Caste and Socioeconomic Status of Weaver Households: Evidence from Western Odisha

Abstract

The present study attempts to empirically analyse the effect of caste on income and socioeconomic status of weaver households in Western Odisha. The primary data has been collected from the weavers’ households from both the OBC and SC categories. It has selected a sample size of 390 weaver households from the Bargarh and Subarnapur districts of Western Odisha. The findings
suggest that weaver households across the caste suffer from low income and low socioeconomic status, and again, caste strongly affects the income and socioeconomic status of weaver households within the handloom industry. The weavers’ income and socioeconomic status from the SC category are at the lowest compared to weavers from the OBC category. Therefore, the study recommends that the government provide skill upgrade training to the weavers from SC and financial security to the weavers across the castes in time of need.