What is the first image to pop into your mind when you think of a farmer?
For many, it is likely to be an image of a man, bent over a sickle, as he pours his sweat, blood and tears into the land to ensure his family and country get enough grains.
While this isn't inaccurate, we rarely think of a woman doing the same, overlooking the countless women who toil alongside men, contributing equally, if not more, to the agricultural landscape. As more and more rural men move towards cities in search of better opportunities, the burden of additional farm work has fallen on the shoulders of the women in their houses.
According to the Agriculture Census 2015-16, women operate about 11.72% of the total agricultural land in India. Interestingly, 73.2% of female workers in rural India are involved in agriculture, surpassing the 55% of male workers in the sector. Moreover, 80% of all economically active women in India are employed in agriculture. Despite these staggering figures, women remain largely invisible in conversations about farming and agriculture policies.
The reality is that women are the invisible backbone of agriculture in our country. They are involved in all aspects of farming, from preparing the land to sowing the seeds to harvesting. But their work is unrecognised and they are left out of all crucial conversations about farming and policies related to the same.
The biggest example of this is the lack of land rights female farmers receive. It is a known fact that land in India denotes many things, status and security being the most important. Despite having operational female farmers, only 12.8 percent of the holdings belong to women.
As a result, when climate change related anomalies strike (and reports show that these are only bound to increase in the coming years), women farmers are badly hit. Because without any land to their credit, women farmers cannot receive any of the guaranteed governmental relief measures or aid, leaving them more susceptible to financial losses than landowners.
For instance, in Gujarat, farmers have the consolation of knowing that they can be covered under the Mukhya Mantri Kisan Sahay Yojana of Gujarat scheme. According to this, loss of crop yield due to natural calamities like drought, heavy rain or unpredictable rain can be claimed (with certain conditions, of course).
But, as this article points out, there are no definite numbers to show how many women farmers have benefited from this. Lack of access to financial instruments like a bank account only makes matters worse. In short, the vicious cycle goes on, leaving women without any agency or visibility in one of the largest employable sectors of the country.
What Are We Doing About It?
Empowering women farmers is at the core of everything Oorja does. Our services are designed to transform the lives of small and marginal farmers, especially women farmers, by significantly increasing income when linked to productive activities at their farm.
The company sees itself committed to meeting the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 5 (Gender Equality) and SDG 13 (Climate Action).
We noticed that the two are inherently linked: Sustainable agriculture cannot be achieved without addressing the systemic inequalities that women face, such as lack of access to land, credit, and education. Which is why, we first conducted a detailed gender gap analysis before charting out an action plan for ourselves.
These are our goals in the long and short term:
How Are We Faring So Far?
In its 8+ years of operations, Oorja has included women along the entire value chain of its operations as customers, employees, operators, and trained women farmers on sustainable agricultural practices to have agency in their community and uplift their economic well-being. Despite working in a patriarchal environment in northern India, we have seen an increased participation of women in the agricultural space. Today, more than 16% of Oorja’s irrigation users are women farmers.
We have trained 2,200+ smallholder farmers, including women farmers, on modern and sustainable agronomic practices to help them boost yields, to engage in new growing seasons and diversify their cropping patterns.
Additionally, we trained 65+ women farmers as ‘Krishi Sakhis’ or women entrepreneurs. They were provided with training in digital literacy, financial and agri-business management, and new agronomic techniques, during a 4-day workshop.
However, we acknowledge the persistent barriers women face, including limited access to education, financial resources, and opportunities essential for their empowerment. At Oorja, we're committed to breaking down these barriers. Through our inclusive Pay-Per-Use model, which eliminates end-user financing, and ongoing training initiatives focusing on sustainable agriculture, we've been able to reach and support women farmers in the most remote communities.
We aim to reach 30% women customers through our ongoing efforts by 2027.
If there is one thing we can say for sure, it is: Women are not just silent participants in farming, they are active agents of change. It’s time we all recognise that.
You can read more about our gender mainstreaming efforts and detailed analysis here.
Written by: Simran Ahuja
Photo courtesy: Sharon Avraham
