Counting migrants: A new survey promises granular data for policymakers

Perhaps the most significant innovation in the draft questionnaire is the recognition that migration is not just a journey but a process with consequences

Even though migration has been a political issue in states that are the source of the movement of people and their destination, policy understanding of it rests on surprisingly outdated foundations. The last dedicated migration survey was conducted in 2007-08 (National Sample Survey, 64th round), before smartphones, gig work, platform jobs, and climate-induced displacement reshaped the country’s labour market. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation’s proposal to launch a comprehensive Migration Survey for 2026-27 is, therefore, timely, necessary, and long overdue. Reliable estimates of migration rates, reasons for the movement, remittances, and the lived experience of migrants can address