Migrant Assistance and Information Network

The Migrant Assistance and Information Network (MAIN) is the outcome of the felt-need for a concerted, collective and innovative response to reach out to the distress migrant workers, inter-state and intra-state.

Being essentially a partnership model, MAIN works in collaboration with individuals, Jesuits and collaborators, NGOs/CSOs/CBOs, institutions, religious congregations, dioceses, networks, etc. at various levels. It works closely with state governments by developing a replicable and sustainable model of Accompanying, Serving and Advocating for the cause of distressed migrants. MAIN visualises itself becoming a state-run programme eventually to address the issues of distress migrants in the long run across India. 

MAIN: An Initiative of the Jesuit Conference of India

Jesuit Conference of India (JCI) is part of the international organisation of Jesuits with remarkable presence in the South Asian countries. Registered as not-for-profit organisation in India, JCI has been engaged in pioneering and exemplary work in areas of education, social development and empowerment. From its very beginning in 1978, JCI has been committed towards working with vulnerable communities by providing quality education for the unreached children in rural and remote areas, supporting youth to be future ready, establishing peace and harmony, working for distressed migrants, rights and entitlements and also responding to disasters and caring the environment.

Vision, Mission and Objectives

Vision: Accompanying distress migrants to live with dignity by building a caring humanity.

Mission: To Accompany, Serve and Advocate for Distress Migrants.

MAIN has the following objectives:

a) To accompany the distress migrants by setting up a helpline system, which will be a credible rallying first point of contact for distress migrants.

b) To serve the distress migrants by responding to their distress calls and assisting them with various services, primarily through partners, NGOs, networks and volunteers.

c) To advocate for the causes of distress migrants with all relevant stakeholders, including government, by analysing the distress calls and report generated, gaps in services/entitlements, and also critical challenges being faced by them.

The three pillars of MAIN are Accompany, Serve and Advocate:

Accompaniment is about closeness, solidarity support, care of the person, and to be in live contact with the realities of distress migrants. 

Service includes variety of responses that would help in alleviating the sufferings, harassment and abuse, discrimination, exclusion, and inhuman treatment of distress migrants. However, considering the complex systemic issues, provision of services depends on the availability of both human and financial resources at the disposal of MAIN. 

Advocacy is premised on research, and includes lobbying, campaigns, and events. MAIN would undertake policy engagements for proper implementation of laws/schemes through scientific analysis of data gathered through helpline and experiences and narratives from the field by working among distress migrants.

On the Jesuit Network map you can discover the global networks of the Society of Jesus, according to their location and scope of action. If you know of any that are not included in the page, do not hesitate to contact us.