Immense scope for women in sugarcane based cottage industries Prakash Brahm, Sharma A.K., Ashfaque Mohd. Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research, Lucknow-226 002, Uttar Pradesh Online published on 23 October, 2017. Summary Jaggery (Gur) is one of the largest sugarcane based cottage industry in India under unorganized sector. Women play an important role in manufacturing, storage and marketing of jaggery from sugarcane. Harvesting of sugarcane, detrashing including removal of green tops of cane stalks, bundle making, carrying these bundles to crushing yards, cleaning of cane stalks, feeding cane stalks for crushing, juice cleaning and clarification, bagasse/fuel drying and feeding into the furnace for juice heating and boiling, cooling and moulding, drying, packaging and storage, transportation, trade and marketing. About 17% of sugarcane produced is utilized for production of jaggery which is made mostly by small and marginal farmers employing semi-skilled persons. These groups of farmers include more than 50% farm and family women workers to attend to various activities. So far as jaggery marketing is concerned, direct sale of jaggery to the ultimate consumer by the producer is very difficult because of widely scattered places of production and consumption. Therefore, the role of middlemen, which could by even women of rural origin, becomes significant for disposal of jaggery. It is, therefore, essential to identify and understand the role of women as producers, processor, as middlemen and also as a member of agricultural market committees in the development of sugarcane based cottage industries, in general, and jaggery industry in particular. Women participation in sugarcane production is limited (19% of the total work days required) in India due to social dimensions. In a study of 20 gur manufacturing units in Uttar Pradesh, 10 persons are employed per gur manufacturing unit on an average, out of which 27% are women. Over the years, the role of women has increased in gur manufacturing. It varies with the marketing channel. At the village level, producer-consumer channel is adopted and only in this channel women are participating at the extent of 46%. While at local rural market level, producers-retailers-consumers channel is prevalent. At the tahsil/district level, the channel is producers-producers’ agents-traders-retailers-consumers or producerstraders-retailers-consumers. In both these channels, the women traders are almost nil. A proper entrepreneurship development of women and an active role of Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) in their adequate backstopping will help in increasing the women role in jaggery making and marketing. Top |