Question

Analyse the recent trends in sectoral distribution of workforce in India.

Answer 1

The three major sectors of an economy i.e. Primary, Secondary and Tertiary collectively are known as occupational structure of an economy. The primary sector includes agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining, etc. The secondary sector consists of manufacturing and construction activities. Tertiary sector includes various services like transport, communication, trade, etc. Primary sector is the prime source of employment for the majority of the workers in India. Its contribution is as high as 57.3 % of our total workforce. About 17.6% and 25.1% of the total workforce is employed in the secondary and the service sector respectively. People living in the urban areas are largely engaged in secondary and tertiary sectors and those in the rural areas are involved basically in primary sectors. Also, the tertiary sector is taking a lead over the secondary sector as a source of employment and increasing share in India’s GDP. As far as the distribution of male and female is considered, a high percentage of total female workforces are engaged in the primary sector than in the secondary and tertiary sectors.