IIMA report on women's empowerment points to challenges posed by unpaid domestic labor in India

By A Representative

The Gender Centre at the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA) has released a pivotal report shedding light on the state of women’s empowerment across India. This study focuses on the subnational (district) level in alignment with Sustainable Development Goal 5 (SDG 5), which aims to promote gender equality.

The report, titled “Women’s Empowerment at the Subnational Level: Towards Achieving Gender Equality (SDG 5),” was launched by Professor Satish Deodhar, Dean (Faculty), and Professor Vidya Vemireddy, Chairperson of the Gender Centre and a co-author of the study. It introduces the Women Empowerment Index, which provides an in-depth analysis of women's empowerment across various districts in India, offering new data and insights to further gender equality initiatives.

Utilizing a comprehensive database from trusted sources, the report evaluates women’s empowerment across four key areas essential for achieving SDG 5:

1) Decision-making autonomy and physical mobility,

2) Control over financial resources and economic empowerment,

3) Educational and informational empowerment, and

4) Work-life balance.

These domains reflect the diverse facets of women's empowerment, including decision-making capabilities, financial independence, and the balance between professional and domestic responsibilities. By examining district-specific data rather than broader state-wide trends, the report highlights the distinct challenges women face in various regions. These challenges range from limited access to education and economic stability to difficulties in achieving a sustainable work-life balance.

The analysis draws on data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4) and NFHS-5 for women aged 15 to 49 across 705 districts, revealing a complex and varied landscape of women's empowerment.

Key findings from the report include:

In 67.5% of the districts, women reported progress in decision-making and mobility. There has been a notable rise in women's roles in decisions related to healthcare, household expenses, and the management of husbands' income, with increased percentages of women making decisions independently or jointly.
The ownership rights of women over assets such as land or housing rose from 29.09% in NFHS-4 to 35.00% in NFHS-5.
Despite improvements in literacy rates, only 46.1% of districts noted educational empowerment, and just 32.25% of women felt they achieved work-life balance, pointing to ongoing challenges posed by unpaid domestic labor.
The proportion of women completing higher education increased from 11.43 per 100 women in NFHS-4 to 14.42 per 100 women in NFHS-5, while primary and secondary education statistics showed modest improvements.
Engagement with mass media saw a rise, increasing from 69.12% in NFHS-4 to 76.24% in NFHS-5, indicating greater exposure among women to various media platforms.

During the report's launch, Professor Satish Deodhar emphasized the importance of men's involvement in household responsibilities to facilitate work-life balance for both genders. He noted, “Of the four parameters studied, work-life balance shows the least progress. Only about 32% of women reported they managed work-life balance effectively. Women's participation in the workforce is closely tied to men sharing household duties. The lack of equal household responsibility hinders women's engagement in the labor force. This report serves both as a measure of progress and a guide for future interventions aimed at enhancing women's empowerment.”

Professor Vidya Vemireddy highlighted the initiative's significance, stating, “At the Gender Centre, our goal is to provide a replicable methodology that allows various stakeholders to generate localized insights. This data-driven approach is crucial for tracking progress in women's empowerment and gender equality at local levels in adherence to SDG 5.”

The launch was complemented by a panel discussion on 'Women’s Workforce Participation,' featuring experts including Meha Patel from Zydus Foundation, Dr. Ranjitha Puskur from the International Rice Research Institute, Amrita Kumar from Dayal Group, and Rumjhum Chatterjee from the CII Centre for Women Leadership.

Additionally, a stakeholder dialogue titled “Realising Women’s Potential in Agri-food Systems” was held, addressing the specific challenges faced by rural women in agriculture and exploring transformative solutions to empower them across different regions of India.

Comments

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

N-power plant at Mithi Virdi: CRZ nod is arbitrary, without jurisdiction

By Krishnakant* A case-appeal has been filed against the order of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and others granting CRZ clearance for establishment of intake and outfall facility for proposed 6000 MWe Nuclear Power Plant at Mithi Virdi, District Bhavnagar, Gujarat by Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) vide order in F 11-23 /2014-IA- III dated March 3, 2015. The case-appeal in the National Green Tribunal at Western Bench at Pune is filed by Shaktisinh Gohil, Sarpanch of Jasapara; Hajabhai Dihora of Mithi Virdi; Jagrutiben Gohil of Jasapara; Krishnakant and Rohit Prajapati activist of the Paryavaran Suraksha Samiti. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the MoEF&CC, Gujarat Pollution Control Board, Gujarat Coastal Zone Management Authority, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board and Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and case is kept for hearing on August 20, 2015. Appeal No. 23 of 2015 (WZ) is filed, a...

