June 23 is marked as the International Women Engineers Day, which is indeed a great way to recognize women engineers.
But instead of limiting the occasion to formal celebrations only, deeper and more sincere reviews of the status of women’s inclusion in India’s engineering education and professions are urgently required, along with sustained efforts for improving the gender diversity at the top leadership of these industries.
It is noteworthy that in India, the number of women in technical/engineering education and industry has increased over the past few years. However, the number of women occupying top leadership positions in manufacturing and heavy industrial sectors is quite dismal.
The Data
These observations and concerns are not mere rhetoric. Manufacturing and technology-based heavy industry are the largest contributors in terms of employment, accounting for about 20% of Indian GDP. But the number of women employed in this sector is abysmally low — around 3% (core engineering) to 12% (other technology). The picture becomes even bleaker when we check the representation of women at top leadership positions in this sector.
However, there are rays of hope. According to the “All India Survey of Higher Education” report, the number of girls studying science and engineering at higher secondary and graduate levels is increasing at a steady rate. Today, India has the highest number of female science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) graduates in the world — about 40%, which is a fact to be proud of. But ironically, we find only 14% of them in the workforce! The scenario looks even more critical if we focus on the representation of women engineers in the manufacturing sector and heavy industry.
Per the report published by the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development in 2020 for the academic year 2019-2020, the percentage of girls admitted in core engineering disciplines is as follows:
- Mechanical engineering: 5.9%
- Civil engineering: 22.5%
- Metallurgical engineering: 22.7%
- Chemical engineering: 23.2%
- Electrical engineering: 27.3%
The most noticeable inconsistency is in mechanical engineering, where despite the overall admission of students being quite high across all genders, the enrollment of girls is the least among all engineering disciplines.
The Causes
From the above, we can see that the major reason for the deplorable situation of gender diversity in the top leadership of businesses in this sector is the lack of talent pipeline of capable women leaders.
These questions naturally come to mind: Despite the overall promising scenario of gender parity in STEM education, why are most girls not interested in studying some core engineering subjects? Why is their participation in the workforce of this sector so disappointing?
A review of the probable reasons for the hesitancy of girls to join the aforesaid core engineering branches or not joining the workforce after graduation, reveals a typical “chicken and egg” scenario:
- Lack of awareness about this sector, its contribution to India’s economy, and an engineer’s role in its growth (irrespective of gender)
- Lack of role models — successful highly-placed women engineers in the family, among acquaintances, and in the country as a whole
- Skepticism about joining predominantly male-dominated disciplines and organizations
- Lack of confidence in garnering the required technical skills due to years of ingrained gender stereotypes and misconceptions
- Gender discrimination in this sector (subtle or overt)
- Factual and perceived challenges that a woman engineer is likely to face in the industrial environment
- Family responsibilities, which in Indian society are still mostly borne by women, interfering with career growth
- Self-limiting beliefs and actions which lead to lack of visibility in the organization and missed opportunities for promotions
The Path Forward
Collective efforts with targeted initiatives and actions by the government, policymakers, engineering educational institutions, workplaces, and women engineers at the individual level are the need of the hour for improving gender diversity in this manufacturing and technology-based heavy industrial sector.
In recent times, many organizations are putting forth sustained efforts to improve gender diversity and be mindful about ensuring equal opportunities to women engineers. As a result, today we find a few women technocrats have been able to break the proverbial glass ceiling and lead large Indian organizations.
I hope that in the near future, many more girls will feel encouraged to study core engineering, join the workforce, and receive respect and recognition for their contributions. If this occurs, the businesses in the midst of Industry 4.0 and 5.0 will reap the benefits of more diverse boardrooms and leadership.
Very apt and relevant to the present. While Swastika’s personal journey in this environment have made her very deserving to make justice to the subject, her keen observations on the ‘ground realities’,added value. Rightly said, it more of rhetoric about women empowerment etc., but facts and figures are quite dismal.