01368nam a22001337a 4500 533192 533192 260429b ||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d Baruah, Ashapurna and Ankita 60309 Can agricultural growth generate higher employment for rural women in INDIA? : Debunking a persistent myth Economic & Political Weekly 61(12), Mar 21, 2026: p.64-74 Periodic Labour Force Survey data indicate a sharp rise in female employment between 2017–18 and 2022–23, with the rural female labour force participation rate increasing from 24.6% to 41.5%. This paper questions the interpretation that this increase reflects agricultural growth or improved rural amenities. Examining trends in agricultural labour demand, employment status, and wages, it finds declining labour requirements in agriculture, rising unpaid family work, and stagnant real wages. These patterns suggest that the recent increase in the female labour force participation rate is more closely associated with rural distress than with improved economic opportunities. The paper thus highlights the limits of agriculture-led strategies for expanding women’s employment. –Reproduced https://www.epw.in/journal/2026/12/special-articles/can-agricultural-growth-generate-higher-employment.html Economic & Political Weekly AR 0 0 ddc 0 0 408363 IIPA IIPA 2026-04-29 61(12), Mar 21, 2026: p.64-74 AR138704 2026-04-29 AR