There is a curious but regular phenomenon that has been occurring in India over the last 50 years and more. Growing rural-to-urban migration by male farmers has led to the “feminisation” of the Indian agricultural sector—meaning that now, most farmers in India are women. As per data from an Oxfam International study, women farmers produce 60-80 per cent of India’s food. Data from the National Sample Survey of 2011 suggests that these women farmers log 3,300 hours of work during a crop season, compared to 1,860 hours logged by men. Meanwhile, male farmers earn 1.4 times higher wages than women farmers.
There are also other factors that exacerbate the situation of these women. Though 85 per cent of rural Indian women work as farmers, they only own about 13 per cent of the land. An International Labour Organisation (ILO) study shows that 81 per cent of women farmers come from the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes. Around 83 per cent come from landless, marginal and small farm households. More than half of them work as unpaid family labour.
Despite all of this, the women farmers of India remain largely invisible. Their labour remains unrecognised and under-reported. Their labour is often passed off as “informal” or “domestic” instead of “formalised” and “paid”. They are often denied access to land, livestock, agricultural technologies, education, irrigation, credit and the markets. Data from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) says that if women farmers are given the same access to productive resources as men, their farm yields may increase by 20-30 per cent, resulting in a 2.5-4 per cent of the nation’s total agricultural output.
Helping Indian women farmers access and increase their agricultural and economic rights is critical. Supporting these women who feed India is our duty. This is not just about gender justice and gender equality, but also social justice for the nation’s women farmers, and for environmental justice. Dr Vandana Shiva and Dr Vijay Rukmini Rao—two renowned activists and experts in the field—share their opinions on the matter, and also explain things you can do to be a part of the movement to help women farmers.