Survival strategies of the urban poor.

What is it about?

This paper is based on a primary survey of 300 households (2010-11) in the slums of Kolkata. In order to develop an understanding regarding the multidimensional nature of the poverty and how the poor devise their livelihood strategies, we gathered micro level data through field surveys. The poor identified in our study areas were living a life of uncertainty and insecurity throughout the year, and were forced to adopt various ‘survival strategies’. Diversification of income sources is, perhaps, the most important instrument for the households to escape from poverty. We observed that a huge chunk of the workers from the sampled households earn a livelihood through physical labour, although income levels differ across and within occupational categories. It has been documented in our analysis that the BPL households earn nearly 20% of their total household income from domestic work. As the households move up the economic ladder, the contribution to the total household income from domestic work and scavenging decline, while that from self-employment rises. The transport sector workers, however, defy such trends. Using probit regression, we examined the determinants of the choice of modes of employment by the poor urban workers, and noted that more educated workers heading large households and also being privileged in having their father in self-employment makes them more prone to be engaged in self-employment activities. The employment intensity was computed and was found to be higher for self-employed males but lower for male wage earners However, the employment intensity for wage earners scores higher when both males and females are taken together. Similar type of gender divergence has also been witnessed in terms of ‘annual earnings per worker’ and ‘earnings per day’.

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