the education of girl children because of social and religious orthodoxy of the community. Social mobility is very slow among Muslim women.

International labour migration has had several salutary effects on the family and the society of the migrants. The most apparent one among them is the improvement in the education of the member of the family and the society. The majority of the total gulf migrants are reported to be Muslim who are historically characterised as educationally backward and caring little about giving education to children particularly to girl children because of social and religious orthodoxy existing in this particular community. And also women in this community used to be highly immobile in all aspects of life unlike Muslims in other district of Kerala.

Hence international labour migration from Kerala over more than three decades might have brought much change in the social and economic spheres of the Muslim community. Many studies have identified rapid social and economic change in the Muslim community in the recent years (salim 1999, Mohammed 2004). But there is not much discussion of the impact of the migration on the educational mobility of the Muslim women in Kerala. Therefore there is need to study the drastic changes that have occurred in the social and economic life of the Muslim community. It is also of significance to examine the specific influence of migration in causing drastic changes in the Muslim community. The study focuses on an analysis of whether the gulf migration and resultant remittances that have been flowing to Malappuram over the past three decades impacts on women's educational mobility particularly among the Muslim community. Hence the study aims at answering: what the consequences of migration on women mobility? And, how is it likely to affect the educational infrastructure and educational attainment of women in the study area?

Theoretical Framework

For carrying out empirical research on migration related themes, it is vital to have a clear understanding of different theoretical premises underlying the population movements. This is because although the prepositions, assumptions and hypotheses which may be derived from the various theoretical perspectives may not be inherently contradictory, they nonetheless could carry different implications for empirical research. So an understanding of different theoretical understanding is necessary to lay a strong groundwork for necessary empirical work. Migration has been viewed as being closely linked to socio-economic growth and hence indispensable in the process of women mobility. This is especially true in the case of Kerala where the dramatic improvement in the social and gender development have a close link with migration.

Parents influence the educational outcomes of their children in many ways. It may be their educational status, income level, family background, occupational status, etc. Therefore in explaining 'educational mobility', these factors are crucial. Intergenerational educational mobility is defined as the mobility that an individual attained on education over his previous generation. The mobility may be upward or downward. Upward mobility occurs when the person attains an educational grade, which is higher than those of his parents. Downward mobility happens when the person attains an educational grade, which is lower than those of his parents. The factors, which determine the educational mobility, are identified as the income, the educational status, the occupational status of parents, the family environment and the like (Lareau 1987, Chevalier. A 2003, Alan B. Krueger 2004, Pedro Carneiro and Heckman 2003, Lucinda Platt 2005).

A study by Lareau in 1987 found that the middle class parents conceive themselves as active partners in education of their children, while working class parents prefer to leave the role of educator to the school ( Lareau 1987). Entwistle and Alexander (1992 and 1994) find that parent' expectations are more powerful predictors of children's performance, irrespective of their socioeconomic status. According to Chevalier 'most people who are well educated and well off are likely to have children who are well educated' (Arnaud Chevalier 2003). Pedro Carneiro and Heckman (2003) suggests that current parental income does not explain child educational choices but that family fixed effects such as parental education levels, that contributes to permanent income, have a much more positive role. Mother's schooling appears to have a greater effect on her daughter's education. Similarly, fathers influence their sons more than their daughters (Arnaud Chevalier 2004). Later in 2005 he found that that the educational effects remained significant even when household income was included in the analysis. Moreover, when parental education was included they found that permanent income was insignificant while shocks to income at age 16 remained significant ( Arnaud Chevalier 2005).

On the contrary, Alan B. Krueger (2004) found that financial constraints of parents significantly impact on educational attainment.. He established the view that parental wealth and incomes were important determinants of children's lifetime success. However the positive correlation between parental and children's educational attainment is an almost universal finding. Educated parents enroll children in better schools, provide a learner-friendly environment at home and encourage their children to go for post- secondary schooling.

Statement of the problem

The present study endeavours to examine, on the basis of empirical evidence, the educational mobility of Muslim women in a migration intensive area of Kerala, the Malappuram district. The study focuses to assess the impact of Gulf migration and resultant remittances to Malappuram over the past three decades on women's educational mobility, particularly among the Muslim community. It is hypothesised that remittances have been playing a significant role in the educational mobility of women rather than the educational status of parents.

