Occupations and Tribal Livelihood: A Case Study of Trans Himalayan Region of Ladakh, India

Abstract

Traditionally, agriculture and animal husbandry have been the primary sources of livelihood for tribal communities, particularly in rural and remote regions. However, over the years, there has been a noticeable shift in the occupational structure of tribal households. The study aims to examine the patterns of occupations among tribal households of present Ladakh. The study was part of the research project funded by University of Jammu under the Seed and Research grant. The sample size of the study is 500 scheduled tribe household heads, that is 414 from rural areas and 86 from urban areas of Ladakh. The study reveals that 88.4 percent of the sampled households obtained livelihood from non-traditional based economic activities and it further reveals that most of the heads are self-employed, primarily as own-account workers. A sector-wise analysis indicates that rural tribal heads predominantly rely their livelihood from rent, pensions, or remittances, while those in urban areas are mainly engaged in regular salaried employment. At the same time, a huge chunk of heads is into casual labour work as well. Thus, the policy suggestion is, introduce targeted employment guarantee schemes and rural infrastructure projects to provide stable and year-round work opportunities for casual labourers for remote areas like Durbuk and Nyoma.