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Human Development

Does subsidising publicly provided services discipline markets or distort demand?

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Did Covid-19 pandemic increase incidence of low-birth-weight among newborns?

Globally, one in four babies are born with low birth weight, with long-term impacts on health and economic outcomes. This article uses Indian data from 2019-2021 to analyse the impact of the Covid-19 ...

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India’s massive employment problem and some ways out

In the recent announcement of India’s Union Budget 2024-25, significant emphasis was placed on the need for job creation. In this post, Pranab Bardhan presents a four-pronged strategy for the sustai...

  • Perspectives

Managing India’s demographic transition

India’s population is expected to peak at about 1.7 billion in 2064, and while the current median age is only 28, the share of Indians aged 65 and above will go from 7% to 20% in the next 40 years o...

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Tracking learning outcomes: ASER’s work through the pandemic

With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated lockdowns, schools quickly pivoted to online learning. However, there was limited information about whether children had access to learning m...

  • Videos

Tracking learning outcomes: ASER’s work through the pandemic

With the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic and the associated lockdowns, schools quickly pivoted to online learning. However, there was limited information about whether children had access to learning m...

  • Podcasts

Insuring India: PM-JAY’s targeting problem

India’s largest health insurance programme is targetted at poor and vulnerable populations who would be least able to afford medical care. However, this article by Chhabra and Smith shows that a lar...

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The future of old times

India needs to plan for a radical expansion of public support for the elderly. In this piece, Drèze and Duflo argue that near-universal social security pensions would be a good start. Elderly persons...

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High scoring but poor: The misallocation of talent in higher education

As labour market returns to college education have increased, more young adults now receive some form of higher education than ever before. Yet, college attendance remains low for children from poor s...

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Illam Thedi Kalvi: A booster shot for post-Covid education

Amidst worries about learning loss caused by school closures during the Covid-19 pandemic, Tamil Nadu's Illam Thedi Kalvi (ITK) – a volunteer-based education programme – has played a vital role in...

  • Notes from the Field

Access to antenatal care and its influence on children’s cognitive development

Research has shown that maternal health affects later-life outcomes of children. Using data from the Young Lives survey in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, this article shows that antenatal care has an i...

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The impact of community-based depression treatment in India

Although the prevalence of depression may have adverse economic impacts, especially in developing countries, treatment options in India are limited by a shortage of providers. This article looks at th...

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Remedying poor student assessment data in India

Taking into account existing evidence on the accuracy of administrative data on student learning levels in India, Singh and Ahluwalia discuss why a reliable system of student assessment matters; fixin...

  • Perspectives

To invest in sanitation or not? The role of gender differences in perceptions

Although sanitation is essential for health, many households remain without a toilet due to financial constraints. This article describes the extent to which perceptions of costs and benefits of sanit...

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Access to health insurance in India: Direct and spillover effects

Many low-income households in India have been pushed into poverty by high healthcare costs. Uptake of the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana, the government-run national health insurance programme for bel...

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Assessing the extent and fiscal cost of teacher shortages in India

The New Education Policy has proposed that the one million teacher vacancies in public elementary schools be filled imperatively. Using 2019-20 District Information System for Education (u-DISE) data,...

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University of California, Berkeley

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Most Popular Human Development Posts

Hindu-Muslim fertility differentials in India: District-level estimates from Census 2011

The 2011 Indian Census data show a higher growth rate of Muslim population compared to the Hindu population. This article provides an in-depth picture of Hindu-Muslim fertility differentials at the di...

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Ten steps to transform the quality of education in India

In this article, Sridhar Rajagopalan, Managing Director of Educational Initiatives, suggests 10 initiatives that can help transform the quality of education in India.

  • Perspectives

Understanding India’s mental health crisis

Since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, several reports have indicated a worsening of mental health issues among individuals across age groups. In this post, Michele Mary Bernadine examines the stat...

  • Perspectives