NGOs and Women s Empowerment

Women and Wasteland Development in India edited by Andrea M Singh and Neera Burra; Sage Publications, New Delhi, 1993; pp 336, Rs 295.
DEVELOPMENT discourse underwent three major shifts in accent in the decade of 80s, reflecting in, one, an increased concern for the protection of environment; two, an emphasis on people's participation, especially in the protection, management and regeneration of natural resources; and, three, the incorporation of gender concerns as an important element of development concerns. The growing interest of international agencies, nongovernmental organisations and donor agencies as well as the Indian state in programmes of wasteland development on the one hand and increasing involvement of women in these programmes on the other both manifests this discursive transformation and creates further discursive space for subsequent policy actions and expectations. It is essentially in this context that one can understand the various projects on women and wasteland development being undertaken by several non-governmental organisations in specific local settings.