Rural India’s Women Workforce:

Nation needs to recognise the biggest subsidisers of economy

A leading exporters of agricultural products with a trade surplus that has grown from USD 3.6 billion in 2000 to an estimated USD 22 billion in 2013, as per Global Trade Information Services 2014, India still ignores the greater economic contribution of women engaged in agriculture, the largest unorganised sector. In spite of the vital role they play, they are still the invisible players in a visibly growing economy, experts say.

 “Food prices are lowest in India. Buying capacity of middle class and urban population is increasing. National economy keeps growing even at the time of economic depression. The country has a relatively stable economy because of the unimaginable subsidisation by its women population engaged in agriculture and various unorganised sectors as labourers,” observes India’s noted development activist and rural economy expert Vidhya Das of Agragami, who is also Advisor to the Supreme Court Commission for Right to Food.

As per statistics, 48.5% of the country’s total population of 1.2 billion is women. While India’s workforce comprises 33.2% of its population, over 31.6% of it – more than 127 million – are women. But, unfortunately, this huge women workforce shares only 19.8% of India’s national income! This is grossly because a large part of women workforce, mostly working in informal sectors, is either underpaid or, at times, even unpaid.

Basudev Mahapatra

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