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Analysing Livelihood Strategies of Landless Manual Labour Households in Rural Bihar: A Study of a North Bihar Village

Author

Listed:
  • Mrityunjay Pandey

    (University of Hyderabad)

  • R. Vijay

    (University of Hyderabad)

Abstract

The paper studies the livelihood strategies of Landless Manual Labour (LML) households of a village named Katkuian, located in the West Champaran district of North Bihar. The Foundation of Agrarian Studies surveyed the village as part of the Project on Agrarian Relations in India. LML households, despite engaging in various occupations, predominantly hinged their sustenance through manual labour (in and around the village), seasonal work migration and tenant cultivation. The paper has designed a Livelihood Strategy Choice Model to understand the factors that drive certain households towards more income-generating livelihood strategies while limiting others. The insights from this model indicate that the indebtedness status of the household and male labour endowment substantially influenced the decisions pertaining to household migration. The decisions about household cultivation heavily relied on female labour endowment. The composition of male labourers in a household spanning across diverse age groups emerges as a key determinant in the choice between different livelihood strategies.

Suggested Citation

  • Mrityunjay Pandey & R. Vijay, 2024. "Analysing Livelihood Strategies of Landless Manual Labour Households in Rural Bihar: A Study of a North Bihar Village," The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Springer;The Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), vol. 67(2), pages 443-463, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:ijlaec:v:67:y:2024:i:2:d:10.1007_s41027-024-00494-5
    DOI: 10.1007/s41027-024-00494-5
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. David Mosse & Sanjeev Gupta & Mona Mehta & Vidya Shah & Julia fnms Rees & KRIBP Project Team, 2002. "Brokered livelihoods: Debt, Labour Migration and Development in Tribal Western India," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 38(5), pages 59-88.
    2. Kumar, Awanish, 2022. "Land and Caste Relations in North Bihar: Observations from Two Villages," Review of Agrarian Studies, Foundation for Agrarian Studies, vol. 12(01), June.
    3. Dhar, Niladri Sekhar & Pandey, Mrityunjay & Kumar, Awanish, 2022. "Identifying Socio-Economic Classes in Two Villages of Bihar," Review of Agrarian Studies, Foundation for Agrarian Studies, vol. 12(01), June.
    4. Frank Ellis, 2000. "The Determinants of Rural Livelihood Diversification in Developing Countries," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(2), pages 289-302, May.
    5. Frank Ellis, 1998. "Household strategies and rural livelihood diversification," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(1), pages 1-38.
    6. Workie, Dejene Mamo, 2023. "Livelihood Diversification Strategies and Determinants by Smallholder Farmers in the Highland Areas of North Shewa Ethiopia," Journal of Agribusiness and Rural Development, University of Life Sciences, Poznan, Poland, vol. 68(2).
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Livelihood strategies of rural labour in Bihar; Seasonal labour migration from Bihar; Livelihood crisis of rural labour; Rural labour market;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
    • J43 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Agricultural Labor Markets
    • J11 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Demographic Trends, Macroeconomic Effects, and Forecasts
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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