India desires to be an industrial nation by 2047 – however should first fight gender inequality

There are over 468 million women of working age in India, but only 38% of them are employed.

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When 41-year-old Nisha Kotwal was working as a junior doctor in the Indian state of Maharashtra 14 years ago, her parents called her before each shift to ask if she had arrived safely at the hospital.

“When I told my parents that I had reached the hospital, they knew I was safe,” said the obstetrician-gynecologist.

More than a decade later, sexism is still deeply rooted in India and economic experts warn that the country must address the problem to achieve its economic goals.

This month, many women feared for their safety after the rape and murder of a 31-year-old doctor-student at a medical college in Kolkata. The country's Supreme Court was prompted to set up a national doctors' task force to make suggestions on how to improve protection for women in the workplace.

In 2023, India's female labor force participation rate was 33%, up from 27% a decade earlier. Although this figure is gradually increasing, the country is still far behind the United States (56.5%), China (60.5%), Japan (54.9%) and Germany (56.5%). Among the four economies, India is lagging behind.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set ambitious goals: India should have a $5 trillion economy by the end of the decade and become an industrialized nation by 2047. But economists say he will struggle to achieve that goal unless the country works to increase the proportion of women in the workforce.

“Female literacy rates have increased, birth rates have fallen, urbanization is increasing and the economy is growing. But these factors have [done little to increase] women's participation in the labour market,” says Sunaina Kumar, senior fellow at the Observer Research Foundation think tank in Delhi.

Safety concerns

Kumar believes that women's lack of safety in public spaces has contributed to their low labor force participation.

Some women are not allowed to travel far from home to attend school or training. This shows that the fear and insecurity of sexual assault remains a major obstacle, she said. “Many young women are allowed to visit markets or establishments in their area, but cannot travel away from home because of the risk of sexual harassment.”

In a 2021 research paper, World Bank economist Girija Borker reported on how female students in Delhi are choosing to attend “lower quality colleges” to avoid sexual harassment on the way to and from campus. This meant either choosing colleges closer to home or a safer route or mode of transport. Such restrictions could prevent women from pursuing better careers.

“Highly educated young people are expected to be the engine of growth in the coming years,” says Eliana La Ferrara, professor of public policy at Harvard Kennedy School. “But parents who have read about the recent rape and murder of a highly educated woman will think, 'What's the point of investing everything we have in our daughter's education when something like this happens?'”

The doctor-educator was found dead on August 9 after she was allegedly brutally raped and killed by a police officer who had access to the seminar room where she was resting.

The incident sparked a nationwide furore and led to mass protests by doctors and activists across India. The Indian Medical Association suspended non-emergency medical care for 24 hours last week.

A senior student teaches junior students at Netaji Subhas Vidyaniketan, a secondary school in the Indian state of Tripura.

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Reversal of gender norms

According to Jayati Ghosh, economics professor at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, social and systemic gender inequality remains an obstacle that India must overcome if it is to achieve its economic goals.

“There is a deep-rooted patriarchy and misogyny in India's society. This needs to be addressed before the country moves forward,” said Ghosh. “The image that India is moving forward is very wrong. [when it comes to gender].”

According to the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Index 2024, India ranks 129th out of 146 in terms of gender parity, behind larger economies such as the United States (43), China (106), Japan (118) and Germany (7).

“The employment of women has two purposes: to stimulate the economy through production and to ensure that the distribution of power and bargaining positions within the household remain more equal,” said La Ferrara of Harvard University. She went on to say that young women “cannot be kept in the house, but that conditions outside must change so that they can move and function.”

Some economists are skeptical about Modi's goal of making India an industrialized nation by 2047. But encouraging women to enter the workforce through better safety measures and solutions can make a difference, says gynecologist Kotwal. And that starts with giving boys a good education at a young age.

“In India's entire system and culture, women are considered second-class citizens and it will take decades to change that,” Kotwal said. “We need to work on improving the psychology of boys, not men. At this tender age, they are exposed to more things that help structure their brains.”

Ghosh argued that the government also needs to increase spending and improve policies to support women entering the workforce.