[29] APPLE-ECONOMY EMPLOYMENT AND LIVELIHOOD DIVERSIFICATION AMONG VAN GUJJARS IN SHIMLA DISTRICT, HIMACHAL PRADESH: SEASONAL OPPORTUNITIES, INCOME CONTRIBUTIONS AND PASTORAL CONTINUITY
How to Cite : Jitender Singh, Rajan Bhandari & Nem Raj (2026). Apple-Economy Employment and Livelihood Diversification among Van Gujjars in Shimla District, Himachal Pradesh: Seasonal Opportunities, Income Contributions and Pastoral Continuity. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research & Reviews, 5(7),412-427. https://doi.org/10.56815/ijmrr.v5i7.2026.412-427
Abstract
The expansion of commercial apple cultivation in Himachal Pradesh has generated a seasonal labour market that increasingly intersects with mobile pastoral livelihoods. This study examines how apple-orchard employment contributes to livelihood diversification among Van Gujjar households during their summer stay in Shimla district. An exploratory mixed-methods design combined a household interview schedule with semi-structured interviews, three focus-group discussions and field observation across three Van Gujjar migratory groups at Chanshal, Shiladesh and Larot in the Pabbar Valley. The sample comprised 33 households and 50 individual respondents. Quantitative analysis used descriptive measures of monthly labour income, income shares and an illustrative comparison of two households with similar family size and livestock holdings. Qualitative material was used to reconstruct the timing, forms and perceived drivers of engagement with orchard work. Reported average monthly labour income was highest during the highland stage (₹8,724), where it accounted for 25.8% of household income, compared with ₹4,012 and 14.31% during the lowland stage; no labour earnings were recorded during transit. In the illustrative paired comparison, the orchard-engaged household earned approximately 33% more total monthly income than the non-engaged household, while its labour income was about 3.4 times as high. Livestock income remained similar in both cases, indicating complementarity rather than wholesale occupational replacement. Participants associated the growth of engagement with the spatial and seasonal coincidence of migration and orchard operations, as well as growers’ need for short-duration labour. However, limited formal skills, seasonal employment, mobility constraints and unequal access to orchard networks restrict the scale and stability of these gains. The findings identify apple employment as a supplementary income pathway whose benefits can be strengthened through portable skills, fair work arrangements and services designed around pastoral mobility.