Malappuram- The Study Area

Each State in India has its own language and culture. India's ethnic, linguistic, and regional complexity is reflected in its subdivision into states, which were reorganized after its independence in 1947, primarily on the basis of language. India's languages reflect the intricate levels of social hierarchy and caste and an understanding of local culture. There are 28 states and 7 union territories in India. Kerala is one state of Indian Union.

Malapuram district is a district in the state of Kerala, South India with headquarters at the city of Malappuram. The district was formed on 16th June 1969. Malappuram district came into existence on June, 1969. Malappuram district is composed of portion of the erstwhile Palakkad and Kozhikode districts. It was carved out of Ernad taluk and portions of Tirur taluk of Kozhikode district and portions of Perinthalmanna and Ponnani taluks of Palakkad district.

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The word Malappuram means “terraced place atop the hills”, derived from the general geographical characteristics of the district headquarter as well as the district, the region was called as Ernad, Valluvanad etc.

The district has a rich cultural and political heritage. From the time immemorial the port of Ponnani was a centre of trade with the Romans. After the Cheras, numerous powerful dynasties controlled the area, and by 9th century the region came to hands of the Kulasekharas of Mahodayapuram. After disintegration of the Kulasekhara Kingdom a number of Nair city states emerged was called as Valluvanad, Vattathunad, Parappanadi, Nediyiruppu and more. Malappuram has been part in movements such as Khilafat movement and Maplah Rebellion in the early 20th century. Before Indian independence in 1947, Malappuram was a part of Malabar district in the madras presidency of British India. The area covered by the present district was administered as a part of Kozhikode, Ernad Taluk, Valluvanad Taluk and Ponnani Taluk. Malabar district remained part of Madras State for some time after Indian Independence. The classic medieval center of Vedic learning and local politics, Thirunavaya, home of the traditional Ayurveda medicine, Kottakkal and one of the oldest centre of education of Islam the region, Ponnani are situated in Malappuram district along with rapidly expanding towns like Manjeri, Perinthalmanna, Chemmad and Edappal. In 1921, present day Malappuram district witnessed a series of devastating revolts and massacres known as the ‘Moplah rebellions', followed by decades of frozen, economical, social and political development. In the early years of the Communist rule in Kerala, Malappuram saw large land reforms under the Land Reform Ordinance. In the 1970s, huge oil reserves of Persian Gulf were opened to commercial extraction, and thousands of unskilled people migrated to “Gulf” seeking fortunes. They send money home, propping up a sleepy rural economy, and by late 20th century, the region had achieved first world health standards and near universal literacy. The present development, both economical and social, of the Malappuram district owes to the Kerala Gulf Diaspora.

Malappuram district comprises a vast wildlife collection and a number of small hills, forests, little rivers and streams flowing to the west, backwaters and paddy, areca nut, cashew nut, pepper, ginger, pulses, coconut, banana, tapioca, and rubber plantations. Malappuram is one of two Muslim majority district or union territories in South India other being Lakshadweep. The Hindu temples and Moplah mosques of the region are known for their colorful festivals. It is the most populous district in Kerala. The populations include Muslims, Hindus, and Christians, various tribal religion believers, Buddhists, Sikhs, Janis and others.

The district lies in Northern Kerala and is bounded on the north by Wayanad and Kozhikode districts, on the Northeast by Tamil Nadu, on the Southeast and south by Palakkad district, on the west by the Arabian sea, and on the Northwest by Kozhikode district. At present, Malappuram district consists of two revenue divisions, 6 taluks, 135 villages, 15 blocks, 7 municipalities and 100 panchayath. In Tirur and Ponnani taluks, villages such as Biyyam, Veliyancode, Manur and Kodinhi offer fishing and boating facilities.

According to the 2011 census, Malappuram district has a population of 4110956, roughly equal to the nation of Newzealand or the US states of Oregon. This gives a ranking of 50th in India (Out of a total of 640). The district has a population density of 1158 inhabitants per square kilometer (3000/ square meter). Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 13.39%. Malappuram has a sex ratio of 1096 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 93.55%. Malappuram has the highest fertility rate in Kerala.

