Gender parity in Delhi's higher education declined in 2020-21, shows data

The gender parity index in higher education in Delhi dropped to 1.04 in 2020-21 from 1.16 in 2018-19, as per data from the Directorate of Economics and Statistics.

The gender parity index (GPI) reflects the ratio of females to males enrolled in a specific education stage, ideally ranging between 0.97 and 1.03. However, the number of female students per 100 male students in crucial educational programmes increased.

Comparing data from 2012-13 and 2020-21 across various higher education courses, the GPI showed increases in PhD (0.84 to 0.9), postgraduate (0.73 to 1.02), undergraduate (1.03 to 1.11), PG Diploma (0.51 to 0.73), and Diploma programme (0.53 to 0.84) in regular education mode.

While 90.1 percent of total students in Delhi opted for general courses in 2017-18, technical or professional courses were favoured by 92 percent of males and 88.1 percent of females. Medicine, particularly popular among females, was chosen by 43 percent of males, 76.8 percent of females, and 62.4 percent of individuals.

The data also revealed a higher interest among women in teaching, especially at the primary level.

The number of female teachers per 100 male teachers increased from 363 in 2012-13 to 410 in 2021-22 at the primary level, from 201 to 205 at the secondary level, and from 152 to 169 at the higher secondary level during the same period.

The average expenditure per student in basic courses in 2017-18 was estimated at Rs 20,641 for males and Rs 19,093 for females, while technical and professional courses had an average expenditure of Rs 97,935 for males and Rs 69,876 for females.