Read the following information and answer the questions that follow:
A government survey found that an average woman in India works over seven and a half hours daily, while an average man works six and a half hours. Yet the woman's work is considered less valuable. The female literacy rate in India stands at 54%, compared to 76% for men. Girls perform as well as boys in school examinations, yet many drop out because parents prefer to invest in their sons' education. Despite the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, women receive less pay than men even for the same work — whether in cinema, sports, factories or fields.
(i) What does this data suggest about the nature of women's work in Indian society — is it mainly paid or unpaid, and how does this affect its social recognition?
(ii) Why does more work done by women remain 'invisible' compared to men's work?
(iii) Identify ONE reason why girls have a lower rate of higher education despite performing well in schools.
(iv) What does the existence of a wage gap despite the Equal Remuneration Act tell us about the status of women in India?
Generated by claude-sonnet-4-6 · 2026-06-26 13:19 · grounding rag
Model Answer
(i) Women's work is largely unpaid (household chores, childcare, fetching water, cooking). Since it does not generate income, it remains invisible and receives little social recognition, even though women work over seven and a half hours daily—more than men.
(ii) Men's work is mostly income-generating (6 hours daily), making it visible and valued. Women spend about 5 hours on household-related work which is unpaid, so it remains invisible and unrecognised despite the greater total hours worked.
(iii) Parents prefer to spend their resources on sons' education rather than spending equally on sons and daughters, causing girls to drop out despite performing well.
(iv) The wage gap despite the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 shows that India remains a patriarchal society where laws alone are insufficient—women continue to face discrimination and are valued less than men in every field of work.
Source: Chapter 3 — Gender and Politics, Sexual Division of Labour section
---
Explanation
- Each sub-question carries 1 mark; keep each answer to 1–2 sentences.
- (i) & (ii) are closely linked but distinct: (i) asks about paid/unpaid nature and social recognition; (ii) asks why it is invisible (income vs. non-income work distinction).
- For (iii), the textbook's exact reason is parental preference for sons' education — state it directly.
- For (iv), use the term patriarchal and note that legal provisions alone don't guarantee gender equality — examiners expect this inference.
- Avoid writing general knowledge; base every point on the passage provided.