Changing Structure of Rural Employment in Bihar: Issues and Challenges

Abstract

In India, Bihar has been among the less developed states, but has been showing an impressive growth pattern in recent years. While Bihar's economic structure is changing, the pattern of labour employment is also presenting a shift from farm to non-farm sector. The share of the workforce employed in agriculture has declined from over 70% to around 40% between 2004 and 2017–2018, while the share of employment in industries and services has increased substantially. The growth of non-farm employment provides opportunities to contain the pressing unemployment problem which according to the current Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) 2017–2018 report has recorded more than 7% of the unemployment rate (UR). The rural sector that constitutes a major portion of farm employment has also seen a growth of employment in the non-farm sector, though the rate of unemployment here has increased at a faster rate. While migration has been an important aspect of Bihar’s economy, there is a need to provide employment in rural areas, particularly the rural non-farm sector that would directly affect the unemployment problem in urban centres. Thus, using the latest PLFS (2017–2018) data set, this paper provides a comprehensive analysis of the structural transformation in Bihar since bifurcation and more importantly the changing employment structure focus on rural areas.