In an important decision, Punjab government decided to amend laws to ensure equal rights for women in land ownership and tenancy. According to these amendments, adult daughters would be entitled to permissible area in the same manner as adult sons of a landowner under the Punjab land Reforms Act, 1972.

Besides, under the existing law, after the death of a tenant only male descendents, mother or widow were entitled to get tenancy rights, which was also found discriminatory against women, the spokesman said.

In order to do away with this discrimination, the cabinet at its meeting here under the chairmanship of chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, had also decided to approve the changes in the Punjab Security of Land Tenure Act, 1953, and Pepsu Tenancy and Agricultural Lands Act, 1955.

According to these, after the death of tenant, if he leaves behind no male lineal descendents then a woman descendent would also get the tenancy rights, the spokesman said. The state cabinet, in its bid to empower women and to make the land laws gender neutral, approved amendments to certain provisions of the Punjab Land Reforms Act, 1972, Punjab Security of Land Tenure Act, 1953 and Pepsu Tenancy and Agricultural Land Act, 1955 which were found “discriminatory” against women, an official spokesman said.