Map 3.1 Shigar Oasis - Freie Universität Berlin

7.3.2 Ownership of land and other resources
To my brother belong your green fields
O father, while I am banished afar.
Always you said
Your brother and you are the same
O father. But today you betray me… 38
Besides two exceptions, all households in the sample own land. The amount of land property
varies from 2 kanal to 5,000 kanal. Additionally, the majority of interviewees stated to be active
in agriculture. However, four cases negated this aspect because they either do not own
land or lease it to others and therefore have other income sources than agriculture, i.e. pensions
or shops.
In case of animals, the situation is similar. The majority of the households keeps animals,
which differ in kind and number between the households. The animal products are mainly
used for own consumption, not for processing or generating monetary income. To sum it up:
Generally the system of combined mountain agriculture (cf. EHLERS & KREUTZMANN 2000)
seems to be still very important and one of the main sources of income in Shigar. This aspect
displays that examining the gender aspect of land property is fundamental and important
because land still is the most important and most common form of property in Shigar today.
The complete amount of land property of both men
and women the interviewees referred to is registered
in the settlement records (jamabandi). This fact
demonstrates that nowadays this form of securing
land property and defining land tenure is still important
and applied.
With regard to land ownership, out of 20 cases only
5% of the total amount of land is owned by women
(Figure 7.1). The vast majority of land is owned by
men and registered on their name. Women who own
land and are registered in the jamabandi particularly
are widows.
Figure 7.1 Women’s contingent of the
As the research involved especially cases where
total amount of land
females de facto owned land, it can be assumed that
the general percentage is even lower in Shigar. By searching the jamabandi for female
names it becomes evident that generally and predominantly men are registered as land
owners. Even in such cases where women are registered in the jamabandi and formally inherited
and possessed land, on enquiry it is actually often used by their brothers or other
male relatives. Hence, the women’s property right is de facto exercised by their kinsman because
the women do not claim it. ”Theoretically [some] women’s names are found in the official
record but they usually bargain away their rights. Moreover due to dependency on male
kin their actual right may be reduced to the usufruct” (MEHDI 2001:244).Furthermore, 100%
of the interviewees stated that the price for land has enormously increased during the last
38 Folksong sung by Hindu women in Northwest India, cited after AGARWAL 1994:1
80