Time use pattern of hill women was studied in lesser Himalayan zone of Uttarakhand with a sample size of 150 covering two blocks of district Nainital viz. Dhari and Okhalkanda. The data were collected through interview using 24 hours recall method and participatory observation with the help of structured interview schedule. Findings revealed that women spent maximum time in agricultural works followed by household / personal work and livestock care in peak and house hold / personal work followed by mid time rest , livestock care and other business in slack periods as observed by both the methods. Hill women use to spend minimum time on water collection, study/ reading and religious works during both peak and slack periods. For productive work during slack and peak periods, hill women on an average spent almost equal time. It was further observed that time saved by women of agricultural works during slack period was diverted towards household / personal work, fuel wood and fodder collection, income generating activities etc. Time spent on constructive activities was positively correlated with education, family size and annual income and negatively with age.

Keyword: Time use pattern; Hill women; Lesser Himalayan region; Productive time input