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Empirical study on livelihood diversification of the people of forest fringe areas of Jalpaiguri District has been performed through data from the sample households. Main results of the study were that there were gram panchayats, villages and sex wise significant differences of livelihood indicators: percentages of earners and shares of earnings belonging to female and migrant labourers. There were some households solely financed by female earners or migrant labourers. Most prominent livelihood activity was non-farm. Factor analyses coupled with reliability analyses of 25 push and 16 pull livelihood factors have been constructed. Policies should focus on empowering people particularly females and migrant labourers through skill development in eco-tourism, NTFP processing, and small-scale farming with access to credit and market linkage. Improving livelihoods of people requires a diversified strategy that transitions them from subsistence-based, forest dependency to sustainable, income-generating activities; strengthening farm, off-farm, and non-farm sectors, often supported by government initiatives.

Keywords

Simpson’s Index (SI) of Livelihood Diversity, Push and Pull Livelihood Factors, Migrant Labourer, Female Earner, Factor Analysis, Most Prominent Livelihood Activity

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