Vol. 12, Issue 8 (2023)

Author(s):
NK Jagadeesh, MC Arunmozhi Devi, RY Sushmita, KM Abhishek and CT Suresh

Abstract:
Dairying secures 8.4 million livelihoods annually and also plays a crucial role in providing the year round income, employment generation and nutritional support to the rural households. Livelihood security can be defined as ‘adequate and sustainable access to income and resources to meet basic needs. The government of India initiative in the identified 117 aspirational districts programme, based on the forty-nine key performance indicators of five thematic areas viz. education, health and nutrition, agriculture, financial inclusion and water resources, basic infrastructure and skills had been initiated through various schemes and programmes. In this context, the current research was conducted in the aspirational districts of Andhra Pradesh state viz. Kadapa Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts, to evaluate the part dairying plays in ensuring the dairy farmers' financial security. The primary data was collected through random sampling method from 180 respondents comprising of equal number of dairy and non-dairy farmers. ‘Livelihood Security Index’ (LSI) was developed to analyse the role of dairying in securing the livelihood of dairy farmers in aspirational districts. The study's key findings showed that the majority of dairy farmers (48.88%) belonged to a medium degree of livelihood security, whereas the majority of non-dairy farmers (44.44%) had a poor level of security. The present study conclude that dairying provides a better livelihood security to the dairy farmers which will also aid in securing a better livelihood for non-dairy farmers if they integrate as subsidiary occupation in the aspirational districts of Andhra Pradesh.