Urban Resilience & Migration Workers

Urban Resilience & Migration Workers: Building Cities with Dignity

Our Journey: Behind the glitter of the city are those unheard voices—our migrant workers and homeless companions—who build the world with their own hands, yet often struggle for their own existence. In this 30-year journey through the streets of Bihar, we have seen how deprivation and insecurity have uprooted families, forcing them into the compulsion of migration. The objective of DVAS is to transform this pain of migration into a safe and dignified opportunity. Our Vision An inclusive society where every migrant worker, homeless companion, and marginalized community member who lays the foundation of the city has not only physical security but also the full right to self-respect and identity. Our dream is a future where migration is not a compulsion, but a safe and opportunity-filled journey, and where every child and adolescent girl, free from violence, child labor, and social evils, can shape their golden future. Our Mission Dalit Vikas Abhiyan Samiti (DVAS) is dedicated to bringing those 'invisible' people into the mainstream who have been left behind in the glare of urban development. Through education, leadership building, and security, we are cutting the roots of slavery and sowing the seeds of self-reliance, so that the foundation of the city is strengthened and every family can live with pride. Our Operational Framework: 'Root of Change' Security Cycle (Activity Plan) We are weaving a strong safety net in the Paraiya, Konch, Tekari, Belaganj, and Chandauti blocks of Gaya district, the main pillars of which are as follows: Sentinel of Justice (MRC Bodh Gaya): Our District Migration Resource Center is a shield for workers in crisis. Here, we listen to the pain of the victims, conduct fact-finding of cases through the worker helpline, and empower them by securing legal aid, compensation, and grants. Safe Migration and Registration: We connect migrant workers to government schemes, ensure their registration (under BOCW), and make them aware of safe migration. Our goal is to free migrant workers from exploitation and ensure their safe return home and connection to government welfare schemes. Child Labor and Bonded Labor-Free Society: We are determined to rebuild panchayats free from child labor and bonded labor practices. Through the 'Savitribai Phule Kishori Club', we are connecting adolescent girls to educational ideologies and higher education, fostering their mental development. Mass Awareness Campaign: Through meetings, workshops, and street plays, we are making people aware of their rights and social security at the Tola level. Path to Self-Reliance: We are providing entrepreneurial training to women, unorganized workers, and youth to make them economically independent, so they can become 'Messengers of Change' for their families. Leadership Building: We are preparing local women leaders who will keep the torch of change burning even in the absence of our organization. Impact So Far Our efforts have filled thousands of lives with the light of dignity: Freedom from Exploitation: 60 workers have been freed from the shackles of brick kilns and connected to safe social security. Education and Empowerment: In 20 'Savitribai Phule Kishori Clubs', more than 200 adolescent girls are progressing towards education and self-respect. Economic Equality: Over 1,000 women and youth have been provided entrepreneurial training and moved towards self-reliance. "The hands that build the city often struggle for their own existence. In Gaya district, DVAS stands as a security sentinel for migrant workers and homeless families. From the liberation of 60 workers to the education of 200 adolescent girls and the entrepreneurial training of 1,000 youth, we are cutting the roots of slavery and bestowing a legacy of dignity. We are extending a hand of partnership to you. This is not just a project, but the foundation of those thousands of dreams for the next three years that we want to turn into reality. Come, let us together prepare a soil where there are no thorns of prejudice, but flowers of development bloom. Your small contribution can liberate a generation from slavery." "Support for every hand, security for every step, respect for every dream—Safe, Empowered, Mainstreamed."

The Invisible Struggle of Our Cities

Cities in Bihar are expanding rapidly, yet a large population continues to struggle for basic needs. Thousands of migrant workers, homeless families, informal labourers, and domestic women workers come to cities with hope but often face unsafe housing, unstable livelihoods, limited healthcare, incomplete education, and social exclusion. Slums are demolished without notice, workers remain excluded from welfare schemes, and their voices often go unheard. This is not just poverty it is a cycle of insecurity and invisibility that pushes generations behind. To address this, Dalit Vikas Abhiyan Samiti (DVAS) has organized urban poor, homeless, migrants, and informal workers through Slum Development Committees creating pathways for safety, dignity, and opportunity. A key intervention is the DVAS Helpline, where people can seek guidance, counseling, and access to entitlements. Every call becomes a hope. Every support becomes the beginning of change.

Our Commitment to Security and Identity

Our goal is not merely to link people with schemes, but to support those lives that form the backbone of cities yet remain the most excluded. DVAS connects urban workers, migrants, street vendors, and informal labourers with BOCW registration, pensions, compensation, and social protection guiding them toward a secure and dignified life. Through Slum Development Committees and federations, we strengthen community leadership so people can shape their own development journey. Women, adolescent girls, and marginalized groups are included in decision-making processes, enabling confidence, identity, and opportunity. We strive to ensure that every family accesses government entitlements so no one is left behind due to lack of information or resources. This is not just an objective it is a commitment to reach every life that needs dignity, protection, and opportunity.

'Root of Change' Security Cycle (Activity Plan)

Our Operational Framework:

We are weaving a strong safety net in the Paraiya, Konch, Tekari, Belaganj, and Chandauti blocks of Gaya district, the main pillars of which are as follows:

Sentinel of Justice (MRC Bodh Gaya): Our District Migration Resource Center is a shield for workers in crisis. Here, we listen to the pain of the victims, conduct fact-finding of cases through the worker helpline, and empower them by securing legal aid, compensation, and grants.

