Indian girls fail to attain decent work, gender justice despite better educational attainment, warns UNESCO report

By A Representative
Observing a major discrepancy, a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) report has said that India may have seen rapid growth in education attainment among girls, but this is "not seen a commensurate increase in decent work or changes in gendered social norms."
"In India, the female employment rates have decreased while female education increased", UNESCO says in its “Global Education Monitoring Report 2016.”
It underlines, "Furthermore, while the levels of girls’ and women’s enrolment in all levels of education is rising in the country, the female-to-male infant ratio is simultaneously dropping, especially among more urban populations, with gender-discriminatory views leading to sex-selective abortion and gender-discriminatory child-rearing practices."
The report also says, "Gender-based violence can continue in spite of high levels of education."
Giving an instance, it says, "Kerala state, India, has a high level of women’s education and literacy, yet rates of domestic violence and dowry-related crimes have been increasing. Furthermore, women’s levels of mental ill-health, and changes in marriage, inheritance and succession practices have weakened women’s access to and control over inherited resources."
Blaming this on strong traditional roots, the report states, "A survey-based analysis of intergenerational transmission of gender attitudes in India finds strong positive correlations between parent and child attitudes, with mothers having greater influence than fathers."
It adds, "On average, when a parent holds a discriminatory gender attitude, their child is 15 percentage points more likely to hold that attitude; the effect is 50% larger for mothers than for fathers. Girls with more gender-discriminatory parents tend to drop out of school earlier than those with more gender-progressive parents."

It underlines, studies "confirm the importance of female role models" in overcoming this problem.
"The presence of female leaders in India was found to narrow the gender gap in girls’ aspirations and advancement in education. Female students were found to perform better in introductory math and science courses if taught by female faculty, and more likely to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics."
However, the report believes, "Focusing on women’s initiatives is not enough. Men and women have to work together to achieve gender-balanced lives. Analysis of results of the International Men and Gender Equality Survey from 10,490 men aged 18 to 59 in 8 countries, including India, found that "men’s education and income, and equitable practices in men’s childhood homes, were associated with their attitudes to equity."
The report, however, says that the results of the survey revealed somewhat surprising results for India. It says, "Men’s equitable attitudes were reflected in practices such as more participation in the home, reduced use of violence and higher relationship and sexual satisfaction; men’s education and their mother’s education were found to be positively associated with progress towards gender equality, except in India."
The report also finds that greater representation of women in politics and public office can also reduce gender disparities in education and provide positive role models for other women, increasing their educational aspirations and achievements, and thereby improving female educational attainment levels.
Thus, it says, “Across the 16 biggest states in India, a 10% increase in the number of women involved in district politics would lead to an increase of nearly 6% in primary school completion, with a larger impact on girls’ education. Similarly, in villages assigned a female leader for two election cycles, the gender gap in career aspirations shrank by 25% in parents and 32% in adolescents.”

Comments

From Kerala to Bangladesh: Lynching highlights deep social faultlines

By A Representative The recent incidents of mob lynching—one in Bangladesh involving a Hindu citizen and another in Kerala where a man was killed after being mistaken for a “Bangladeshi”—have sparked outrage and calls for accountability.

What Sister Nivedita understood about India that we have forgotten

By Harasankar Adhikari In the idea of a “Vikshit Bharat,” many real problems—hunger, poverty, ill health, unemployment, and joblessness—are increasingly overshadowed by the religious contest between Hindu and Muslim fundamentalisms. This contest is often sponsored and patronised by political parties across the spectrum, whether openly Hindutva-oriented, Islamist, partisan, or self-proclaimed secular.

When a city rebuilt forgets its builders: Migrant workers’ struggle for sanitation in Bhuj

Khasra Ground site By Aseem Mishra* Access to safe drinking water and sanitation is not a privilege—it is a fundamental human right. This principle has been unequivocally recognised by the United Nations and repeatedly affirmed by the Supreme Court of India as intrinsic to the right to life and dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution. Yet, for thousands of migrant workers living in Bhuj, this right remains elusive, exposing a troubling disconnect between constitutional guarantees, policy declarations, and lived reality.

Aravalli at the crossroads: Environment, democracy, and the crisis of justice

By Rajendra Singh* The functioning of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change has undergone a troubling shift. Once mandated to safeguard forests and ecosystems, the Ministry now appears increasingly aligned with industrial interests. Its recent affidavit before the Supreme Court makes this drift unmistakably clear. An institution ostensibly created to protect the environment now seems to have strayed from that very purpose.

'Festive cheer fades': India’s housing market hits 17‑quarter slump, sales drop 16% in Q4 2025

By A Representative Housing sales across India’s nine major real estate markets fell to a 17‑quarter low in the October–December period of 2025, with overall absorption dropping 16% year‑on‑year to 98,019 units, according to NSE‑listed analytics firm PropEquity. This marks the weakest quarter since Q3 2021, despite the festive season that usually drives demand. On a sequential basis, sales slipped 2%, while new launches contracted by 4%.

'Structural sabotage': Concern over sector-limited job guarantee in new employment law

By A Representative The advocacy group Centre for Financial Accountability (CFA) has raised concerns over the passage of the Viksit Bharat – Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (VB–G RAM G), which was approved during the recently concluded session of Parliament amid protests by opposition members. The legislation is intended to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

Safety, pay and job security drive Urban Company gig workers’ protest in Gurugram

By A Representative Gig and platform service workers associated with Urban Company have stepped up their protest against what they describe as exploitative and unsafe working conditions, submitting a detailed Memorandum of Demands at the company’s Udyog Vihar office in Gurugram. The action is being seen as part of a wider and growing wave of dissatisfaction among gig workers across India, many of whom have resorted to demonstrations, app log-outs and strikes in recent months to press for fair pay, job security and basic labour protections.

India’s universities lag global standards, pushing students overseas: NITI Aayog study

By Rajiv Shah A new Government of India study, Internationalisation of Higher Education in India: Prospects, Potential, and Policy Recommendations , prepared by NITI Aayog , regrets that India’s lag in this sector is the direct result of “several systemic challenges such as inadequate infrastructure to provide quality education and deliver world-class research, weak industry–academia collaboration, and outdated curricula.”

The rise of the civilizational state: Prof. Pratap Bhanu Mehta warns of new authoritarianism

By A Representative Noted political theorist and public intellectual Professor Pratap Bhanu Mehta delivered a poignant reflection on the changing nature of the Indian state today, warning that the rise of a "civilizational state" poses a significant threat to the foundations of modern democracy and individual freedom. Delivering the Achyut Yagnik Memorial Lecture titled "The Idea of Civilization: Poison or Cure?" at the Ahmedabad Management Association, Mehta argued that India is currently witnessing a self-conscious political project that seeks to redefine the state not as a product of a modern constitution, but as an instrument of an ancient, authentic civilization.

Search This Blog