SERICUL TURE AND THE PROCESS OF CHANGE - Institute for ...

especially in some of the single-woman households, prefer to play only a
passive role. However, women do carry a heavier work load, over their
shoulders as compared to men, particularly in sericulture households.
Women, especially if they are main or active sericulturists and if they
are from single-woman sericulture households, do feel over-burdened
with their work. In most of the households, men are sensitive to
women's work and take a greater share in the work-load at the workintensive
phases of sericulture. Women hardly have any access to land,
which, in turn., deprive them of many other benefits, including credit.
Women's access to information depends on their level of involvement in
the activity. As for the women's access to the returns, it invariably
passes on to the men.
Major economic transactions still remain as a domain of one of
the male adults in the family. The women hardly realize the need for
access to income. In many of the households, whether sericulture or
otherwise, the cash income is generally deposited with the woman of the
household. This access to income is seen mainly as a ritual and the
major say still lies with the men. Nevertheless, the women do take note
of the income and the expenses effected in the household. Their voice
tends to be relatively stronger in sericulture households concerning the
question of accountability from their men-folks. In some households,
particularly where women play an active role in sericulture, the women
control the income to the extent of channelising the expenditure in the
right direction.
The recognition of women's labour is more pronounced in
sericulture households than in the non-sericulture households. Women's
242