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
Clams provide lucrative livelihood to coastal women
With increasing popularity of clam meat, an abundant resource in coastal Kozhikode, units processing these mollusks enable women to make a sustainable living without leaving their village
Restored wastelands would improve livestock economy
Degraded wastelands have led to a fodder shortage in underdeveloped Barwani district. Involving communities to restore the wastelands will enable them to rear more livestock, thus improving incomes
Chemistry Nobel Prize has a rural Odisha connection
People of Maligaon village in Odisha are for the first time using lithium ferro-phosphate batteries invented by Nobel laureate John Goodenough to store power from their solar mini-grid
Palmyrah tappers move from climbing trees to casting nets
After a drought and a ban on toddy tapping, palmyrah climbers of a coastal village have taken to the sea, practicing sustainable fishing to conserve marine life and earn a livelihood
Shyok Valley farmers lack access to market
Despite growing apricots and apples, farmers in Shyok Valley in northern Ladakh are unable to turn a profit because lack of connectivity makes it difficult to sell their produce
Rural BPO centers in Bihar open new doors for girls
Business process outsourcing companies in rural Bihar are providing local job opportunities for educated, computer-literate girls in their village, empowering them socially and financially
Rural youth turn software developers right after school
Rural youth with the right aptitude are trained and employed in a technology company in Tirunelveli. Local employment has prevented migration and improved the families’ economic status
Handcrafted Baluchari sarees see festive resurgence
The exquisitely handcrafted Baluchari sarees of Bengal have made a welcome comeback. Once forced into menial jobs, Baluchari weavers are busy again because demand is increasing
Kashmiri farmers struggle to sell bumper fruit harvest
Despite a good harvest of apples and pears, farmers in Kashmir are finding it difficult to sell their produce due to restrictions imposed by the authorities on transportation and communication facilities