Rural Livelihood Options and Its Associated Problems in Assam

The economy of the state Assam is based on Agriculture and the rural mass depends mainly on agriculture and allied activities for their subsistence. The socio-economic status of majority of rural communities in the state is poor. Besides cultivation of various agricultural and commercial crops, the population of the state also practices fishing, breeding, sericulture, ceramics, husbandry, pottery etc. for their livelihood options. To understand various problems and prospects of socio economic development of rural communities, a case study was conducted in the Lakhimpur district of Assam. As a part of the study, this present paper addresses the livelihood aspects and socio economic condition of the rural communities in the Lakhimpur district of Assam. The district Lakhimpur is situated in the northern bank of the Brahmaputra river and about 91 per cent population reside in the rural areas. For the primary data collections 8 villages are selected randomly 4 from each of two Developmental Blocks namely the Nowboicha and Narayanpur. In total, 160 household families are randomly selected considering each village’s 10 percent respondents are randomly selected for final data collection. The data are collected through personal interviews using standard questionnaire. The study reveals that although the agriculture is the main employment and livelihood options of the people, the productivity and economic performance of agriculture is very poor. Regular floods, as well as the lack of irrigation and modern facilities are found as critical factors of poor performance of agriculture. To meet their daily needs, people have adopted other options, such as fishing and fishing, cattle breeding, cattle rearing and handicrafts etc. but even these activities do not provide enough earning to meet fulfil their basic needs. The lack of various infrastructures not only limits the livelihood options of the rural mass but also hinders their socio economic development.