Ninth International Conference on Food Studies

Abstract

The Indian agricultural sector, inclusive of its sub-sectors, employs roughly 80 percent of all economically active women, and at present, more than 87 percent of women in agriculture do not own the land that they operate on. Much of the debate around land rights for women has revolved around how the lack of land ownership rights have prevented them from availing welfare benefits, improving their productivity and efficiency to make a profit and about empowerment within and outside the household. However, what has not been explored is the importance of subsistence farming both within and outside the household for women. Male out-migration to cities and the soaring suicide rates amongst indebted male breadwinners have led to a feminization of agriculture. This means that women are now responsible for subsistence farming as well as income generation from their land, which is legally not theirs to own or sell. This paper looks at the importance of land in the context of food security and subsistence farming for women.