1. Introduction and Models
The following captures key learnings from Sampark’s engagement with India’s migrant families and rural women. The reflections are based on field experiences, interactions with the communities, and long-term community engagement.
Sampark’s work with migrant families in Indian city of Bangalore
India has over 41 million migrant workers (Census 2011), with the city of Bangalore alone hosting more than 4 million, primarily in construction. This is equivalent to European cities like Rome and Berlin. Despite building the cities and infrastructure that drive India’s growth, these workers remain invisible and excluded from public systems. Away from their home states and social networks, they lack awareness about rights and entitlements and experience poor living and working conditions, health vulnerabilities, economic insecurity, and intergenerational poverty. They are the builders of our cities, yet they are denied the foundation of a secure life.
To alleviate the challenges faced by migrant workers and their families, Sampark implements a rights-based and multi-pronged approach. Sampark works with vulnerable migrant families to empower them and make them resilient to any future socio-economic shocks.
Since 2012, Sampark has implemented a holistic, rights-based model (Figure 1) to ensure that migrant workers access entitlements and essential services and build their pathways to resilience. The approach integrates immediate support with long-term empowerment. Through Workers’ Resource Centres that act as one-stop centres for migrant workers, organising awareness sessions on their rights and entitlements, improving their access to social protection services of the government, financial literacy and capabilities, and building their voice and agency through worker collectivisation. As of February 2026, 300,000 migrant workers have been empowered to build their social safety nets by accessing government benefits worth more than EUR 1.35 million.
To reduce the vulnerabilities faced by migrant children, and to specifically reduce the burden of childcare on migrant women and enable them to go to work, Sampark offers Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) tailored for migrant children, as shown in Figure 2. By providing comprehensive support in nutrition, health, and early learning, particularly during the critical first thousand days, Sampark ensures that every migrant child has the opportunity to thrive. The organisation also facilitates the smooth transition of children into formal education and healthcare systems, ensuring continuity in learning and well-being. Since 2007, Sampark has reached over 66,000 migrant children with early years care and education, and more than 6,500 children have been successfully enrolled in public schools to continue their formal education.
Sampark’s work with rural women in Indian villages of Varanasi and Koppal
While India has advanced in many areas, true empowerment for women, especially at the grassroots, remains a work in progress. In the Indian villages of the Varanasi and Koppal districts, by strengthening women’s economic participation and social agency, Sampark enables women to take their steps towards self-reliance and empowerment (refer to Figure 3). Through spaces for financial inclusion, learning, enterprise support, skill development, leadership, and collective action, Sampark supports their journey from dependence to independence, enabling them to navigate challenges and shape their futures. As of February 2026, 200,000 rural women have saved more than EUR 186,000.
Continuous engagement with migrant families and rural women has resulted in some key learnings for Sampark.
2. Learnings from engaging with migrant workers
2.1 Understanding the migration landscape
Migration is often driven by limited agricultural options in source regions, along with the growing uncertainties in agriculture due to unpredictable weather patterns and climate-related risks, pushing families to seek alternative livelihoods. Migration is very fluid and dynamic; the landscape keeps evolving over time, and migrant workers do not remain in the same occupation for a long time.
When migrant workers first arrive in the city, most begin as daily wage labourers in construction. Over time:
- Women often shift to housekeeping, domestic work, or caregiving roles.
- Men gradually move into roles such as subcontractors, drivers, or gig workers.
These shifts highlight that migrant workers are not static within a single sector. Their livelihoods change, and with them, their risks, needs, and aspirations. Effective support systems must therefore remain flexible and responsive to these evolving realities.
2.2 Adapt to workers’ schedules
Most migrant workers have limited availability during the workweek; Sundays emerged as the day for them to visit Workers Resource Centres (WRCs) and also for the Sampark team to visit them in their homes. Additionally, evenings during the week proved to be an effective time for engagement, as workers are more accessible after returning from work.
It is important to design interventions around workers’ schedules rather than institutional convenience. When services are aligned with the realities of workers’ lives, participation and engagement increase significantly.
2.3 Improve visibility and mainstream migrant workers and their families
Health interventions serve as a powerful entry point for building trust with migrant communities. Health camps create safe and non-threatening spaces where workers and their families feel comfortable engaging with the team.
Sampark provides awareness on:
- General health and hygiene
- Reproductive health and family planning
- Occupational health hazards and safety measures
Camps conducted within informal settlements, in collaboration with doctors from nearby Public Health Centres (PHCs), revealed that:
- Migrant families commonly experience ailments such as colds, fever, cough, and gastrointestinal issues. Some migrant workers experience health issues due to their occupation: knee joint pain, shoulder pain, prolonged headache, skin allergies, etc.
