Migrant workers are leaving Bangalore, Karnataka in droves as the real estate market has come to a crashing halt due to global economic problems. Most construction workers in India’s Silicon Valley are migrants from around the country. Once construction jobs dried up, they were forced to return home in order to survive.
Outreach Onsite figures indicate that Bangalore had half a million migrant construction workers prior to the collapse of the local markets. In the last six months as many as half of them have abandoned the city. And local construction workers aren’t faring much better. Projects that were frozen due to the world-wide credit and banking crisis remain on hold indefinitely and there is little hope that they will resume in the near future.
The construction industry isn’t the only one hit by this economic slump. Tourism and hospitality industries are also hurting. One local restauranteur reported that his business has declined nearly 70 percent in recent months. His regular clientele was composed heavily of construction workers. Other businesses expected to report heavy declines include 5 star hotels Bangalore as well as retail shops and, of course, the local real estate market.
The bulk of Bangalore’s construction workers come from West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Bihar, Orissa, and Uttar Pradesh. In recent years additional migrants had flocked to the city from the north Karnatak region. Many were unable to find work in their home villages and were sending money home to support their families. With most construction halted in Bangalore, those who are left in the city know it is only a matter of time until they, too, will have to leave.
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