ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book explores the issues of migration while continuing a focus on women's livelihood patterns. It deals with migration, taking as its focus migrants to Western Europe who works in a variety of jobs in the sex industry. The book extends the experience of tribal migrant labourers in the cities of western India within the broader context of institutions and agencies of State, trade unions and non-governmental organization (NGO), contractors and brokers. It links the micro-practices of marginal occupations with much wider macro concerns, highlighting the connections between informal street traders and national upheavals. The book demonstrates the range of symbolic, political, and socio-religious resources available to leprosy-affected people within the constraints of a begging identity. It exposes an alternative vision of the city to that framed by development discourse: Ugandan vision that sees economic development in terms of cultural and spiritual loss.
