To alleviate rural poverty and foster rural prosperity, growth in the rural non-farm (RNF) sector is essential. Owing to the rising cost of cultivation, declining productivity, and climate change, farming has become unviable for small and marginal farmers, comprising 85% of the nation's farming population. In this context, as a strategy for sustainable rural livelihoods, the involvement of smallholder farmers in the RNF activities has increased significantly in the nation over the last two decades. In terms of a binary logistic regression model, this paper investigates how various demographic and socio-economic variables impact the participation of farmers in RNF activities by collecting data from 324 small-holder farming households in some selected villages of West Bengal. The paper further seeks to recognize different pull and push factors responsible for participation in RNF activities. The paper recommends the government's role in developing appropriate infrastructure facilities for agro-processing units, promoting micro, small and medium industries in rural areas, and organizing professional training programme to develop skills for rural non-farm workers.

Keywords: Demographic, Nonfarm, Pull and Push Factor, Smallholder Farmer, Socio-economic.

JEL: C51, C83, J21, Q01, Q12.