Listen To This Post

For Punjab, migration is not a policy abstraction. It is a lived reality, a legacy embedded in villages, households and aspirations.

Written By: AS MITTAL | THE NEWS DOSE.COM  

New Delhi/Chandigarh,Updated At 11.30 AM Jan 19, 2026 IST

As India rapidly expands its network of Free Trade Agreements—now spanning over 50 countries, including the European Union, the US and the recently concluded pact with New Zealand—workforce mobility is quietly emerging as the next big economic frontier. Ageing economies across the developed world are staring at severe workforce shortages, while India sits on a rare demographic advantage. Yet this moment of opportunity is colliding with an outdated migration framework—nationally and, even more sharply, in Punjab.

For Punjab, migration is not a policy abstraction. It is a lived reality, a legacy embedded in villages, households and aspirations. In 2024 alone, the state received ₹32,535 crore in remittances—over 56% of its merchandise exports and nearly 4.6% of its GDP. These inflows sustain rural consumption, fund education, build homes and keep local economies afloat. But beneath this economic lifeline runs a disturbing undercurrent: unsafe “donkey” routes, predatory agents, forged documents and a steady rise in undocumented emigration. Migration continues—not because systems work, but because desperation overrides risk.

Why Punjab must lead the reset

Nowhere is the cost of policy inertia more visible than in Punjab. The state has one of India’s strongest migration cultures, a vast global diaspora and a youth population hungry for opportunity. Yet the absence of safe, legal and affordable pathways has pushed thousands toward irregular routes, often with tragic outcomes. This is not merely a law-and-order problem; it is a failure of institutional design.

At the same time, the global window is unmistakable. High-income OECD countries face an estimated workforce shortfall of 40–50 million by 2030, rising to 160 million by 2040, according to the Reserve Bank of India. Healthcare, logistics, construction, engineering, and education sectors are already experiencing acute shortages across the US, UK, Germany, Japan, and France—most of which are members of the OECD. Punjab is uniquely positioned to meet this demand if migration is viewed as an economic strategy rather than an escape route.

A national framework stuck in the past

India’s migration governance still largely rests on the Emigration Act, 1983—a law designed for an era when overseas work meant West Asia, paper contracts, and physical agents. Four decades later, recruitment has gone digital, labour demand has diversified, and migration has become deeply intertwined with trade, services and global supply chains. Yet the policy mindset remains control-oriented and fragmented, treating migrants as administrative liabilities rather than economic contributors.

Recent legislative efforts, such as the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025, may improve border monitoring, but border management alone is insufficient. India needs a comprehensive national migration policy that integrates skills, overseas demand, worker protection, social security portability, and bilateral labour agreements into a cohesive economic framework. Without this, migration remains fragmented and ineffective.

This gap carries real consequences. In 2025 alone, 3,258 Indian nationals were deported by the US—the highest ever. Student migration has surged to nearly 13.8 lakh Indians abroad, largely self-financed and poorly regulated, exposing families to heavy financial and emotional risk. Remittances—over $135 billion in 2024–25, nearly 3.5% of GDP—have long masked these structural failures. But money cannot indefinitely compensate for weak governance.

From illegal routes to regulated mobility

The proposed Overseas Mobility (Facilitation and Welfare) Bill, 2025, which seeks to replace the 1983 law, is a step in the right direction. But legislation alone will not change outcomes unless states actively shape implementation. Countries like the Philippines have shown what is possible when migration is institutionally managed rather than informally tolerated. There is no reason Punjab cannot replicate—and even surpass—such models within India’s federal framework.

Punjab, more than any other state, must pioneer a model of regulated, skill-led migration. This requires a decisive shift on four fronts:

1. Establish an Institutional Framework for Overseas Employment: The Punjab government must establish a dedicated Overseas Employment and Migration Department, collaborating closely with the Ministry of External Affairs. This crucial body will identify lucrative global job markets, negotiate robust bilateral migration agreements, align skills with international demand, and fiercely protect workers’ rights.
2. Align Skills with Global Standards:  Punjab’s education and training systems must integrate foreign languages, soft skills, and technical competencies in high international demand. The state must vigorously push for mutual recognition of qualifications with key destination countries and champion joint certifications with global institutions to ensure our youth are highly employable abroad.
3. Build Robust Bilateral Agreements: Punjab must actively engage with destination countries to streamline visa processes, eliminate bureaucratic hindrances, and ensure full recognition of Punjabi qualifications. These agreements will also encompass socio-cultural support and robust worker protections. The Philippines has negotiated contracts with over 65 countries; Punjab may achieve comparable, if not more tremendous, success.
4. Create a Mobility Industry Body: A state-level Mobility Council must be established, uniting recruitment agencies, training providers, and government entities to ensure ethical recruitment practices and alignment with the private sector. The involvement of the private sector is essential to standardise practices, enforce quality control, and create a streamlined system for overseas employment processing, thus eradicating the risk of exploitation and unethical practices.

Way Forward: From survival strategy to growth engine

India’s migration challenge is not that people move, but that institutions have failed to adapt to mobility. For Punjab, the stakes are higher. Continuing along the current path means more unsafe journeys, more exploitation and more lost lives. Choosing reform means transforming migration into a disciplined export of skills, dignity and professionalism.

Punjab’s strength has always been its people—their resilience, ambition and global outlook. With the right policies, migration can move from being a symptom of distress to a driver of sustainable prosperity. The choice before Punjab is stark but hopeful: remain a source of undocumented migrants, or emerge as India’s leading model of safe, legal and strategic global workforce mobility.

From the fields of Punjab to the frontlines of the world economy, the next growth story is waiting. What is needed now is policy courage—to lead, to reform, and to turn migration into opportunity rather than tragedy.

–The author is Vice-Chairman of Sonalika ITL Group, Vice-Chairman(Cabinet minister rank) of the Punjab Economic Policy and Planning Board, and Chairman of ASSOCHAM Northern Region Development Council. Views expressed are personal.