Skip to main content

Women "operate" 13% of land holdings in India; Andhra Pradesh tops with 22%, Gujarat 14%, UP worse 7%

Counterview Desk
A new book seeking to study the land reforms process in 11 Indian states has revealed that women across India “operate” only 12.78 per cent of the total operational holdings of India, covering an area of 10.34 per cent of the total operated area, even though there is “considerable variation” across Indian states.
Published by Action Aid, a well-known multinational advocacy group, the book, titled “Land to the Tiller: Revisiting the Unfinished Land Reforms Agenda”, quoting official figures, has said that around 25 per cent holdings in united Andhra Pradesh are operated by women, covering 22 per cent of the total oper ated area in the state, which is the highest among 11 states.
Authored by land reforms experts and activists, the comparison of women's land holdings, drawn by editor Prashant K Trivedi, says that the figures “in a way also reflect the gender-biased nature of the green revolution, which has led to even more concentration of land.”
Following Andhra Pradesh, come southern states of Tamil Nadu (19.11 per cent holdings operating 16.28 per cent area) and Karnataka (18.97 per cent holdings operating 15.53 per cent area), the Trivedi says, adding, then comes the turn of “western states of Maharashtra (14.99 per cent holdings operating 13.08 per cent area) and Gujarat (14.12 per cent holdings operating 13.18 per cent area) come next.”
“In Bihar”, he says, “14.06 per cent landholdings covering an area of 13.29 per cent are operated by women. Comparable figures are 10.98 per cent and 8.17 per cent in Jharkhand, respectively.” “Surprisingly”, Trivedi says, “The situation in Punjab was even worse than that in Haryana (12.06 per cent holdings operating 11.11 per cent area), a state with similar land laws.”
Then come “Uttar Pradesh (6.95 per cent holdings operating 5.38 per cent area) and Rajasthan (7.93 per cent holdings operating 6.29 per cent area)”, at the rock bottom.
Pointing out that “amendments to the Hindu Succession Act were intended to address these inequalities”, Trivedi says, “However, issues remain with its implementation and the fate of women, who remain outside this law, is still uncertain.”
Yet, the book believes, it is “an important law because in India inheritance still remains the largest channel of landed property transfers. Several state governments offer concessions on stamp duty if a property is registered in the name of a woman only.”
“While this attempt is laudable, it is likely to have an impact only on a minuscule proportion of land transactions, given the fact that market transactions of landed property in rural India are only a fraction of transaction done through inheritance”, the book states.
This is reflected in states like Gujarat, where the provision has been made for 2 per cent concession in stamp duty for women buying property, says the chapter on Gujarat authored by Pankti Jog. Also, there is a separate GR which mentions that a house allotted under the Indira Awas Yojana will be in a woman’s name.
Jog says, “Several land issues need to be looked into from the gender perspective especially where women’s land rights are violated or not exercised, and women’s status is deteriorated due to various social, cultural and political reasons which are deterring this process.”
“For instance”, it says, “Privatization of common property resources (CPRs) deprives women of livelihoods, day- to-day household needs, nutrition, medicinal use and healthcare. ”
Further, it says, “Women are seen as a monolithic group by the state government and, therefore, issues of single women, or female-headed households, and women belonging to socially and economically marginalized communities are neglected, or not given due importance, or priority for land allocation, or land use for livelihood purposes.”
Pointing that “no sex-aggregated data on landownership is available”, the book says, “As a result, women are not able to prove their ownership or right over land or over shelter.” It adds, “Not having assets in a woman’s name tends to contribute to increasing violence and crime against women and deterioration in their socioeconomic status.”

