Gender Discrimination in Land Ownership
- Prem Chowdhry - An eminent social scientist
Land Reforms in India series
Gender & Development
With the help of data the book shows the differences in land ownership patterns and land rights for women across regions, communities and castes. It understands how and why the state laws in relation to agricultural labor, tenants and other farmers, land ceilings, allocation of surplus lands, distribution of ownership titles and other land reforms have failed to accommodate women.
Gender Discrimination in Land Ownership examines the dominant role played by cultural and customary practices in depriving women of legal rights which they may have had, and proposes ways, based upon extensive field work as well as interaction between legal experts, social activists and bureaucrats, to counter gender inequality in all the major zones of India. This interdisciplinary study with its wide contemporary reach will encourage debates on existing society and the augmentation/implementation of laws and rights required to establish a more just and equitable society.
An impressive volume with rich qualitative and quantitative data has come up, full of useful information and important insights from historical and contemporary trends on the relationship between women, their work and land ownership/disinheritance in the context of emergent patterns of burgeoning capitalists economy, migration, and legal contestations on the matter. Prem Chowdhry provides an able and exhaustive introduction to seemingly varied situations. Some chapters are written by academicians who try to weave several themes together. While other articles, especially by administrators, provide descriptive information on Acts, their amendments, and other quantitative data…. The chapters on Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and Punjab give an excellent account of gaps between laws, customs, and practices on the ground level…. The role of civil society organizations in studying, disseminating legal knowledge, and protesting and pushing for change in recent years has also been documented. Most chapters ring out issues of gender discrimination to the fore either through interpretation of Acts or through field studies. They not only provide useful information, but also make suggestions and recommendations for effective implementation. Overall, this book is a useful addition to the growing literature on the subject.
This volume is informative and engaging, and leads to a better understanding of the directions of change and the areas of intervention which need to be addressed by policy makers, administrators, researchers and gender sensitive progressive organisations.