Muslims (68.53%) constitutes the majority of the population, followed by the Hindu (29.17%) and Christian (2.22%) communities. The Municipalities in Malappuram district are; Malappuram, Perinthalmanna, Manjeri, Ponnani, Tirur, Kottakkal, and Nilambur respectively. Malappuram district has a good tradition in the field of Art and Culture. Many renowned writers and poets hail from this part of this land. Thunchath Ezhuthachan, honored as the father of modern Malayalam literature was born in Trikkandiyur near Tirur, almost 400 years ago. Malappuram is a historical place involved in anti-British rebellions in Malabar, especially the Moplah Rebellion of 1921. The grave of Mampuram Thangal is located here. It is also the birth place of Omar Qasi, a Muslim Scholar and a leader of anti-British movements. The families of Panakkad Thangals were also located here. Poets like Mahakavi Vallathol Narayana Menon, V.C. Balakrishna Panikkar and Moyin Kutty Vaidyer were born in Malappuram. Malappuram is also the birth place of Poonthanam, remembered for his master piece, Inanappana. Thirumandhamkunnu Pooram, Kottakkal Pooram, Nilambur Pattu, Kondotty Nercha, Puthanpalli Nercha, Omanur Nercha, Malaparamba Perunnal, Vairamkode Vela, or Theeyattu are major fairs and festivals in Malappuram.

A major driver of the local economy is the remittances of the migrants residing in the Middle East, by which banking sector in Malappuram district has huge NRI deposits. And so it's natural for Malappuram to hold 9th position in top ten towns with highest per capita bank deposits in India. The city has a strong trader community in which hotels and bakery business out numbers, followed by the textile and medical sector. Tourism is the major crowd puller of the city. Places like Kottakkunnu, Shanthitheeram etc attracts lakhs of people from all over the state. Almost 60 percent of employees in the city are part of service sector. Being the district headquarters, people working in different government offices contributes a major part in the commerce and economy of the district.

The University of Calicut is located at Thenjipalam. AMU (Aligarh Muslim University) Malappuram Centre is situated at Chelamala. EFLU (English and Foreign Languages University) Malappuram campus is going to be established at Edu Health City. The recently inaugurated Thunchathu Ezhuthachan Malayalam University is located at Thunchan Parambu in Malappuram and is only 26 km far from the city centre. Steps to establish an Ayurveda University at Kottakkal, near here is underway. There are 3 Education Districts, namely Tirur, Malappuram, Wandoor and 17 Sub Education Districts in this district. Tirurangadi is a developed town in Malappuram district of Kerala, South India. It is an old town which has historical importance for its active participation in the freedom struggle, especially those dating back to 1920s. It is a Panchayat as well as a taluk. It is located 25 km west of Malappuram, the district headquarters, 30 km south of Calicut and 170 km north of Ernakulam. Tirurangadi consist of 106 Villages and 7 Panchayats . It is in the 19 m elevation (altitude). It is near to Arabian Sea. Tirurangadi is now known as a small educational hub in Malappuram district. The PSMO College is right in the centre of the town surrounded by several other institutions. Headquarters of University of Calicut is just 13 km away. Tirurangadi muslim orphanage is a reputed organization in Tirurangadi taluk that runs different educational institutions and educating the people of Tirurangadi freely.Malayalam is the Local Language here. Also people Speaks English. Total population of Tirurangadi Taluk is 619,635 living in 99,303 Houses, Spread across total 106Villages and 7 Panchayats. Males are 300,569 and females are 319,066.

Socio-Economic Mobility of Muslim Women

Women are subject to discrimination at home, at educational institutions and in the labour market. They are discriminated in terms of opportunities for educational development, occupational attainment and higher earnings in the labour market (G.C. Gasper, 1995).

Inequalities of women's opportunities and the negation of human rights at all levels of the society, particularly among the Muslims and the rampant discrimination against them in several forms remain an issue for concern. The interpretation of Quranic verses by the Muslim religious leaders and the subsequent enactment of a variety of canons relating to the Islamic dress code for women, restriction of free intermingling of the sexes and the rights of husbands over their wives, have put huddles in the path of socio-economic mobility of Muslim women.

