Rights, Justice, Action For India’s Women Farmers

Syllabus: GS2/Issues Related To Women; GS3/Agriculture

Context

• Women’s contributions to agriculture remain largely invisible, as land titles and property ownership continue to remain in men’s names, limiting women’s access to resources, institutional support and decision-making power, despite legal reforms such as equal inheritance rights.

About India’s Women Farmers

• Women constitute the backbone of India’s agricultural sector, playing a critical role in cultivation, livestock management, food processing and household food security.
• Women form a large proportion of the agricultural workforce in India. Key trends include:
  • Around 33% of cultivators and about 42% of agricultural labourers in India are women.
  • In some rural regions, 60–80% of labour in agriculture and allied activities is performed by women.
  • Women contribute heavily to sowing, transplanting, weeding, harvesting, livestock care and post-harvest processing.
• Women’s agricultural work is often undervalued or underreported in official statistics, particularly when women work on family farms.

Issues / Concerns Facing By Women in Agriculture

• Feminisation of Agriculture: India has witnessed the ‘feminisation of agriculture’, a phenomenon where women increasingly take responsibility for farming activities. It is driven by male migration to urban areas for non-farm employment; increasing agrarian distress and rural poverty; and rising reliance on women’s unpaid labour in family farms;
  • However, it often reflects a ‘feminisation of agrarian distress’ rather than empowerment, because women assume more work without access to resources or decision-making power.
• Land Ownership and Resource Inequality: One of the most significant challenges faced by women farmers is the lack of land ownership. Key observations include:
  • Women hold only about 12–14% of operational landholdings in India.
  • Most agricultural land is registered in men’s names due to patrilineal inheritance practices.
  • Cultural norms often discourage women from claiming inheritance rights.
• Women’s Nutrition Crisis: India continues to face a serious nutrition crisis among women and girls. Key concerns include:
  • High prevalence of anaemia among women of reproductive age;
  • Widespread micronutrient deficiencies;
  • Diets dominated by cereals with low intake of pulses, fruits and animal-source foods;
• Other Barriers Faced by Women Farmers:
  • Limited Access to Credit: Banks and financial institutions often require land titles as collateral, excluding women who do not own land.
  • Lack of Access to Extension Services: Agricultural training and extension programmes frequently target male farmers, leading to information gaps for women.
  • Technological Constraints: Women have limited access to modern farm technologies and mechanisation, increasing labour intensity.
  • Social and Cultural Norms: Patriarchal structures restrict women’s mobility, decision-making authority and participation in agricultural markets.

Impact on Food Security and Nutrition

• Women’s empowerment in agriculture is closely linked to improved household nutrition and food security. Research indicates that when women control agricultural resources:
  • Household diets become more diverse;
  • Spending on health and education increases;
  • Child nutrition outcomes improve;
• Land ownership and decision-making power among women farmers are strongly associated with improved nutritional outcomes.

Work Burden and Health Impacts

• Women farmers often face heavy physical labour, lack of drudgery-reducing technologies, limited access to healthcare, and dual burden of productive and reproductive work.
• Research indicates that women engaged in agriculture frequently experience high workloads and poor health outcomes, particularly during peak agricultural seasons

Policy Initiatives Supporting Women Farmers

• National Policy for Farmers (2007): Recognises farmers based on activities rather than land ownership, allowing inclusion of women cultivators and agricultural workers.
• Self Help Groups (SHGs): Women’s SHGs have improved access to credit, collective farming and livelihood opportunities.
• Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana (MKSP): Aims to empower women farmers through capacity building and sustainable agriculture practices.
• National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM): Promotes women’s economic empowerment through collective institutions and rural entrepreneurship.
• Existing Policy Initiatives: National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013 provides:
  • Subsidised cereals through the Public Distribution System (PDS);
  • Supplementary nutrition through Anganwadi services;
  • Maternity benefits for pregnant and lactating women;
    • Several states have introduced millets, fortified foods and local crops into nutrition programmes.

Way Forward: Key Policy Priorities

• Recognising Women as Farmers: Policy frameworks must formally recognise women’s agricultural roles by:
  • Collecting gender-disaggregated agricultural data;
  • Adopting the National Policy for Farmers definition, which identifies farmers based on activities rather than land ownership;
  • Recognising women as cultivators, labourers, tenants and forest gatherers;
• Strengthening Land and Resource Rights: Improving women’s control over productive resources requires:
  • Effective implementation of equal inheritance laws;
  • Promotion of joint land titles for spouses;
  • Gender-sensitive land registration processes;
  • Strengthening women’s role in managing common land and water resources;
• Aligning Agriculture with Nutrition: Agricultural policy must integrate nutrition-sensitive food systems by:
  • Promoting cultivation of nutri-cereals, pulses, fruits and vegetables;
  • Linking public procurement with smallholder and women farmers;
  • Strengthening distribution through PDS, Anganwadis and school meals;
  • Encouraging kitchen gardens and community seed banks;
• Improving Technology and Extension Access: Women farmers require better access to labour-saving agricultural technologies, climate-resilient farming practices, market information and extension services, and training and skill development.
  • Access to appropriate technologies reduces drudgery, time poverty and health risks, while improving productivity and resilience.

Source: IE