On July 24, the Tamil Nadu government launched camps to facilitate the registration of applicants for the Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thogai Thittam, or women’s basic income scheme. Aimed to “recognise women’s unpaid labour”, the scheme will provide Rs. 1,000 per month to women in eligible households. In June, the Madras High Court held that home-makers are entitled to an equal share in household properties purchased by the husband. “In generality of marriages, the wife bears and rears children and minds the home. She thereby frees her husband for his economic activities,” the court had observed.
Both the government and the court have not only thrown light on unpaid care and domestic work carried out by women but also announced welfare measures and verdicts in favour of women, recognising their contribution. Such work includes household-specific tasks like cooking, cleaning, washing clothes, household management and maintenance, grocery shopping, child care, and caring for sick or elderly members.
Indian women have disproportionately borne the responsibility of domestic and care work, which is unpaid. Data shows that married women spend on average over seven hours a day doing such work, regardless of their employment status, while men spend less than three hours. This trend is consistent for women across income levels and caste groups.
