Niti Aayog’s strategy paper sets its goal on boosting female labour participation to 30 per cent by 2022-23

NEW DELHI: In its bid to create a more gender equal workforce, Niti Aayog has asked the government to explore the possibility of incentivising companies by providing tax benefits where more than 30% of the workforce has women. The think tank’s strategy paper for ‘India@75’ focusing on boosting female labour participation to at least 30% by 2022-23, also talks of ranking states on a set of reliable and comparable indicators that reflect changes in the status of women at the national and sub-national levels over time.

Recognising that at the all India level, women are confined mainly to the large, informal sector, the strategy paper talks of mechanisms for implementation of mandatory laws like the Maternity Benefit Act and The Sexual Harassment of Women at Work Place (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, for workers in the informal sector. The vision documents also steers the conversation towards creating liberal laws and guidelines that encourage women to re-enter the workforce after a break.

A declining female labour force participation rate (LFPR) despite increasing levels of education and declining fertility rates has emerged as a worrying trend as per the Economic Survey 2018. The current female LFPR is 23.7% (26.7% in rural areas and 16.2% in urban areas). The declining trend is particularly strong in rural areas, where it has gone down from 49.7% in 2004-05 to 26.7% in 2015-16. It is estimated that if women did as much formal work as men, India would experience an additional 1.4% GDP growth. On average, 66% of women’s work in India is unpaid, compared to 12% of men’s.

“Constraints of workplace distance, inflexibility in working hours, lack of availability of crèches, safety etc., deter women from participating in economic activities,” it is stated. The absence of opportunities for part-time work and challenges surrounding re-entry into the workforce further worsen the situation. “Women’s work comprises mostly of invisible or unpaid work,” it is emphasised.

For women in agriculture, the strategy paper calls for prioritising groups of women farmers seeking to lease land, water bodies, etc., at the village panchayat level. “Encourage joint registration with spouses/ sole registration of land in the name of the woman through registration fee and stamp duty concessions. Recognise and secure women’s rights over common property resources like irrigation systems, fishing grounds, forests and water,” the document states.