Published in cooperation with Access Development Services.

State of India’s Livelihoods Report (SOIL Report) is an annual publication that addresses contemporary issues in the livelihoods sector. It is the only document that aggregates the experiences and challenges of the sector, analyses case studies and reports progress of both government-run and privately run programmes.

This volume of the report provides an overview and analyses the policies and funding framework through an examination of budget allocations, new policy pronouncements, large programmes initiated and reviews how legislative efforts have a bearing on livelihoods. Four flagship programmes have been taken up for an assessment of performance, among which the dairy sector has been examined in some depth as it provides substantial livelihood opportunities to vulnerable households. This sector covers the topical theme of skill development in the country. Non-farm sector livelihoods, especially in handloom, handicrafts and village industries have also been reviewed. The aftermath of the introduction of corporate social responsibility (CSR) obligations and private-sector engagements with livelihoods has also been examined in this report. As its regular feature, this report takes stock of the ongoing and emerging policy initiatives of the Government of India that are in various stages of formulation and adoption.