- At the same time, more serious conditions, including tuberculosis, leprosy, cancer, and reproductive health complications, were also identified. Among women, concerns related to reproductive health, including conditions such as Polycystic Ovarian Disease (PCOD) / Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), emerged as significant but often unaddressed issues.
- Involving PHC doctors directly helped demystify public health systems and increased workers’ confidence in accessing government healthcare facilities independently.
- Repeated health engagements helped establish credibility and trust between field officers and the community. This trust made it easier to link families, especially women and children, to public health systems.
Health interventions are not limited to diagnosis or treatment alone; they are critical for trust-building, early identification of vulnerabilities, and strengthening institutional linkages for migrant families.
2.4. Enable financial empowerment
Limited financial literacy, not just lack of documentation, is a major barrier to meaningful banking access for migrant workers. While many workers technically had bank accounts, these were often dormant or underutilised.
Targeted awareness sessions on savings, budgeting, and banking led to important changes. Explaining the practical benefits of bank accounts, such as safety of savings and direct benefit transfers, motivated workers to actively engage with the financial system. Government initiatives such as Jan Dhan Yojana further encouraged account opening.
As a result, banking inclusion improved substantially: nearly all workers now have bank accounts, and a large proportion regularly use digital payment platforms such as UPI. Access to banking enhanced financial security and enabled workers to receive wages and social protection benefits directly, reducing dependency on intermediaries.
2.5. Expand handholding services to access social protection
Initially, the focus of the WRC team was on schemes under the Karnataka Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board (KBOCWWB), as Sampark primarily worked with construction workers. KBOCWWB is the statutory government body responsible for providing social protection to construction workers in the Indian state of Karnataka.
Over time, it became clear that migrant workers are engaged in multiple sectors and face varied vulnerabilities. This led to expanding support to include 30+ social protection schemes from state and central government departments. Awareness alone is insufficient. Workers often face procedural and documentation barriers. Sampark’s handholding approach, which included facilitating the entire process, from awareness to registration to access benefits, is essential for meaningful inclusion.
2.6. Collective structures enhance sustainability
For long-term sustainability, Sampark has adopted two key approaches:
- A 24/7 free helpline for all migrant workers
- Formation and strengthening of a migrant workers’ union
In February 2026, the union has 10,365 members, with 44% women members. Collective organisations strengthen workers’ confidence and bargaining power. The union provides support in addressing:
- Minimum wage issues
- Non-payment of wages
- Workplace harassment
- Accidents at worksites
Unionisation among migrant workers is still relatively new but has shown potential in giving voice and agency to marginalised workers.
2.7. Building community leaders enhances impact
Sampark develops a local cadre of trained community persons (Shramik Mitras/Friends of Workers) to extend the reach of the WRCs. Each Mitra acts as the first point of contact for migrant workers, disseminating necessary information related to social welfare, mobilising workers for awareness sessions, and connecting them to the WRC for specialised services. This not only helps in improving Sampark’s work but also helps in bridging gaps and takes us closer to the community.
During COVID-19, Shramik Mitras helped in the maintenance of COVID-19 protocols, took COVID-19 patients to the nearest health centers, and identified vulnerable households. Dry rations and health and hygiene kits were distributed to more than 23,000 migrant families in informal settlements, and crowd management was implemented, which would not be possible without the immense support of Shramik Mitras.
2.8. Balancing services and advocacy
Sustained advocacy and strong institutional relationships are critical to improve outcomes for migrant families. By building constructive working relationships with the Labour Department, Sampark was able to extend the reach of official services and respond more effectively to systemic gaps affecting workers and their children.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Sampark was included as an official member of a state-level committee, whereby Sampark drew attention to migrant workers, supported the state and other stakeholders, and reached out to migrant workers in 50 settlements. Through this platform, Sampark provided on-ground inputs that informed the design of dry ration kits tailored to workers’ needs. The committee also contributed to shaping a COVID-19 relief fund for construction workers, resulting in one-time cash assistance of EUR 28 initially and EUR 47 subsequently, which helped migrant workers access EUR 93,000 in total.
Trust and collaboration were further strengthened through joint field action. Sampark also distributed dry rations and health-hygiene kits alongside KBOCWWB staff, which enabled regular coordination at the ground level and helped build a close working relationship between the KBOCWWB team and the Sampark team. This collaboration enhanced mutual understanding and reinforced Sampark’s position as a reliable implementation and advocacy partner.
