NSS Report: Time Use in India-2019

In news

The all India Time Use Survey, 2019 has just been published by the Government of India.

Objective of the survey

The primary objective of Time Use Survey (TUS) is to measure participation of men, women and other groups of persons in paid and unpaid activities.

About all India Time Use Survey

Time Use Survey (TUS) provides a framework for measuring time dispositions by the population on different activities.
National Statistical Office (NSO) conducted the first Time Use Survey in India during January – December 2019.
The survey measures the participation rate and time spent on paid activities, care activities, unpaid activities, etc.
It has collected data on time dispositions of household members, is an area of survey introduced in response to demands from various stakeholders.
It is an important source of information about the activities that are performed by the population and the time duration for which such activities are performed.
One distinguishing feature of Time Use Survey from other household surveys is that it can capture time disposition on different aspects of human activities, be it paid, unpaid or other activities with such details which is not possible in other surveys.
The survey has covered the whole of the Indian Union except the villages in Andaman and Nicobar Islands which are difficult to access.
The survey has been conducted from 1st January, 2019 to December 2019 in four sub-rounds

Key findings of the survey

As per the survey, only 38.2 per cent of the population participates in “employment and other related activities”, spending 429 minutes (7 hours and 9 minutes) on an average each day.
It also states that there is a wide gender disparity, with only 18.4 per cent women participating in employment activities compared with 57.3 percent men; also, while men spend on an average 459 minutes (7 hours and 39 minutes), women spend only 333 minutes (5 hours and 33 minutes).
It shows women participation in unpaid domestic services for household members – cooking, cleaning, household management – is as high as 81.2 per cent each day compared with 26.1 per cent for men.
There is also a stark difference in the time spent by men and women in care-giving activities to a dependent child or an adult.
While only 14 per cent of men participate in unpaid care giving services for household members spending on average 76 minutes a day (1 hour and 16 minutes), the share of women((2 hours 14 minutes) ) is double at 27.6 per cent