Comments

TRENDING

Insider plot to kill Deendayal Upadhyay? What RSS pracharak Balraj Madhok said

By Shamsul Islam*  Balraj Madhok's died on May 2, 2016 ending an era of old guards of Hindutva politics. A senior RSS pracharak till his death was paid handsome tributes by the RSS leaders including PM Modi, himself a senior pracharak, for being a "stalwart leader of Jan Sangh. Balraj Madhok ji's ideological commitment was strong and clarity of thought immense. He was selflessly devoted to the nation and society. I had the good fortune of interacting with Balraj Madhok ji on many occasions". The RSS also issued a formal condolence message signed by the Supremo Mohan Bhagwat on behalf of all swayamsevaks, referring to his contribution of commitment to nation and society. He was a leading RSS pracharak on whom his organization relied for initiating prominent Hindutva projects. But today nobody in the RSS-BJP top hierarchy remembers/talks about Madhok as he was an insider chronicler of the immense degeneration which was spreading as an epidemic in the high echelons of th

Central pollution watchdog sees red in Union ministry labelling waste to energy green

By Chythenyen Devika Kulasekaran*  “Destructors”, “incinerators” and “waste-to-energy (WTE) incineration” all mean the same thing – indiscriminate burning of garbage! Having a history of about one and a half centuries, WTE incinerators have seen several reboots over the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries. 

First-of-its-kind? 'Eco-friendly, low cost' sewage treatment system installed in Gujarat

Counterview Desk Following the installation of the Unconventional Decentralized Multi-Stage Reactor (UDMSR) for sewage treatment, a note on what is claimed to be the  first-of-its-kind technology said, the treated sewage from this system “can be directly utilized for agricultural purposes”, even as proving to be a “saviour in the times of water crisis.”

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah*   The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

Indo-Bangla border: Farmers facing 'illegal obstacles' in harvesting, transporting yields

  Counterview Desk  In a representation to the chairperson, National Human Rights Commission, human rights defender Kirity Roy, who is secretary, Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM), has said that Border Security Force (BSF) personnel are creating "illegal obstacles" for farmers seeking to harvest their ripened yields and transport them to the market in village Jhaukuthi of Cooch Behar district.

'Flawed' argument: Gandhi had minimal role, naval mutinies alone led to Independence

Counterview Desk Reacting to a Counterview  story , "Rewiring history? Bose, not Gandhi, was real Father of Nation: British PM Attlee 'cited'" (January 26, 2016), an avid reader has forwarded  reaction  in the form of a  link , which carries the article "Did Atlee say Gandhi had minimal role in Independence? #FactCheck", published in the site satyagrahis.in. The satyagraha.in article seeks to debunk the view, reported in the Counterview story, taken by retired army officer GD Bakshi in his book, “Bose: An Indian Samurai”, which claims that Gandhiji had a minimal role to play in India's freedom struggle, and that it was Netaji who played the crucial role. We reproduce the satyagraha.in article here. Text: Nowadays it is said by many MK Gandhi critics that Clement Atlee made a statement in which he said Gandhi has ‘minimal’ role in India's independence and gave credit to naval mutinies and with this statement, they concluded the whole freedom struggle.

Wasteland, a colonial legacy, being used to 'give away' vast tracts to Ratnagiri refinery

By Fouziya Tehzeeb* William D’Souza, a 55-year old farmer from Kuthethur, Mangalore, was busy mixing cattle feed when we arrived at his doorsteps. Around 25 km from the bustling city of Mangalore, Kuthethur is a lush green village with thick vegetation. On the way to William’s house the idyllic view gets blocked by the flares and smoke arising from the Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL).

CAA disregards India's inclusive plural ethos, 'betrays' ideals of freedom struggle: PUCL

Counterview Desk    "Outraged" at the move of the Central government to implement the Citizenship Amendment Act, 2019 (CAA 2019) weeks before the election, the top rights group, People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), has demanded that the law be repealed. 

Buddhist shrines were 'massively destroyed' by Brahmanical rulers: Historian DN Jha

Nalanda mahavihara By Our Representative Prominent historian DN Jha, an expert in India's ancient and medieval past, in his new book , "Against the Grain: Notes on Identity, Intolerance and History", in a sharp critique of "Hindutva ideologues", who look at the ancient period of Indian history as "a golden age marked by social harmony, devoid of any religious violence", has said, "Demolition and desecration of rival religious establishments, and the appropriation of their idols, was not uncommon in India before the advent of Islam".

Invincible, Modi 'taller' than BJP, RSS: An opportunity for Congress beyond 2024?

By NS Venkataraman*  With the announcement of poll schedule for the 2024 parliamentary election, there is palpable excitement and expectation amongst the countrymen  about the shape of things to happen in India after the  results of the election would be announced. There is also speculation abroad about the future course of developments in India.