Backyard poultry farming: A means of sustainable livelihood for the rural tribal people of Keonjhar district, Odisha

Abstract

Poverty and a degraded environment are closely inter-connected, especially when people depend for their\rlivelihoods primarily on the natural resources of their surrounding environment. The tribal economy in Odisha is\rprimarily subsistence oriented and based upon a combination of agriculture, forestry and wage labour (ODR, 2002).\rScanty land holding, land fragmentation and seasonal agriculture are not able to provide full employment to the workforce\rwhich in turn creates unemployment. Backyard poultry farming require hardly any infrastructure set-up and\rbesides supplementary and steady generation, rural backyard poultry can improve food sufficiency, can also unleash\rhuman productivity, encourage women and unemployed youth, and bridge the gap between demand for and production\rof eggs and meat. The study was conducted in Keonjhar district of Odisha. 110 respondents who were engaged in\rpoultry farming were selected as sample for the study. Majority were medium producing poultry rearers with a medium\rto low level of knowledge regarding breeding and rearing practices.