Regional Variations in Occupational Structure of the Chamars in India

Abstract: The paper attempts to study inter-state differentials in occupational/industrial classification of the Chamar caste workers in India using the latest 2011 Census data. The Chamar, the numerically the largest and the most widely distributed SC caste in India, is still dominantly agricultural by occupation and rural by residence. Only slightly higher than two-fifths of their worker were engaged in non-farm activities, against this the share of such workers was nearly three-fourths for Balmiki workers. There were, of course, wide inter-state differentials on this count. In some states like Himachal Pradesh the share of cultivators among the total Chamar workers was as high as two-fifths. In contrast, in Bihar seven of each ten Chamar workers were employed as agricultural/casual labourers. On the whole, in eight states, the majority of the Chamar workers was employed in farm sector, and in remaining 17 states and four union territories the reverse was true of the Chamar workers. However, in the former category of states, more than seven of each ten (73.0 per cent) of total Chamar population was residing. Evidently, the dominant majority the Chamar households in the country was employed in farm sector, where wages were generally low and working conditions poor