Contributor : Profile
Sandip Sukhtankar is an Associate Professor in the Department of Economics at the University of Virginia and an affiliate of the Bureau for Research and Economic Analysis of Development (BREAD) and the Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL). He received his PhD from Harvard University in 2009, and a BA from Swarthmore College (with Highest Honors) in 2000. He previously worked at Dartmouth College, the Brookings Institution and the Center for Global Development.
Prof Sukhtankar’s research interests are in development economics, political economy, and public economics, with a particular focus on corruption, governance, and the delivery of public benefits and services. Past papers have examined the political economy of sugarcane cooperatives, incentives for corruption in India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Schemes, and a randomized evaluation of biometric ID cards in India. Current projects include randomized trials of large-scale government programs leveraging technology and direct transfers of cash in lieu of in-kind benefits in India.
Prof Sukhtankar’s research has been published in top economics journals such as the American Economic Review, American Economic JournalApplied Economics, and the Journal of Public Economics. His paper published in theAmerican Economic JournalEconomic Policy was awarded the Best Paper award by the American Economics Association. His work has been supported by the National Science Foundation, the Omidyar Network, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Posts by Sandip Sukhtankar
How reforming India’s workfare programme raised private sector earnings
By randomising the rollout of improved, biometric payment infrastructure used to issue National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme payments in Andhra Pradesh, this study found that this reform raised i...
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Karthik Muralidharan
Paul Niehaus
Sandip Sukhtankar
25 January, 2024
- Articles
In-kind transfers as insurance
Academics and policymakers worldwide are leading the push towards unconditional cash as the preferred mode of transfer from the government to the poor. Yet surveys across countries find that large pro...
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Lucie Gadenne
Sam Norris
Monica Singhal
Sandip Sukhtankar
01 March, 2021
- Articles
Balancing corruption and exclusion: A response
The role of Aadhaar in reducing corruption in PDS has been highly controversial. In a recent I4I article, Muralidharan et al. summarised the results of their study in Jharkhand, which confirmed the 'p...
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Karthik Muralidharan
Paul Niehaus
Sandip Sukhtankar
21 October, 2020
- Perspectives
ड्यूएट: सकारात्मक दृष्टिकोण के साथ सावधानीपूर्वक कार्यान्वयन
शहरी रोजगार कार्यक्रम हेतु ज्यां द्रेज़ के ड्यूएट प्रस्ताव पर टिप्पणी करते हुए संदीप सुखटणकर यह विमर्श करते हैं कि संभावित आश्वासन और साथ ही इससे जुड़े स्वाभाविक मुद्दों (जिनका समाधान किया जाना है)...
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Sandip Sukhtankar
19 अक्टूबर, 2020
- दृष्टिकोण
DUET: Need to keep open mind, pilot cautiously
Commenting on Drèze’s DUET proposal for an urban work programme, Sandip Sukhtankar contends that given the potential promise but obvious issues that need to be addressed, the proposal is indeed rip...
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Sandip Sukhtankar
24 September, 2020
- Perspectives
भ्रष्टाचार और बहिष्करण को संतुलित करना: आधार को पीडीएस में शामिल करना
सार्वजनिक रूप से प्रदान की जाने वाली वस्तुओं और सेवाओं के लाभार्थियों को इन लाभों को प्राप्त करने के लिए अपनी पहचान कैसे साबित करनी चाहिए? यह लेख, झारखंड राज्य में सार्वजनिक वितरण प्रणाली (पीडीएस) में...
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Karthik Muralidharan
Paul Niehaus
Sandip Sukhtankar
09 मई, 2020
- लेख
Balancing corruption and exclusion: Incorporating Aadhaar into PDS
How should recipients of publicly provided goods and services prove their identity in order to access these benefits? This article reports findings from a large-scale experiment across 15 million bene...
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Karthik Muralidharan
Paul Niehaus
Sandip Sukhtankar
17 April, 2020
- Articles
Using mobiles to improve governance
Measuring how well major public programmes are implemented remains a core governance challenge. With the increasing mobile-phone penetration in the country, Muralidharan, Niehaus, Sukhtankar, and Weav...
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Karthik Muralidharan
Paul Niehaus
Sandip Sukhtankar
Jeffrey Weaver
26 June, 2019
- Perspectives
शासन में सुधार के लिए मोबाइल का उपयोग
मुख्य सार्वजनिक कार्यक्रमों का कितनी अच्छी तरह क्रियान्वयन हो रहा है इसे मापना शासन की एक बड़ी चुनौती बनी हुई है। देश में मोबाइल-फोन की तेजी से बढ़ रही पहुंच को देखते, मुरलीधरन, नीहौस, सुखतंकर, और वीवर...
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Karthik Muralidharan
Paul Niehaus
Sandip Sukhtankar
Jeffrey Weaver
26 जून, 2019
- दृष्टिकोण
Strengthen MNREGS to support the rural economy
India’s Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS) has generated a lot of controversy about its effectiveness as a safety net designed to benefit landless rural households. M...
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Karthik Muralidharan
Paul Niehaus
Sandip Sukhtankar
22 March, 2019
- Perspectives
मनरेगा से निकली हैं कई राहें
भारत की महात्मा गांधी राष्ट्रीय ग्रामीण रोजगार गारंटी योजना (मनरेगा) की भूमिहीन ग्रामीण परिवारों को लाभ पहुंचाने के लिए बनाए गए सुरक्षा तंत्र के रूप में प्रभावशीलता को लेकर बहुत सारे विवाद उत्पन्न हुए...
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Karthik Muralidharan
Paul Niehaus
Sandip Sukhtankar
22 मार्च, 2019
- दृष्टिकोण
पीडीएस में पसंद-आधारित विकल्प की आवश्यकता
भारत के प्रमुख खाद्य सुरक्षा कार्यक्रम पब्लिक डिस्ट्रीब्यूशन सिस्टम (पीडीएस) पर सार्वजनिक व्यय का एक बड़ा हिस्सा अपेक्षित लाभार्थियों तक नहीं पहुंचता है। इसलिए सब्सिडी वाले अनाज के बदले डायरेक्ट बेनिफ...
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Karthik Muralidharan
Paul Niehaus
Sandip Sukhtankar
17 जनवरी, 2019
- दृष्टिकोण