IJSSER

Title: Women’s Unpaid Labour: the Missing Piece of the Economy: A case study of rural women in low-income households in Palwal
Authors: Sia Gupta
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Sia Gupta Modern School Barakhamba Road New Delhi
MLA 8 Gupta, Sia. "How Effective Would the Solow Macroeconomic Growth Model be in Helping Developing Economies Like India to Achieve A Developed Status: An inDepth Critical Analysis." Int. j. of Social Science and Economic Research, vol. 10, no. 1, Jan. 2025, pp. 212-237, doi.org/10.46609/IJSSER.2025.v10i01.011. Accessed Jan. 2025. APA 6 Gupta, S. (2025, January). How Effective Would the Solow Macroeconomic Growth Model be in Helping Developing Economies Like India to Achieve A Developed Status: An inDepth Critical Analysis. Int. j. of Social Science and Economic Research, 10(1), 212-237. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.46609/IJSSER.2025.v10i01.011 Chicago Gupta, Sia. "How Effective Would the Solow Macroeconomic Growth Model be in Helping Developing Economies Like India to Achieve A Developed Status: An inDepth Critical Analysis." Int. j. of Social Science and Economic Research 10, no. 1 (January 2025), 212-237. Accessed January, 2025. https://doi.org/10.46609/IJSSER.2025.v10i01.011.
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ABSTRACT: This study aims to calculate the economic value of the unpaid domestic work that Indian housewives perform but which is not included in national statistics. We focus on rural women in low-income households, who often bear the brunt of unpaid housework due to several factors like the stereotypical gender roles, the patriarchal set up of the society and the low opportunities for women in the market. This paper analyses primary data collected from over 100 households in the Palwal District of Haryana, which has a predominantly rural population. Using time use surveys, we measured the number of hours spent in various household activities such as cooking, cleaning, laundry, etc. We use the opportunity cost and replacement cost methods to impute a hypothetical salary to this unpaid work. We then give short term and long-term policy recommendations to recognise this invisible work. The final goal of the study is to reiterate the economic worth of women’s hidden labour and that inclusion of this value is a prerequisite for gender equality.

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