In the first phase of this study, Aparajita Bakshi, in association with Arindam Das, used data from seven village studies in order to analyse household income diversification in rural India, and its implications for poverty and income inequality. Since questions of poverty and inequality in India are closely related to questions of caste and social exclusion, their report paid special attention to income diversification among Dalit households in the villages (there were significant proportions of Dalit households in all seven villages). The report analysed these processes in quantitative terms.

The seven villages studied in this report represented diverse production conditions and levels of development, and, in particular, diverse conditions with respect to agro-climatic circumstances, irrigation and mechanisation, rural infrastructure, and access to and distance from urban centres.

The villages therefore also showed wide variations in levels of income, occupational patterns, and the composition of income from various sources.

The first phase of this project was supported by the Indian Council of Social Science Research. This work is now being extended to other surveyed villages.