We rely on real-time data from one of India's largest job portals (Shine.com) to study how COVID-19 (and the associated lockdown measures) impacted the Indian labor market. Detailed firm-level vacancy postings reveal a dramatic contraction in hiring: the number of firms posting jobs, and the...

We use microlevel data from the India Human Development Survey to test our hypothesis that ownership of time-saving household appliances results in the following: an increase in employment rates for married women; an increase in school enrollment rates; and a decrease in employment rates for...

This paper studies the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the gendered dimensions of employment and mental health among urban informal-sector workers in India. First, we find that men's employment declined by 84 percentage points post-pandemic relative to pre-pandemic, while their monthly earnings...

This paper studies the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the gendered dimensions of employment and mental health among urban informal-sector workers in India. First, we find that men's employment declined by 84 percentage points during pandemic relative to pre-pandemic employment, while their...

Son preference in countries like India results in higher female infant mortality rates and differentially lower access to health care and education for girls than for boys. We use a nationally representative survey of Indian households (NFHS-3) to conduct the first study that analyzes whether...

We highlight the role of home productivity in explaining the gender gap in labor force participation (LFP), and the non-monotonic relationship of women's LFP with their education in developing countries (India) in contrast to the developed economies (United Kingdom, U.K.). We construct a model...

This paper examines the nature and determinants of female entrepreneurship in India based on survey data. The first part assesses basic characteristics of female entrepreneurship in India, while the subsequent sections analyse key determinants of female entrepreneurship based on the literature,...

The low and declining female labour force participation rate in India despite strong growth over the past decade is puzzling and stands out among emerging markets. At the same time greater economic participation of women can be a source of inclusive growth, and wellbeing. Assessing determinants...

Son preference in countries like India results in higher female infant mortality rates and differentially lower access to health care and education for girls than for boys. We use a nationally representative survey of Indian households (NFHS-3) to conduct the first study that analyzes whether...

This paper deals with an important but neglected aspect of female labor force participation (LFP) in urban India. Contemporary literature that deals with urban female LFP in India typically focuses on the entire urban sector, and invariably misses out one important aspect of urban living – the...