This report is an attempt to bring to the notice of researchers, academicians, policy-makers and the lay person the various reasons why the welfare of women in the coal sector and in coal communities must be brought to centre-stage and to mainstream gender in India’s just transition discourse and policy making. [...] The report does this by highlighting the need for a gender-sensitive approach to a just transition away from coal in India coming up with four key issues of concern: • The underrepresentation of women in the energy sector: In India, women comprise 10 per cent of the renewable energy sector while the global average for the same is 32 per cent most of which are in non-technical jobs. [...] Prior to the loss of land to coal mining projects, women used to engage in agricultural labour and kitchen gardening to supplement the household income but the loss of land meant that they lost that aspect of their agency in household decision making as they became completely dependent on the income of the male members in their family. [...] While the lifting of the ban was aimed to increase the participation of women in the coal workforce, the historical exclusion of women from employment in a predominantly masculine sector continues to shape people’s attitudes. [...] All of the following points combined lead to a situation where women are left behind in villages and towns to look after the household as well as the agricultural fields: • TERI’s fieldwork in Odisha showed that the youth, especially the younger men, are increasingly migrating outside the state to earn a living as agriculture grows obsolete and in the absence of other avenues of employment in the.
- Pages
- 48
- Published in
- India
Table of Contents
- ESTABLISHING WOMEN AS CRITICAL STAKEHOLDERS IN INDIAS JUST ENERGY TRANSITION 1
- Table of Contents 3
- Abbreviations 4
- List of Figures 5
- Acknowledgements 6
- Executive Summary 7
- 1. Background 11
- 2. The Need for a Gender-sensitive Approach 12
- 3. Who are the Women Affected by Coal Mining 14
- 4. Methodology 15
- 5. The Gendered Nature of Vulnerability in the Coal Communities 18
- 5.1 Repercussions on health and well-being 18
- 5.2 Societal and domestic concerns 22
- 5.3 Implications on land and livelihoods 24
- 5.4. Lack of economic opportunities 25
- 5.5 Exclusion from institutions of mobilisation and governance 27
- 5.6 Blocked opportunities and outmigration 27
- 6. Recommendations 29
- 6.1 Addressing energy poverty 30
- 6.2 Financing for women-centric interventions 31
- 6.3 Initiating a coal census 31
- 6.4 Health interventions 32
- 6.5 Interventions addressing social issues 32
- 6.6 Taking a step towards restorative justice 33
- 6.7 Leveraging governance mechanisms for womens rights 33
- 6.8 Imparting agency through SHGs 34
- 7. Conclusion 36
- ANNEXURE I Women in Coal Mining Areas - A Historical Perspective 37
- ANNEXURE II Case studies of other countries 39
- References 42
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