Women’s participation in labour force surged from FY18 to FY23: PM’s economic advisory council
- The council, which analysed data from the government’s Periodic Labour Force Surveys, said India's rural female LFPR shot up from 24.6% to 41.5%, while urban female LFPR rose modestly from 20.4% to 25.4% over this period.
New Delhi: India's female labour force participation rate (LFPR) rose significantly from 2017-18 to 2022-23, especially in rural areas, according to a new working paper by the economic advisory council to the prime minister (EAC-PM). This growth was driven by government initiatives, although factors such as age, marital status and household composition also influenced women's participation in the workforce, it added.
The paper, titled ‘Female Labour Force Participation Rate: An Observational Analysis of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) from 2017-18 to 2022-23’ was authored by Shamika Ravi and Mudit Kapoor. It said schemes such as Mudra loans, the Drone Didi scheme and self-help groups (SHGs) mobilised under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana have led to a rise in the number of working women, especially in rural areas.
The paper, which analysed data from the government’s Periodic Labour Force Surveys, said India's overall rural female LFPR surged from 24.6% to 41.5%, while urban female LFPR rose modestly from 20.4% to 25.4%.
Huge variation by state and marital status
It said, however, that there was significant variation between states and regions, with rural areas in Jharkhand seeing female LFPR grow around 233%, and Bihar experiencing about 500% growth. According to the paper, Northeastern states also experienced impressive growth, with Nagaland’s female LFPR increasing from 15.7% to 71.1%. While urban areas experienced modest growth overall, urban Gujarat stood out with a 63% increase (from 16.2% to 26.4%). Urban Tamil Nadu saw a slight rise from 27.6% to 28.8%. Punjab and Haryana continued to have low female LFPR.
The paper said married women in rural areas, particularly in states such as Rajasthan and Jharkhand, clocked higher participation growth than unmarried women. Despite having the lowest LFPR, rural Bihar showed substantial improvement in the female LFPR, especially among married women.
The Northeastern states, led by Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh, saw remarkable rural growth, while urban areas saw only moderate increases, particularly among married women.
In the western and southern states, growth was concentrated in rural areas, with Andhra Pradesh standing out due to a decline in the urban female LFPR, particularly among women with children.
"The overall results show that female LFPR forms a bell-shaped curve, peaking at 30-40 years of age and declining sharply after. The male LFPR, on the other hand, remains high (about 100%) from ages 30-50, declining gradually thereafter. Marital status is a significant determinant of LFPR for both women and men," the paper said.
"Married men consistently exhibit higher LFPR across states and age groups, while marriage significantly reduces female LFPR, especially in urban areas. The presence of children under 14 years of age affects female LFPR significantly, especially for younger women (20-35 years) and more strongly in urban areas," it added.
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Business NewsEconomyWomen’s participation in labour force surged from FY18 to FY23: PM’s economic advisory council
First Published:10 Dec 2024, 06:16 PM IST
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