‘No Gas Cylinders, No Toilets’: Women Farmers in Mancha, Rajasthan

“We have nothing in our homes. Gas stove, toilets, we have nothing,” say women farmers of Mancha, Rajasthan.

Women farmers in Mancha, Rajasthan

(Photo: The Quint)

Video Editors: Vishal Kumar & Mohd Ibrahim

While the Congress party claims to be singularly focusing on the agrarian crisis, the BJP while releasing their manifesto claims to have distributed mobile phones to women, among other things.

But women of Rajasthan’s Mancha neither have gas cylinders nor any toilets facilities. In The Quint’s special election coverage, we speak to women farmers about their issues.

We have been queuing up for the past two months, yet we haven’t got any <i>choolha </i>(gas stoves) as promised by the government.

Woman farmer Mancha, Rajasthan

We didn’t get gas cylinders yet. Although we have filled the required forms, the government hasn’t sent cylinders for us.

Woman farmer Mancha, Rajasthan

These women farmers who work in onion fields to earn their living are also sometimes pestered by males who ask them to leave the fields and go away. These women, because of their lack of formal education and other opportunities, are forced to work in the fields.

I am studying. When there is no work for us, then we are forced by our condition to work here in the farm. We are helpless, that’s why we do labour here.

Woman farmer, Mancha Rajasthan

Government hasn’t made toilets for us. Some people once got the toilets made. But the money wasn’t paid to them and then nobody tried again. The government told us that Rs 12,000 will be paid but nothing happened. We have nothing in our homes. We need everything. Gas stove, toilets, houses, we have nothing.