A Panel committee has been set up by Central government. The central panel committee was asked to study and submit a report on the social, economic and educational status of the Muslim community in India' the Prime Minister. The level of achievement of Muslim girls in the SSLC examination, the level of performance of the Muslim girls in higher education and the problems of dowry payments are the main focus of the Panel Committee. Dowry altercations have led to numerous divorces. This is a problem rising over time (The Hindu, November 10 2005). The problem of dowry has induced many poor parents to save or invest whatever the little money they have in a profitable way. This is how the poor parents prepare themselves to meet the dowry requirements at the time of marriage of their daughters. They take little interest in financing the education of their daughters.

Muslim Women in Malappuram District

The plight of Muslim women in Chungathara Panchayat in Malappuram district is described in the study of Jaya S Anand (2002). The level of educational attainment is very low; the level of ignorance is high; the age at marriage is low; there are many early marriages and many cases of early motherhood; the infant mortality rate is very high; the average size of the family is very large; there are six members in the average family in Chungathara Panchayat. Most of the Muslim women are confined to their homes. This is because there are cultural constraints in the Muslim community. Muslim community deeply believes that women are to be housekeepers and not to be breadwinners. Hence women are expected to remain at home, do the household activities and have less social contact with outsiders, especially the members of the opposite sex.

The study by Salim (1999) in two villages in Malappuram gives a picture of education in the district. The dropout rate in school education is high among Muslims. It is particularly high among the Muslim girls who belong to economically backward and conservative families. Parents in villages are not much interested even in the education of boys. They are not motivated towards the education of their daughter. However it was found that gulf migration and thereby the significant improvement in their economic status of the people had led to an educational renaissance in the district

Magnitude of Labour Migration from Malappuram

The intensity and incidence of migration has been higher in Malappuram and Thrissur districts as compared to other districts in Kerala (Nair 1986, Prakash 1998, Zachariah, Mathew and Rajan 1999).The intensity of migration was 14 persons per 1000 population in Malappuram district and 15 persons per 1000 population in Thrissur district in .1980 (Prakash 1998). Malappuram had the largest number of emigrants (297,000 persons) as compared to Thrissur (161,000 persons) in 1998 (Zachariah and Rajan, 1999). The total number of emigrants decreased in Malappuram (272,000 persons) but increased in Thrissur (179,000 persons) in 2003 (Zachariah and Rajan, 2004). But still, the total number of emigrants is higher in Malappuram district than Thrissur district. The rate of emigration from Malappuram district is one person per family in nearly fifty percent of the households in the district; whereas it is one person per 5 households in Kerala.

Significance of Muslims in the Emigrant Population

Many Muslims migrate, particularly to the Middle East, because they have an edge over others in terms of religious affiliation. Muslim emigrants are of relatively younger age group. The educational level is lower among Muslim migrants than among Hindu or Christian migrants. However in respect of work experience and earning status, Muslims are marginally better off (Nair, 1991).

Muslims forms about 67 percent of the population in Malappuram district (Census of India, 2001). They were in largest number among the emigrants in 1980 (Nair, 1986).The total number of emigrants in Kerala during 2003-04 was calculated as 1838478 among whom 44 percent belong to Muslim community. It was 49 percent during 1998- 99. About 78 percent of emigrants from Malappuram had education less than Secondary Education at the time of migration in 1998; but it decreased to 17 percent in 2003. The corresponding figures for Thrissur were 53 percent in 1998 and 19 percent in 2004. Thus there was some improvement in the educational level of the emigrants from these districts. The improvement, however, was considerable in the Malappuram district (Zachariah and Rajan, 2004). Thus the community­wise distribution of migrants clearly shows the predominance of Muslims in the emigrant population. The principal places of origin of emigrants from Kerala are the Malappuram and Thrissur districts and that the educationally backward Muslims in these districts serve as the backbone of the emigration phenomenon in this state.

