Statistics Ministry to conduct country-wide Time Use Survey

NEW DELHI: Government is considering conducting country-wide Time Use Survey (TUS) to assess the activities of people during a day, Parliament was informed today.

"The Ministry is actively considering conduct of country-wide TUS to assess the manner in which people spend their day," Statistics and Programme Implementation Minister Srikant Jena said in a written reply to Lok Sabha.

For conducting the country-wide TUS, an expert group has been constituted by the Ministry with term of reference that includes finalisation of national classification of activities for TUS and recommending the survey methodology.

A classification of time use activities was developed in December 2012. The Ministry has commissioned another pilot TUS on a smaller scale in Bihar and Gujarat in March, 2013 to test these classifications and methodology.

Based on the findings of this pilot survey, the expert group is expected to give the recommendations on the need, periodicity and estimated cost for a country-wide time use survey, the Minister said.

The proposed survey will capture all activities of both men and women during the day consisting of 24 hours. TUS technique is an important tool for measuring paid and unpaid work of both men and women in a society.

The proposed country-wide TUS is expected to be completed within two years from the date of commencement of the survey.

The Ministry had conducted a pilot TUS in six states including Kerala, Meghalaya, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa and Gujarat in 1998-99.