2.9. Trust-led community ownership enables scale and sustainability
Sampark’s consistent presence and crisis-time support, especially during COVID-19, significantly strengthened community trust. This trust translated into higher community participation, deeper engagement, and collective ownership of initiatives. Long-term partnerships helped build the capacities of individuals and community leaders, reducing dependence on external support. As a result, project sustainability improved, and scaling up interventions became easier, faster, and more community-driven.
Migrant workers require holistic support—covering health, financial inclusion, social protection, and collective empowerment.
3. Learnings from engaging with migrant children through ECCE
3.1 Children and construction workers need safe spaces
The establishment of ECCE centres significantly improved the safety and protection of young children. With children spending the day in supervised, child-friendly spaces, their exposure to unsafe living conditions, hazardous worksites, and neglect was greatly reduced.
3.2 Meals made from locally available ingredients are better
Through on-ground experience, it became evident that locally available, nutrient-rich foods, such as ragi, are especially effective in improving children’s nutritional status. Improved nutrition led to better health, higher energy levels, and greater attention spans, which in turn supported stronger learning outcomes. This learning reinforced the importance of integrating locally sourced, culturally familiar foods into early childhood programmes to maximise both health and educational impact.
3.3 ECCE centres improve living conditions of migrant workers
Sampark observed that migrant workers often migrate alone in the absence of safe and reliable childcare for their young children. The presence of ECCE centres has changed this reality by providing a secure and nurturing space for children, enabling workers to bring their families with them. As a result, families are able to live together, children receive early learning and care, and overall living conditions for migrant households improve significantly.
3.4 Childcare centres improve women’s and household income
Access to safe and reliable ECCE centres enables mothers from migrant families to step out of unpaid caregiving roles and engage in income-generating work. With their young children cared for in a secure, structured environment, mothers are able to seek employment or resume work at construction sites and other informal jobs. This increases household incomes, brings greater financial stability, and reduces economic stress.
3.5 Childcare services improve trust in public services
The presence of the ECCE centre has led to a noticeable shift in community attitudes and behaviours. Earlier, public service providers, such as the PHC nurse, received little support or cooperation from the community. Through the ECCE centre’s regular engagement with families and linking children into public systems, trust between the community and public institutions has strengthened. As a result, health workers are now more welcome and supported, enabling better service delivery and improved access to essential health services for migrant families.
3.6 ECCEs offer safe space for pregnant mothers
Beyond supporting young children, the ECCE centre plays a critical role in improving access to maternal healthcare for pregnant women in migrant communities. Earlier, the lack of private and secure spaces meant that expectant mothers were often unable to undergo proper health screenings or receive timely immunisation. With the ECCE centre in place, pregnant women now have access to a safe, trusted, and dignified space where health workers can conduct screenings and administer immunisations, leading to improved maternal health and safer pregnancies.
3.7 Building community leaders enables sustainable impact
The most effective way to deepen engagement with the migrant community was to build community leaders. Thus, Sathi Samuha – local cadres of trained community leaders embedded within migrant informal settlements – are selected. Each Sathi Samuha acts as the first point of contact for migrant families, especially parents, disseminating necessary information related to childcare, nutrition, family planning, etc. Saathi Samuha members help Sampark in identifying new children, introducing new families to ECCE, identifying and informing pregnant mothers, etc. They also support Sampark by watching over children in the community in the absence of Sampark on Sundays. This not only helps in improving Sampark’s work but also helps in bridging gaps and takes Sampark closer to the community.
3.8 Awareness within community has long-term benefits
Sustained community outreach has played a key role in shifting attitudes towards education among migrant families. While many migrant workers are initially reluctant to enrol their children in schools due to frequent mobility and livelihood pressures, consistent engagement and counselling gradually build awareness and trust. These efforts help families recognise the long-term value of education, resulting in increased willingness to send their children to school.
3.9 Inclusion of migrant children in public system needs a holistic approach
Initially, government schools were hesitant to admit children from migrant families due to high dropout rates and frequent migration. Over time, this resistance has reduced as schools experience the support provided by Sampark.
Preparing children to be school-ready significantly reduces the burden on teachers and improves classroom integration. By ensuring that children have the required documentation in place, supporting families in obtaining transfer certificates, and maintaining regular follow-up with parents and communities, Sampark helps prevent dropouts and ensures continuity in education. This sustained engagement reassures teachers and school administrators, making them more willing to admit migrant children.
