Non-Farm Diversification, Poverty, Economic Mobility and Income Inequality : A Case Study in Village India

This paper assembles data at the all-India level and for the village of Palanpur, Uttar Pradesh, to document the growing importance, and influence, of the non-farm sector in the rural economy between the early 1980s and late 2000s. The suggestion f...

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Main Authors: Himanshu, Lanjouw, Peter, Murgai, Rinku, Stern, Nicholas
Format: Policy Research Working Paper
Language:English
en_US
Published: World Bank, Washington, DC 2013
Subjects:
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2013/05/17733297/non-farm-diversification-poverty-economic-mobility-income-inequality-case-study-village-india
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/15555
id okr-10986-15555
recordtype oai_dc
repository_type Digital Repository
institution_category Foreign Institution
institution Digital Repositories
building World Bank Open Knowledge Repository
collection World Bank
language English
en_US
topic ABSOLUTE POVERTY
ADVERSE IMPACTS
AGRICULTURAL ACTIVITIES
AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT
AGRICULTURAL INCOMES
AGRICULTURAL LABORER
AGRICULTURAL LABORERS
AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH
AGRICULTURAL WAGE
AGRICULTURAL WAGE EMPLOYMENT
AGRICULTURAL WAGE LABOR
AGRICULTURAL WAGES
ANNUAL GROWTH
AVERAGE ANNUAL
AVERAGE INCOME
AVERAGE INCOMES
BETWEEN-GROUP INEQUALITY
CHANGES IN POVERTY
COMPARABILITY PROBLEMS
CONSUMPTION AGGREGATE
DAILY WAGE
DATA SET
DECLINE IN POVERTY
DECLINING POVERTY
DECOMPOSABLE INCOME INEQUALITY MEASURES
DECOMPOSABLE INEQUALITY MEASURES
DECOMPOSITION ANALYSIS
DECOMPOSITION METHODOLOGY
DEVELOPING WORLD
DISADVANTAGED GROUP
DISADVANTAGED GROUPS
DISTRIBUTIONAL OUTCOMES
EARNING
ECONOMIC ACTIVITY
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION
ECONOMIC GROWTH
ECONOMIC INEQUALITY
ECONOMIC MOBILITY
ECONOMIC REFORMS
ECONOMIC REVIEW
ECONOMIC STUDIES
EMPLOYEE
EMPLOYMENT GROWTH
EMPLOYMENT IN AGRICULTURE
EMPLOYMENT PATTERNS
EMPLOYMENT SECURITY
EMPLOYMENT STATUS
EMPLOYMENT TRENDS
FACTOR COMPONENTS
FALLING POVERTY
FAMILY LABOR
FARM ACTIVITIES
FARM ACTIVITY
FARM EMPLOYMENT
FARM EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
FARM GROWTH
FARM INCOME
FARM INCOMES
FARM SECTOR
FARM WORK
FARM WORKERS
FARMER
FARMERS
GINI COEFFICIENT
GLOBAL POVERTY
HOUSEHOLD HEAD
HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS
HOUSEHOLD SIZE
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
ILLITERACY
IMPERFECT INFORMATION
INCIDENCE OF POVERTY
INCOME
INCOME DATA
INCOME DISTRIBUTION
INCOME GROWTH
INCOME INEQUALITY
INCOME LEVELS
INCOME SOURCES
INCOME TRENDS
INEQUALITY DECOMPOSITION
INEQUALITY MEASUREMENT
INEQUALITY WILL INCREASE
IRRIGATION
JOB SECURITY
JOBS
LABOR FORCE
LABOR MARKET
LABOUR
LAND AVAILABILITY
LANDHOLDINGS
LANDLESS HOUSEHOLDS
LIVING STANDARDS
MANUAL LABOR
MARKET ECONOMIES
NON-FARM EMPLOYMENT
NON-FARM EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
