Meghalaya among states with shortest working hours for govt, pvt employees

SHILLONG, March 9: Meghalaya is among the states with the shortest working hours in India, reveals a recent report by Shamika Ravi, a member of the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM).
The study, titled “Time Spent on Employment-Related Activities in India: A Note”, highlights significant differences in working hours across the country, with Meghalaya standing out for its notably shorter workdays.
The national average time spent on paid economic activities is about 422 minutes per day, roughly seven hours, in Meghalaya. In urban areas, individuals in Meghalaya work an average of 375 minutes per day, approximately 6.25 hours, placing the state among the states with the least time spent on economic activities in urban India.
The trend of shorter working hours is common across the Northeastern region, while states/union territories like Delhi, Daman & Diu, and Dadra & Nagar Haveli have recorded longer working hours. Government employees in urban areas of Telangana and Rajasthan work two more hours each day on an average than their counterparts in Meghalaya, Assam, and Kerala.
The report also shows notable variations within some states. For instance, employees of both public and private enterprises in Himachal Pradesh put in 2.6 more hours a day than those in government employment. Similar disparities exist in Gujarat, Odisha, and Uttarakhand, where private employees work more hours than government employees.
Meghalaya, Goa, Assam, Mizoram, and Nagaland, however, don’t seem to be following this pattern. According to the survey, there is a more consistent pattern of fewer working hours in these states, since both government employees and those employed by businesses report comparably short workdays.
In rural Meghalaya, the report indicates similarly low working hours, suggesting this trend may be influenced by social, economic, or lifestyle factors unique to the region.