Role and accountability of women in the farming systems of Madakkathara panchayath in Thrissur district

Abstract

A study on role and accountability of women in the farming systems was conducted in the Madakkathara panchayath of Thrissur District. A sample of 145 women heads selected from five types of fanning systems - homestead with crop components alone (Type-I), homestead with crop components and extended garden (Type-Il), homestead with crop and live stock components (Type-Ill), homestead with crop, extended garden and livestock components (Type-IV) and homestead with agri-business components (Type-V) formed the major respondents of the study. Another category of respondents consisted of 90 development functionaries (30 each of extension personnel, scientists and political functionaries) of Thrissur District. Relevant data were collected through personal interview and questionnaire. Regarding the extent of involvement of men and women and categorization of farm activities, the study could observe that there were female dominant, male dominant and gender neutral practices in the farming systems of the study area. In general, weeding, shed cleaning and feeding of cattle were found to be female dominant practices while marketing, selection of varieties, land preparation, manuring and plant protection were observed as male dominant practices. The practices observed as gender neutral were harvesting, post harvest operations, planting and irrigation. The analysis on farm income contribution by family women members revealed that in the case of farming .sy.stem with crop and live.stock components, family women were contributing the highest i.e. 37 per cent followed by the type with agri-business component; where in women were able to provide 30 percent of mcome.

Time utilization pattern of farm women could reveal the better potential of system with crop and livestock components which was using on an average three hours of family women labour per day for farm management activities. The major problems and constraints faced by farm women were lack of economic freedom followed by lack of marketing facilities and low price for milk. The differential perception on the part of the development functionaries brought out the need for gender orientation and sensitivity with respect to the roles and constraints of farm women among the different functionaries. Content and beneficiary analysis of development programmes of Agriculture, Dairy development and Animal Husbandry Department revealed the essential changes in gender orientation to be brought in the programmes of the Department of Agriculture . . ,