EVERY PICTURE TELLS A STORY. They own their work, little else

With men often away from home to work in factories and services, in rural and semi-urban areas it is the women who have to single-handedly manage the family’s assets. Here, Poonam Tyagi of Kanauja village in Ghaziabad district of Uttar Pradesh, guides her buffalo to a waterbody close by. But despite the burden of taking care of home, hearth and livestock,women rarely have legal rights over the land or any decision-making powers. Photo:Kamal Narang