Floods, Poverty and Seasonal Migration

The monsoon floods that struck several districts of West Bengal in 2000 though expected were devastating in the damage it wreaked. The impact however differed among classes - while the well off had substantial paddy stores to recoup in the post-flood desolation, the smaller cultivators had no option but to secure loans on credit. Landless labourers were, however, compelled to migrate in search of work. Most of this outmigration was sequential in nature and their large numbers also placed them at the mercy of employers.