NON-FARM SECTOR
OCCUPATION
OCCUPATIONAL MOBILITY
PER CAPITA INCOME
PER CAPITA INCOMES
POLICY DISCUSSIONS
POLICY RESEARCH
POOR
POOR PEOPLE
POPULATION GROWTH
POPULATION SUB-GROUPS
POVERTY ALLEVIATION
POVERTY ASSESSMENT
POVERTY ESTIMATES
POVERTY LINE
POVERTY LINES
POVERTY REDUCTION
PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS
PRIMARY SCHOOL
PRIMARY SOURCE
PRIVATE SECTOR
PRIVATE SECTOR JOBS
PUBLIC EXPENDITURE
PUBLIC SECTOR
PUBLIC SECTOR JOBS
RAPID GROWTH
REAL WAGES
REDUCING POVERTY
REDUCTION OF INCOME
REGRESSION ANALYSIS
REGULAR EMPLOYMENT
REGULAR JOBS
RELATIVE POSITION
RETAIL TRADE
RISING INCOME INEQUALITY
RISING INEQUALITY
RURAL
RURAL AREAS
RURAL ECONOMY
RURAL EMPLOYMENT
RURAL HOUSEHOLD
RURAL HOUSEHOLDS
RURAL INCOMES
RURAL INEQUALITY
RURAL MARKETS
RURAL POOR
RURAL POVERTY
RURAL POVERTY REDUCTION
RURAL TRANSFORMATION
RURAL WORKERS
RURAL WORKFORCE
SALARIED EMPLOYMENT
SELF EMPLOYED
SELF EMPLOYMENT
SELF-EMPLOYMENT
SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT
SMALL FARMERS
SOCIAL HIERARCHY
SOCIAL MOBILITY
STRUCTURAL TRANSFORMATION
SUBSISTENCE
UNEMPLOYMENT
VILLAGE LEVEL
WAGE EMPLOYMENT
WAGE PREMIUM
WAGE RATES
WELFARE DISTRIBUTION
WORKER
spellingShingle ABSOLUTE POVERTY
ADVERSE IMPACTS
AGRICULTURAL ACTIVITIES
AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT
AGRICULTURAL INCOMES
AGRICULTURAL LABORER
AGRICULTURAL LABORERS
AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH
AGRICULTURAL WAGE
AGRICULTURAL WAGE EMPLOYMENT
AGRICULTURAL WAGE LABOR
AGRICULTURAL WAGES
ANNUAL GROWTH
AVERAGE ANNUAL
AVERAGE INCOME
AVERAGE INCOMES
BETWEEN-GROUP INEQUALITY
CHANGES IN POVERTY
COMPARABILITY PROBLEMS
CONSUMPTION AGGREGATE
DAILY WAGE
DATA SET
DECLINE IN POVERTY
DECLINING POVERTY
DECOMPOSABLE INCOME INEQUALITY MEASURES
DECOMPOSABLE INEQUALITY MEASURES
DECOMPOSITION ANALYSIS
DECOMPOSITION METHODOLOGY
DEVELOPING WORLD
DISADVANTAGED GROUP
DISADVANTAGED GROUPS
DISTRIBUTIONAL OUTCOMES
EARNING
ECONOMIC ACTIVITY
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION
ECONOMIC GROWTH
ECONOMIC INEQUALITY
ECONOMIC MOBILITY
ECONOMIC REFORMS
ECONOMIC REVIEW
ECONOMIC STUDIES
EMPLOYEE
EMPLOYMENT GROWTH
EMPLOYMENT IN AGRICULTURE
EMPLOYMENT PATTERNS
EMPLOYMENT SECURITY
EMPLOYMENT STATUS
EMPLOYMENT TRENDS
FACTOR COMPONENTS
FALLING POVERTY
FAMILY LABOR
FARM ACTIVITIES
FARM ACTIVITY
FARM EMPLOYMENT
FARM EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
FARM GROWTH
FARM INCOME
FARM INCOMES
FARM SECTOR
FARM WORK
FARM WORKERS
FARMER
FARMERS
GINI COEFFICIENT
GLOBAL POVERTY
HOUSEHOLD HEAD
HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS
HOUSEHOLD SIZE
HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
ILLITERACY
IMPERFECT INFORMATION
INCIDENCE OF POVERTY
INCOME
INCOME DATA
INCOME DISTRIBUTION
INCOME GROWTH
INCOME INEQUALITY
INCOME LEVELS
INCOME SOURCES
INCOME TRENDS
INEQUALITY DECOMPOSITION
INEQUALITY MEASUREMENT
INEQUALITY WILL INCREASE
IRRIGATION
JOB SECURITY
JOBS
LABOR FORCE
LABOR MARKET
LABOUR
LAND AVAILABILITY
