Q.Case/Source Based Question. Read the following text carefully. Answer questions number 13
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Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →The question asks you to analyse workforce distribution from PLFS data (Q4 2020–21) and list two government pandemic-response initiatives. For (a), the key shift is a rise in self-employment and salaried work for males, while females saw a sharp increase in self-employment but a drop in regular wages. For (b), focus on direct policy measures like free food grains (PMGKAY) and the Atmanirbhar Bharat economic package.
(a) Analyse the nature/distribution of Indian workforce for the fourth quarter of the year 2020–21.
Concept first: The nature of a workforce is understood by looking at the type of employment people are engaged in — are they self-employed, working as regular salaried employees, or doing casual labour? The PLFS data for Q4 of 2020–21 (compared to Q4 of 2019–20) shows how the pandemic and lockdown reshaped these categories differently for men and women.
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For the male workforce:
- Casual labour decreased by 1 percentage point. This means fewer men were working in irregular, daily-wage jobs — a category that was hit hardest during the lockdown.
- Self-employed workers increased by 0.6 percentage points. Many men who lost casual jobs likely turned to self-employment (e.g., small shops, gig work, farming) as a survival strategy.
- Regular salaried workers increased by 0.4 percentage points. This small rise may reflect the growth of formal-sector jobs in the "work from home" and gig economy mentioned in the text.
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For the female workforce:
- Self-employed women increased sharply by 2 percentage points — a much larger jump than for men. This suggests that women, who often face greater barriers to formal employment, turned to self-employment (e.g., home-based work, tailoring, food vending) in large numbers.
- Regular wage/salaried workers decreased by 0.7 percentage points. This drop indicates that formal-sector jobs for women were more vulnerable during the pandemic.
- Casual labour decreased by 1.4 percentage points, similar to the male trend, reflecting the collapse of daily-wage work.
A common mistake is to confuse "percentage points" with "percent change." A 2 percentage point increase in self-employment does not mean the number of self-employed women rose by 2% — it means the share of women in that category went up by 2 percentage points (e.g., from 50% to 52%). Always read PLFS data carefully.
Overall nature: The workforce in Q4 2020–21 shows a clear shift away from casual labour toward self-employment for both genders, with a modest gain in formal salaried work for men but a loss for women. This reflects the pandemic's asymmetric impact — informal workers bore the brunt, while some formal and self-employed segments adapted.
(b) State and discuss any two initiatives taken by the Government to control the adverse impacts of the pandemic.
Concept first: The government's response to the pandemic had two broad aims: (i) protect lives through healthcare and (ii) protect livelihoods through economic relief. The text mentions "effective policy responses" and increased public spending on the social sector. Two standout initiatives are:
- Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana (PMGKAY) — This was a food security scheme launched in March 2020. Under it, the government provided 5 kg of free wheat/rice per person per month (plus 1 kg of pulses) to about 80 crore people — roughly two-thirds of India's population. This was over and above the regular Public Distribution System (PDS) quota. …
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