Dr. Baijayanti Rout | Mining, Forests and Tribal Livelihoods in Odisha

“Where the mine meets the forest, an economist listens to the people who live between them — and turns their experience into evidence.”

Dr. Baijayanti Rout is an economist whose work sits where India’s mineral wealth meets the lives of the people who live on top of it. Her research follows what happens to forest-dependent and tribal communities in Odisha when mining, environmental change, and economic transformation reach their doorstep — and how those communities respond.

Doctoral research and its contribution

Dr. Rout’s doctoral thesis at the Central University of Gujarat (2019–2023), Mining and Environmental Movement in Odisha: A Case Study on Gandhamardan Hill, took one of western Odisha’s most significant environmental movements and asked an economist’s questions of it: what did the hill’s forests and resources mean to the livelihoods of the people around it, and what did mineral extraction threaten to take away? Her central contributions:

• A field-based economic account of an environmental movement. Rather than treating the Gandhamardan movement only as a political or cultural event, the thesis links its emergence to the short-term economic effects of mining on local communities and to their dependence on the hill for their livelihoods.
• Putting a value on the forest economy. Drawing on primary survey data from the Gandhamardan region, the work examines the relationship between the value of forest products and household economic condition — showing how central forest-based income is to local well-being.
• Connecting past and present. The thesis traces the movement’s contemporary relevance, placing it within Odisha’s wider debate over extractive industries, tribal development, and the “growth versus destruction” dilemma of mining-led development.

The thesis produced an unusually rich stream of peer-reviewed work, including papers in Natural Resources Forum (Wiley), SN Social Sciences, SN Business & Economics, and Contemporary Voice of Dalit (SAGE).

Her earlier M.Phil. research (2017–2019), Female Labour Force Participation Rate in Odisha: A District Level Analysis, mapped how women’s participation in work varies across Odisha’s districts. Read together, the two degrees show a consistent commitment — to the livelihoods of those at the margins of Odisha’s economy, first through the lens of gender and employment and then through the lens of natural resources and the environment.

Dr. Rout at convocation, Central University of Gujarat; Dr. Rout with her Ph.D. supervisor]

Core Research Focus

• Mining, extractive industries, and environmental movements
• Tribal development and tribal livelihoods
• Forest-based livelihoods, NTFPs, and natural-resource dependence
• Rural development and livelihood resilience, including the effects of COVID-19
• Gender, employment, and female labour force participation
• Environmental economics, mineral economics, and sustainable development

📚Selected publications

• Rout, B. (2024). The detrimental consequences of mining and inspiration for the Gandhamardan movement in Western Odisha, India. Natural Resources Forum, 1–16. Wiley.
• Rout, B., & Nayak, B. B. (2024). Impact of COVID-19 on the extractive sector of India. Mineral Economics, 1–9.
• Rout, B. (2023). Interlinkage between short-term effect of mining and motivation for the emergence of movement: A case study of Gandhamardan Hill Region–Odisha–India. SN Social Sciences, 3(10), 173.
• Rout, B. (2023). Relationship between the value of forest products and economic condition: A case study of Gandhamardan Hill, Odisha, India. SN Business & Economics, 3(10), 182.
• Rout, B., & Pradhan, J. P. (2023). Odisha’s extractive industries: Present status and future prospects. Productivity, 64(1).
• Rout, B. (2023). The Gandhamardan movement of Western Odisha and its contemporary relevance. Contemporary Voice of Dalit. SAGE.
• Rout, B. (2023). How did COVID-19 pandemic affect the rural (tribal) livelihoods? A case study of Khaprakhol Block. Contemporary Voice of Dalit.
• Rout, B. (2023). Mining in Odisha: Growth vis-à-vis destruction. Indian Journal of Applied Business and Economic Research, 4(1), 81–99.
• Rout, B. (2022). Rural livelihood in Odisha: A case study from two blocks of Western Odisha. Indian Journal of Economics and Financial Issues, 3(2), 183–193.