LANDHOLDINGS
LANDLESS HOUSEHOLDS
LIVING STANDARDS
MANUAL LABOR
MARKET ECONOMIES
NON-FARM EMPLOYMENT
NON-FARM EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES
NON-FARM SECTOR
OCCUPATION
OCCUPATIONAL MOBILITY
PER CAPITA INCOME
PER CAPITA INCOMES
POLICY DISCUSSIONS
POLICY RESEARCH
POOR
POOR PEOPLE
POPULATION GROWTH
POPULATION SUB-GROUPS
POVERTY ALLEVIATION
POVERTY ASSESSMENT
POVERTY ESTIMATES
POVERTY LINE
POVERTY LINES
POVERTY REDUCTION
PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS
PRIMARY SCHOOL
PRIMARY SOURCE
PRIVATE SECTOR
PRIVATE SECTOR JOBS
PUBLIC EXPENDITURE
PUBLIC SECTOR
PUBLIC SECTOR JOBS
RAPID GROWTH
REAL WAGES
REDUCING POVERTY
REDUCTION OF INCOME
REGRESSION ANALYSIS
REGULAR EMPLOYMENT
REGULAR JOBS
RELATIVE POSITION
RETAIL TRADE
RISING INCOME INEQUALITY
RISING INEQUALITY
RURAL
RURAL AREAS
RURAL ECONOMY
RURAL EMPLOYMENT
RURAL HOUSEHOLD
RURAL HOUSEHOLDS
RURAL INCOMES
RURAL INEQUALITY
RURAL MARKETS
RURAL POOR
RURAL POVERTY
RURAL POVERTY REDUCTION
RURAL TRANSFORMATION
RURAL WORKERS
RURAL WORKFORCE
SALARIED EMPLOYMENT
SELF EMPLOYED
SELF EMPLOYMENT
SELF-EMPLOYMENT
SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT
SMALL FARMERS
SOCIAL HIERARCHY
SOCIAL MOBILITY
STRUCTURAL TRANSFORMATION
SUBSISTENCE
UNEMPLOYMENT
VILLAGE LEVEL
WAGE EMPLOYMENT
WAGE PREMIUM
WAGE RATES
WELFARE DISTRIBUTION
WORKER
Himanshu
Lanjouw, Peter
Murgai, Rinku
Stern, Nicholas
Non-Farm Diversification, Poverty, Economic Mobility and Income Inequality : A Case Study in Village India
geographic_facet South Asia
India
relation Policy Research Working Paper;No. 6451
description This paper assembles data at the all-India level and for the village of Palanpur, Uttar Pradesh, to document the growing importance, and influence, of the non-farm sector in the rural economy between the early 1980s and late 2000s. The suggestion from the combined National Sample Survey and Palanpur data is of a slow process of non-farm diversification, whose distributional incidence, on the margin, is increasingly pro-poor. The village-level analysis documents that the non-farm sector is not only increasing incomes and reducing poverty, but appears as well to be breaking down long-standing barriers to mobility among the poorest segments of rural society. Efforts by the government of India to accelerate the process of diversification could thus yield significant returns in terms of declining poverty and increased income mobility. The evidence from Palanpur also shows, however, that at the village-level a significant increase in income inequality has accompanied diversification away from the farm. A growing literature argues that such a rise in inequality could affect the fabric of village society, the way in which village institutions function and evolve, and the scope for collective action at the village level. Failure to keep such inequalities in check could thus undermine the pro-poor impacts from the process of structural transformation currently underway in rural India.
