This Thesis Has Been Submitted in Fulfilment of the Requirements for a Postgraduate Degree (E.G
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This thesis has been submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for a postgraduate degree (e.g. PhD, MPhil, DClinPsychol) at the University of Edinburgh. Please note the following terms and conditions of use: This work is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, which are retained by the thesis author, unless otherwise stated. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author. The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author. When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. GOVERNANCE OF CLIMATE CHANGE RELATED MIGRATIONS IN ASSAM (INDIA) Ritumbra Manuvie A thesis submitted in fulfilment of requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy – Politics The University of Edinburgh, 2018 2 Dedicated to Gezinus, Mechelina en Rintcius Blok (for their untiring support) And To my grand-mums Savitri Verma and Usha Bhandari (who dreamt of education they never had a chance to receive) 3 Governance of Climate Change Related Migrations in Assam (India) Thesis Abstract The thesis asks two crucial questions, (a) what are the normative frameworks available for protecting the rights and status of a person migrating due to climate change related hydro-metrological changes? (b) why is there a non-uniformity and inadequacy in the deliverance of assistance from the state? To address these questions, I have analysed the perception, framing and assistance a climate change migrant receives from the state of Assam in India, while also explaining the reasons for the differential nature and deficits in protection. Based on interviews with senior bureaucratic officials (elite actors), group-discussions, field surveys, and engagements at the block and village level, the thesis makes three critical arguments. First, the sub-national government perceive climate-induced migrations as a developmental issue. Second, the way in which climate change migration is framed as a developmental issue by elite actors does not correspond with how the issue is understood by street-level bureaucratic actors. Instead, the routine judgements and discretions exercised by street-level actors are complexly tied to the political and social circumstances of local areas. Finally, while it is known that socio- political and demographic factors (such as gender, membership of a social group, and religion) contribute to forced forms of migration, the thesis argues that these demographic factors also adversely affect the performance of the programs meant to reduce climate vulnerabilities. Thesis Abstract 4 Declaration I declare that this thesis has been composed solely by myself and that it has not been submitted, in whole or in part, in any previous application for a degree. Except where states otherwise by reference or acknowledgment, the work presented is entirely my own. Date Ritumbra Manuvie Commonwealth Doctoral Scholar Department of Politics and IR School of Social and Political Science University of Edinburgh 5 Governance of Climate Change Related Migrations in Assam (India) Acknowledgement It takes a village to raise a child. As my brainchild, this thesis took several years and a very supportive village to come out of its infancy into the world. To guide me at each step were my two very supportive supervisors, Dr Wilfried Swenden and Professor Elizabeth Bomberg. Their advice, patience, and encouragement helped me through the times when I felt lost and unable to cope with my status of a doctoral student. Without them it would not have been half as exciting as it turned out to be! And for this, I am forever indebted to you both. My special gratitude to you for your persistence, hard-work and re-readings. I am grateful to my examiners, Dr Jeevan Sharma, and Dr Kirsten Jörgensen, for a stimulating thesis defence discussion, and pointed suggestions which helped finalise this work. I am also indebted forever to Professor V. Vijayakumar, who motivated me to pursue climate migration as an area for exploration, Professor M.P. Singh who supported my scholarship applications and Professor T. Devidas who lent his willing ear to my aspirations for world domination (most-likely as a Robin Hood dictator). These three- people shaped not only my academic persuasion but also who I am as a person. My professors at the United Nations University – IAS who have continued to support and inspire me – Professor Vesseline and Professor Michael Glantz, have insisted that I ask the hard questions and enjoying the intricate nuances of the answers I find. To Dad – for generously allowing me to use his network of civil servants in India to get an insider view of the Assam Government. I am grateful to all of Dad’s ‘anonymous’ friends who wished not to be named but graciously agreed to engage in discussions on state functioning and provide answers to my politically charged questions. Thanks to Mum who made sure she was an effective cheer-leader, and also because as mum pointed out ‘the latest studies show that kids inherit their intelligence from their mothers’ – This is not true but thanks for those genes anyways! My biggest thanks go to my Mum-in-law and Dad-in-law without whom I could never have achieved this work. Their dedication to raising my biological child – Isabella – while I spent my time in Edinburgh has been the most significant support throughout this Acknowledgement 6 journey. To my darling husband - Rintcius – for being the lead parent when I am not around and for subtly reminding me that ‘the world rests in the grain of sand, lying at the palm of my hand’. My beautiful ‘little baby Isabella’ who waited patiently for Mumma, while she finishes her ‘princess D’. I am grateful to friends, girlfriends and sisters for being caring, kind, joyous and always ready with a dram of whisky to celebrate and to sulk! Thank you, Dr Tej Bhinde, Dr Pammi Nitin Sinha, Alankrita Manvi, Vidushi Richashree, Javier García, Marie Bluntzer and a whole bunch of you for all those lighter moments. Thanks to Clare Sandford who diligently and efficiently proofread this work. And finally, thank you to the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission who provided reparation in the form of monetary assistance to conduct this doctoral work- without this scholarship I might not have come to the UK at all. In the end, the fallacies of this work are my own and the success I attribute to everyone who made the study possible and the people of Assam who made this journey intense, insightful and exciting. I sincerely hope that a warmer world will also warm our hearts and allow us to be more accommodating of each other. 7 Governance of Climate Change Related Migrations in Assam (India) Table of Contents LIST OF CHARTS. MAPS AND PICTURES ............................................................................................ 9 ABBREVIATIONS AND VERNACULAR TERMINOLOGY ...................................................................... 10 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................... 14 PROLOGUE .................................................................................................................................... 14 1.1 BACKGROUND ......................................................................................................................... 17 1.2 RESEARCH GAPS ..................................................................................................................... 19 1.3 CHOOSING ASSAM ................................................................................................................... 19 1.4 CONCEPTUALISING CLIMATE CHANGE MIGRATION .................................................................. 21 1.5 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES ............................................................................................................ 22 1.6 ARGUMENTS ........................................................................................................................... 24 1.7 THESIS OUTLINE...................................................................................................................... 26 CHAPTER 2 UNDERSTANDING CLIMATE MIGRATIONS AND ITS GOVERNANCE PARADIGM ................................................................................................................................... 29 2.1: PROCESS NARRATIVE: CLIMATE CHANGE MIGRATION NEXUS ................................................ 32 2.2: CONTEXT NARRATIVE: RESPONDING TO CLIMATE CHANGE MIGRATION ................................. 35 2.2.1 Human Rights Discourse ................................................................................................. 37 2.2.2 Development Discourse ................................................................................................... 38 2.3: ADMINISTRATION OF COMPLEX ISSUES ................................................................................... 42 2.4: THE INDIAN PARADOX: THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM ............................................................. 46 2.5: DIFFERENTIAL DILEMMA OF ASSAM STATE ............................................................................ 49 2.6: MULTI-LEVEL CLIMATE GOVERNANCE AND PLACE FOR CLIMATE MIGRATION POLICY ........... 53 2.7: RESEARCH GAPS