Indian Women and Gender Inequality

​Gender inequality is one of the most discussed topics in the world right now. It is up there with topics such as climate change and immigration. Nonetheless, despite the efforts by governments and women empowerment groups, India is still lacking behind in terms of gender equality. It is currently ranked 126 out of 147 countries according to studies done by Singh, (2016). The country performs dismally in social parameters such as education, employment and political representation of women despite if its growing status as an upcoming economic giant. The Indian woman has not accepted the social gender role as she has taken various approaches to fight this vice. The contemporary Indian woman is discriminated against in various social facets, but they are tirelessly fighting for equality.

​The Indian woman is poorly represented in politics and corporate positions. There are fewer women in political positions and has always been the case for some time now. Equality in political positions is critical for a gender-balanced nation. However, this is not the case as men occupy most of the political positions in India. Even though there have been a few influential female politicians in Indian politics, most of them have only been occupying symbolic roles and posts in the Indian government, (Devenish, 2013). Men have usually been occupying influential positions for the last few centuries except for Indira Gandhi, the first female prime minister, and Sarojini. Nonetheless, there have been cases of increased women in the Indian Lok Sabha. According to Merelli, (2019), the number of women has grown from 62 to 78. This growth brings the percentage of women in Lok Sabha to a mere 14%. Nevertheless, Devenish, (2013), argues that the country is currently debating on a bill to set aside 33% of the parliament positions to women. However, this bill is facing its critics who do not value the contribution of women in politics or even business corporate positions.

India has more men in business corporate positions than women; this highlights the plight of Indian women in the employment sector. According to Mint, (2018), Indian companies often preferred hiring men over women. Further, Mint, (2018), found that six of the ten jobs that were advertised in India chose male candidates. These stats show that women are disadvantaged in the employment sector. Deepika, and Jatesh Kathpalia, (2017), echo these findings where they argue that gender inequality in the business environment is not only common in India but also all over the world. They found that women are discriminated in areas such as politics, employment sector, and other social facets. To fight this vice, the society must begin by determining the reason behind it.

Various reasons point to the disparity between women and men representation in corporate and political positions. The first few decades after independence witnessed a high number of women in influential political positions. For example, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay, and Renuka Ray played influential roles during the struggle for independence and occupied important positions in the government after that (Devenish, 2013). Others such as Indira Gandhi had to rely on the power of men to climb up the corporate ladder (Merelli, 2019). These women have to fight stereotypes that depict women as weak compared to men. According to Doshi, (2018), women are depicted as only good at home chores and keeping peace at home. They are taught only to exist without been heard or seen.

Indian women are poorly represented in political and corporate positions. Despite the country’s growing economic status, the country ranges poorly on matters of equality. There are fewer women in political positions and has always been the case for some time now. The current parliament only has 14% representation of women hence showing the political discrimination in the country. India has more men in business corporate positions than women because Indian companies prefer to hire men as opposed to women. This trend keeps women down in the society and it is a further illustration of gender discrimination employment and political scenes. The reasons for this trend include the low status of women in the society. They are deemed as weak and only good at house chores and keeping peace in families. Even the lucky women who afford to get jobs are paid poorly than men.

The Indian business and corporate sector are discriminating against women on the grounds of gender wage gap. After struggling to get a job, the Indian women often face extreme cases of the wage gap. Indian Men earn more than their female colleagues even though they are equally qualified. According to Bhattacharyya, (2019), Indian men earn 195 more as opposed to women. On average, an Indian man earns Rs 242.49 while women earn Rs 196.3; this is a difference of Rs 46.19 (Bhattacharyya, 2019). Despite the gap, an average of just 22% of women said they would quit work if they found out about the gender disparity in their place of work according to Statista Research Department, (2019). The reluctance to quit can be associated with the difficulty that comes with getting a job in India. These difficulties and gender pay gap can be associated with various stereotypes in the country.

Common gender stereotypes are to blame for the wage gap disparity between Indian women and men. According to Dutta, (2019), a mere 29% of women in India are in employment as compared to a whopping 82% of men. Further, these women are paid less than their male colleagues. Dutta, (2019), attributes this trend to common stereotypes such as women are suited for softer roles, they are too soft or too emotional. Further, stereotypes such as women lack aggressiveness in their DNA, they cannot push their bosses hard enough and are poor negotiators are associated with low pay for the female gender (Dutta, 2019). Further, Gurung, (2013), argued that the best way to move from this problem is to support the girl child and women empowerment programs and fight women harassment. These vices contribute to the general problem of gender discrimination in all sectors of life.

