ABSTRACT
In the early part of 2020 after COVID-19 temporarily created worldwide immobility, the gradual and heterogenous opening up of borders spurred one of the largest return-migration episodes ever. This was very much the case for emigrants originating from India, especially in Kerala where an estimated 14.33 lakh emigrants returned between May 2020 and April 2021. Returning from supposedly greener pastures, especially as a result of a prolonged global crisis like COVID-19, raises questions about the future of the return-emigrants (REM) and the implications for the location of origin. In this context, we analyse the results from a survey of 1985 individuals who returned to Kerala in the aftermath of the first COVID-19 lockdowns in March 2020.
