Executive Summary

The document examines the Indian economy’s significant reliance on women’s unpaid care work through an analysis of national time use data. The research highlights that women spend nearly eight times more hours on domestic responsibilities than men. This disparity remains consistent across different levels of education and employment status, indicating a deeply entrenched structural issue.

The findings further reveal that despite improvements in broader development indicators, female labor force participation in India continues to be among the lowest globally. The situation was exacerbated during the pandemic, as the closure of essential support services led to a complete shift of caregiving responsibilities onto women.

A regional analysis shows that this gap is particularly pronounced in northern and western states. To address these challenges, the paper recommends increased public investment in care infrastructure along with the adoption of family friendly policies within the private sector. It emphasizes the need for coordinated efforts to redistribute domestic responsibilities and enable greater economic participation for women.