Anxious Nepali migrant workers in Indian cities are hurrying home after days of violent protests in Nepal that forced Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to resign and left the country without an effective government.
The unrest, triggered by a controversial social media ban that has since been reversed, saw clashes that left about 30 people dead, buildings torched and a nationwide curfew imposed as soldiers patrolled the streets. Many Nepalis living and working in India reported they were returning to check on family and safety even as Gen Z-led protests continued across Nepal.
"We are returning home to our motherland," a man at a bus stand in Lucknow told reporters. "We are confused. People are asking us to come back."
Nepalis in India fall into several broad groups: seasonal migrant workers who move back and forth without Indian biometric identity cards, families who have relocated and often obtained local identity documents while retaining Nepali citizenship, and Indian citizens of Nepali ethnicity whose ancestors migrated in earlier centuries. The open 1,750 km border, under a 1950 peace and friendship treaty, allows frequent crossings for work, medical needs and family visits.
Experts say the number of Nepali citizens living and working in India is difficult to pin down because of the open border, but estimates range from about 1 million to 1.5 million. Many of the newest entrants to India’s labour market are young: new migrants are typically 15 to 20 years old while the median age is around 35, according to Keshav Bashyal of Tribhuvan University in Kathmandu.
Remittances are central to Nepal’s economy and social fabric. In 2016-17 remittances comprised more than a quarter of gross domestic product, and by 2024 they were estimated at 27–30% of GDP. More than 70% of Nepalese households receive remittance payments, which now make up roughly a third of household income. Most remittance inflows come from Nepalis working in the Gulf and Malaysia, but India accounts for about a fifth of the total.
The economic importance of migrants contrasts with the precarious conditions many face in India. Studies cited by researchers found Nepali migrants often live in crowded rooms with limited sanitation, face discrimination in workplaces and in accessing clinics, and have limited upward mobility. Common occupations include construction, domestic work, security guarding, agricultural labour and jobs in hotels and temples across India.
Dhanraj Kathayat, a security guard in Mumbai who emigrated to India in 1988, described a life of limited progress. He sends money home to support his children’s education and returns to Nepal only once a year. "There’s so much joblessness in Nepal," he said. "That’s why people like me had to leave."
Researchers and political analysts disagree over how politically engaged migrants in India remain with Nepal’s domestic politics. Some academics say migrants play an outsized role in shaping politics at home through networks, remittances and party organisations operating in Indian cities. Others argue their influence is limited today, reduced largely to financial support and occasional voting rather than active policy debate.
Nepali students in India, by contrast, often appear more politically engaged and vocal. Official statistics show more than 13,000 Nepali students among roughly 47,000 foreign students in India. Some say they would have joined the protests in Nepal if they had been home, voicing support for constitutional norms even as they condemned destruction of property.
Analysts warn that continued instability in Kathmandu could drive more young Nepalis to seek work in India’s informal economy, swelling an already large and largely invisible workforce. "This type of political crisis deepens the problems of youth unemployment in Nepal," said Keshav Bashyal. "Definitely, the number of Nepali migrants would increase in India. At the same time, it is not easy to get proper employment in India."
The immediate effect of the unrest is a surge of returnees traveling across the open border to check on relatives and safety. For many migrants, the decision to travel is shaped by family ties and urgent concerns rather than purely by economic calculation.
Longer term, analysts say, the combination of deep economic dependence on remittances and recurring political instability means migration will likely remain a key coping strategy for Nepali households. Any sustained disruption to remittance flows could hurt Nepal’s economy, particularly poorer households that rely on smaller transfers from migrants working in nearby India. At the same time, the pattern underscores how porous national borders and social networks shape both livelihoods and politics across South Asia.
For now, migrants who returned to India in recent days said they would monitor events at home closely and make decisions based on family needs and how the situation in Kathmandu evolves. Government vacancies and the scale of the protests leave many uncertain about when normal crossings and remittance patterns might resume.