Livelihoods

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.

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Conch seashell bangle makers losing their grip in Bengal

Worn by married Bengali women, conch shell bangles have long been part of Bengal’s tradition, but artisans are finding it difficult to keep their grip on their trade because of rising material costs.

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Black goats of Kerala’s native tribal hill people on brink of extinction

Kerala’s small but hardy Attappadi black goat is being pushed to the fringes, thanks to climate change, human interventions and the larger Malabar variety that yields more meat and milk.

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Lanterns of Bishnupur fading into darkness

The lantern industry of Bishnupur in West Bengal that once sustained hundreds of artisans is on the verge of fading out thanks to the rising cost of raw materials, never mind more affordable electricity.

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Overproduction leads to distress sale of cauliflower in Bengal

Vegetable farmers in West Bengal suffer huge losses due to a surplus of cauliflower, never mind high fertiliser and labour costs.

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Shrinking Wular Lake shrivels water chestnut harvests in Kashmir

Kashmiri women dependent on Wular Lake’s water chestnuts are finding it hard to sustain their livelihood collecting and processing the crop because of dumped waste and silt in the lake.

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Kashmir’s willow wickerwork gets a modern facelift

In the face of cheap plastic products from China, Kashmiri craftsmen meld traditional willow with modern designs to create a wide range of competitive products – vases, lamp shades, haute kitchenware and even sofas.

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Ills of eucalyptus drive Odisha tribals back to legacy crops

In southern Odisha farmers are switching from water-guzzling eucalyptus trees to diversified farming of traditional crops to boost soil fertility, crop yield, household income and dietary diversity.

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To buy supplies, millet is money in Koraput’s barter system in Odisha

Women across tribal villages store mandia or finger millets in large containers and take out small portions throughout the year for soap, oil, vegetables, dried fish, tobacco and the like

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Wakhoo: Journey from a sleepy village of timber traders to ‘Pencil Village’ of India

There’s a 90 percent chance that the pencil you’re writing with is made of slats processed in Wakhoo of south Kashmir – for it supplies more than 70% of wood to India’s pencil industry.