This article considers the role of migration in the ability of communities to negotiate with the state in early colonial India. Both the causes and impact of the degradation of this ability are examined; the argument builds on and expands on work by Parthasarathi and others to make a case for exploring migration on a pan-regional scale. The article explores the ideological rooting and impact of the approach; it proposes that in conjunction with traditional arguments relating to economics and society, military recruitment played a key role in the evolution of policy aimed at suppressing mobility among peasant and cultivator classes in early colonial India.
