EFFECT OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON LIVELIHOOD SYSTEMS AMONG THE TRIBAL HOUSEHOLDS
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Date
2022-08-18
Authors
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guntur
Abstract
Livelihood is the most popular concept comprises capitals, capabilities and
activities required to earn money and secure for means of living. It helps to support
people, to prosper and to survive which includes and influenced by other factors like
economic and cultural systems. The livelihood systems adopted by the tribals are
farming, non-farm activities, livestock, wage works and Non Timber Forest Produce
(NTFP) which were considered for the study. Agriculture is the seasonal livelihood
system of the tribals which is not sufficient to fulfill their basic needs. The main reasons
for adopting other alternative types of livelihood systems are to meet the household
needs of the tribals like educational, health and recreational.
The broad philosophy of livelihoods suggested by DFID (Department for
International Development of United Kingdom) comprising of different livelihood
capitals such as human, physical, natural, social and financial capitals. The best
livelihood systems were described based on the viability and sustainability in meeting
the tribal household economic demands even in the crisis and other calamities.
A study on effect of COVID-19 pandemic on livelihood systems among the
tribal households in Visakhapatnam district of Andhra Pradesh was carried out with the
following objectives.
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1. To study the profile characteristics of tribal households in Visakhapatnam
district.
2. To analyze the viable livelihood systems of the tribal households.
3. To find out the problems faced by the tribal households in COVID-19
pandemic.
Exploratory research design was adopted for the study. Data was collected by
using pre-tested schedule followed by personal interview method.The statistical tools
used for analysis and interpretation of the data are frequency and percentage, class
interval, mean and standard deviation.
Two tribal dense mandals had been selected randomly from the district. Three
villages from each of the two mandals were selected by following simple random
sampling method, thus making six villages for the study. Twenty tribals from each
village were selected by using purposive random sampling method thus making a
sample of 120 respondents for the study.
The profile characteristics of tribal respondents indicated that majority of the
tribal respondents were male (62.50%), belonged to middle age group (67.50%),
illiterate (54.17%), small family size (63.33%), Valmiki sub-caste (53.33%), living in
Kutcha house (56.67%) and nuclear family type (70.83%). Majority (60.00%) of the
tribal respondents had medium level of socio-economic status with occupation in
agriculture + wage work + Non Timber Forest Produce (51.67%), low annual income
category (67.50%) and no official position in socio-political organization (68.33%).
In shifting cultivation with regard to farm size majority (52.50%) of the
respondents were with marginal farm size while in normal cultivation half (50.00%) of
the respondents were with small farm size. With regard to farming experience, half
(50.00%) of the respondents had medium farming experience in shifting cultivation,
while forty eight per cent of the respondents had medium farming experience in normal
cultivation.
Majority of the respondents fell under medium category in extension contact
(62.50%), information acquisition pattern (62.50%), religious belief (60.84%), risk
orientation (58.34%) and marketing orientation (50.84%) and low category in urban
contact (57.50%), depending on canals for irrigation (40.00%). Results also revealed
that the consumption of protein foods like meat, eggs, milk & milk products and green
leafy vegetables were slightly increased during lockdown period.
The results revealed that sixty five per cent of the respondents use neem leaves
in the storage of cereals and grains and majority (70.83%) of the respondents used air
tight bags/clothes for storing the dried vegetable seeds. Majority (70.00%) of the
respondents are collected and dried adda leaves and packed into bundles for storing the
forest produce.
The least percentage difference in the income from the farming (36.77%) was
considered as viable livelihood system followed by Non Timber Forest Produce (NTFP)
and non- farm activities. The changes in income from different livelihood systems
namely farming followed by Non Timber Forest Produce (NTFP) and non- farm
activities were identified as viable livelihood systems since they could sustained during
the health crisis i.e pandemic and supported the tribals by providing income.
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Results in the changes in livelihood systems with regard to farming revealed that
non availability of market facilities, middlemen interference for produced sale and
increased wages were observed. The changes like sale & purchase of good breed
cattle/buffaloes, reducing the demand for milk in the various sectors, vulnerability and
misinformation of poultry farming on social media and low/ No availability/
accessibility of technical knowhow were observed in livestock. The changes like tribal
economy from Non Timber Forest Produce (NTFP) decreased due to low / no sales,
lack of transportation facility and low/no marketing of products resulted in low
remunerative price for Non Timber Forest Produce (NTFP) were observed. The changes
like high demand for wage work led to increased payment during lockdown and the
government scheme MGNREGA was not implemented for some period due to severe
lockdown were observed in wage works.
More than half (53.33%) of the tribal respondents had medium level of
livelihoods followed by low (32.50%) and high (14.17%) level of livelihoods based on
the capitals.
Tribal respondents had higher accessibility towards the physical capital
(60.13%), financial capital (58.33%), natural capital (55.61%), social capital (55.28%)
and human capital (41.03%). The data revealed that their physical capital index was
high because of improvement in infrastructure and producer goods needed to support
the livelihoods. The low social capital index and human capital index are causes of
serious concern and government and non government agencies have to improve their
efforts to prevent the worsen condition of tribal livelihoods.
The major problems encountered by the tribal respondents due to COVID-19
pandemic lockdown were restricted movement to forest areas (75.83%) was ranked one
in social problems, lack of accessibility to nearby markets (95.00%) was ranked one in
economic problems, lack of skills on non-farm activities (69.17%) was ranked one in
technical problems and poor quality of health care facilities (68.33%) was ranked one in
infrastructural problems during lockdown.
Description
EFFECT OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC
ON LIVELIHOOD SYSTEMS
AMONG THE TRIBAL
HOUSEHOLDS