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
Flowers bring women sweet scent of success
Struggling to make a living from subsistence farming, women farmers in southern Rajasthan have succeeded in breaking the cycle of poverty and doubling household incomes by cultivating marigold and roses
Physically challenged script success with seed pens
Biodegradable pens filled with seeds provide a viable livelihood to Kerala’s physically challenged people. While offering an ecofriendly alternative to plastic pens, these seed pens sprout plants after use
Women’s collectives need to think beyond livelihoods
Agricultural interventions by women have ensured nutritional security in many parts of rural Odisha. Building further capacity will now help them see themselves as change agents who can tackle societal issues
Sheepherders conserve quality Kashmir Merino stock
Good management practices have helped sheep farmers to ensure a quality lineage of Kashmir Merino, a hybrid of the government’s crossbreeding program. It has boosted local production of wool and meat
Bengal’s brass workers labor to sustain tradition
The brass smiths of Birbhum are eking out a living making pots, but are competing against cheaper alternatives. They persist, hoping that government support and product diversification will sustain them
Traditional handloom weaves a comeback in Kachchh
The remarkable revival of traditional Kachchhi handloom by the vankar community could serve as a shining example of how India could tackle its severe livelihood, ecological and cultural crises
Chia seeds earn bumper incomes for Mysuru farmers
Switching from traditional crops, farmers of Mysuru district in Karnataka have boosted agricultural income by cultivating chia seeds, which are becoming popular in India because of their nutritional value
Bengal women find viable livelihood in turkey
Overcoming hurdles and non-starter self-employment projects, members of women self-help groups persisted tenaciously and took to rearing turkeys, setting a successful livelihood trend
Dairy farming in tribal regions holds enormous promise
With a little help from the government and specialized agencies, the promotion of dairy farming among the tribal people of central and eastern India has potential to lift millions out of poverty