format Publications & Research :: Policy Research Working Paper
author Himanshu
Lanjouw, Peter
Murgai, Rinku
Stern, Nicholas
author_facet Himanshu
Lanjouw, Peter
Murgai, Rinku
Stern, Nicholas
author_sort Himanshu
title Non-Farm Diversification, Poverty, Economic Mobility and Income Inequality : A Case Study in Village India
title_short Non-Farm Diversification, Poverty, Economic Mobility and Income Inequality : A Case Study in Village India
title_full Non-Farm Diversification, Poverty, Economic Mobility and Income Inequality : A Case Study in Village India
title_fullStr Non-Farm Diversification, Poverty, Economic Mobility and Income Inequality : A Case Study in Village India
title_full_unstemmed Non-Farm Diversification, Poverty, Economic Mobility and Income Inequality : A Case Study in Village India
title_sort non-farm diversification, poverty, economic mobility and income inequality : a case study in village india
publisher World Bank, Washington, DC
publishDate 2013
url http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2013/05/17733297/non-farm-diversification-poverty-economic-mobility-income-inequality-case-study-village-india
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/15555
_version_ 1764429500000501760
spelling okr-10986-155552021-04-23T14:03:19Z Non-Farm Diversification, Poverty, Economic Mobility and Income Inequality : A Case Study in Village India Himanshu Lanjouw, Peter Murgai, Rinku Stern, Nicholas ABSOLUTE POVERTY ADVERSE IMPACTS AGRICULTURAL ACTIVITIES AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT AGRICULTURAL INCOMES AGRICULTURAL LABORER AGRICULTURAL LABORERS AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY GROWTH AGRICULTURAL WAGE AGRICULTURAL WAGE EMPLOYMENT AGRICULTURAL WAGE LABOR AGRICULTURAL WAGES ANNUAL GROWTH AVERAGE ANNUAL AVERAGE INCOME AVERAGE INCOMES BETWEEN-GROUP INEQUALITY CHANGES IN POVERTY COMPARABILITY PROBLEMS CONSUMPTION AGGREGATE DAILY WAGE DATA SET DECLINE IN POVERTY DECLINING POVERTY DECOMPOSABLE INCOME INEQUALITY MEASURES DECOMPOSABLE INEQUALITY MEASURES DECOMPOSITION ANALYSIS DECOMPOSITION METHODOLOGY DEVELOPING WORLD DISADVANTAGED GROUP DISADVANTAGED GROUPS DISTRIBUTIONAL OUTCOMES EARNING ECONOMIC ACTIVITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION ECONOMIC GROWTH ECONOMIC INEQUALITY ECONOMIC MOBILITY ECONOMIC REFORMS ECONOMIC REVIEW ECONOMIC STUDIES EMPLOYEE EMPLOYMENT GROWTH EMPLOYMENT IN AGRICULTURE EMPLOYMENT PATTERNS EMPLOYMENT SECURITY EMPLOYMENT STATUS EMPLOYMENT TRENDS FACTOR COMPONENTS FALLING POVERTY FAMILY LABOR FARM ACTIVITIES FARM ACTIVITY FARM EMPLOYMENT FARM EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES FARM GROWTH FARM INCOME FARM INCOMES FARM SECTOR FARM WORK FARM WORKERS FARMER FARMERS GINI COEFFICIENT GLOBAL POVERTY HOUSEHOLD HEAD HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS HOUSEHOLD SIZE HUMAN DEVELOPMENT ILLITERACY IMPERFECT INFORMATION INCIDENCE OF POVERTY INCOME INCOME DATA INCOME DISTRIBUTION INCOME GROWTH INCOME INEQUALITY INCOME LEVELS INCOME SOURCES INCOME TRENDS INEQUALITY DECOMPOSITION INEQUALITY MEASUREMENT INEQUALITY WILL INCREASE IRRIGATION JOB SECURITY JOBS LABOR FORCE LABOR MARKET LABOUR LAND AVAILABILITY