SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOOD ASSESSMENT OF MARINE FISHERS OF ODISHA IN CONTEXT OF DISASTER PREPAREDNESS

Higher natural resource dependency of marine fishers makes them more vulnerable to natural disasters. Strengthened livelihood system makes the fishers better able to cope with the adverse impact of the disasters, by enhancing their adaptive capacity. In this context, a study was conducted to examine the sustainable livelihood status of marine fishers in Odisha, an eastern state of India. The study made use of the Sustainable Livelihood Approach (SLA), which has been widely used as an effective tool to study vulnerabilities and capabilities in the context of a disaster. The livelihood status of fishers was assessed through components of sustainable livelihood i.e. human capital, natural capital, physical capital, financial capital, social capital, and access to livelihood support system.

For the purpose, Sustainable Livelihood Index (SLI), with minima 0, and maxima 1, was used. The study was conducted in the Balasore and Ganjam districts of Odisha.  A total no. of 120 fishers was selected by employing multi stage sampling method. Human capital is the vital component of sustainable livelihood which facilitates the access of the household to other livelihood capitals. The overall human capital index score was found to be (0.46±0.09).  Natural capital index score for the coastal fishers of Odisha were found to be lower (0.17±0.30). Physical capital index, which signifies the basic infrastructure and producer goods needed to support livelihood was (0.30±0.22). The overall financial capital index was (0.31±0.11). The social capital of fishers, which is the social resources (networks, social claims, social relations, affiliations, associations) upon which people draw when pursuing different livelihood strategies was found to be on the higher side, the overall social capital index was (0.7± 0.11). Access to livelihood support system was higher in case of both Balasore and Ganjam, which is evident from the index score (0.89 ± 0.04).

The present study reveals the lower level of sustainable livelihood status (0.48) which erodes their ability to mitigate and makes them more vulnerable to adverse impact of disaster. It is recommended to take up specific policy interventions or to reformulate the existing policy in a target specific manner to enhance the livelihood capitals of marine fishers in Odisha.