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People, information and culture: Locating forms of capital by Afghan Sikh refugees in India through ICTs

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  • Pandey, Shelly
  • Ilavarasan, P. Vigneswara

Abstract

Based on an ethnographic study of Afghan Sikh refugees in New Delhi, India, the present paper explores the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs), especially social media, in their lives and practices to survive after the forced migration. The unique identity of being Afghan Sikhs in India is largely unknown, as the notion of Afghans is attached to the Muslims and Sikhs to the Indians. The extant knowledge on literature on their narratives of forced migration and struggles of re-settlement is inadequate. The present paper employs the concept of ‘capital’ by Bourdieu to argue that ICTs enable refugees to gain different forms of capital in their journey of survival in a new country post forced migration. The paper highlights the importance of ICTs being equal to the physical infrastructure for the refugees. The digital practices provide them with a collectively owned capital in the form of relevant information and experiences of being refugees. The visibility enabled by the ICTs has contributed to their social, economic and symbolic capitals.

Suggested Citation

  • Pandey, Shelly & Ilavarasan, P. Vigneswara, 2019. "People, information and culture: Locating forms of capital by Afghan Sikh refugees in India through ICTs," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 146(C), pages 331-338.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:tefoso:v:146:y:2019:i:c:p:331-338
    DOI: 10.1016/j.techfore.2019.06.005
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Jenny C. Aker & Isaac M. Mbiti, 2010. "Mobile Phones and Economic Development in Africa," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 24(3), pages 207-232, Summer.
    2. Betts, Alexander & Bloom, Louise & Kaplan, Josiah & Omata, Naohiko, 2016. "Refugee Economies: Forced Displacement and Development," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198795681.
    3. Lee Komito, 2011. "Social media and migration: Virtual community 2.0," Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 62(6), pages 1075-1086, June.
    4. Lee Komito, 2011. "Social media and migration: Virtual community 2.0," Journal of the Association for Information Science & Technology, Association for Information Science & Technology, vol. 62(6), pages 1075-1086, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ahmed, Nova & Tasmin, Mahbuba & Nasim Ibrahim, Sayyed Mohammad, 2022. "Technology for empowerment: Context of urban Afghan women," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Afghan refugees; India; Forced migration; Information and communication technologies (ICTs); Forms of capital; Bourdieu;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • A14 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics - - - Sociology of Economics
    • E22 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Investment; Capital; Intangible Capital; Capacity
    • F22 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - International Migration

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