Women Labour in Agriculture in India: Some Facets

The main occupation is agriculture, because 70 per cent of the population is involved in this occupation. Many women in developing countries are occupied in agriculture. The objectives of the present study are (i) To measure the season wise employment of woman labour in agriculture, (ii) To examine the distribution of woman workers in India. Women play a significant and crucial role in agricultural development and allied fields including in the main crop production, livestock production, horticulture, post harvest operations, agro/ social forestry, fisheries, etc. The nature and extent of women’s involvement in agriculture, no doubt, varies greatly from region to region. Rural Women form the most important productive work force in the economy of majority of the developing nations including India. Agriculture sector employs 4/5th of all economically active women in the country. 48% of India’s self-employed farmers are women. Women’s dependence on agricultural wage labour as a source of income has also increased in the regions with the destruction of many household based industries employing mainly women.