Unfinished business of gender parity in India

Parity is about agreeing that no one gender should hold more than 50-60% of any space. But the political representation discourse remains stuck at a ceiling of 33%, as if the demand for equal space and place is itself an impertinence

- Maja Daruwala

Here is a truth that often goes unnoticed: India needs women to be at parity to progress. Or it will get left behind. It is already getting left behind. This is the sad inference that emerges from the dry statistics in the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap Report 2025, released recently. It ranks India a dismal 131st out of 148 countries—below every other BRICS nation and trailing most of its South Asian neighbours. The fall is not so much due to regression as because other countries are closing their gender gaps faster. Our catch-up pace needs acceleration.

There is good news and bad news. The good news is that there have been visible gains in education and political visibility. At 97%, women's educational attainment is approaching parity. India's political empowerment score is higher than China's and close to Brazil's—thanks perhaps to the panchayati raj laws that insisted on 33% women's representation. Women have 45% participation in panchayati raj institutions—a genuine contribution to deepening democracy. But, in Parliament, they account for just 14% of members—sadly, the highest it's ever been.

Poor economic participation drags India down to among the world's bottom five. In a scenario of high unemployment, men win: The historical female labour force participation rate, the World Bank points out, has declined considerably over the decade, and women contribute less than 20% to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), earn under a third of what men do, and hold only a sliver of decision-making roles.