Sikh Population Declines, Migrants Will Rule Punjab By 2040

[SadSingh]

Migrant Problem in Punjab

Dr Gurmit Singh

Internal migration to Punjab from rest of India,

particularly of weaker sections of society is rising

at an alarming rate. The reason for the same is

not difficult to trace. Punjab is considered to be

economically prosperous state. Punjab is mainly

an agricultural state. Its economy is mainly

dependent on agriculture. It requires a large

number of migrant labour during the sowing and

harvesting seasons. This is an old phenomenon,

which has been prevalent in Punjab since the time

of the first census conducted by the British Rule

after annexation of Punjab. After independence in

1947, this internal migration is being encouraged

by the majority community i.e. Hindus to balance

the Sikh population in Punjab, which is the only

Sikh majority State in India which claimed a

sovereign status when the British rulers were

leaving India. An effort in that direction had

started in 1947 itself when the Constitution of

India was being framed after the British had left

India. Inspite of opposition from the Sikh

members of the Constituent Assembly Article 25

was passed by the Constituent Assembly and

incorporated in the Constitution of India. The Sikh

members had objected to Explanation II of Art 25,

which treated them as Hindus. This explanation

reads as under:-

Article 25 Explanation II

In Sub-clause (b) of clause (2) The reference to

Hindus shall be construed as including a reference

to persons professing the Sikh, Jain or Budhist

religion and the reference to Hindu religious

institutions shall be construed accordingly.

Sikhs have been continuously protesting against

above provision in the Constitution, even the

Home Minister of India in a statement in

Parliament had promised to amend the above

provision after consulting experts and even the

Constitutional Review Commission had

recommended so.

In all the censuses conducted after independence

from the British rule in violation of Article 25,

Explanation II of the Constitution, there are

separate columns for recording the population of

Sikhs, Budhists, Jains and others. The figures in

census are manipulated to suit the interests of

the majority community. The fact is that

population of Sikhs is gradually declining. As

against the national average of 15.9 percent of

the Child Population of Sikhs in the age group 0-6

years is 12.8 per cent. Explanation added in the

census report states:-

Low fertility among the. Sikh population can be

gauged by the fact that in twenty one states and

union territories have child population proportion

below 12 per cent among Sikhs of these nine

states have less than ten percent child

population.

The actual reason of the low fertility among the

Sikh population is the policy of the government,

Recently Muslims of Uttar Pardesh constituted a

committee of scientists to find reasons for the

decline of fertility amongst the Muslims. The

report of the committee was startling. It revealed

that the reason for declining fertility rate amongst

the Muslims was the policy of the government to

populrise the Polio Drops. In Punjab too Polio

Drops Camps are frequently organized and it is

reducing the fertility of the Sikh population.

The next question that needs serious

consideration is how to make up this decline. One

important method is conversion of migrations to

Sikhism but the Sikh institutions like S.G.P.C.

and Sikh missionaries have failed to rise to the

occasion. The other way as suggested by the

Registrar General cum census Commissioner India

during the British rule in the first census Report

is, that migrant population should be culturally

converted as a first preliminary step, so that as a

next step, religious conversion becomes possible.

For this the village population can playa major

role, because the migrants who settle in villages

are first culturally converted and then absorbed

as locals.

Further, Punjab Assembly should pass a

legislation to regulate the internal migration which

should provide that no one will he enrolled as a

voter who does not own property in the State of

Punjab and has not permanently resided in the

State continuously for period of ten years before

the cut of date fixed in the Act.

Article 19(d) of the constitution of India which

guarantees the right to move freely through out

the territory of India, in Article 19 (5) clearly

provides that

Nothing in Sub-clause (d) (e) of the said clause

shall prevent the State from making any law

imposing reasonable restrictions on the exercise

of any of the rights conferred by the said sub-

clauses either in the interests of the general

public or for the protection of the interests of

Schedule Tribe.

It is worth mentioning here that Article 19 (d)

only guarantees the freedom of movement and

not the freedom of residence although it is being

misquoted as freedom of residence on the basis

of ruling of the Supreme Court in the case of

State of U.P. Versus Kaushalya reported in A.I.R.

1964 S.C. 416 in some books. The freedom to

reside and settle in any part of the territory of

India is covered by Article 19 (e), which

guarantees right to reside and settle in any part

of the territory of India. But as mentioned earlier

clause (5) of Article 19 allows the States to

make law imposing reasonable restrictions in the

interest of the general public.

It may further be pointed out that many of

migrants are involved in criminal activity in

Punjab. Therefore imposing of such restrictions

will be in the interest of general public. Moreover,

there is reservation for schedule caste upto 50 per

cent, and as most of the migrants are, schedule

caste it denies opportunity to local residents to

avail the privilege.