The mainstreaming of children into the formal education system has also benefited schools by addressing dropout challenges more effectively. Importantly, this process ensures that a child’s existence is formally recognized within government systems, beginning with immunization and anganwadi enrollment, which are otherwise often missed due to migration. This holistic approach has reinforced Sampark’s role as a critical bridge between migrant families and public education and health systems.
3.10 Use technology for improving efficiency and impact
Integrating an ERP system can significantly strengthen both the ECCE model and Worker Resource Centres (WRCs) by creating a centralized, secure database to manage migrant children’s and workers’ profiles, track services delivered, and monitor progress over time. Digital records reduce dependence on manual systems and ensure continuity of care and support despite the high mobility of migrant families.
In addition, real-time data on outreach activities and outcomes enhances monitoring, reporting, and accountability, while customised dashboards support evidence-based decision-making, help identify gaps and bottlenecks in service delivery, and guide strategic planning and scale-up. This underscores the critical role of technology in improving efficiency, transparency, and the scalability of Sampark’s interventions.
4. Learnings from engaging with India’s rural women
4.1 Patriarchy plays a significant role in women’s lives
Patriarchy plays a significant role in shaping the lives of rural women in the Indian districts of Varanasi and Koppal. Deep-rooted patriarchal norms restrict women’s ability to exercise their rights, limiting their choices and autonomy. Many women are discouraged or prevented from working, confined primarily to caregiving roles, and denied the freedom to continue their education or pursue opportunities of their choice. Gender inequality is also very prevalent. Girls are not treated on par with boys and are often excluded from pursuing their education, skills, etc. Domestic violence is also a common occurrence in many households. Women are often subjected to harsh treatment from male members of the family, especially under the influence of alcohol. With years of social conditioning, they are overwhelmed with fear, self-doubt and fear of failure. This restricts their ability to learn a new skill and try to take the skills forward. Family doubts, self-doubt and absence of cooperation from a spouse limit their opportunities.
4.2 Early Marriage and Its Impact on Women’s Education, Health, and Livelihoods
Deep-rooted patriarchal norms often lead to early marriages for women. As a result, many are forced to discontinue their education, contributing to low literacy levels and leaving them with little or no opportunity to work or pursue livelihoods. Early marriage has long-term consequences for women’s physical and mental health, reducing their overall well-being and productivity. Low literacy further limits their future opportunities and negatively impacts their ability to support their children’s education and development, perpetuating intergenerational cycles of disadvantage.
4.3 Mobility is limited for rural women
Rural women often face severe restrictions on their mobility, confining them largely to their households and villages. Social norms and responsibilities prevent them from travelling outside their communities to pursue education, build skills, or understand markets for their enterprises. This significantly limits their opportunities to learn, earn, and grow into independent and self-reliant individuals.
4.4 Rural women’ lack of access to assets and property
Rural women are often excluded from owning assets and property. Deep-rooted patriarchal systems, low literacy levels, and rigid gender norms frequently deny women any ownership or control over resources. This lack of ownership restricts their ability to pursue their aspirations and exercise agency, leaving them dependent on their families, particularly husbands or children. They are also denied loans from financial institutions to start their businesses. Such dependence not only undermines their financial independence but also has a significant impact on their mental and emotional well-being.
4.5 Intergenerational poverty among rural households
Low literacy levels, limited access to assets and property, entrenched patriarchal systems, and persistent gender biases often push women into multidimensional poverty. The households they belong to are economically vulnerable, struggle to meet basic expenses, and live in poor conditions. These constraints further restrict women’s access to education and healthcare, reinforcing their deprivation and trapping them in an intergenerational cycle of poverty.
4.6 Socio-economic exclusion due to caste discrimination
A majority of rural women come from socio-economically marginalised communities and face persistent discrimination because of their social backgrounds. This discrimination severely limits their access to quality education and decent employment opportunities. As a result, existing vulnerabilities are deepened, further reinforcing poverty and widening social and economic inequalities.
4.7 Socio-economic resilience of rural women through Self Help Groups (SHGs)
Collectivising women into self-help groups (SHGs) improves their access to financial tools such as savings and loans, skill development, and entrepreneurship; it increases their individual and household income, ownership of assets and properties, exposure, confidence, and leadership. They are able to provide education for the next generation.
With awareness of legal rights, better reproductive health and hygiene practices, and mental health hand-holding support from training to setting up their own business, signs of progress are seen. With exposure to multiple new opportunities and the change in thinking among young girls, women are motivated and try to venture into new skills and learnings.