Migrant labourers from Odisha who travel to other states in search of work, especially in brick kilns, confront several challenges in their destination places. On the one hand, they paid less, and they are not registered in any government programmes. Migrant women encounter several problems in the job.

More than 3 lakh migrant workers and their families leave Western Odisha each year to work in brick kilns in bordering Andhra Pradesh, Telengana, Karnataka, and particularly Tamil Nadu’s Thiruvallur region.

More than 650 brick kilns are running in the Tamilnadu region’s Thiruvallur district, which serves as a hub for brick-making migrants. According to DBMS’s study of migrants, there are roughly 1.5 lakh to 2 lakh migrants each year

Every year, after the Nuakhai harvest festival in western Odisha, Mrs. Pushpa Patel, 19 years old, and Mr. Santosh Patel, 21, came to work in a brick kiln site at VBW Chamber, Thiruvallur district, Tamilnadu. They were from the small village of Balipoda, Bhanpur G. P, Narala Block, Kalahandi district, the state of Odisha.

With the exception of her in-law’s grandmother, the entire family relocates to a brick kiln in Thiruvallur. Even the youngest kids go to work with their parents.

As soon as she informed her husband of her pregnancy, she talked to him about it and won his support in order to convince him that she should deliver the baby with the help of her grandmother-in-law. However, the spouse of Pushpa added that it was challenging to leave her at home alone. As a result, everyone arrived, and she continued to work despite experiencing pain and lacking rest.The supervisor was hesitant to agree when she asked to take a break anytime she felt queasy or her head was spinning.

The manager of a brick kiln constantly monitors what the workers are doing. She happened to call me one day and told me about her struggles, and I went to the meet owner and told him not to involve her in work. Even though he sent her to school to look after the migrant children in the school, she joined the school out of fear that her pay would be cut. She was compelled to go to school since she needed to buy supplies for her everyday life and was in need of money.

When the kids used to go to school, this poor lady aslo happened to arrive by tractor. The owner didn’t provide any medical assistance to the pregnant woman.I finally went and fought with the owner to take her to KMC hospital for delivery, and he permitted her to go there. She was admitted in the hospital and blessed with a baby girl. Since Pushpa is not a participant in the pregnancy-related welfare programme run by the State Government, She is deprived of a wage compensation plan. She would have been enrolled in the Mamata scheme and get THR (take home rations) under the ICDS programme if she had been living in
the village Numerous health risks are faced by migratory women labourers because they lack knowledge about neighbouring health facilities and no ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) workers visit the worksite, the majority of pregnant women do not receive a proper health checkup.Working hard leads to frequent fevers and poor health, which raises the risk of maternal mortality and low birth weight babies. Even expectant women do not have access to ANC services like iron supplements or maternity care at their place of employment.The majority of them are ignorant of their rights when they immigrate to other states. These vulnerable groups lack a voice to voice their concerns, in addition to poverty, language barriers, and unfamiliarity with the destination.