Author: Asad Ali Sarkar & Sebak Kumar Jana
DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.70798/PP/020300040
Abstract: This research investigates the socio-spatial determinants and distribution patterns of rural livelihood strategies in the tribal mountainous region of Ajodhya hill, West Bengal, India. The primary objective is to evaluate how capital endowments and geospatial constraints influence household choices among five distinct livelihood pathways: Labour-Dependent (45.19%), Cultivated (28.61%), Ecotourism (18.99%), Service (4.81%), and Business (2.40%). The methodology integrates the Entropy Weighting Method for objective capital evaluation with Multinomial Logistic Regression and multiscale spatial techniques, including Global Moran’s I, Nearest Neighbour Index, and the Geographical Detector method.
Major findings reveal a profound economic divide, where Servicebased households earn an average annual income of Rs. 360,735, more than ten times the income of Labour-dependent households. Regression results indicate that Natural capital serves as a significant anchor for agricultural stability, while Human and Financial capitals are the critical drivers for transitioning into high-return sectors. Geospatial analysis confirms significant clustering (Global Moran’s I = 0.0688), particularly for tourism and service strategies near infrastructure. Crucially, Topographic Roughness emerged as the dominant deterrent to diversification, reducing the odds of non-agricultural adoption by 51% to 81% per unit increase. Geographical Detector results further demonstrate that individual factors like slope and elevation have limited independent explanatory power (q-statistics < 0.02), suggesting spatial heterogeneity is driven by complex interactions rather than solitary environmental constraints. These results highlight how geographic barriers and capital deficiencies hinder tribal participation in the tourism economy, underscoring the need for targeted infrastructure and educational support to promote resilient rural revitalization.
Keywords: Livelihood Strategies; Multinomial Logistic Regression; Spatial Clustering; Geographical Detector.
Page No: 292-318