IRJMSH Vol 6 Issue 8 [Year 2015] ISSN 2277 – 9809 (0nline) 2348–9359 (Print)

GENDER INEQUALITY IN INDIA: CAUSES AND REMEDIES

Ratika Sharma
Research scholar Department of Sociology, Panjab University, Chandigarh
Email: [email protected]

ABSTRACT
Gender inequalities are reflected in the daily realities of women‟s and girls‟ lives including: the
disproportionate number of women among those living in poverty. In India women are
worshiped as devi but still deprived of basic human rights. In spite of constituting half of the
population, they are considered as marginalized group and second-class citizen. The United
Nations ranks India as a middle-income country. Findings from the World Economic Forum
indicate that India is one of the worst countries in the world in terms of gender inequality. In
order to uplift her status and to give her an egalitarian atmosphere we must consider her a human
first and then we should provide all the rights given to human being. The present paper will use
secondary data from newspapers and various authentic organizations as base of analysis. The
paper will investigate various aspects of gender inequality prevail in India. The paper will also
suggest some remedies for the upliftment of status of women in society.
Key words: Marginalized group, Human right, Egalitarian society, Gender inequality

Introduction
Gender inequality in India refers to health, education, economic and political inequalities
between men and women in India Various international gender inequality indices rank India
differently on each of these factors, as well as on a composite basis, and these indices are
controversial. Gender inequalities, and its social causes, impact India's sex ratio, women's health
over their lifetimes, their educational attainment, and economic conditions. Gender inequality in
India is a multifaceted issue that concerns men and women alike. Some argue that some gender
equality measures, place men at a disadvantage. However, when India‟s population is examined
as a whole, women are at a disadvantage in several important ways.

Definition and Concept of Gender Inequality

„Gender‟ is a socio-cultural term referring socially defined roles and behaviors assigned to
„males‟ and „females‟ in a given society; whereas, the term „sex‟ is a biological and
physiological phenomenon which defines man and woman. In its social, historical and cultural
aspects, gender is a function of power relationship between men and women where men are
considered superior to women. Therefore, gender may be understood as a man-made concept,
while „sex‟ is natural or biological characteristics of human beings.
Gender Inequality, in simple words, may be defined as discrimination against women based on
their sex. Women are traditionally considered by the society as weaker sex. She has been
accorded a subordinate position to men. She is exploited, degraded, violated and discriminated

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both in our homes and in outside world. This peculiar type of discrimination against women is
prevalent everywhere in the world and more so in Indian society.

India’s problem
India ranks 132 out of 187 countries on the gender inequality index – lower than Pakistan (123),
according to the United Nations Development Program‟s Human Development Report 2013. The
report said all countries in South Asia, with the exception of Afghanistan, were a better place for
women than India, with Sri Lanka (75) topping them all. Nepal ranked 102nd and Bangladesh
111th. Gender inequality is especially tragic not only because it excludes women from basic
social opportunities, but also because it gravely imperils the life prospects of future generations.
Indian families often prefer boys to girls, and female feticide is tragically common. Only 29% of
Indian women above the age of 15 in 2011 were a part of the country‟s labor force, compared to
80.7% men. In Parliament, only 10.9% of lawmakers are women, while in Pakistan 21.1% are
women. In United States which ranks 42nd on the list, 57.5% women and 70.1% men are a part
of the labor force. China fared even better, landing 35th. Only 26.6% women above 25 years
received a secondary education in 2010, compared to 50.4% of men. Pakistan scored even lower,
with 18.3% of women having received secondary education compared to 43.1% of men. In the
U.S., 94.7% women have received a secondary education – a figure slightly higher than for men
(94.3%). In China, this figure was 54.8% for women and 70.4% for men. In India, 200 women
died for every 100,000 childbirths, says the report. In China, the number was considerably lower
(37 deaths) and in the U.S. even lower than that (21.)

Causes of Gender Inequality in India

Patriarchal society
The root cause of gender inequality in Indian society lies in its patriarchy system. According to
the famous sociologists Sylvia Walby, patriarchy is “a system of social structure and practices in
which men dominate, oppress and exploit women”. Women‟s exploitation is an age old cultural
phenomenon of Indian society. The system of patriarchy finds its validity and sanction in our
religious beliefs, whether it is Hindu, Muslim or any other religion.
For instance, as per ancient Hindu law giver Manu: “Women are supposed to be in the custody
of their father when they are children, they must be under the custody of their husband when
married and under the custody of her son in old age or as widows. In no circumstances she
should be allowed to assert herself independently”.

Son preference
A key factor driving gender inequality is the preference for sons, as they are deemed more useful
than girls. Boys are given the exclusive rights to inherit the family name and properties and they
are viewed as additional status for their family. In a survey-based study of 1990s data, scholars
found that son are believed to have a higher economic utility. Another factor is that of religious
practices, which can only be performed by males for their parents' afterlife. All these factors
make sons more desirable. Moreover, the prospect of parents „losing‟ daughters to the husband‟s
family and expensive dowry of daughters further discourages parents from having daughters.
Additionally, sons are often the only person entitled to performing funeral rights for their
parents. Thus, a combination of factors has shaped the imbalanced view of sexes in India.

