Dynamics of Non-Farm Sector Employment and its Impact on Income in Rural Punjab

The study has examined the temporal behaviour of employment in the farm and non-farm sectors of rural Punjab by carrying out a case study of village Bilaspur in district Ludhiana at two time periods, 1995 and 2011. The employment has exhibited an upward trend in the non-farm sector and downward trend in the farm sector. The number as well as the proportion of those employed in agriculture and allied sector having education level up to matric, have increased. The preference for self-employment and government service has increased in the case of respondents having education above matric level. The employment in respect of wage earners in the nonfarm sector has increased as compared to other occupations. The study has further revealed that the respondents were employed in 14 occupations in 1995 which increased to 24 in 2011. On an average, the annual income of respondents increased from 50508 in 1995 and 85801 in 2011 in the farm sector, and from 42612 in 1995 to 99120 in 2011 in the non-farm sector. This shows that income increased at a higher pace in the non-farm sector as compared to the farm sector. Thus, the non-farm sector has helped in poverty alleviation in rural Punjab.