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Case Studies | Political Science | India | Volume 12 Issue 3, March 2023
A Gendered Pandemic in India, Nepal and Bangladesh
Debjanee Ganguly
Abstract: Impact of Covid-19 has been felt very differently by women across the globe. We saw a rise in the number of cases of domestic violence in the world over, women suffered much more in terms of job lay-offs, they have continued to face discrimination in terms of re-employment, lower wages and continue to be at a greater risk of contracting the virus as most of them are engaged in frontline health work. In this new context of lifted lockdown (in most countries), weakened or battered economies and fear of a repeat scenario, this paper looks at South Asia and the impact of covid-19 on women, their rights, their struggle for reclaiming the public space and the sacred space of the household. South Asia makes for a unique study given its deeply existent patriarchal attitudes that have kept women confined mostly to the home or engaged in gender-based jobs. South Asia has a poor track record of women?s rights, gender based crimes and gender-stereotypical attitude in society. According to the Global Gender Gap Report, among the eight regions covered in the report, South Asia ranks the lowest, with only 62.3% of the gender gap closed in 2022. This lack of progress since the last time that the study was conducted means that it will take the region 197 years to close the gender gap, due to a broad stagnation in gender parity scores across most countries in the region. This paper looks closely at the impact of covid-19 on women in three South Asian countries, India, Nepal and Bangladesh. I will be looking at covid-19 and rise in crime against women in the space of the home and otherwise, labour force participation rate among women and related economic disparities that have been accentuated after the pandemic, impact on civil society and if and how governments of these countries have addressed the issue. It will be a comparative study among these countries on the gendered impact of the pandemic. The aim of the paper is to highlight the cause of women in a new global context of the pandemic and crippled economies.
Keywords: Labour participation, domestic violence, sexual harassment, gender-based violence, laws
Edition: Volume 12 Issue 3, March 2023,
Pages: 949 - 958