15. Rural Non-farm and Tourism Based Livelihood Options

The concept of livelihood extends to include social and cultural means. The current status of tourism and non-farm based livelihood opportunities have been investigated in the Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh. For the collection of primary information, well-structured questionnaires, focus group discussion, and personal interviews were used to document the various non-farm and service sector activities. Villagers are also engaged in non-farm and service sector activities including tourism, woollen knitting, carpentry, basket and leaf plate making, backyard poultry, goat and sheep rearing, handicrafts, and mushroom farming. Foreign tourists are getting interested in the prevailing system of homestays at village level and herbal healing. The field study suggests that there are several institutions working in bringing down the poverty level in the region, but the awareness, resources, provisions and facilities are limited to few. Dera Gopipur Tehsil is among the best performers with a 9.24 composite capital index score, while Harchakiyan with a score of 1.43, fares considerably lower. There is a need of diversification of livelihood activities which could provide ample opportunities of generating income for the rural masses. Community-driven development is the best approach in harnessing the full potential out of the diversification of employment opportunities that tourism and non-farm activities have to offer.