Digital Welfare and Migrant Vulnerability in Post-Pandemic India

Technological Governance, Privacy, and Inequality

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic exposed structural weaknesses in India’s migrant labour system, highlighting gaps in welfare delivery and institutional readiness. In response, the State adopted technology-driven governance tools such as NMIS, Aarogya Setu, and the e-Shram portal to enable welfare distribution and data-led policymaking. This paper critically evaluates the effectiveness and constitutional implications of these digital frameworks in the post-pandemic period (2020–2026).

Using a doctrinal and socio-legal approach, it examines digital welfare through the lens of digital equality, focusing on how limited access to technology, literacy, and identification systems constrains migrant workers’ inclusion. While digital governance improves efficiency and scale, it risks deepening existing inequalities.

The paper also analyses privacy concerns, data protection laws, and algorithmic governance, arguing for more inclusive, transparent, and accountable digital welfare systems aligned with constitutional values of equality, dignity, and justice.