• Anchal Mehta
• Meenu Dua

Women contribute 49.7% of the global population hence gender equality and women's empowerment are crucial goals for creating a just and equitable world and ensuring sustainable development. The paper is based on the Global Gender Gap Index which benchmarks the evolution of gender-based gap among four dimensions: economic participation and opportunities, education attainment , health and survival and political empowerment. The paper is based on secondary data sources, like Global Gender Gap Index reports of various years, ILOSTAT, labor force survey, World Economic Forum Executive Opinion Survey. The paper intends to understand and analyze the sub components of GGI for the South Asian region and more specifically, the sub components of the second parameter of GGI that is Economic Participation and Opportunity (EPO). India ranks 6th regionally in South Asia and 127 globally with 0.643 score. Bangladesh, Bhutan and Sri Lanka are ahead of India while Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan are behind India in South Asia region. Data reflects that India has closed only 64% of the gender gap by 2023 in comparison to 68% of the gap closed globally. Among the sub indices of Gender Gap Index, the health and education are the two parameters in which India has shown remarkable position and represents equality between men and women whereas the gap is the largest of four parameters, in political empowerment followed by Economic Participation and Opportunity. The gender gap in EPO is the most urgent concern area globally as well as for India. India has seen only marginalized improvement in EPO gap over the years from 0.3967 in 2006 to 0.403 in 2010 and again reduced to 0.383 in 2015 and then 0.367 in 2023. To improve the status, at the grass root level, the government has reserved 33% of the seats in Panchayati Raj Institutions for women. Due to various policy and programs towards health and education the female has won half battle whereas half battle is still left.

Gender Gap Index, Economics participation, Equality

"ANALYSIS OF GENDER GAP INDEX: CATALYST TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.11, Issue 11, page no.c482-c492, November-2024, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2411260.pdf

"ANALYSIS OF GENDER GAP INDEX: CATALYST TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.11, Issue 11, page no. ppc482-c492, November-2024, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR2411260.pdf