In regard to the flow of remittances to Kerala, Thrissur district is the largest recipient with Rs.3234 crores and Malappuram district is the second largest one with Rs.2829 crores in 2003-04. In Malappuram, remittances formed around 46 percent of district domestic product. The total remittances coming to Kerala was estimated as Rs.7977 crores in which Muslims received 45 percent during 2003-04. The community wise distribution of remittances shows the amount of remittance per household is highest among Muslims. It is about Rs.24, 000. About 37 percent of Muslims directly benefited from remittances while it was about 11 percent and 16 percent among Hindus and Christians respectively (Zachariah and Rajan, 2004).

Objectives of the Study

The main objectives of the study are the following:

- To analyse the level and nature of educational attainment of Muslim women in Malappuram district since 1981
- To identify the effects of Gulf migration on the development of educational infrastructure
- To identify the inter-relationship between emigration and educational attainment of Muslim girls
- To study the educational mobility of the Muslim female population in a comparative framework.

Hypotheses

- The girls' performance in the SSLC examination is independent of the educational status of their parents
- The overall educational attainment of the girls' is not related to parents' educational level
- There prevails a positive correlation between improvements in educational infrastructure and migration resulted remittances in the district of Malappuram

Data and Methodology

The study is based on both primary and secondary data. Primary data has been obtained from 51 emigrant households of Malappuram district. Secondary sources of information consisted mainly of reports and databases from the United Nations Organisation that gave insights at global impacts. The population census reports of the Government of India, the Five Year Plan and the Annual Plan documents of the Planning Commission of India, study reports and projections of the Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Trivandrum, NORKA as well as various other State and Central Government reports were the main source of information at state level. It also included census data from different decades providing details of present and past population size, intergenerational occupational changes, migration, education and sex ratio, various Indian and Kerala Migration Surveys, various publications of the Centre for Development Studies, Ministry of External Affairs, NORKA, Economic and Political Weekly, data published by DES, Government of Kerala and Human Development Reports etc.

Selection of Sample

The sample size for the study was fixed at 63 girls from 51 Muslim emigrant households. For collecting the primary data, we conducted a sample survey in 63 girls from 51muslim emigrant households in Malappuram district. For collecting information we used an interview schedule and interviewed the sample. A structured questionnaire (see Appendix I)was used to obtain information on personal characteristics, the educational attainment of girls and their parents and average family expenditure on education. The sampling procedure followed is as follows: First, we selected the Tirurangadi block Panchayat as Tirurangadi taluk is characterised with the highest concentration of emigrants. From the block, we had chosen two Grama Panchayats having high rate of emigration to select 3 appropriate wards. The elected members of the wards were helped us to identify and prepare the list of 63 Muslim girl students from the selected 3 Wards (Proportional Sampling). From each selected ward 21muslim girls were selected by systematic random sampling method.

Statistical Tools Used

For the analysis of sample data various statistical tools like percentages, ratios and measures of central tendencies have been made use of. In addition to this, Coefficient of Correlation has been used.

Coefficient of Correlation

A correlation coefficient is a statistical measure of the degree to which changes to the value of one variable predict change to the value of another. In positively correlated variables, the value increases or decreases in tandem. The value of one increases as the value of the other decreases in negatively correlated variables. Correlation coefficients are expressed as values between +1 and -l.A coefficient of +1 indicates a perfect positive correlation: A change in the value of one variable will predict a change in the same direction in the second variable. A coefficient of -1 indicates a perfect negative correlation: A change in the value of one variable predicts a change in the opposite direction in the second variable. Lesser degrees of correlation are expressed as non-zero decimals. A coefficient of zero indicates there is no discernable relationship between fluctuations of the variables.

The formula is:

Abbildung in dieser Leseprobe nicht enthalten

Scheme of the Study

This study is divided into 5 chapters. Chapter 1 deals with introduction. It includes rationale of the study, research methodology undertaken, conceptual and theoretical framework, research background, statement of the problem, sample selected and objectives. Chapter 2 provides literature review. Role of education in economic development and the concept of gender empowerment are discussed in Chapter 3. Growth of educational infrastructure in the state and educational attainment of Muslim women are analysed in detail in the subsequent chapter. A summary of the discussions and the conclusions are presented in the last chapter.

