Gender disparities in Indian education: An analysis

Gender disparities in education in India are still prevalent, although many policy efforts are aimed at bridging this gap. There has been an improvement in overall enrollment at the primary education level but looking at the higher levels we still find gender disparities. These disparities have also been highlighted by the All-India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE 2021). Literacy rates also show disparities. According to the 2011 census, only 63% of females are literate which is far behind the 80% of male literacy rate. This gap directly impacts gender equality, especially in higher education and employment. Gender norms and safety concerns also restrict educational opportunities, especially in science, technology, and engineering fields where male enrollment is comparatively higher. Initiatives like “Beti Bachao Beti Padhao” and Udaan have tried to build these gaps but face challenges in reach and implementation. Bridging these gender gaps could have economic benefits too as it could help in boosting nations' GDP. It will be very difficult to achieve the gender parity target in Sustainable Development Goals 2030 without involving females in education through policy formation and community support. The primary objectives are to analyze historical and current gender disparities, progress and barriers across educational levels and the effect of socio-economic factors and policies on gender equality. The present study will be exploratory cum descriptive in nature. This study involves comparative analysis and is based on secondary data specifically AISHE report, 2021; New Education Policy 2020 (NEP) and Census report 2011. (Keywords: Gender Disparity, Education, Government Reports).