Safe Migration and Registration: We connect migrant workers to government schemes, ensure their registration (under BOCW), and make them aware of safe migration. Our goal is to free migrant workers from exploitation and ensure their safe return home and connection to government welfare schemes.

Child Labor and Bonded Labor-Free Society: We are determined to rebuild panchayats free from child labor and bonded labor practices. Through the 'Savitribai Phule Kishori Club', we are connecting adolescent girls to educational ideologies and higher education, fostering their mental development.

Mass Awareness Campaign: Through meetings, workshops, and street plays, we are making people aware of their rights and social security at the Tola level.

Path to Self-Reliance: We are providing entrepreneurial training to women, unorganized workers, and youth to make them economically independent, so they can become 'Messengers of Change' for their families.

Leadership Building: We are preparing local women leaders who will keep the torch of change burning even in the absence of our organization.

DVAS Journey, Actions & Impact

For over 30 years, Dalit Vikas Abhiyan Samiti (DVAS) has stood with Bihar's most marginalized communities, believing that behind the glitter of every city are the unheard voices of migrant workers, homeless people, street vendors, and informal workers who build the nation with their own hands, yet often struggle for their own survival. Throughout this journey, DVAS has witnessed how poverty, insecurity, and exclusion force families into distress migration, homelessness, and vulnerability. Our mission is to transform the pain of migration into opportunities for "safe migration, social protection, dignity, and sustainable livelihoods."

The journey of DVAS is not merely a collection of projects; it is a story of lives transformed from insecurity and struggle to dignity, resilience, and self-reliance. Our work is built on three core pillars: shelter support for homeless communities, social protection for migrant and informal workers, and community empowerment to strengthen participation and collective voice.

Building on this legacy, DVAS is implementing the Migrants Resilience Collaborative (MRC) Project in Gaya district through the District Migration Resource Centre (DMRC) to ensure safe migration and comprehensive social protection for migrant workers and their families. The project provides support for worker registration, social security enrollment, access to labour rights, government welfare schemes, legal aid, financial inclusion, and livelihood opportunities. At the heart of this initiative is the Majdur Helpline, a dedicated support system that offers timely information, counseling, grievance redressal, emergency assistance, and referral services. The helpline ensures that migrant workers and their families receive guidance before migration, support during migration, and protection after returning home—so that no worker is left without assistance in times of need.

Over the years, DVAS has connected thousands of workers with BOCW registration, Labour Departments, trade unions, and social protection schemes, enabling them to access their legal rights and entitlements. More than 23,500 workers have obtained identity and social security coverage, over 17,800 families have achieved food security through PDS and welfare schemes, and 500+ street vendors have received financial assistance under PM SVANidhi. In partnership with Patna and gaya Municipal Corporation, around 1 5 ,000 homeless individuals have been trained and linked to self-employment opportunities. Through community institutions established across 200+ urban slums, residents now actively participate in urban governance and collective decision-making.

Today, through the MRC Project, District Migration Resource Centre, and Majdur Helpline, DVAS continues to build a future where migration is "safe, informed, and dignified", and every migrant worker has access to protection, justice, and opportunities. The impact is visible across communities—fear has transformed into dignity, exclusion into participation, silence into leadership, and beneficiaries into changemakers. Every worker empowered, every family protected, and every community mobilized strengthens DVAS's vision of an inclusive society where no migrant is left behind and every individual can live with dignity, security, and hope.

Our Vision and Our Mission

Our Vision
An inclusive society where every migrant worker, homeless companion, and marginalized community member who lays the foundation of the city has not only physical security but also the full right to self-respect and identity. Our dream is a future where migration is not a compulsion, but a safe and opportunity-filled journey, and where every child and adolescent girl, free from violence, child labor, and social evils, can shape their golden future.

Our Mission
Dalit Vikas Abhiyan Samiti (DVAS) is dedicated to bringing those 'invisible' people into the mainstream who have been left behind in the glare of urban development. Through education, leadership building, and security, we are cutting the roots of slavery and sowing the seeds of self-reliance, so that the foundation of the city is strengthened and every family can live with pride.

Impact So Far

Freedom from Exploitation: 60 workers have been freed from the shackles of brick kilns and connected to safe social security. Education and Empowerment: In 20 'Savitribai Phule Kishori Clubs', more than 200 adolescent girls are progressing towards education and self-respect. Economic Equality: Over 1,000 women and youth have been provided entrepreneurial training and moved towards self-reliance. The hands that build the city often struggle for their own existence. In Gaya district, DVAS stands as a security sentinel for migrant workers and homeless families. From the liberation of 60 workers to the education of 200 adolescent girls and the entrepreneurial training of 1,000 youth, we are cutting the roots of slavery and bestowing a legacy of dignity. We are extending a hand of partnership to you. This is not just a project, but the foundation of those thousands of dreams for the next three years that we want to turn into reality. Come, let us together prepare a soil where there are no thorns of prejudice, but flowers of development bloom. Your small contribution can liberate a generation from slavery." "Support for every hand, security for every step, respect for every dream—Safe, Empowered, Mainstreamed."

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