Limitations of the study

The study mainly focused on the return emigrants, current status of return emigrants and their socioeconomic profile. The study has not examined other issues like the problem of emigration to the Gulf or outmigration to other parts of India. However, we have collected some information about the details of emigrants and out-migrants belonging to the sample households and presented the results in the study. We have not compared the current status of the emigrants with that of the local workers in Kerala.

CHAPTER 2

STUDIES ON WOMEN MOBILITY-A REVIEW

One of the few review articles that directly explores the links between gender, migration and social change dates back to 1991 (Tienda & Booth, 1991). Tienda and Booth argued that‘migration is co-terminous with social change' (1991, p. 51). Whilst their work is widely cited in calls for putting gender onto the agenda of migration scholarship, their effort at connecting social change and gender together in migration research has been somewhat overlooked. Yet, Tienda and Booth's article, as well as many classic texts on female migration (see e.g. Morokvasic, 1984) and on development (Boserup, 1970) were explicitly concerned with the question of social change. This was typically formulated into questions on whether migration improved or weakened women's position in society. In most cases, the answer was both yes and no. Migration usually has both good and not-so-good effects on women's position in In lieu of this earlier research, we would like to raise three important points. Firstly, in the earlier studies, gender is typically a code word for research on women, a characteristic which continues to haunt much contemporary scholarship. A key aim of the older research was to change the perception that women migrants are merely the ‘baggage of male workers' (Cohen, 1997 cited in King, 2002: 97) following behind pioneer male migrants through the process of family unification—a perception that was shared by scholars until 1970s. Historians showed, for example, that women migrants were just as likely as their male counterpart to migrate during the transatlantic massmigration at the turn of the 20th century (e.g. Gabbaccia, 1996) and demographers demonstrated that women were as likely to migrate in the 1960s as they are today (e.g. Zlotnik, 2005). Yet, the idea of men as pioneer migrants, followed by women migrants has not completely disappeared as the analysis of contemporary migration policies and points-based migration systems has revealed (e.g. Kofman, 2013). Secondly, in the older scholarship social change was often, without interrogation, equated to economic emancipation. The question of how migration impacted upon women was most commonly understood in terms of women's emancipation from housewives to wage earners. Connected to this, was the important critique of early feminist scholarship on the malebiased concept of a unified household with common goals (e.g. Hondagneu-Sotelo, 1992). A third question dealt with in the literature on gender, migration and change was whether alterations in the economic situation of women also brought about a redefinition of gender relations in post-migration contexts (Morokvasic, 1993). In other words, in the earlier literature, the subject matter was typically approached as a question of migration as a means to women's increased labour market participation and the extent to which (if at all) this resulted in a change in existing gender relations. Many of the points raised in this earlier critique are still relevant to contemporary research. However, feminist scholarship on migration1 has evolved from this earlier literature, also termed as, an additive approach. The additive approach focused on adding a female-specific perspective to migration research, which in practice, led to research on women's roles in migration processes. Since the 1980s, black and postcolonial feminist critique (Collins, 1991; Davis, 1981; Hooks, 1981, 1984) alongside the emergence of the intersectional approach (Brah & Phoenix, 2004; Collins, 1998; Crenshaw, 1994; Yuval-Davis, 2006) has contested the homogeneity and universality of the category of woman. Accordingly, a shift from women-in-migration to gender-in-migration has occurred—a shift which can also be termed as a shift from an additive to a generative and intersectional approach. A move from women and men as sexed categories to gender categories, and to the analysis of various intersectional hierarchies (based on class, race, ethnicity, sexuality, ability and so forth), between women resonates with the broader development of gender theories and is reflective of the paradigm shift associated with intersectionality in gender studies. Gender is understood as the social meanings, relationships and identities that are based on reproductive differences and the division of people into male and female (Connell, 2002), which are quintessentially about power relationships (Scott, 1986: 1067). Gendered meanings, identities and practices are processual, not fixed (Pessar & Mahler, 2003: 813), yet they are also constitutive of social structures, i.e. institutionalised social relationships which are not reducible to the individual (Ferree, Lorber, & Hess, 1999: xix). Finally, the seemingly binary division male/female is contingent, as Judith Butler reminds us: ‘Gender is not exactly what one “is” or precisely what one “has” to assume that gender always and exclusively means the matrix of the “masculine” and “feminine” is precisely to miss the critical point that the production of that coherent binary is contingent, that it comes at a cost, and that those permutations of gender which do not fit the binary are as much a part of gender as its most normative instance’ (Butler, 2004: 42). Drawing attention to how the masculine/feminine gender and male/female sex binary is laboured and performed at cost, Butler's definition successfully illuminates what is meant by the statement that gender is socially constructed. It shows how these concepts are always relational: one is always ‘doing' with or for another, even if the other is only imaginary (Butler, 2004: 1). Central to this approach is the idea that meanings and practices of ‘doing­gender' vary not only across cultures and historical periods, but also within local ‘cultures'. It also emphasises that sex/gender is embedded in regulative power/knowledge practices. The need to ‘do' one's gender is required not only from those who subvert the normative order, but also from those who are positioned as ‘hegemonic'. As Williams (1977: 112) reminds, ‘lived hegemony' is not passive but ‘a process that has continually to be renewed, recreated, defended, and modified. It is also continually resisted, limited, altered, challenged by pressures not at all its own’. These different definitions highlight the various dimensions of gender: as more or less institutionalised social structures, which nevertheless are not stable, but processual and changeable through variations in the doing of gender. What are the consequences of such an approach to the analysis of migration? Firstly, we need to go beyond studies on women and for analyse gender as a central organising principle in migration (Levitt, DeWind, & Vertovec, 2003: 568). Understanding gender as an organising principle acknowledges the fact that gender ‘is not simply a variable to be measured, but a set of social relations that organise immigration patterns' (Hondagneu-Sotelo, 1994: 3), and, which subsequently can be affected by the migration process within migrant communities and the societies which they enter into and leave behind. Secondly, it means acknowledging gender as a generative principle in migration, not only as an organising principle but as a dynamic one. Migration from one locality to another may have genuine implications for the lives of men and women, in families and in communities. This is both in relation to their gender norms, values and expectations, as well as on the constitutive structures of gender, as instiutionalised social relationships in the material economic, social and political spheres. Migration, social change and transformation while feminist migration scholarship has strived to bring gender to the core of migration studies, this work is still not over. Although empirical studies are increasingly concerned with gender issues, when it comes to mainstream migration theorisation, gender is often signalled out, or handled as a specific case—not integrated to the ‘general theories of migration’. A case in point is the relatively recent and widely cited themed issue of Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies (36:10), on theories of migration and social change. Gender was not integrated into the ‘general' theorisation of social change but it was covered in a separate article by Lutz (2010). In the themed issue, Portes (2010) argued that migration only very seldom truly transforms receiving societies. Taking as an example, migration to US, Portes (2010: 1548) argues— contrary to many contemporary scholars—that migration has not changed the American society, as it has not touched the foundational organisational principles. He builds his argument on a definition of social change, according to which ‘truly revolutionary social change requires the transformation of the value system or the remaking of the society's class structure', which he distinguishes from the ‘street-level' changes of ‘sights and smell' of a city (Portes, 2010: 1548). Revolutionary social change, according to Portes, would require changes in the ‘legal/judicial complex, the educational system, the dominance of English, the basic values guiding social interaction, and, above all, the distribution of power arrangements and the class structure’ (Portes, 2010: 1548). Other scholars have clarified the distinction between social change and social transformation: where social change is regarded as local, social transformations is, as Kenneth Wiltshire (2001: 8) has defined ‘a more radical change, a particularly deep and far-reaching one which within a relatively limited time span modifies the configuration of societies’ (cited in Vertovec, 2009: 22). Global transformationalists such as Held, McGrew, Goldblatt, and Perraton (1999) advocate a ‘transformation' view of the long-term changes which are the result of globalisation (as defined as the intensification of interconnections between people through migration, for example). In their classic work, Held et al. contend that various conditions and processes lead to large scale transformation. Especially: 1) ‘extensiveness of networks of relations and connections' where ‘events, decisions and activities in one region of the world can come to have significance for individuals and communities in distant regions of the globe’ 2)‘the intensity of flows and levels of activity within these networks’—that are regular and patterned 3) ‘the velocity or speed of interchanges’ of resources and information that