13 May, 20212021 West Bengal Assembly election: Did the Covid-19 surge matter?
In the recent Assembly elections in the state of West Bengal, the ruling Trinamool Congress bucked an anti-incumbency headwind to secure victory. Using electoral data from 2016, 2019, and 2021, Ghata...
Maitreesh Ghatak Pushkar Maitra 
12 May, 2021
- Perspectives
West Bengal’s economic performance relative to India over the last three decades
Against the backdrop of the ongoing elections in West Bengal, Maitreesh Ghatak examines how the state’s economic performance compares with that of the country as a whole, over the past three decades...
- Maitreesh Ghatak
- 01 May, 2021
- Articles
Covid-19: Curated content and resources
Watch this space as we bring together our pick of articles, videos, and podcasts as well as useful links with credible information on Covid-19.
- I4I Team
- 07 April, 2020
- Perspectives
Webinar video: The Covid-19 shock
The Covid-19 pandemic and the containment measures adopted to check the spread of the disease, have caused an unprecedented economic crisis in India as well as the rest of the world. Further, India is...
- Parikshit Ghosh Pronab Sen
- 29 June, 2020
- Videos
कोविड-19: बिहार लौटते प्रवासी मजदूर, ग्रामीण आजीविका तथा सामाजिक सुरक्षा
कोविड-19 के प्रसार को कम करने के लिए लागू किए गए लॉकडाउन के कारण अनेक प्रवासी म...
- Farzana Afridi Arvind Kumar Chaudhary
- 06 August, 2020
- Podcasts
Covid-19 and schooling: 2020 experience and way forward
The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic brought with it significant challenges for the education sector. On the one hand, closing schools meant imposing a heavy cost on a whole generation of students, and ...
- Rukmini Banerji Ashok Kotwal Wilima Wadhwa
- 24 January, 2021
- Videos
Latest
Sex workers, stigma, and self-image: Evidence from Kolkata’s brothels
Being poor or marginalised often brings stigma, which may distort a person’s self-image, inducing sub-optimal choices and resulting in a psychological poverty trap. Based on a study conducted in Kol...
- Sayantan Ghosal Smarajit Jana Anandi Mani Sandip Mitra Sanchari Roy
- 13 May, 2021
- Articles
2021 West Bengal Assembly election: Did the Covid-19 surge matter?
In the recent Assembly elections in the state of West Bengal, the ruling Trinamool Congress bucked an anti-incumbency headwind to secure victory. Using electoral data from 2016, 2019, and 2021, Ghata...
- Maitreesh Ghatak Pushkar Maitra
- 12 May, 2021
- Perspectives
Women and work: How much does measurement matter?
Female labour force participation in India has been on the decline – dropping from an already low 29% in 2004-05 to 17% in 2017-18. However, the extent of women’s economic participation depends o...
- Milan Vaishnav
- 10 May, 2021
- Articles
Informing youth about job opportunities to make training programmes more effective
Launched in 2014 by the central government, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Garmeen Kaushalya Yojana seeks to provide skills-based training to rural, marginalised youth, and to place them in salaried jobs. Base...
- Wiji Arulampalam Bhaskar Chakravorty Clément Imbert Roland Rathelot
- 06 May, 2021
- Articles
Business sentiments and labour markets
The Covid-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns have had a significant adverse impact on jobs and livelihoods. Using 2006-2021 data from a survey on business sentiments, this article examines fluctuati...
- Bornali Bhandari Samarth Gupta Ajaya Kumar Sahu K Subbaraje Urs
- 04 May, 2021
- Articles
Most Popular
Land in India: Market price vs. fundamental value
The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill, 2015, is focused on protecting the few home buyers who can afford to buy homes but does not address the issue of high land prices, which is a very se...
- Gurbachan Singh
- 29 February, 2016
- Articles
Land records and titles in India
Land ownership is broadly determined by access to a land title, which protects the rights of the title-holder, and impacts livelihoods, and industrial, economic, and social growth. However, land title...
- Prachee Mishra Roopal Suhag
- 20 November, 2017
- Perspectives
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...
- Saswata Ghosh
- 27 March, 2019
- Articles
Evidence, policy, and politics
Commenting on the concept of evidence-based policy, Jean Drèze argues that the relation between evidence and policy needs further thought. Based on his involvement with social policy in India, he bel...
- Jean Drèze
- 03 August, 2018
- Perspectives
Unique Health Identification and Aadhaar: A case for mandatory linkage
As part of the Digital India initiative, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) issues a Unique Health Identification (UHID) number to each patient, which documents their entire journey in th...
- Mudit Kapoor
- 23 December, 2016
- Perspectives
Explainers
The impact of robotisation on the world economy: A forward-looking review
Robots have long existed in human imagination and only recently in the real world. The baggage of past imagination often intrudes into our understanding of how real robots will affect our economic liv...
- Siddhartha Mitra
- 25 July, 2018
GST Explainer: Introduction
Seventeen years after its framework was formed, India’s biggest tax reform – the goods and services tax – was rolled out on 1 July 2017. Some consider the ‘one nation, one tax’ system to be ...
- Ashok Kotwal
- 30 June, 2018
Explainer: Conceptual foundations of cryptocurrencies
In recent times, cryptocurrencies have become a subject of intense deliberations among policymakers, market participants, investors, and other stakeholders. Whether cryptocurrencies will revolutionis...
- Radhika Pandey Bhavyaa Sharma
- 31 May, 2018
Symposium
Introduction to e-Symposium: Understanding the new farm laws
Would the farm laws help increase farmers’ incomes? Could farmers benefit from an expanded access to markets? Would they be more willing to engage in contracts with urban firms because of the law on...
