Extent of occupational diversification of farmers
Table 2 illustrates that approximately half (47.50%) of farmers reported a moderate level of occupational diversification, while 30.42 per cent reported a high level. The remaining 22.08 per cent expressed low levels. Overally, the occupational diversification appears to be moderately to highly prevalent. This information from the study helps to yields about the considerable prevalence of diversification among the farm families in the contemporary era. These families engage in a multi-sectoral livelihood diversification strategy to achieve income stability and mitigate risk, irrespective of their socio-economic status in their society as it often incorporates both agricultural and non-agricultural activities. A significant proportion of surveyed households exhibited adult members engaging in diversified income generation practices. Over the past decade, the concept of sustainable livelihoods has gained traction as a critical element of sustainable development. However, in India, the agricultural livelihoods of small and marginal farmers are becoming unsustainable due to insufficient land productivity, hindering their ability to meet their family’s food and livestock fodder needs. As a consequence, rural households are forced to explore alternative sources of income to ensure their survival (
Lakshman Reddy, 2019).
But the result of majority reporting moderate levels of diversification and only a less portion of them expressing high levels, does imply to the point that there is still room for improvement in the scenario of their capability to diversify with the existing conditions. This can be effectively achieved by providing solution-oriented approach by the respective stakeholders of farming towards the roadblocks. Thus, by this notion, it is directed to upcoming sections which foretells about the constraints faced by the farmers while following occupational diversification. The findings of the study have been analogous to that the findings of
Amurtiya et al., (2016); Yona and Mathewos (2017);
Tizazu et al., (2018); Jackson and Anele (2018);
Lakshman Reddy (2019) and
Sharma (2020).
Constraints to diversification
Several formidable obstacles hinder the formulation of production strategies for livelihood diversification, differing among households and regions. Understanding these real-life constraints is crucial to addressing barriers to occupational diversification. These constraints have been categorized into distinct segments, detailed in the subsequent sub-sections, to provide comprehensive insight into the issue from multiple perspectives.
Infrastructural constraints
Every occupational endeavour relies on resources such as capital, manpower, facilities and services to effectively procure inputs, transform them into end products and make them available for consumption. Thus, infrastructure is crucial and any neglect or deficiency can turn a profitable venture into a dismal entity. In that respect, the constraints as opinionated by the farmers under infrastructural dimension were enlisted and it was found that ‘Lack of storage facilities’ was ranked first with the highest mean score of 74.77 followed by ‘Lack of marketing channels and facilities’ (71.34) and ‘Absence of custom hiring centres’ (68.55) as the top three along with the rest issues as faced by the farmers to be classified under infrastructural domain (Table 3).
Due to the perishable nature of their products, farmers face challenges due to limited storage facilities, affecting product availability and potential returns. Lack of marketing routes further widens the gap between production and consumption, diminishing farmers’ bargaining power in price negotiations. The absence of custom hiring centers exacerbates machinery access issues, particularly for farmers with limited finances and fragmented land holdings. Urgent attention and solutions are necessary to enable farmers to diversify their occupations effectively. These concerns need of great attention with prompt solution-oriented addressal in swift manner otherwise it would exhaust the favourable conditions for farmers to venture out to bring diversity in their pre-existing occupations even if they would be well prepared to do so.
Promotional constraints
The problems faced by the farmers for following occupational diversification under promotional component as opined that ‘Lack of innovative technologies’ ranks first (73.55) followed by ‘Lack of market predictions and forecasting’ (70.11) and ‘Development programmes incompatible to farmer needs’ (69.88) along with other issues in that manner of rankings (Table 4).
The absence of desired farm technologies has hindered farmers from exploring new on-farm occupations, despite their interest. Inadequate real-time market information complicates sales predictions, discouraging ventures even if profitable. While digital advancements have transformed non-agricultural sectors, the agricultural domain lags behind, limiting farmers’ access to untapped markets. Addressing these issues along with others mentioned on priority basis would facilitate the adoption of more productive and profitable ventures, fostering a proactive rural environment conducive to resource utilization, skill enhancement and market-aligned production systems.
Social constraints
It is widely recognized that social factors significantly influence the occupational choices made by farmers. These factors are closely linked to rural cultural norms and practices. Given that farm households are deeply ingrained in societal obligations, any significant change may disrupt core values, leading to resistance and discontent, thus fostering rigidity towards such changes. Thus keeping in view of the above concern, in analyzing the constraints faced under social domain, it was found that ‘Lack of proper education’ as the top most with highest mean score of 72.23 followed by ‘Less experience on new ventures’ (70.79) and ‘Less support from seniors and head of the household’ (69.53) followed by the other issues so on with their respective rankings of their severity (Table 5).
The majority of farmers have limited education, with few having completed schooling and even fewer reaching college level. This lack of formal education restricts their exposure to new advancements, particularly in farming. Living in their native villages, farmers adhere to traditional farming practices passed down through generations which further limits their occupational exploration. Additionally, the prevalent joint family system, led by elderly members with traditional beliefs, offers minimal support for adopting new occupations, as they prioritize maintaining existing practices for sustainability. Social constraints, including societal expectations and norms, heavily influence farmers’ decisions and livelihoods, highlighting the need to address these factors when considering occupational changes.
Economic constraints
The ultimate objective of any farmers is to ensure the everlasting sustenance of their household in the society for which they have to ensure profitable returns from their occupational venture. So, it depends on the effective management of resources for its transformation to valued produce which speaks of maintaining optimum trade-off between input and output in financial terms and thus disturbance in this balance can result to loss making venture and the concerned occupation to be left out by the farmers as their source of income. With this regard, the constraints under economic component as listed and ranked inferenced that ‘Lack of own resources like assets, capital, manpower, etc’ ranked first with maximum obtained mean score (69.93) followed by ‘Rising prices of fuels (petrol and diesel)’ (65.33) and ‘Limited access to institutional sources of credit’ (58.45) accompanied with other constraints as listed with the ranks associated to their prominence (Table 6).
The lack of sufficient capital and assets due to their modest financial and social backgrounds hinders farmers from investing in new occupational ventures. Increasing fuel prices, as tied to international crude oil rates, strain farm budgets by inflating expenses for machinery, irrigation and transportation to distant markets, discouraging changes to existing income sources. Limited access to institutional credit stems from issues such as awareness and understanding of loan schemes and their associated procedural complexities and interest payments. In this way, there are other constraints which needs of great attention in the order of their corresponding rank of preference as these could galvanize the farmers from the dimensions of economic prospective towards occupational diversification.
Miscellaneous constraints
There were other constraints which were also of great issues regarding their unfavorable impact on the farmers towards diversification of their occupations but could not find places in the above-mentioned components and thus listed under the category of ‘Miscellaneous constraints’. This section concluded that ‘Uneven distribution of rainfall’ was opined to be top ranked problem with the score of 70.77 followed by ‘Natural disasters like floods, cyclones, etc’ (64.46) and ‘Middlemen hegemony’ (54.24) along with two others (Table 7).
In this region, monsoon rains traditionally fulfill the water needs for farming, making farming largely rainfed. However, global warming has disrupted the monsoon patterns and rainfall intensity, affecting crop cycles from planting to harvesting. Uncertain cyclonic storms emerging in hot summers and cold winters have also damaged crops or delayed harvesting. Cartelization in farm produce marketing diminishes farmers’ bargaining power, reducing their share of end consumer earnings. Addressing these constraints is crucial for fostering farmer positivity towards occupational diversification.
The findings of the investigation was found to be in the analogy with the results of the investigation conducted by various other authors (
Jackson and Anele, 2018;
Lakshman Reddy, 2019).