Selected conference presentations

• IBS Hyderabad — “Mining and Environmental Movement in Odisha: A Case Study on Gandhamardan Hill,” 14th Doctoral Thesis Conference, 2021.
• Indian Economic Association — “Emerging Trends of Female Labour Force Participation: A District Level Analysis of Odisha,” 102nd Annual Conference, 2019.
• Indian Society of Labour Economics (ISLE), Punjabi University — “The Female Labour Force Participation of Odisha,” Labour Economics Conference, 2019.
• Indian Social Science Congress — “Mining in Odisha: Current Scenario,” XLIII Indian Social Science Congress, 2020.
• Odisha Economic Association — “Mining in Odisha: Prospects and Consequences,” 52nd Annual Conference, 2020.
• Gujarat Institute of Development Research — “Forest Based Livelihood in Odisha: A Case Study on Gandhamardan Hill,” National Conference, 2022.

Current role and teaching

Dr. Rout is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics (Humanities and Social Sciences) at ITER, Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University, Bhubaneswar, where she teaches Microeconomics and Macroeconomics to undergraduates. Her classroom aim is to connect economic theory with the development problems her students can see around them, and to build their analytical and empirical skills.

“Anyone can become a good researcher through hard work and dedication — but a supportive and understanding guide makes the journey much easier.”

Before joining SOA, she taught undergraduate and postgraduate students at Kalinga University, Raipur, covering International Trade, Microeconomics, and Macroeconomics. Her teaching career began at the Central University of Gujarat, where, as a Teaching Assistant, she taught Indian Economy and Development Economics, evaluated assignments and presentations, and set question papers.

Fellowships and recognition

• Dr. Ambedkar Doctoral Fellowship (JRF), Dr. Ambedkar International Centre, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India (2021–2023)
• UGC-NET qualified, June 2019
• Merit Scholarship, Postgraduate studies, Ravenshaw University (2013–2015)
• Prerana Scholarship, Department of Higher Education, Government of Odisha (2012–2013)

Research training and academic service

Dr. Rout built her methodological toolkit through an extensive series of research-methods programmes — at the Madras Institute of Development Studies, NIRDPR Hyderabad, IGNTU (ICSSR-sponsored), and the V. V. Giri National Labour Institute, among others — including specialised training on gender, poverty, the informal economy, and labour reforms.

She serves as a reviewer for Mineral Economics, Journal of Infrastructure, Policy and Development, Discover Environment, and Letters in Spatial and Resource Sciences.

The CUG connection

The Central University of Gujarat is where Dr. Rout spent six formative years — first as an M.Phil. scholar and then as a Ph.D. scholar — and where her association with Prof. Jaya Prakash Pradhan began. For a scholar far from home in Odisha, it was a journey of growth as much as of research.

“My M.Phil. and Ph.D. journey at CUG is one of the most meaningful chapters of my life. When I started, I was very nervous and often afraid that I might not be able to do things properly. My guide was always there for me — not only academically but also emotionally and morally whenever I faced difficult situations — and his constant encouragement and belief in me helped me overcome my fears. CUG gave me much more than a degree: it gave me confidence, lifelong friendships, and lessons that continue to shape me as a teacher, researcher, and person.” — Dr. Baijayanti Rout

Looking ahead

Dr. Rout’s next phase of research aims to deepen the link between field evidence and policy — on mining, forest resources, NTFPs, employment, and sustainable development in Odisha’s rural and tribal regions.

Vision for the Future | Beyond Academia

Dr. Rout’s priorities include:

• Bridging research and real-world development challenges through field-based economic research
• Strengthening research on tribal and rural livelihoods in Odisha
• Advancing interdisciplinary work on mining, environment, and community livelihoods
• Developing sustainable and circular approaches to NTFP and forest-based value chains
• Contributing evidence to policy on tribal development and natural-resource governance
• Creating inclusive learning environments and mentoring the next generation of economists

🤝 Connect with Dr. Baijayanti Rout

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📧 baijayantiecoresearch@gmail.com · baijayantirout@soa.ac.in

📱 +91 7205193795