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Source: The Hindu

Context

India is now a worldwide economic powerhouse, a technology pioneer, and the home of the world's largest youth population. However, the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report (2025) serves as a depressing reminder that India continues to lag behind in terms of gender equality.

About the Global Gender Gap Report

• The World Economic Forum (WEF) publishes the Global Gender Gap Report annually.
• It evaluates the relative disparity between men and women, regardless of a country's overall income or development level.
• The report focuses on four major dimensions: economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment.
• Index scores vary from zero (complete inequality) to one (perfect parity).

The Alarming Reality of India's Situation

• India is placed 131 out of 148 nations in the Global Gender Gap Report 2025, down two places from previous year.
• According to the research, India has one of the lowest parity scores in South Asia, at 64.1%. 
• India placed 129 last year. 
• The nation's performance is especially poor in two important areas: economic involvement and health and survival. These pillars are vital for achieving meaningful gender equality.

Why is India's minimal gender gap perceived as a structural failure?

• Low Global Gender Gap Ranking: According to the Global Gender Gap Report 2025, India ranks 131 out of 148 nations, indicating continued inequality in critical sectors such as economic participation and health. This grade suggests a fundamental issue that extends beyond individual policy failures.
• Poor Female Labor Force involvement: India ranks 143rd in economic involvement and opportunity, with women earning less than one-third of men's earnings. Female labor force participation is below 25%, indicating systemic impediments to employment despite increased educational levels.

Key Structural Issues in Gender Equality in India

Health and Survival

• Sex Ratio at Birth: India continues to have one of the most skewed sex ratios globally, reflecting son preference.
  
  
• Healthy Life Expectancy: Contrary to global trends, women now live fewer healthy years than men in India.
  
  
• Anaemia Prevalence: As per NFHS-5, 57% of women aged 15–49 are anaemic, affecting productivity, learning ability, and maternal health.
  
  
• Neglect of Women’s Health: There is chronic underinvestment in reproductive health, preventive care, and nutrition, particularly for rural and low-income women.
  

Economic Participation and Opportunity

• Labour Force Participation: India ranks 143rd globally in this subindex, with persistently low female participation.
  
  
• Wage Disparity: Women earn less than one-third of what men earn.
  
  
• Economic Impact: $770 billion in potential GDP gain by 2025 has been lost due to the gender gap.
  
  
• Slow Progress: At the current pace, closing the economic gender gap may take over a century, with India falling behind.
  

Burden of Unpaid Care Work

• Invisible Labour: Women perform 7x more unpaid domestic work than men, as per the Time Use Survey, yet it's excluded from national accounting.
  
  
• Underrepresentation: Women are marginalized in decision-making, including boardrooms and budget policy, leading to gender-insensitive governance.

Unpaid Care Work and Its Impact on Gender Equality & Economic Growth

• Limits Women’s Workforce Participation:
  
  
• Indian women perform nearly seven times more unpaid domestic work than men (Time Use Survey).
  
  
• This heavy burden restricts their participation in formal employment and access to skill development opportunities.
  
  
• Childbirth and lack of childcare support are key reasons why many women drop out of the workforce.
  
  
• Undervalued in National Economy:
  
  
• Unpaid care work holds significant economic value, yet remains invisible in GDP calculations and often excluded from policymaking.
  
  
• Countries like Uruguay have made efforts to measure and integrate care work into national development strategies to promote inclusive growth.
  
  
• Worsens Gender Inequality in Decision-Making:
  
  
• The disproportionate care burden keeps women away from leadership roles and decision-making spaces.
  
  
• This results in the underrepresentation of women in key policy bodies, such as budget committees, leading to underfunding of women-centric welfare schemes.
  

Challenges in Women’s Health and Autonomy

• Skewed Sex Ratio at Birth:
  
  
• India continues to have one of the most distorted sex ratios at birth globally.
  
  
• This reflects a deep-rooted cultural preference for sons, indicating systemic gender bias from birth.
  
  
• Decline in Women’s Healthy Life Expectancy:
  
  
• Women’s healthy life expectancy is now lower than men’s in India.
  
  
• This trend underscores persistent gender-based health disparities.
  
  
• Neglect of Reproductive and Preventive Health:
  
  
• There has been chronic underinvestment in reproductive health, preventive care, and nutritional services.
  
  
• Women from low-income and rural areas are especially vulnerable due to lack of access and awareness.
  
  
• High Prevalence of Anaemia:
  
  
• 57% of Indian women aged 15–49 suffer from anaemia — a preventable condition that remains alarmingly widespread.
  
  
• This reflects both nutritional deficiencies and policy neglect.
  
  
• Systemic Failure to Prioritize Women’s Health:
  
  
• The ongoing health crisis indicates a structural failure to consider women’s health as a national development priority.
  
  
• Addressing these gaps is crucial for achieving gender equity and sustainable development.

Demographic Shift for Gender Equality

• Demographic Shift: By 2050, India's senior population is predicted to nearly double, reaching over 20% of the total population.
• This demographic transition will primarily affect elderly women, particularly widows, who frequently experience severe reliance.
• Shrinking Workforce: Fertility rates have already fallen below replacement levels.
• This means that the working-age population will diminish while the elderly's care demands will increase dramatically.
• Financial hardship: If women continue to be excluded from or pushed to leave the workforce, the dependency ratio will climb even faster, putting further strain on a dwindling labor pool and jeopardizing economic stability.
• Gender equality is essential: In this scenario, the only possible road to long-term economic growth is to secure women's health, support, and economic participation.

What are the demographic implications of excluding women from the workplace? Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao (BBBP): This project, launched in 2015, aims to enhance the child sex ratio, secure girls' education, and promote awareness about gender inequality.Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMVY): This maternity benefit policy helps pregnant and breastfeeding mothers with their first childbirth while also boosting nutrition and health.Mahila Shakti Kendras (MSKs) empower rural women by providing grassroots support services including as skill training, employment advising, legal help, and digital literacy.

Way Forward

• Invest in Women-Centric Public Health Systems: Prioritize women's needs, particularly in reproductive and preventative care.
• Build Comprehensive Care Services: Developing childcare, elder care, and maternity support services is critical for redistributing the load of unpaid work and allowing women to participate in the workforce.
• Recognizing and reforming unpaid care work requires governments to conduct regular time-use surveys, gender budgeting, and direct investments in care infrastructure.
• Learning from Global Best Practices: Countries such as Uruguay and South Korea provide effective examples of incorporating care economies into national development goals.

Practice Question: Q. Why did human development fail to keep pace with economic development in India?