I remember an incident. There was a school in my

neighbourhood next to my residence some years

back. One day, a few peons of that school came

to me together. They said that they had been

challenged for stealing tubewell material from the

field in Uttar Pardesh, but they were released on

bail by court, but they had jumped bail and

migrated to Mohali, but now the court had issued

non-bailable warrants against them. What should

they do? I advised them to surrender and apply

for fresh bail. There are many such cases. The

proposed act can provide that no one would be

allowed to stay in an area without the permission

of the Deputy Commissioner who should check

the antecedents of every migrant. Such a

restriction exists in some areas and has been held

to be a reasonable restriction by the Assam High

Court in A.I.R. 1953 Assam 61 in the case of

border areas adjoining Nepal.

The problem of internal migration in Punjab is

becoming acute day by day and must be

regulated forthwith; otherwise it may become too

late to handle. Punjab is the land of the Sikh

Gurus and the change of its complexion must be

stopped. In this context I am reminded of an

incident. Usually in the evening I have a round of

Sector 17 Chandigarh. One day I saw a girl being

beaten by another girl elder to her. The younger

girl was crying and seeking help. I intervened and

asked the younger one why the elder girl was

beating her. She told me that she was brought

from Uttar Pardesh by someone whom she does

not recognize. She has to beg and earn at least

Rs 50 everyday. In case she is unable to do so,

she does not get food at night and is beaten up

by elderly girls. Such cases are common in

Punjab. Outside migrants are brought to Punjab

and employed to act as vendors on pavements

with the connivance of the government. The

employer collects the sale proceeds from the

vendor everyday in the evening. Some others are

employed as rickshaw pullers and are

accommodated in Rain Baseras (dwelling

houses) run by the government as social welfare

schemes and others are accommodated in Jhugis

(huts) on government land by making

encroachments. Later on, when the land on which

they have encroached is acquired, they get

alternative, built-up, residential accommodation

on nominal installments. When government

encourages such violations, God save Punjab!

Already in Ludhiana there are three elected

migrant Municipal Commissioners. The days is

not far off when these migrants will rule Punjab.

Originally Published on Sikh Institute

from dailysikhupdate

[Ranjeet01]

What would be interesting to see if the native Hindu Punjabi population in Punjab is in decline.

[Jonny101]

Sikhs in India are dying a slow death. Migration of young people to the west and coupled with a below replacement level fertility rate is resulting in Sikh population declining. replacement level is 2.1 kids. Sorry folks, we can't blame the Hindus or RSS for this one. With the exception of the Parsi community, the Sikhs have the lowest fertility rate in all of South Asia. Not too long ago when the Akal Takh Jathadar suggested that Sikhs should have more kids, he was attacked/mocked for daring to say such a thing. Even on this very forum some had said some nasty things about him for this. Just look at what Sikhs in India are doing. They abort(murder actually) their baby girls when they are still a fetus. And if some so called Sikh couple has a boy first, they then call it quits and don't want to have a second child because it might result in a daughter.

[MisterrSingh]

They (as in Panjab dwellers) get really angry and defensive when you mention such things, even when it's done in a non-antagonistic way. They really don't like us foreigners passing comment on the way they do things. Ironically, a few years spent in whichever western country they migrate to and they too are seen as foreigners by those back home. That confuses them, lol.

[SadSingh]

Sikhs in India are dying a slow death. Migration of young people to the west and coupled with a below replacement level fertility rate is resulting in Sikh population declining. replacement level is 2.1 kids. Sorry folks, we can't blame the Hindus or RSS for this one. With the exception of the Parsi community, the Sikhs have the lowest fertility rate in all of South Asia. Not too long ago when the Akal Takh Jathadar suggested that Sikhs should have more kids, he was attacked/mocked for daring to say such a thing. Even on this very forum some had said some nasty things about him for this. Just look at what Sikhs in India are doing. They abort(murder actually) their baby girls when they are still a fetus. And if some so called Sikh couple has a boy first, they then call it quits and don't want to have a second child because it might result in a daughter.

with the amount of dirty politics we have i wouldnt be surprised if we find out that political parties are using a trojan horse strategy encouraging people to immigrant to punjab to destablize punjab and take over it.

i remember reading on a forum once where a punjabi was bragging that we are taking over punjab through immgration and soon we will be in the majority

they said while the sikh is working in a foreign county we are here sleeping in there bed and soon we will claim the house as our own, because the sikhs children are not going to live in punjab so in two or three generaation all of the property will belong to us

[Guest Jacfsing2]

It really doesn't make that much of a difference because Sikhs in large numbers are moving outside of India.