1857 War of Independence... when Hindu-Muslim separatism, hatred wasn't an issue

"The Sepoy Revolt at Meerut", Illustrated London News, 1857 By Shamsul Islam* Large sections of Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs unitedly challenged the greatest imperialist power, Britain, during India’s First War of Independence which began on May 10, 1857; the day being Sunday. This extraordinary unity, naturally, unnerved the firangees and made them realize that if their rule was to continue in India, it could happen only when Hindus and Muslims, the largest two religious communities were divided on communal lines.

Spirit of leadership vs bondage: Of empowered chairman of 100-acre social forestry coop

By Gagan Sethi* This is about Khoda Sava, a young Dalit belonging to the Vankar sub-caste, who worked as a bonded labourer in a village near Vadgam in Banskantha district of North Gujarat. The year was 1982. Khoda had taken a loan of Rs 7,000 from the village sarpanch, a powerful landlord doing money-lending as his side business. Khoda, who had taken the loan for marriage, was landless. Normally, villagers would mortgage their land if they took loan from the sarpanch. But Khoda had no land. He had no option but to enter into a bondage agreement with the sarpanch in order to repay the loan. Working in bondage on the sarpanch’s field meant that he would be paid Rs 1,200 per annum, from which his loan amount with interest would be deducted. He was also obliged not to leave the sarpanch’s field and work as daily wager somewhere else. At the same time, Khoda was offered meal once a day, and his wife job as agricultural worker on a “priority basis”. That year, I was working as secretary...

Epic war against caste system is constitutional responsibility of elected government

Edited by well-known Gujarat Dalit rights leader Martin Macwan, the book, “Bhed-Bharat: An Account of Injustice and Atrocities on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-18)” (available in English and Gujarati*) is a selection of news articles on Dalits and Adivasis (2014-2018) published by Dalit Shakti Prakashan, Ahmedabad. Preface to the book, in which Macwan seeks to answer key questions on why the book is needed today: *** The thought of compiling a book on atrocities on Dalits and thus present an overall Indian picture had occurred to me a long time ago. Absence of such a comprehensive picture is a major reason for a weak social and political consciousness among Dalits as well as non-Dalits. But gradually the idea took a different form. I found that lay readers don’t understand numbers and don’t like to read well-researched articles. The best way to reach out to them was storytelling. As I started writing in Gujarati and sharing the idea of the book with my friends, it occurred to me that while...

Two more "aadhaar-linked" Jharkhand deaths: 17 die of starvation since Sept 2017

Kaleshwar's sons Santosh and Mantosh Counterview Desk A fact-finding team of the Right to Feed Campaign, pointing towards the death of two more persons due to starvation in Jharkhand, has said that this has happened because of the absence of aadhaar, leading to “persistent lack of food at home and unavailability of any means of earning.” It has disputed the state government claims that these deaths are due to reasons other than starvation, adding, the authorities have “done nothing” to reduce the alarming state of food insecurity in the state.

Fate of Yamuna floodplain still hangs in "balance" despite National Green Tribunal rap on Sri Sri event

By Ashok Shrimali* While the National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Thursday reportedly pulled up the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for granting permission to hold spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's World Culture Festival on the banks of Yamuna, the chief petitioners against the high-profile event Yamuna Jiye Abhiyan has declared, the “fate of the floodplain still hangs in balance.”

From triple centurion to master coach: Bob Simpson’s enduring legacy

By Harsh Thakor* Former Australia cricket captain and coach Bob Simpson has died in Sydney aged 89. He leaves behind an indelible legacy, having shaped Australian cricket for more than four decades as a player, captain and coach. Beyond the field, he also served the game as a law-maker, referee and commentator, carving a permanent niche among the all-time greats of Australian cricket.

Proposed Modi yatra from Jharkhand an 'insult' of Adivasi hero Birsa Munda: JMM

Counterview Desk The civil rights network, Jharkhand Janadhikar Mahasabha (JMM), which claims to have 30 grassroots groups under its wings, has decided to launch Save Democracy campaign to oppose Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Vikasit Bharat Sankalp Yatra to be launched on November 15 from the village of legendary 19th century tribal independence leader Birsa Munda from Ulihatu (Khunti district).

Counterview

Search This Blog