The Indian business and corporate sector are discriminating against women on the grounds of gender wage gap. First, the women go through a lot of struggle to get jobs only to be paid a fraction of what their male colleagues are getting. An average Indian woman gets 19% less than their male colleagues even though they are equally qualified or perform equal tasks. Common gender stereotypes are to blame against this vice. For example, women are said to be poor negotiators and emotional. Also, they are seen as only good at house chores and lacking the necessary skills to make it in employment because they are not aggressive enough. These stereotypes mean that they will struggle to get a job and get poor ages upon landing one. Further, they are afraid of leaving these jobs in spite of the poor pay. These stereotypes further extend to the political arena hence subjecting the Indian woman to an untold period of misery and discrimination. However, these women have begun fighting for their place in the society and things are expected to get better.

The Indian woman has been fighting to end inequality and discrimination and it is starting to pay up. For a while now, the Indian woman has constantly been fighting for recognition and equality in politics. They use different strategies and approaches including government legislation, the media, social organizations, and women empowerment groups to fight this vice. For example, a bill looking to counter gender imbalance in parliament was introduced in 1997 (Rai, 2017). This bill focused on improving the representation of women in the political arena by setting quotas for women where a specific number of seats would automatically go to women. It also focused on fighting elitism in the society. Recently, there is a bill in parliament that seeks a 33% representation of women in parliament (Devenish, 2013). These struggles are paying up as highlighted by strong women such as Indira Gandhi, Pratibha Patil, and Anna Chandy among others (Wikipedia contributors, 2019). The contributions of these women show that the role of women in the society is slowly by steadily changing.

The contemporary Indian woman is starting to rise up the corporate ladder. Indian women are beginning to get the results of their long fight for equality. There is an increase in several women in parliament from 62 to 78. Also, Indian women are making great contributions all over the world in corporate positions. The likes of Falu Shah, Priyanka Chopra, Padmasree Warrior, Alka Banerjee, Rashmi Sinha, and Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni continue shining in international scenes (The Economic Times, 2015). According to Clots-Figueras, (2011), the popularity of women and the rise of Indian women are attributed to the Indian women in legislative positions. Clots-Figueras, (2011), found that women in these positions are helping the fight for equality as they make laws that generally favor women. The amendment of the Hindu Act is a clear example of the effect of female legislators. Also, they focus on improving girl child education and health. Education is seen as the key to shifting the gender balance in India.

Education and women empowerment groups and activists are playing an essential role in fighting women discrimination and inequality in India. There is an equal percentage of women and men in higher learning institutions as the percentage stands at 27% for each gender. Education for the girl-child is crucial in fighting against traditional practices such as early marriages. According to Pintu, (2019), educated women, have a low chance of going through early marriages as opposed to those with no secondary education. Self Help Groups are also critical in improving the gender inequality situation in India. These groups focus on microfinance and the economic empowerment of women in the society (Nayak, and Kumar, 2020). They also improve employment opportunities critical in improving the living standards and self-esteem amongst Indian women. The government has started its women empowerment initiatives such as the Mother and Child Tracking System (MCTS), the Conditional Maternity Benefit plan (CMB), and the Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Empowerment of Adolescent Girls (Wikipedia contributors, 2019). These initiatives are critical in the continued development of Indian women in both the political and corporate sectors.

The Indian woman has been fighting to end inequality and discrimination and it is starting to pay up. Government legislation and policies such as the proposed bill of 1997 to end elitism and adopt quotas supporting women in government are critical in fighting gender inequality. The results of these organizations and policies are witnessed through the continued development of women in India and the entire globe. The contemporary Indian woman is starting to rise up the corporate ladder. Various Indian women are conquering the world in various fields. However, most of these contributions are a result of both governmental and nongovernmental organizations fight for women inclusion and girl-child education. Education and women empowerment groups and activists are playing an essential role in fighting women discrimination and inequality in India. Increased education for the girl child helps mitigates the effects of gender stereotypes and traditional practices. Even though the Indian woman is discriminated against in political and corporate positions, they have put in a lot of work to fight this vice and it is eventually beginning to pay up.