Impact of Fish Farming on Employment and Household Income Evidence from a Village Study in West Bengal

Prawn and fish farming is an important source of income and employment for the local populace in the Sunderban region in West Bengal. These have led to a dynamism in the local economy in these areas. The results of this study suggest that the impact of this development has been skewed, whereby a small section of the population with access to capital has enjoyed substantial benefits and a large majority of the population was left out of the development trajectory. This paper analyses the impact of prawn farming on employment and income on different sections of the population in the Sunderban estuarine region.