provide immediate feedback, often in real time Widening of networks, with more connected activities across distances and speeded up communication, might be important forms of transnationalism in themselves—but they do not necessarily lead to long-lasting, structural changes in global or local societies. It is historically the case that migrants have kept their long distance network ties—any great changes in the structure, purpose or practice within the network cannot be inferred simply because of the changing nature of communication (Vertovec, 2009: 23). In countering the sceptics, nevertheless, Vertovec argues that it is the degree to which such interactions are taking place which makes a difference: that the ‘extensiveness, intensity and velocity of networked flows of information and resources may indeed combine to fundamentally alter the way people do things' (2009: 23). So that as Portes (2003: 877) points out ‘the combination of a cadre of regular transnational activists with the occasional activities of other migrants adds up to a social process of significant economic and social impact for communities and even nation’. It remains questionable whether the sociology of contemporary migration could detect revolutionary social changes because drastic social changes seldom occur in a short time span; this would rather be the task for historians. Also, it is questionable whether defining social change as Portes does is in fact useful. The macro-level of the nation-state and its political structure very often overlooks cultural and social change, arenas where change that concerns gender practices and relations very often takes place. In defining social change we need then to account for different scales: the individual and micro-level; the meso-level; and, the macro-level, but it is also important to account for different dimensions of social change: change in norms and values; change in performance and practices; changes in economic and labour relations, and changes in the political and public sphere. In order to clarify what we mean by possible ways in which questions of gender, migration and social change can be addressed in actual research practice, let us consider some research examples. Researching migration, social change and gender In more recent literature looking at non-European migration into Western Europe, and specifically, Pakistani migration to the UK, it has been argued that the gender experiences of urban Pakistani migrants to the UK were very different to those of migrants from more rural areas (Akhtar, 2013). That, immigrants from more provincial areas experience two-tiers of migration (rural to urban and country to country) when they migrate from rural Pakistan to Urban Britain and this has specific implications for gender relations and dynamics. The gender frames of women in rural communities invariably differ from the gender frames of women in urban areas, as indeed, the gender frame of men from urban localities migrating to rural regions. In other words, the type of migration itself may have an impact on how gender frames are altered (if at all) through the process of migration for men and women, in terms of ideas and attitudes as well as behaviours in differing local contexts. It could be valuable to distinguish between internal migration which takes place within the nation-state, between types of regions (rural to rural, rural to urban, urban to rural, urban to urban) and international migration which takes place across state boundaries, and indeed within this a description of the broad locality (King & Skeldon, 2010). King (2002) for example, argues that we need more sophisticated models to understand contemporary migration, patterns. Writing of women migrants into Western Europe, he shows that the dominant model of viewing women migrants as wives of pioneer men fails to capture the complex reality of the diversity of women's migration to Europe. This is in terms of their social-economic backgrounds, but also their reasons for migration and the lived experiences of the migratory process. Also in relation to European patterns of postwar migration, Kofman argues the need to ‘reclaim the heterogeneity of women's past migratory experiences' (1999: 269). Such categories; rural, urban, skilled, unskilled, though on the one hand necessarily crude, could provide a social and cultural context within which empirical studies of migration, gender and social change could inform and strengthen the theoretical framework. Different forms of mobility—forced, refugee or voluntary migration, temporary or permanent migration—are other important aspects of the social context in which migration takes place. Indeed, as Katy Gardner pointed out nearly two decades ago: ‘studies which treat migration as a homogenous process, which means the same things to different groups, and at different stages in the migration process, thus only tell one part of what is really a far more complex story' (Gardner, 1995: 4). A further variable to consider would be social change in gender relations and behaviour which result from nonmigration. Levitt (2001) reminds us: ‘migrants' continued participation in their home communities transforms the sending-community context to such an extent that nonmigrants also adapt many of the values and practices of their migrant counterparts, engage in social relationships that span two settings, and participate in organisations that act across borders'.

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