Maharashtra introduces bill to recognise women farmers

“The agricultural policies, schemes, and extension systems are largely gender-neutral. However, the requirement of land ownership as a precondition for access to most agricultural schemes and underlying entitlements has rendered such schemes inaccessible to many women farmers, since only a very small percentage of these women own agricultural land,” said the statement of objects and reasons for the bill.

It added that women who cultivate family or community land without holding formal titles to the land are often counted as agricultural labourers rather than farmers.

“Similarly, women who are engaged in allied non-cultivation-based activities such as fishing, collection of minor forest produce, poultry, animal husbandry, etc., are also not recognised as farmers. This systemic non-recognition of women farmers and their agricultural labour is significant and leads to other forms of exclusion, including, but not limited to discrimination in access to schemes, credit and markets,” it said.

The bill provides for Woman Farmer Certificate which enables their access to entitlements, benefits, subsidies, services and credit. It also provides to establish a Women Farmer Empowerment Council and Cell, State Monitoring Committee, and Women Farmers Fund and a database of women farmers.