LANDHOLDINGS LANDLESS HOUSEHOLDS LIVING STANDARDS MANUAL LABOR MARKET ECONOMIES NON-FARM EMPLOYMENT NON-FARM EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES NON-FARM SECTOR OCCUPATION OCCUPATIONAL MOBILITY PER CAPITA INCOME PER CAPITA INCOMES POLICY DISCUSSIONS POLICY RESEARCH POOR POOR PEOPLE POPULATION GROWTH POPULATION SUB-GROUPS POVERTY ALLEVIATION POVERTY ASSESSMENT POVERTY ESTIMATES POVERTY LINE POVERTY LINES POVERTY REDUCTION PRELIMINARY ANALYSIS PRIMARY SCHOOL PRIMARY SOURCE PRIVATE SECTOR PRIVATE SECTOR JOBS PUBLIC EXPENDITURE PUBLIC SECTOR PUBLIC SECTOR JOBS RAPID GROWTH REAL WAGES REDUCING POVERTY REDUCTION OF INCOME REGRESSION ANALYSIS REGULAR EMPLOYMENT REGULAR JOBS RELATIVE POSITION RETAIL TRADE RISING INCOME INEQUALITY RISING INEQUALITY RURAL RURAL AREAS RURAL ECONOMY RURAL EMPLOYMENT RURAL HOUSEHOLD RURAL HOUSEHOLDS RURAL INCOMES RURAL INEQUALITY RURAL MARKETS RURAL POOR RURAL POVERTY RURAL POVERTY REDUCTION RURAL TRANSFORMATION RURAL WORKERS RURAL WORKFORCE SALARIED EMPLOYMENT SELF EMPLOYED SELF EMPLOYMENT SELF-EMPLOYMENT SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT SMALL FARMERS SOCIAL HIERARCHY SOCIAL MOBILITY STRUCTURAL TRANSFORMATION SUBSISTENCE UNEMPLOYMENT VILLAGE LEVEL WAGE EMPLOYMENT WAGE PREMIUM WAGE RATES WELFARE DISTRIBUTION WORKER This paper assembles data at the all-India level and for the village of Palanpur, Uttar Pradesh, to document the growing importance, and influence, of the non-farm sector in the rural economy between the early 1980s and late 2000s. The suggestion from the combined National Sample Survey and Palanpur data is of a slow process of non-farm diversification, whose distributional incidence, on the margin, is increasingly pro-poor. The village-level analysis documents that the non-farm sector is not only increasing incomes and reducing poverty, but appears as well to be breaking down long-standing barriers to mobility among the poorest segments of rural society. Efforts by the government of India to accelerate the process of diversification could thus yield significant returns in terms of declining poverty and increased income mobility. The evidence from Palanpur also shows, however, that at the village-level a significant increase in income inequality has accompanied diversification away from the farm. A growing literature argues that such a rise in inequality could affect the fabric of village society, the way in which village institutions function and evolve, and the scope for collective action at the village level. Failure to keep such inequalities in check could thus undermine the pro-poor impacts from the process of structural transformation currently underway in rural India. 2013-09-04T15:13:25Z 2013-09-04T15:13:25Z 2013-05 http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2013/05/17733297/non-farm-diversification-poverty-economic-mobility-income-inequality-case-study-village-india http://hdl.handle.net/10986/15555 English en_US Policy Research Working Paper;No. 6451 CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo/ World Bank World Bank, Washington, DC Publications & Research :: Policy Research Working Paper Publications & Research South Asia India