Women Will Be Co-Owners Of Affordable Homes

In developing countries, children are not likely to be malnourished when their mothers own land. There is a growing body of evidence which confirms this. As the saying goes, “It is not empty pockets, but women's empty pockets that make children malnourished.” It is true that in families in which women own land are generally more prosperous, and provide a more nourishing environment for children. It is quite possible that female ownership of property has some direct effects on health and educational outcomes of children.

Recognizing the importance of women owning property in India, the Indian government, which seeks to build 20 million homes for low income individuals, has decided to increase ownership rights of women. To financially empower women from economically weaker sections (EWS) and lower income groups (LIG), the Indian government has made it mandatory that the mother or wife should either be the sole or co-owners of flats of affordable homes. Under the government's scheme to make homes affordable for everyone by 2022, such homes must be registered at least partly in the name of men. The government had also decided to give preference while allotting flats to other vulnerable sections of society like transgenders, widows and scheduled castes and tribes.

One finding of researchers who study female ownership of property is that when women of the home own land, families allocate a larger share of the budget to food. The performance of such families in health, education and nutrition are better too. The reason could be that in more enlightened families, women are likely to have greater rights over property. Moreover, in families in which women own the property, men are more likely to be committed and stay employed.

The government encourages women to own property through many other policy measures. For instance, while buying land in India in most states, stamp duty for women is 1-2% lower than that of men. At present, banks, like State Bank of India, charge lower interest rates when women are owners or co-owners.  Indian states like West Bengal include the names of women in land titles of plots they distribute to families in their poverty alleviation programs. State governments are also trying to ensure that women have rights over the land they till.