As local youth in Telangana turn away from farming, migrant workers from states like Bihar and Odisha are becoming essential to the region's agriculture. These laborers fill critical gaps for farmers managing large lands, sustaining the state's vast farmlands.
A noticeable rise in migrant agricultural workers is evident across Telangana's farms. Phulender Thakur from Madhepura in Bihar works on grape vineyards in Medchal Malkajgiri district. Now in his mid-40s, Thakur leads a group of workers alongside his three brothers and returns home only once or twice a year. “I don’t get to go home even for Chhath Puja, because that is when we have to cut the grape stems,” Thakur says.
The state spans over 276.95 lakh acres, with 52.61% as net sown area in 2022-23. As local labor falls short, workers from Bihar, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh arrive to handle sowing, pruning, and harvesting. They receive monthly wages of ₹9,000 to ₹11,000, or task-based pay like ₹16-25 per sack of paddy or ₹10,000 per acre for berry picking.
Dulkar Chand, also from Bihar, toils at a papaya farm in Keesara, Rangareddy district, earning around ₹9,000 monthly plus accommodation, food, and amenities. The shortage stems from local youth pursuing education, alternative jobs, and gig work. Initiatives like the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project have expanded cultivation from 1.31 crore acres in 2014 to 2.21 crore acres by 2023, boosting labor demand.
Ravi Kanneganti of Rythu Swarajya Vedika notes, “Monocropping, mechanisation, and urbanisation have reduced workdays for locals. The government needs to skill people for services and MSMEs.” Y. Sreenivasulu from the Centre for Economic and Social Studies observes youth disinterest in agriculture. Donthu Rambabu of Telangana Rythu Sangham says migrants from Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh work red chilli farms, requiring 400 workdays per acre, while West Bengal and Bihar laborers handle paddy sowing.
Landholdings total 70.60 lakh, with 91.4% marginal or small farmers operating 68.2% of the area. Some skilled workers, like 28-year-old Chinna leading a pruning team, now travel to Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. However, B. Kondal Reddy highlights the lack of social security for migrants, who pool funds for funerals if needed.