With a high burden of domestic work, how much time to Indian women spend on self-care?

Less time for leisure and self-care can affect building community and result in isolation.

Jan 26, 2024 - 20:30

With a high burden of domestic work, how much time to Indian women spend on self-care?

Last month, Infosys chairman NR Narayana Murthy insisted that Indian youngsters must work a 70-hour week. “I used to be in the office at 6.20 am and leave office at 8.30 pm and worked six days a week…I know every nation that became prosperous did so through hard work,” he added. That’s the only way to escape the ‘cycle of poverty’, he said.

Most Indian working women work a 70-hour week anyway. Indian women’s unpaid work plays a crucial role in sustaining economic activity, equivalent to 3.1% of the gross domestic product, according to this 2018 report by the International Labour Organization.

Unpaid care work entails a “systemic transfer of hidden subsidies” to the economy, in turn imposing a “systemic time tax on women”, a 2018 Oxfam report says. Comparing unpaid work across countries, the report found that Indian women do the most unpaid care and domestic work of any country globally, except Kazakhstan – a country with 94% lower GDP than India.

On average, Indian women spend over 44 hours a week on unpaid domestic work and caregiving activities, our analysis of time-use data shows. In comparison, men spend just over five hours a week on these activities. Add to this a 40-hour work-week, and Indian...