Indian Council of World Affairs

The Centre for Migration, Mobility and Diaspora Studies (CMMDS) at the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA), and International Institute of Migration and Development (IIMAD), Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, organised a two-day National Conference on “Mobility for a New Era: Rethinking International Migration & Mobility Narratives and Frameworks” on 17–18 November 2025 in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. This national conference brought together over 25 leading experts and more than 20 emerging scholars in the field of migration and mobility, providing a platform to rethink and reimagine international migration amid ongoing geopolitical and economic turmoil. 

The welcome address was given by Ms Sheela Thomas, President of the IIMAD; she stressed that India needs to retain its outgoing people in its growing economy. Amb. Nutan Kapoor Mahawar, Acting Director General & Additional Secretary, ICWA, in her inaugural remarks, highlighted the churn in the migration debate and urged a need to rethink not only how people move across borders but also why they do so, why they leave families and communities behind. She also highlighted the paradox where migrants are demanded for economic needs but neglected in the political arena. Prof. Irudaya Rajan, Chair of IIMAD, in his thematic address, touched on international migration from various dimensions, including demography, care, ageing, skills, social costs, and governance. Prof. Ajay Bailey, chair in Geographies of Health, Inclusion, and Development, Utrecht University, the Netherlands, in the keynote address, highlighted the changing role of care burden and vulnerabilities of the left-behind families, particularly older adults and children. He stated that migration brings resources but takes a lot more; the social cost of migration is very high. K J Joseph, Board member, IIMAD, delivered the vote of thanks. 

The conference featured three plenary and four parallel paper presentation sessions. On Day 1, two plenary and two parallel paper presentation sessions were organised. Dr K Ravi Raman, Board Member, IIMAD, chaired the first plenary session on “The Churn in the Global Debate on Migration and Mobility: Trends, Assessments, and Implications”. In this session, Prof. Binod Khadria (GRFDT), Dr Amba Pande (JNU), Dr Eva Loreng (Central University of Gujarat), and Debdeep De (National Skill Development Corporation) highlighted the changing migration perspectives around different geographies like GCC countries, Europe, the USA and how these migrations are being governed. The second plenary session on “Cooperation in mobility governance between origin and destination countries” was chaired by Prof. Neetha N. from the Centre for Women's Development Studies. In this session, Abhishek (NSDC), Catherine Laws (ILO), Ichchha Gupta (NSDC), and Sugandha Nagpal (OP Jindal University) expressed views on the governance, Global Compact for Migration, Sustainable Development Goals, bilateral mobility agreements, data sharing, visa policies and the role of social media. 

The first parallel paper presentation session on the “social costs of migration” was chaired by Dr Kalandi Charan Pradhan (Indian Institute of Technology Indore). The session discussed the experiences of Indian Migrants in the post-Brexit era, the issues faced by left-behind parents in rural India, the social costs of transnational families, and the challenges faced by left-behind children in Kerala-Gulf migration. The second parallel presentation session on “Migrant Wellbeing” was chaired by Dr Bernard Sami, LISSTAR (Loyola Institute of Social Science Training and Research), Loyola College, Chennai. The session focused on the well-being of migrants at various destinations, including the USA and GCC countries, as well as how migrants prepare for return and their integration process. The third parallel presentation session on “Migration Governance” was chaired by Dr Sadananda Sahoo (IGNOU). The session discussed the various governance models, their challenges and scope. It also covered aspects related to social security and mobility. The fourth parallel presentation session on “Social Cost of Migration” was chaired by Dr Ajaya Sahoo (University of Hyderabad). The session discussed the social costs through psychological perspectives and discussed how it affects women, children and left behind parents. The session also discussed that social costs should be shared between sending and receiving countries. 

The third plenary session on “Burden Sharing in Skilling Between Countries of Origin and Destination” was chaired by Prof. R.B. Bhagat. In this session, Prof. S. Irudaya Rajan (IIMAD), Prakash P Joseph (NORKA, Kerala), Vijeta Ananthkumar (NSDC), Gabriel Bordado (ILO) and Syed Ibrahim (Honorary Consul, German Embassy in India) expressed their views on how burdens like skilling, social security, precarity of migrant workers, and issues of left behind families can be shared for a more humane migration system. 

The valedictory session was chaired by B.A. Prakash (Board Member, IIMAD). He highlighted the role of international migration in Kerala and its impacts on society. In this session, Amb. Nutan Kapoor Mahawar, Acting Director General & Additional Secretary, ICWA, highlighted the role of mobility and well-being in the era of geopolitical turbulence and changing attitudes in destination countries. She also added that it is imperative to recognise migrants as individuals with needs, rights, families and communities, and not just as ‘labour’, ‘economic units’, remittance generators, etc. Speaker of the session, Amrita Datta, from the Department of Sociology at the University of Bielefeld, Germany, highlighted the intersectionality of the migratory movement of Indians in Germany over the years. She also discussed the role of nurses and the Indian diaspora. Prof. Irudaya Rajan, Chair of IIMAD, presented the vote of thanks, stating that the deliberations of this conference have provided a fresh perspective on international migration, focusing on social costs, care, and a humane approach.

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