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Discrimination against girls

While women express a strong preference for having at least one son, the evidence of
discrimination against girls after they are born is mixed. A study of 1990s survey data by
scholars. Found less evidence of systematic discrimination in feeding practices between young
boys and girls, or gender based nutritional discrimination in India. In impoverished families,
these scholars found that daughters face discrimination in the medical treatment of illnesses and
in the administration of vaccinations against serious childhood diseases. These practices were a
cause of health and survival inequality for girls. Poverty and lack of education derives countless
women to work in low paying domestic service, organized prostitution or as migrant laborers.
Women are not only getting unequal pay for equal or more work but also they are being offered
only low skill jobs for which lower wages are paid. This has become a major form of inequality
on the basis of gender. Educating girl child is still seen as a bad investment because she is bound
to get married and leave her paternal home one day. Thus, without having good education
women are found lacking in present day‟s demanding job skills; whereas, each year‟s High
School and 10+2 standard results show that girls are always doing better than boys. This shows
that parents are not spending much after 10+2 standard on girl child and that‟s why they lack in
job market.

Dowry
In India, dowry is the payment in cash or some kind of gifts given to bridegroom's family along
with the bride. The practice is widespread across geographic region, class and religions. The
dowry system in India contributes to gender inequalities by influencing the perception that girls
are a burden on families. Such beliefs limit the resources invested by parents in their girls and
limit her bargaining power within the family. The payment of a dowry has been prohibited under
The 1961 Dowry Prohibition Act in Indian civil law and subsequently by Sections 304B and
498a of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Several studies show that while attitudes of people are
changing about dowry, the institution has changed very little, and even continues to prevail.

Legal and Constitutional Safeguards against Gender Inequality

Article 15 of the Indian Constitution provides for prohibition of discrimination on grounds of sex
also apart from other grounds such as religion, race, caste or place of birth. Article 15(3)
authorizes the Sate to make any special provision for women and children. Moreover, the
Directive Principles of State Policy also provides various provisions which are for the benefit of
women and provides safeguards against discrimination. Various protective Legislations have
also been passed by the Parliament to eliminate exploitation of women and to give them equal
status in society. For instance, the Sati (Prevention) Act, 1987 was enacted to abolish and make
punishable the inhuman custom of Sati; the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 to eliminate the
practice of dowry; the Special Marriage Act, 1954 to give rightful status to married couples who
marry inter-caste or inter-religion; Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention
of Misuse) Bill (introduced in Parliament in 1991, passed in 1994 to stop female infanticide and
many more such Acts. Furthermore, the Parliament time to time brings out amendments to
existing laws in order to give protection to women according to the changing needs of the
society, for instance, Section 304-B was added to the Indian Penal Code, 1860 to make dowry-
death or bride-burning a specific offence punishable with maximum punishment of life
imprisonment. India is also signatory to the Convention for the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women, or CEDAW. However, the government maintains some
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reservations about interfering in the personal affairs of any community without the community‟s
initiative and consent. A listing of specific reforms is presented below.

 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

(CEDAW)
 Prenatal Diagnostic Testing Ban
 The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal)
Act, 2013
 Hindu Succession Act, 1956 (Amended in 2005; Gives equal inheritance rights to
daughters and sons - applies to Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs)
 Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act of 1937, (The inheritance rights are
governed by Sharia and the share of females are less than males as mandated by Quran)

State initiatives to reduce gender inequality

Different states and union territories of India, in cooperation with the central government, have
initiated a number of region-specific programs targeted at women to help reduce gender
inequality over the 1989-2013 period. Some of these programs include Swarnajayanti Gram
Swarozgar Yojana, Sampoorna Gramin Rozgar Yojana, Balika Samriddhi Yojana, National
Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education (to encourage rural girls to attend
primary school daily), National Programme for Education of Girls at Elementary Level, Sarva
Shiksha Abyhiyan, Ladli Laxmi Yojana, Delhi Ladli Scheme and others.
Remedies

 The list of legislations as well as types of discriminations or inequalities may go on but

the real change will only come when the mentality of men will change; when the male
species of human beings would start treating women as equal and not subordinate or
weaker to them. In fact not only men but women also need to change their mindset as
through cultural conditioning they have also become part of the same exploitative system
of patriarchy and are playing a supportive role in furthering men‟s agenda of dominating
women.
 The movement for Women‟s empowerment where women can become economically
independent and self-reliant is needed, where they can fight their own fears and go out in
the world fearless.
 Strategies for advancement of women should be higher literacy, more formal education,
and greater employment opportunity. In education it needs to be reducing primary and
secondary dropout of female child.
 In job opportunities there shall be reservation or expenditure or provision of services or
special provisions. In governance all rights and all legal measures should be available for
women‟s protection and support. Human rights education , know how to take control of
their circumstance , help to achieve their own goals, helping themselves, enhancing their
quality of life and motivating for lobbying or advocacy are also enablers for their
advancement. Collaborators such as NGO, INGOs, NPOs, SHGs, CBOs, policy makers,
local leaders, information disseminators, health care providers, teachers and family
members should help in the social advancement of women.

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Conclusion
The efforts of both women and men would be able to found solutions to the problem of gender
inequality and would take us all towards our cherished dream of a truly modern society in both
thought and action and political inequalities between men and women in India. Various
international gender inequality indices rank India differently on each of these factors, as well as
on a composite basis, and these indices are controversial. India needs to deactivate the gender
Inequality. The needs of the day are trends where girls are able not only to break out of the
culturally determined patterns of employment but also to offer advice about career possibilities
that look beyond the traditional list of jobs. It is surprising that in spite of so many laws, women
still continue to live under stress and strain. To ensure equality of status for our women we still
have miles to go.

References
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Dijkstra & Hanmer (2000), Measuring socio-economic gender inequality: Toward an

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Rangamuthia Mutharayappa, M. K. (1997). Son Preference and Its Effect on Fertility in
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Muthulakshmi, R. (1997). Female infanticide, its causes and solutions. New Delhi:
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"The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961". Retrieved 24 December 2006.
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