Weaving Livelihoods from Tradition: Eri Culture-based Livelihood Opportunities and Perceived Profitability among the Kachari Tribe of Jorhat, Assam, India

Background: Eri culture is practised alongside other household enterprises in Assam, but information on livelihood combinations and perceived profitability among Kachari rearers remains limited. Aims: To document the livelihood opportunities developed through eri culture among Kachari eri rearers and to assess which eri product is perceived by them as the most profitable. Study Design: A cross-sectional household survey was conducted using a multistage purposive-cum-random sampling design in which the district, block and villages were selected purposively and respondents within villages were selected randomly. Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted in three villages (Lohong Gaon, Kachukhat Gaon and Sonowal Gaon) of Titabar Development Block, Jorhat district, Assam, India, from December 2018 to May 2019. Methodology: A total of 120 Kachari eri rearers (60 men and 60 women, one respondent per household) were interviewed face to face using a pre-tested structured schedule. A livelihood opportunity was considered as the complete set of enterprises undertaken by a household along with eri culture and perceived profitability referred to the eri product that the respondent considered as the most profitable. Perceived profitability was a single-item respondent perception; no income, cost or price data were collected. The data were analysed using frequencies, percentages and ranks. Results: The study identified forty-seven distinct livelihood opportunities among the surveyed households. The most common opportunity was eri culture + paddy + vegetable (25.83%), while 26 opportunities (21.67% of households) were unique to a single household. Paddy (80.00%), poultry (65.83%), dairy (54.17%), piggery (34.17%), vegetables (33.33%) and goatery (25.83%) were the main companion enterprises; 67.50% of households combined eri culture with livestock or fishery and 34.17% with wage work, petty business or service. “Cocoon + pupa” was perceived as the most profitable product by 55.83% of rearers, followed by cocoon shell alone (25.00%). No respondent chose eggs, fabric or host plants as the most profitable eri product. Conclusion: Eri culture among the Kachari community forms an integral part of a diversified, paddy-centred and livestock-integrated farming system rather than a stand-alone livelihood activity. Rearers most frequently perceived the cocoon and pupa combination as the most profitable eri product option, while spinning and weaving were rarely perceived as profitable.