Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

is a country where the industrial growth is limited, making land the most economic asset. However, obtaining land in

is far from easy. During the period of

colonization 475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence. Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...

, land in Nepal was more abundant and people could obtain large amounts of land . As time passed, the frontier land became occupied, which placed a higher price on scarce land. In recent years, there has been a steady pattern of

migration Migration, migratory, or migrate may refer to: Human migration * Human migration, physical movement by humans from one region to another ** International migration, when peoples cross state boundaries and stay in the host state for some minimum le ...

in Nepal from the hill and mountain regions to the

Terai The Terai or Tarai is a lowland region in parts of southern Nepal and northern India that lies to the south of the outer foothills of the Himalayas, the Sivalik Hills and north of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. This lowland belt is characterised by ...

. The Terai is a fertile agricultural area along the southern border of Nepal. The 1981 Nepalese

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

indicated a pronounced shift from a mountain-rural to a plains-urban society (Goldstein; Ross; Schuler). Authors Hrabvoszky and Miyan call this change “The Great Turnabout”. The population in the mountain regions of Nepal has exceeded the

carrying capacity The carrying capacity of an ecosystem is the maximum population size of a biological species that can be sustained by that specific environment, given the food, habitat, water, and other resources available. The carrying capacity is defined as the ...

of the land. Therefore, people are moving to the more

arable land Arable land (from the , "able to be ploughed") is any land capable of being ploughed and used to grow crops.''Oxford English Dictionary'', "arable, ''adj''. and ''n.''" Oxford University Press (Oxford), 2013. Alternatively, for the purposes of a ...

s of the

. It is estimated that 60% of Nepal’s population is concentrated in the hill and mountain regions, while 60% of farmland is in the Terai. The migrants hope to make a better life for themselves by moving to the agricultural hub of the country. However, these migrants are having difficulty finding affordable land. “The Great Turnabout” is causing a great deal of tension in the Terai. The region is experiencing

ethnic tension An ethnic conflict is a conflict between two or more ethnic groups. While the source of the conflict may be political, social, economic or religious, the individuals in conflict must expressly fight for their ethnic group's position within so ...

between the

plain In geography, a plain, commonly known as flatland, is a flat expanse of land that generally does not change much in elevation, and is primarily treeless. Plains occur as lowlands along valleys or at the base of mountains, as coastal plains, and ...

s and

hill people Hill people, also referred to as mountain people, is a general term for people who live in the hills and mountains. This includes all rugged land above and all land (including plateaus) above elevation. The climate is generally harsh, with s ...

. Furthermore,

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. Ab ...

in the Terai is drastically reducing the country’s timber resources, and is also increasing

soil erosion Soil erosion is the denudation or wearing away of the Topsoil, upper layer of soil. It is a form of soil degradation. This natural process is caused by the dynamic activity of erosive agents, that is, water, ice (glaciers), snow, Atmosphere of Ea ...

and

flood A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...

ing (Weiner). Finally, political leaders in Nepal feel the hill and mountain regions represent the cultural heartland of the country and they do not want to see these areas abandoned for the Terai.

Migrants

Migrants are those peoples who are shifting from one place to another for something they are wishing. In Nepal, mainly people are migrating from undeveloped(rural) to developed(urban) areas. Migration maybe temporary or permanent. Rural population is way more less than urban population creating huge differences. Migrants are soul for that particular areas. People migrate due to pull and push factors.

Types of Migration

# Internal and International # Temporary and Permanent # Rural and Urban # Legal and Illegal # Volunteer and Forced

Types of Internal Migration

# Inter-district migration # inter-province migration

References

{{Reflist Society of Nepal