More and more females are participating in the management and operation of agricultural lands, as per the agriculture census for 2015-16 released by the Ministry of Agriculture on Monday. The census, however, showed a 1.53 per cent decline in total operated area at 157.14 million hectare as compared to 2010-11 data.
The census found out that the percentage share of female operational holders has increased from 12.79 per cent in 2010-11 to 13.87 per cent in 2015-16. In terms of operated area, the share of women increased from 10.36 per cent to 11.57 per cent. The average size of operational holding declined to 1.08 hectares (ha) in 2015-16 compared to 1.15 ha in 2010-11, as per the provisional data.
The Agriculture Ministry said the first census was conducted with reference year 1970-71. The census is conducted every five years to collect data on structural aspects of operational holdings in the country. So far, nine censuses have been done and this is the 10th in series.