Rural Non Farm Employment in Assam: Trends and Issues (original) (raw)

Rural Non-Farm Employment in Assam: A Gender-Based Analysis

This study explores the rural labour market in Assam. The Work Participation Rates (WPR) for males has increased during the period 1993-94 to 2009-10, whereas the same for females has been fluctuating around a lower level of 15 to 20 per cent. Thus, unemployment rates for females have been higher than males. A sector-wise distribution of workers shows that the proportion of males employed in the farm sector has been declining in favour of the Non-Farm Sector (NFS), while the females are more concentrated in the farm sector. Thus, females stand in a more disadvantageous situation in the rural labour market as indicated by their low WPR, higher unemployment rates and low level of diversification into NFS. However, gender equality is necessary for growth. This is more so with regard to education and employment. India has introduced the concept of inclusive growth in the Eleventh Five Year Plan. Inclusive growth ensures opportunities for all sections of the population, with a special emphasis on the poor, particularly women and young people, who are most likely to be marginalised. A rapidly growing population in India has not only increased the size of the rural labour force but has also led to fragmentation of land holdings. Thus, this sector alone cannot create additional employment opportunities, even in high growth agriculture states of India. This has led to the growth of a vibrant non-farm sector. The study comes up with the suggestion that the NFS, with its greater potential of employment generation, can not only solve the unemployment problem, but can also lead to the increased access of women to resources and employment opportunities.

CHANGING LABOUR MARKET STRUCTURE IN RURAL INDIA: EVIDENCE FROM SELECTED INDIAN STATES

Manpower Journal, 2016

This paper analyzes the changing pattern of employment and unemployment situation of rural India by using NSS employmentunemployment quinquennial rounds from the year 1993-94 to 2011-12. Additionally, it examines the factors which are associated with distress driven employment, de-feminisation and casualization of labour in the poorer states such as Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh. The result shows that slow progress of labour movement from farm to non-farm sector across selected states is partially due to more concentration of female in the farm sector, more participation of households and persons in MGNREGA programme. Further, inverse relationships between female labour participation and output growth was found, which was mostly due to economic situation of the households.

Woman and work in rural Assam: pattern and determinants

Journal of Social and Economic Development, 2018

The interrelationship between women and work has been affected by the diversity of socioeconomic institutions. The impact of economic transformation on work participation is likely to be mediated through changing gender relations as well. This article attempts to look at the trend as well as the nature of job availability along with the underlying causation of female workforce participation in the rural areas of Assam. Regarding regional variations in female work participation, women in the eastern plains and districts with more tea plantations report higher levels of participation in work. In the article, instrumental variable probit estimation has been used to identify various household and individual characteristics that determine rural female workforce participation in the state. This analysis suggests that female workforce participation is the result of a complex interplay of various individual, household, social and economic factors. Further, the analysis reflects that the higher level of education and land possession are positive factors that propel female workforce participation in the rural areas. However, the presence of the children in the household obliterates women's way into the labour market of rural areas.

Emerging Challenges of Rural Labour Market: Insights from Indian Villages

Arthaniti: Journal of Economic Theory and Practice, 2019

This article has examined the labour market behaviour of rural India, with the objective to assess the changes taking place in the structure of the workforce and attempts to identify the factors affecting the changes in rural labour supply. In particular, this article tries to address the inconsistency between absolute declines in labour force, particularly rural females at national level, with the micro-level evidences of feminisation in farm work through the estimation of labour supply function. Empirical findings indicate an increasing trend in female participation, particularly aged in rural India. The significant positive association of occupation dummy with male labour supply and negative association with female labour supply, in one way, explains the greater participation of male workers in non-farm work and higher concentration of females in farm activities. Therefore, attention needs to be paid to promote initiatives such as youth entrepreneurship in agriculture to retain youth in farming, encourage innovations in designing appropriate location-specific machineries and tools which are female-friendly, and also organise capacity-building programmes for skill augmentation focusing rural female workers.

A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF LOW AND DECLINING TRENDS OF FEMALE LABOUR FORCE PARTICIPATION IN RURAL UTTAR PRADESH AND WEST BENGAL

2023

Based on unit-level data of three rounds of the Employment-Unemployment Surveys (68 th , 61 st and 50 th) and two rounds of the Periodic Labour Force (2017-18 and 2018-19) Surveys of the NSS, this paper examines trends in women's labour force and work force in the two Indian states of Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal since 1993-94. A comparative analysis of women's participation in the labour markets of the two Indian states shows the significance of occupational diversification in explaining the varying trends in the pattern of female employment. It explores the relevance of the nature of female employment in understanding the sustainability of such employment pattern as exists over time. Our paper highlights the extreme vulnerability attached to the self-employed status of women, be it in farm or non-farm work that women in rural U.P. and W.B. engage in and urges on the importance of publicly sponsored employment generation programmes like MNREGA as a viable alternative employment option, especially for women in rural areas. Given the abysmally low levels of participation of women in the labour markets of both U.P. and W.B., does the explanation lie in economic factors such as lack of jobs alone or do gender biased cultural norms also play a role? Our analysis suggests that it is a combination of both these factors to which a low and declining women's participation in labour markets must be attributed to.

Dynamics of Rural Labor Markets in India: Implications for Inclusive Development Strategy

2014

The rural labor market in India has undergone remarkable changes over the years. Diversified opportunities for employment with increased economic growth, introduction of employment guarantee scheme, demographic change along with expansion of universal education for all girls and boys, increased connectivity and mobility from rural to urban areas, changes in trade policies, attitude towards participation of women in economic activities outside their home have altered the rural labor market dynamics. This policy brief deals with the dynamics of rural labor markets in India. It focuses on the trends in rural employment, rural labor markets, and sources of livelihood and living standards of the rural labor class. It documents both short and long-term changes in rural labor markets observed in India. It identifies the key drivers of changes in the rural labor market, determinants of labor supply and wage rate. Finally, some suggestions are put forward to overcome the challenges in the ru...

Role of National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in achieving Gender Equality in Rural India

International Journal of Advance Research and Innovative Ideas in Education, 2015

National rural employment guarantee scheme in India has played an important role in creation of employment opportunities for women in rural India. The third millennium development goal seeks to promote gender equality and effectively empower women to combat poverty, hunger and disease, and to stimulate development that is truly sustainable. Rural employment is critical in removing poverty as more than half of the poor residing in developing countries live in rural areas. For removal of poverty Government of India launched several schemes to generate employment especially in the rural areas. Present study explores the trends in workforce participation rural economy of India. The study also incorporates the analysis of volume of employment generated through National Rural Employment Guarantee Schemes and the extent of rural female work participation through National Rural Employment Guarantee Schemes. Using the data collected from published reports of National Sample Survey Organizati...

Rural Non-Farm Employment and Rural Transformation in India

This study attempts to assess the changing structure of rural production and employment in the last two decades and its implications on rural labor market. The rural labor market has undergone profound structural transformation with labor moving from agriculture towards non-agricultural activities. Currently, non-farm sector is no longer a residual sector, but an emerging driver of rural development and transformation, contributing 65% to the rural Net Domestic Product in 2010. There has been an absolute decline in labor force in recent times with a decline in agriculture employment for both male and female laborers and this decline in female workforce is much higher than male workforce in agriculture. The key drivers of changes include inter alia – higher growth in non-farm sector specially infrastructure and construction, coupled with improved transportation and communication, differential wage rates, improved literacy and Government programs. Such change in employment structure a...