Education and Employment: An Analysis of the Deprivation among Muslims of Malda District (West Bengal)

Abstract

Poor representation of Muslims in employment is evident in many government reports and researches from time to time. There are many explanations, but the most suitable explanation of their poor employment level is their general educational backwardness. Empirical research on the determinants of education and economic growth has typically neglected the influence of religion. To fill this gap, in this paper, we explore the determinants of one aspect of religious behaviour education and employment at the micro regional level using primary survey data on education and employment. To be specific, we focus on the relationship between education and employment and vice-versa. The findings from our cross-section data analysis, which treats education as an endogenous variable, support a positive association between education and employment. In addition, our findings suggest that the current participation in economic activities is positively associated with the past as well as future educational activities. Furthermore, our findings suggest that levels of religious activity tend to vary less over time suggesting that factors such as habit formation may be important. This paper argues that education and employment is inter-linked. It examines whether, and to what extent, work participation is influenced by education. The econometric estimates are based on unit record data from a survey of 2590 (1300 Muslim and 1290 Hindus) households, in 80 villages, from 15 development blocks of Malda. The economic, educational status and religious affiliation of 2590 households, from 80 villages of 15 development blocks of Malda are analyzed and it shows the interrelationship among these variables. Data indicates the increasing portion of Hindus with increasing income and education.