The book examines the nature of maternity entitlements of women within the context of the totality of women's

This study is a small part of a larger study undertaken by the Ta

Patharia, a village-situated in the Bundhelkund region is stark contrast to other villages. Inhabited by the Bedia tribe, a part of the vimukta jati where adult members in the family never worked and depended solely on the earnings of the young girl involved in prostitution.

Demographic literature is replete with observations of an inverse relation between certain attributes of modernity and family size (Thompson 1929; Notestein 1945; Coale and Hoover 1958; Leiberman 1980, Srinivasan 1986).

The Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, is a significant piece of legislation in India designed to protect the health and welfare of women during maternity.