MoSPI released the 27th edition of 'Women and Men in India 2025' in Bhubaneswar on 29 April 2026 — rural female LFPR jumped 37.5% to 45.9% (2022-2025) and women managers grew 102.54%.
Why in News
The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) released the 27th edition of its flagship publication 'Women and Men in India 2025: Selected Indicators and Data' at the National Deliberative Summit on 'Data for Development' in Bhubaneswar, Odisha on 29 April 2026. The report — institutionalised in 1995 — compiles gender-disaggregated indicators across population, education, health, employment, decision-making and gender-based violence drawn from multiple ministries. This edition adds metadata for 50 key indicators to enhance methodology transparency. Odisha Deputy CM K.V. Singh Deo and Capacity Building Commission Chairperson Radha Chauhan attended the launch.
At a Glance
- Publisher
- Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), Government of India
- Release
- 29 April 2026, Bhubaneswar, at the National Deliberative Summit on 'Data for Development'
- Edition
- 27th — annual publication, institutionalised in 1995
- Sex ratio at birth
- 904 (2017-19) → 917 (2021-23) — improved female survival
- Rural female LFPR
- 37.5% (2022) → 45.9% (2025) — biggest gains by any segment
- Women in managerial roles up 102.54% (2017-2025); men up 73.80% in same period
- GER higher education (female)
- 28.5 → 30.2 (males 28.3 → 28.9) — females overtake
- MMR
- 254 (2004-06) → 88 (2021-23); mean age at marriage (women): 24.3 in 2023
- Adolescent (15-19) fertility rate has shown sustained downward trend since 2021
What 'Women and Men in India' is
An annual MoSPI compendium that pulls gender-disaggregated indicators from across the Government of India — Census, NFHS, SRS, PLFS, NCRB, MoHFW, MoE, MoLE — into a single statistical reference. It is the official source for tracking gender gaps in population, health, education, labour, decision-making and violence. The publication has been institutionalised since 1995, making 2025 its 27th edition. It is intended to support evidence-based gender-responsive policymaking.
Headline indicators that improved
Sex ratio at birth rose from 904 (2017-19) to 917 (2021-23) — a 13-point gain attributed to better female survival. Infant mortality declined steadily for both sexes between 2008 and 2023. MMR fell from 254 (2004-06) to 88 (2021-23) — meeting key SDG-3.1 milestones. India achieved school-level gender parity from primary through higher secondary, with female GER in higher education (30.2) now exceeding male GER (28.9) for 2022-23.
Workforce and leadership shifts
Rural female LFPR (15+) jumped from 37.5% in 2022 to 45.9% in 2025 — 8.4 percentage points in three years, the largest gain across any demographic segment. Women in managerial positions grew 102.54% between 2017 and 2025, while male managers grew 73.80% — a meaningful shift in leadership representation, though absolute base remains lower for women. Mean age at marriage for women reached 24.3 in 2023, allowing longer educational/professional development windows.
What's new in this edition
Metadata for 50 key indicators has been added — covering definitions, source agencies, periodicity, geographic coverage and methodology — to improve cross-comparability and reproducibility for researchers. Indicators are presented by rural-urban classification and state-wise breakdown where available. The full publication is hosted at mospi.gov.in.
Static GK
- •: MoSPI is headed by the Minister of Statistics and Programme Implementation; the National Statistics Office (NSO) is its statistical arm.
- •: MoSPI was formed by the merger of the Department of Statistics and the Department of Programme Implementation in 1999.
- •: Sex Ratio (overall) is reported by the Census; SRB and CSR (Child Sex Ratio, 0-6 years) are tracked separately.
- •: PLFS (Periodic Labour Force Survey) has been the primary employment indicator source for India since 2017-18; replaced the earlier NSS quinquennial rounds.
- •: SDG 5 ('Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls') is one of 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals adopted in 2015.
Timeline
- 1995First edition of 'Women and Men in India' is published
- 1999MoSPI is formed by merger of Department of Statistics and Department of Programme Implementation
- 2015Beti Bachao Beti Padhao launched at Panipat by PM Modi
- 2017-19Sex ratio at birth recorded at 904 (baseline for current report)
- 2021-23Sex ratio at birth improves to 917; MMR drops to 88
- 29 April 202627th edition released at National Deliberative Summit, Bhubaneswar
- →27 → 27th edition; 1995 → first edition (institutionalised that year).
- →904 → 917: SRB jump in just one reporting cycle (2017-19 to 2021-23).
- →37.5 → 45.9: rural female LFPR (2022 to 2025).
- →102.54 → women managers' growth (vs 73.80 men) 2017-2025.
- →MMR: 254 → 88 between 2004-06 and 2021-23 — a 65% drop.
- →GER higher ed: females (30.2) now > males (28.9) in 2022-23.
- →MoSPI hq: New Delhi; statistical arm: NSO.
- →Bhubaneswar = launch venue 2026; summit theme 'Data for Development'.
Exam Angles
MoSPI has released the 27th edition of 'Women and Men in India 2025' in Bhubaneswar — rural female LFPR up from 37.5% to 45.9%, women managers up 102.54%, sex ratio at birth 904 to 917.
Q1. Arrange the following Indian gender-policy and statistics milestones in chronological order:
1. National Family Health Survey-1 (NFHS-1) launched
2. Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention) Act enacted
3. First edition of 'Women and Men in India' published
4. Beti Bachao Beti Padhao launched by PM Modi at Panipat
Select the correct option:
- A.1 → 3 → 2 → 4
- B.3 → 1 → 2 → 4
- C.1 → 3 → 4 → 2
- D.1 → 2 → 3 → 4
tap to reveal answer
Answer: A. 1 → 3 → 2 → 4
NFHS-1 field work was conducted in 1992-93 (first round). 'Women and Men in India' was first published in 1995. The POSH Act (Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace, Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) was enacted in 2013. Beti Bachao Beti Padhao was launched on 22 January 2015 at Panipat, Haryana. Correct order: 1 → 3 → 2 → 4.
India's gender data has historically been fragmented across the Census, NFHS, SRS, PLFS, NCRB and various ministerial dashboards. MoSPI's 'Women and Men in India' has filled this gap since 1995 by consolidating cross-domain indicators in one place. The 27th edition arrives against a policy backdrop of Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (2015), POSH Act (2013), Maternity Benefit Amendment (2017), and the Mission Shakti umbrella scheme (2021).
- Rural female LFPR: a 8.4 percentage-point jump in three yearsThe 37.5% to 45.9% jump (2022-25) likely reflects post-pandemic re-entry, MGNREGA absorption in agricultural off-seasons, and SHG-led livelihood mobilisation. However, the bulk of rural female participation remains in agriculture and own-account work — quality of employment matters as much as headcount.
- Leadership growth from a low baseWomen managers grew 102.54% (2017-25) but absolute representation in C-suite, board and senior public-service positions remains well below parity. The Companies Act woman-director mandate and SEBI's independent-director rules drove early gains, but pipeline depth is uneven across sectors.
- From data to policyAdding metadata for 50 key indicators is a methodological upgrade that supports state-level policy targeting. Translating this into outcomes requires linking gender-budget statements, Mission Shakti operational data, and PLFS/NFHS dashboards into a single monitoring stack — ideally within the National Data and Analytics Platform (NDAP).