Rural India is home of the original gig-economy worker. Enterprising villagers hop from tilling fields to tending shops, to door-to-door selling each day. Read the latest trends in micro-enterprises, rural start-ups and the shifting livelihoods of India’s villagers.
Livelihoods
Community restores private forests for sustainable future
Private forest owners have been restoring degraded lands, improving green cover and livelihood opportunities. The initiative helps in biodiversity conservation and maintenance of wildlife corridor as well
In Kashmir, no migrants to reap rice harvest
Inexpensive migrant laborers work the paddy fields in Central Kashmir. As they have left due to the lockdown, farmers and their families are stepping in to harvest the crop
Mentoring helps tribal youth choose new careers
Career counseling and training help tribal youth develop skills and choose new vocations, resulting in social upliftment, women’s empowerment and changes in societal norms
Medicinal herb ushers prosperity for Sagar Island farmers
Given the demand for brahmi in national and international pharma and nutraceutical markets, farmers in Sagar Island are switching from paddy to organic brahmi cultivation and getting good financial returns
Women herders lose authority as pastoralism declines
Changes in farming practices and climate crisis affecting nomadic pastoralism, traditional herders opt for settled living. As they migrate for other jobs, women bear the burden of added responsibilities
Returned migrants take to smuggling for want of livelihood
In villages of West Bengal close to the Indo – Bangladesh border, migrants back home during the lockdown have been lured into smuggling for financial sustenance
Elephants establish new habitat in Andhra Pradesh
Farmers suffer crop damages as elephants re-colonize the state after centuries. While Wildlife Week celebrations are on, experts advocate long-term planning to minimize conflicts
Lockdown threw new hardships along nomadic herders’ paths
Their migration towards summer pastures coinciding with the first lockdown, and with severe restrictions on movement, pastoralists lacked access to pastures, water and fodder, besides facing discrimination
How interactive audio helped migrants during lockdown
An existing interactive voice response system was refashioned, enabling migrant workers in destination cities get messages regarding their circumstances across, subsequently facilitating their return