How has India’s economic growth and development affected its gender inequality?

Abstract

The basic characteristics are outlined of the UN’s Gender Inequality Index (GII) and its Gender Development Index (GDI). Their trends in relation to India’s real Gross National Income (GNI) per capita indicate a decline in its gender inequality with its economic growth. However, these trends give a distorted and incomplete picture of changes in Indian gender inequality. Several assumptions underlying GII and GDI are questioned in the Indian context, for example, within India more education of females is not associated with a reduced wage gap between males and females, and greater access of females to the labour market can raise gender inequality. The effects of economic growth (absent in the above indices) are assessed on Indian male–female ratios and on violence against women. Variations in gender inequality in India within households are also considered. New data results in the questioning of several existing hypotheses.