Analysis of Poverty Status among Female Headed Tribal Households: Role of Public Distribution System

Sangeet Bhattacharya; Swati Sinha Babu

doi:10.55524/ijirem.2025.12.2.10

Abstract

Reports have highlighted that the number of female-headed households in India are rising, however it has also been reported that these households are poorer than their male headed counterparts. The present paper has tried to explore this nexus between female headed households and poverty, and the role of public distribution system in alleviating poverty, in a tribal setting. The study is based on primary data which has been collected from 170 tribal households in Purulia district of West Bengal. We have specifically focussed on tribal households as they have a more egalitarian society and follow their own distinct traditions and customs. We have also tried to identify the determinants of poverty using a logistic regression model. Results of the study indicate that the incidence of poverty in male headed tribal households was 63.53 percent while it was only 10.59 percent in female headed tribal households. Female headed tribal households were found to receive a larger amount of benefit from PDS compared to their male counterparts. Family size and percent of children had positive impact, whereas percent of elderly had negative impact on poverty. The study concludes that there is no immediate need for introducing anti-poverty policies specifically focused on female-headed tribal households.

Keywords

Female-Headed Households, Poverty, Tribal, Public Distribution System, Logistic Regression

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Cites this article as

S. Bhattacharya, S. S. Babu, "Analysis of Poverty Status among Female Headed Tribal Households: Role of Public Distribution System", International Journal of Innovative Research in Engineering & Management (IJIREM), Vol-12, Issue-2, Page No-57-64, 2025. Available from: https://doi.org/10.55524/ijirem.2025.12.2.10

Corresponding Author

Sangeet Bhattacharya

Research Scholar, Department of Economics, Sidho-Kanho-Birsha University, Purulia-723104, West Bengal, India

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