Shift of Rural Work Force from Farm to Non-Farm Employment: Some Determinants

In the post-liberalization era, employment opportunities in the non-farm sector have increased substantially, especially for the young and educated. Moreover, owing to increasing vulnerability, working in the agricultural sector has increasingly become less lucrative, driving people, especially younger ones away from agriculture. In this context, this paper uses nationally representative data for the years 1993–94 and 2011–12 to identify the factors that affect the likelihood of movement from the agriculture section to the non-agriculture sector. More specifically, we examine the age profile of working individuals to determine whether they are likely to be engaged in agriculture and allied areas now as compared to the period during liberalization of the Indian economy. We find that the probability of being employed in the agricultural sector across different age groups vis-à-vis older individuals has declined across the duration of the study. Moreover, this is particularly true for rural youth. Further, we find that access to education is associated with a reduced likelihood of someone being employed in agriculture. Our findings have been inferred from non-parametric methodology and regression analysis, substantiated with qualitative evidence from various parts of India