No abstract

In India, collective farming by Women's Groups (WGs) was introduced as a strategy to improve needy women's livelihood alternatives. The study was performed in Raipur district of Chhattisgarh. Three villages were chosen from two selected blocks viz.,Arang and Dharsiwa, and five women groups were selected from each village. Most of the women members of women's groups were in the middle age category. More than one-third of the women members had education up to middle school level. About fifty percent of the women members had medium family size and almost ninety-six percent of the respondents were married. Nearly 70 percent of the women member of women's groups had marginal (<2.5 acres) landholdings. Sixty percent of the respondents had medium level of annual family income. Nearly sixty-eight percent of women members did not receive any training. Majority of the members of women's groups had medium level of participation in extension and mass media activities.