Flagship Course • Free Forever

Livelihoods in India: Rural, Urban & Skills

Work and incomes in India — institutions, instruments, evidence

A comprehensive flagship on the institutions, instruments, and evidence that shape work and incomes in India today. Built for practitioners, evaluators, and policy actors who need both the policy landscape and the methodological rigour to read the field critically.

3 Modules · 15 Topics NRLM · MGNREGA · Skill India India-Centred Evidence-Driven
3 Modules · 15 Topics
~18 hours
Practitioner level
India-centred
Start the Course Companion: Dev Economics Companion: MEL
~67%
Workforce in informal employment (PLFS 2022–23)
90M+
Women in SHG federations under NRLM
~32.8%
Female labour force participation (PLFS 2022–23)
8M+
Gig & platform workers (NITI Aayog 2022)
References

Core Readings — Building a Working Library

If you want a single shelf for Indian livelihoods practice, this is the working list. Most are available open-access; some require library access.

Foundational Frameworks

  • Chambers, Robert & Conway, Gordon (1992). "Sustainable Rural Livelihoods: Practical Concepts for the 21st Century." IDS Discussion Paper 296.
  • Scoones, Ian (1998). "Sustainable Rural Livelihoods: A Framework for Analysis." IDS Working Paper 72.
  • DFID (1999). Sustainable Livelihoods Guidance Sheets.
  • Sen, Amartya (1999). Development as Freedom. Oxford University Press.

Rural Livelihoods

  • Banerjee, Banerji, Duflo, Glennerster, Khemani (2010). Various papers on Indian rural service delivery.
  • Drèze & Sen (2013). An Uncertain Glory: India and its Contradictions. Penguin.
  • Hoffmann, Rao, Surendra & Datta (2018). NRLM Bihar evaluation. Journal of Development Economics.
  • Krishna, Anirudh (2010). One Illness Away: Why People Become Poor and How They Escape Poverty. Oxford.
  • Pritchett, Lant (multiple). RISE programme papers on Indian education and livelihoods.

Urban & Informal Sector

  • Agarwala, Rina (2013). Informal Labour, Formal Politics, and Dignified Discontent in India. Cambridge.
  • Breman, Jan (multiple). Footloose Labour, Wage Hunters and Gatherers, The Labouring Poor in India.
  • Harriss-White, Barbara (2003). India Working: Essays on Society and Economy. Cambridge.
  • NCEUS (2007). Report on Conditions of Work and Promotion of Livelihoods in the Unorganised Sector.
  • Surie, Aditi; Adhvaryu et al.; Pais & others (multiple). Platform-economy papers (2018–2024).

Skills & Labour Markets

  • Card, Kluve, Weber (2010, 2018). Global meta-analyses of active labour market programmes.
  • Maitra & Mani (2017). Stitching skill RCT in West Bengal. AEJ: Applied.
  • Adhvaryu, Kala & Nyshadham (2023). Soft-skills training in garment industry. AEJ: Applied.
  • Klasen, Stephan (multiple). Female labour force participation analyses.
  • Mehrotra, Santosh (multiple). Indian skill development policy critiques.
  • Banerjee & Sequeira (2023). Job search interventions RCT in India.

Critical Perspectives

  • Bhaduri, Amit (2008). The Face You Were Afraid to See. Penguin.
  • Drèze, Jean (multiple essays). Including Sense and Solidarity.
  • Patnaik, Utsa & Patnaik, Prabhat (2016). A Theory of Imperialism. Columbia.
  • Roy, Tirthankar (2020). The Economic History of India 1857–2010. Oxford.

How to use this list. Do not try to read everything before starting work. Pick three texts that resonate with your immediate practice and read them deeply. Return to others as questions arise. The list is for working through over years, not weeks.