Mobility in the Margins: Economic Opportunity and Intergenerational Change in Semi-Urban India
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65080/ajbmss.v2i1.CM2621101022Keywords:
Economic mobility, intergenerational opportunity, semi-urban India, digital public infrastructure, gig economy, climate vulnerability, social capitalAbstract
Introduction: Mobility constitutes a key metric in assessments of equity. Most existing studies focus on either metropolitan or rural areas of India. Research on semi-urban districts in India remains limited. Few studies address the factors that determine economic mobility in semi-urban regions.
Methods: This study uses a mixed-method approach to examines the interaction among structural factors, spatial conditions, and individual aspirations that determine economic mobility in semi-urban India based on analyses of national datasets from semi-structured interviews and perception-based questionnaires.
Results: The results from 90 interviews and perception surveys in selected districts of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh, showed digital and educational access, as well as bureaucratic documentation, are significant predictors of upward mobility.
Discussion: In contrast, climate vulnerability and caste are significant predictors of limited mobility. Individuals' aspirations mediate the effects of these factors. A comparison of two cases Bhagalpur and Indore indicates differing impacts of these factors on economic mobility.
Conclusion: Policy frameworks ought to integrate digital equity, climate resilience, bureaucratic transparency, and mechanisms to support aspirations. This study presents a replicable model for inclusive development planning and underscores the need for region-sensitive interventions rather than one-size-fits-all national strategies.
Downloads
References
Appadurai, A. (2004). The capacity to aspire: Culture and the terms of recognition. Culture and Public Action. Stanford University Press. (pp 59-84). Available from: https://subaltern.ihc.ucsb.edu/securearticles/The%20Capacity%20to%20Aspire.pdf
Arora G. (2023). From Risk to Resilience: Climate Vulnerability Assessments in India. Available from: https://www.preventionweb.net/publication/risk-resilience-climate-vulnerability-assessments-india
Asher, S., Ozier, O., & Jakiela, P. (2022). Intergenerational mobility in India: Estimates from new methods and administrative data. American Economic Review: Insights, 4(2): 209-224. Available from: https://www.cgdev.org/event/intergenerational-mobility-india-estimates-new-methods-and-administrative-data
Asher, S., Novosad, P., & Rafkin, C. (2024). Intergenerational mobility in India: New measures and estimates across time, space, and social groups. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 16(2), 66-98. https://doi.org/10.1257/app.20210686
Bourdieu, P. (1986). The forms of capital. In J. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education (pp 241-258). Greenwood Press. Available from: https://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/fr/bourdieu-forms-capital.htm
Chetty, R., Hendren, N., Kline, P., & Saez, E. (2014). Where is the land of opportunity? The geography of intergenerational mobility in the United States. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 129(4), 1553-1623.
https://doi.org/10.1093/qje/qju022
Chetty, R., Friedman, J. N., Hendren, N., Jones, M, R., & Porter, S. R. (2025). The Opportunity Atlas: Mapping the Childhood Roots of Social Mobility. https://opportunityinsights.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/atlas_paper.pdf
Creswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2018). Designing and conducting mixed methods research (3rd ed.). SAGE. Available from: https://library.wur.nl/WebQuery/titel/2227260
Datta, A., & Rajan, S. I. (2024). Internal migration and development in India. The Indian Journal of Human Development, 18(1), 7-19. https://doi.org/10.1177/09737030241251865
Deshpande, A. (2011). The Grammar of Caste: Economic Discrimination in Contemporary India. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198072034.001.0001
Department of Science and Technology (DST). 2020. Climate vulnerability assessment for adaptation planning in India using a common framework. Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. Available from: https://ruralindiaonline.org/bn/library/resource/climate-vulnerability-assessment-for-adaptation-planning-in-india-using-a-common-framework
Guest, G., Bunce, A., & Johnson, L. (2006). How many interviews are enough? An experiment on data saturation and variability. Field Methods, 18(1), 59-82. https://doi.org/10.1177/1525822X05279903
International Labour Organisation (2024). Expansion of the gig and platform economy in India: Opportunities for employer and business member organisations. International Labour Organisation. Available from: https://www.ilo.org/sites/default/files/2026-03/ILO%20Platform%20workers%20and%20EBMOs%20India%20Report_3%20April%20%28LIGHT%20PDF%29_Edited%2023022026.pdf
Kanbur, R., & Venables, A. J. (Eds.), (2005). Spatial inequality and development. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/0199278636.001.0001
Kishan, R., & Rajverma, A. K. (2024). Intergenerational education mobility in India: Nonlinearity and the Great Gatsby Curve. Frontiers in Education, 9, 1344586. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2024.1295550
Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) (2024). Annual progress report (2021-2022). Digital India: Power to Empower (pp 23-112). Available from: https://www.meity.gov.in/static/uploads/2024/02/31-1.pdf
Mohanty, A., & Wadhawan, S. (2021). Mapping India’s climate vulnerability: A district-level assessment. Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW). https://www.ceew.in/sites/default/files/ceew-study-on-climate-change-vulnerability-index-and-district-level-risk-assessment.pdf
NITI Aayog. (2022). India’s booming gig and platform economy. Available from: https://www.niti.gov.in/sites/default/files/202306/Policy_Brief_India_Booming_Gig_and_Platform_Economy_27062022.pdf
PLFS. (2023). Annual report Periodic Labour Force Survey 2022-23. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India. Available from: https://mospi.gov.in/publication/annual-report-plfs-2022-23
Randolph, G. F. (2024). Does urbanisation depend on in-migration? Demography, mobility, and India’s urban transition. Environment and Planning A: Economy and Space, 56(1), 117-135. https://doi.org/10.1177/0308518X231180609
Ray, D. (2006). Aspirations, poverty, and economic change.
https://doi.org/10.1093/0195305191.003.0028
Sen, A. (1999). Development as freedom. Oxford University Press. Available from: https://global.oup.com/academic/product/development-as-freedom-9780198297581?lang=en&cc=no
Sharma, A. K., & Sharma, R. (2025). The gig economy and the evolving nature of work in India: Employment, policy, and platform realities in the age of convenience. Journal of Digital Economy, 4, 156-167.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdec.2025.07.005
Jha, J., & Kelley, E. J. (2023). Returns to relationships: Social capital and household welfare in India. Social Sciences, 12(3): 184. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12030184
Strauss, A., & Corbin, J. (1998). Basics of qualitative research: Techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory (2nd ed). SAGE Publications. Available from: https://psycnet.apa.org/record/1999-02001-000
UNESCO. (2024). Digital Public Infrastructure: Lessons from India. UNESCO Inclusive Policy Lab. Available from: https://en.unesco.org/inclusivepolicylab/analytics/digital-public-infrastructure-lessons-india
World Bank. (2022). Social mobility and inequality: Global trends and policy responses. Available from: https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/poverty/brief/social-mobility
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Arti Arora (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
