The article examines women’s rights over land as a means of empowerment and documents the varied forms of engagements to secure that right for women in Gujarat. It analyses the position of enjoyment of rights over land by women, the forms of land holdings, changing patterns of land use and the increasing alienation from land. The changes made in land laws in Gujarat since 1970s have led to large scale land acquisition of agricultural land, common property resources and the establishment of SEZs, which in particular have resulted in erosion of rural livelihoods, with women facing the brunt of this change. The article documents the movements particularly that of the Working Group on Women and Land Ownership (WGWLO), in facilitating women’s access to land.
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