New Delhi, May 27 -- It's no secret that Indian women are overburdened with unpaid housework. Those who expect relief from this by getting a college degree or earning a lot are likely to be disappointed.

Tending to domestic chores and caring for family members leaves many Indian women with little time to join the formal workforce. But even those who are able to get a job don't get relief from unpaid housework.

This is evident from a Mint analysis of granular data from the government's second pan-India Time Use Survey, conducted in 2024. The nationally representative survey, which covered over 167,000 respondents, helps us sketch what a day in the life of the average Indian looks like.

The survey records the time Indians spend on 165 sp...