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‘Give Me Some Rail’: An Enquiry into Puzzle of Declining Female Labour Force Participation Rate

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  • Rajesh Gupta
  • Vaibhav Bhamoriya

Abstract

Female labour force undeniably constitutes half of the human capital that drives the growth and development of emerging economies. Probing into determinants of female labour force participation decline has gathered momentum in recent past, but there has been no significant breakthrough in resolving the puzzle. Using World Bank’s database of female labour force participation rate of India and China, and the state-wise database for India, this article juxtaposes the intermodal transport trend to examine if the former can be explained by the latter. Decline of female labour force participation in India is a concern from both the demographic dividend aspect and the social inclusion aspect. Twenty-five years’ data of both China and India and 3 year’s data of 18 Indian states show this trend, and this article probes the mobility constraint as the reason behind this phenomenon. Results of this study indicate that lower rail-to-road ratio is exclusionary for women. The findings regarding gendering of mobility and employment would influence important policy towards planning intermodal transport and its share of total transport for a nation. JEL Classification: C25, J12, J16, J21, J22, J130, J220, I38, I180, R48

Suggested Citation

  • Rajesh Gupta & Vaibhav Bhamoriya, 2021. "‘Give Me Some Rail’: An Enquiry into Puzzle of Declining Female Labour Force Participation Rate," Management and Labour Studies, XLRI Jamshedpur, School of Business Management & Human Resources, vol. 46(1), pages 7-23, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:manlab:v:46:y:2021:i:1:p:7-23
    DOI: 10.1177/0258042X20976969
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Gender; employment; Female Labour Force Participation Rate (FLFPR); transport structure; intermodal share;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C25 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Discrete Regression and Qualitative Choice Models; Discrete Regressors; Proportions; Probabilities
    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • I38 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - Government Programs; Provision and Effects of Welfare Programs
    • R48 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Transportation Economics - - - Government Pricing and Policy

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