Unstable Populations, Anxious States: Mixed and Massive Population Flows in South Asia

The result of a two-day dialogue on ‘Protection Strategies in South Asia’ organised by the Mahanirban Calcutta Research group, the volume has social scientists, media analysts and activists examining South Asian experiences with reference to massive displacement of population: the refugees, the internally displaced persons especially those belonging to religious and ethnic minorities, indigenous people and the Dalits and the urban poor. The contributors views the plight of the displaced who face multiple displacements so that it is difficult to know whether displacement was due to conflict, development or ecological conditions. They take up principles of protection for the displaced and their implementation, analysing the strategy and shortcomings. They consider the disparity between economic growth and human development indices that leads to continuous human flows of refugees, economic migrants and internally displaced persons.