Women farmers will have their own identity in Maharashtra, government approved this historic bill

Maharashtra government is preparing to bring a historic bill giving women the status of independent farmers. For this, the Maharashtra Cabinet has approved the draft of the Maharashtra Women Farmers Empowerment Bill, 2026. After presiding over the meeting on the draft bill, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that the contribution of women in agricultural work in Maharashtra is more than 81%, but earlier they did not get adequate rights and recognition. This bill is a big step towards giving them identity, rights and opportunities. This bill will be presented in the Assembly in the upcoming monsoon session.

The CM said, “This law will be an important step towards providing independent identity, rights and opportunities to millions of women farmers and will also set a new standard for gender equality in the agriculture sector.”

The definition of “agriculture” and “farmer” has also been expanded in this draft, so that it can include farming and many related activities. Along with this, the participation of rent farmers, sharecroppers, agricultural laborers and seasonal migrant laborers associated with agriculture can also be increased.

What are the main points of this draft?

Now women who do not have land will also get the status of legally independent “women farmers”. This state government will issue “Women Farmer Certificate”. Through this certificate, women will be able to avail direct benefits of Kisan Credit Card, subsidy, crop insurance, agricultural schemes, loans and other facilities. Women engaged in agriculture related activities like dairy, fish farming, animal husbandry will also come under its purview.
Sharecroppers, agricultural laborers and seasonal farmer women will also get benefits.

There is also a provision in this bill to create ‘Maharashtra State Mahila Kisan Kosh’ and to prepare a digital database of women farmers, which will be linked to other government databases. For ease of implementation, the government proposes to appoint ‘Women Farmer Assistance Officers’ at the district and taluka level from among the existing officers. These officers will help in obtaining certificates, availing benefits of welfare schemes and adopting better methods of farming.