Occupational Structure Of Indian Economy

1. OCCUPATIONAL STRUCTURE OF
INDIAN ECONOMY

2. WHAT IS
OCCUPATIONAL STRUCTURE
The occupational structure of any
country is defined by the segment of
a country's population that is
engaged in economic ventures and
various professions. To define
occupational structure most simply
the different demographic sections of
a country who are employed in
different sectors like agriculture,
manufacturing and transport, among
many other constitute the
occupational structure of a nation.

3. TYPES OF OCCUPATION
An occupation of a person is defined as the
principal work or business which he or she carries
out on a daily basis to earn their primary earning.
Occupation in any country can a broadly divided
into three major categories:
1. Primary occupations of any country include
agriculture construction and animal husbandry.
2. The Secondary set of occupations include the
people who work in manufacturing and servicing
Industries.
3. Tertiary branch of occupations encompasses the
part of the population working in communication,
transport, administration and other remaining
services.

4. OCCUPATIONAL STRUCTURE IN
COLONIAL INDIA
During the colonial period, the occupational structure of India,
i.e., the allocation of working people across various industries
and sectors, explicated small hints of change. The agricultural
sector valued for the highest share of the workforce, which
normally prevailed at a high of 70–75%, while the
manufacturing and service sectors estimated for only 10 and
15-20% sequentially. Another outstanding perspective was the
growing geographical variation. Parts of the then Madras
Presidency (including areas of the present-day states of Tamil
Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka), Bombay, and
Bengal observed a drop in the dependence of the workforce
on the agricultural sector with a corresponding increase in the
production and the services sectors. However, there was an
increase in the share of the workforce in agriculture during the
same time in the states like Rajasthan, Odisha, and Punjab.
SECTOR 1951 1981 1991 2000
PRIMARY 72.1 68.7 66.8 56.7
SECONDARY 10.6 13.5 12.7 17.5
TERTIARY 17.3 17.8 20.5 25.8
(IN PERCENTAGE)

5. FEATURES OF AN
OCCUPATIONAL STRUCTURE
The salient features of India’s occupational structure are as
follows:
1. Agriculture is a primary source of occupation in the nation.
2. At the time of Independence, almost 75% of the total
population was engaged in agricultural activities, as a result
of which there still lies backwardness in the Indian economy.
3. All three sectors of the nation witnessed unbalanced
advancement and escalation.
4. The states like Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka,
Maharashtra, West Bengal, and Kerela observed a significant
shift in their dependence of the working population from the
agricultural sector to the manufacturing as well as tertiary
sectors.
5. The growth in regional variations.

6. WHY DID THE OCCUPATIONAL STRUCTURE
FAIL?
The occupational structure in India has not
changed significantly over the years and a
very large proportion of the work force is
still engaged in the primary sector.
1. Failure to Develop Agricultural Sector
2. Rapid Population Growth
3. Slow Industrialisation
4. Slow Development of Infrastructure

7. SUGGESTIONS TO BRING ABOUT
CHANGES IN OCCUPATIONAL STRUCTURE
To bring about changes in the occupational
structure in line with the historical economic
growth of developed countries the following
suggestions are made:
1. Control of Population Growth
2. Change in Occupational Structure in Rural
Areas
3. Development of Small Industries
4. Diversification of Industrial Structure
5. Development of Infrastructure Sector

8. CONCLUSION
The above analysis reveals that the occupational structure
in India has remained almost static over the years. Leaving
aside the period of the British rule which kept the Indian
economy in a state of stagnation, there has been little shift
in the occupational distribution of the work force. About
50 years of planned economic development has not made
much impact on primary, secondary and tertiary sectors of
the economy in terms of occupational distribution. About
60 per cent of the work force is still engaged in the primary
sector which is overcrowded and the pressure of
population continues on land. The secondary sector has
also failed to absorb more labour force despite
industrialization and urbanization. So far as the tertiary
sector is concerned, it shows that a higher proportion of
work force is engaged in this sector as compared to the
secondary sector.

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