- Ashok Kotwal
- 12 October, 2020
DUET: A proposal for an urban work programme
Jean Drèze presents a proposal for a simple scheme of subsidised public employment in urban areas, generated by multiple public institutions on their own initiative.
- Jean Drèze
- 09 September, 2020
Introduction to e-Symposium: Decoding Congress’ NYAY
A major announcement in the Congress manifesto, in the ongoing parliamentary election, is the minimum income guarantee proposal – Nyuntam Aay Yojana (NYAY). In this symposium, Bharat Ramaswami (Asho...
- Ashok Kotwal
- 01 May, 2019
Browse By Topic
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Agriculture Show this topicHide this topic
Addressing the nutrition crisis: Reflections from Odisha Millets Mission
The state of Odisha has a severe malnutrition problem, and evidence shows that increasing risks of climate change will render the resource-intensive, rice-wheat cropping system unsustainable. In this ...
- Subhodeep Basu Arghadeep Saha Sayantani Sathpathi
- 09 April, 2021
- Notes from the Field
Drought relief by state governments: Evidence from South India
- Lisa Tarquinio
- 10 March, 2021
- Articles
Budget 2021-22: Agriculture, procurement, and food security
- Siraj Hussain Jugal Mohapatra
- 18 February, 2021
- Perspectives
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Macroeconomics Show this topicHide this topic
Business sentiments and labour markets
The Covid-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns have had a significant adverse impact on jobs and livelihoods. Using 2006-2021 data from a survey on business sentiments, this article examines fluctuati...
- Bornali Bhandari Samarth Gupta Ajaya Kumar Sahu K Subbaraje Urs
- 04 May, 2021
- Articles
West Bengal’s economic performance relative to India over the last three decades
- Maitreesh Ghatak
- 01 May, 2021
- Articles
From abundant global liquidity to selective lending: How corporate finance has changed
- Chiara Banti Udichibarna Bose
- 30 April, 2021
- Articles
Growth in India: Narratives and evidence
- Pulapre Balakrishnan Mausumi Das M. Parameswaran
- 15 April, 2021
- Perspectives
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Human Development Show this topicHide this topic
Informing youth about job opportunities to make training programmes more effective
Launched in 2014 by the central government, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Garmeen Kaushalya Yojana seeks to provide skills-based training to rural, marginalised youth, and to place them in salaried jobs. Base...
- Wiji Arulampalam Bhaskar Chakravorty Clément Imbert Roland Rathelot
- 06 May, 2021
- Articles
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Social Identity Show this topicHide this topic
Sex workers, stigma, and self-image: Evidence from Kolkata’s brothels
Being poor or marginalised often brings stigma, which may distort a person’s self-image, inducing sub-optimal choices and resulting in a psychological poverty trap. Based on a study conducted in Kol...
- Sayantan Ghosal Smarajit Jana Anandi Mani Sandip Mitra Sanchari Roy
- 13 May, 2021
- Articles
Women’s legal rights and gender gaps in property ownership
- Isis Gaddis Rahul Lahoti Hema Swaminathan
- 23 April, 2021
- Articles
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Governance Show this topicHide this topic
2021 West Bengal Assembly election: Did the Covid-19 surge matter?
In the recent Assembly elections in the state of West Bengal, the ruling Trinamool Congress bucked an anti-incumbency headwind to secure victory. Using electoral data from 2016, 2019, and 2021, Ghata...
- Maitreesh Ghatak Pushkar Maitra
- 12 May, 2021
- Perspectives
Rising industrial accidents: Fallout of boosting ‘Ease of Doing Business’?
- R. Nagaraj
- 28 April, 2021
- Perspectives
The digital dream: Upskilling India for the future
- Venugopal Mothkoor Fatima Mumtaz
- 23 March, 2021
- Perspectives
When criminality begets crime: The role of elected politicians
- Nishith Prakash Soham Sahoo Deepak Saraswat Reetika Sindhi
- 19 March, 2021
- Perspectives
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Poverty & Inequality Show this topicHide this topic
How many jobs were lost in urban India during lockdown?
The nationwide lockdown imposed in March 2020 to contain the spread of Covid-19, disrupted economic activity – particularly in urban India. Using data from the Periodic Labour Force Survey for the p...
- Arup Mitra Jitender Singh
- 27 April, 2021
- Perspectives
Covid-19: Addressing stigma and misconceptions
- Asad Islam Debayan Pakrashi Michael Vlassopoulos Liang Choon Wang
- 26 March, 2021
- Articles
Energy access for marginalised communities: Evidence from rural India
- Namrata Chindarkar Setu Pelz Johannes Urpelainen
- 25 March, 2021
- Articles
Covid-19: How well are government schemes supporting Bihar’s vulnerable populations?
- Advaita Rajendra Ankur Sarin Karan Singhal
- 18 March, 2021
- Notes from the Field
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Environment Show this topicHide this topic
Environmental relocation and firm outcomes
Industrial relocation policies have become increasingly popular as a policy tool to combat pollution in the developing world. Using Economic Census data from 2005 and 2013, this article examines the i...
- Michael Gechter Namrata Kala
- 26 April, 2021
- Articles
Reducing the flow of plastic to oceans in India
- Shiv Kumar Ravinder Kumar Siddhi Mankad Poornima Sheelanere
- 18 December, 2020
- Notes from the Field
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Money & Finance Show this topicHide this topic
Are moneylenders financial intermediaries?
A majority of borrowing in rural households in developing countries is from informal lenders. This article examines the relationship between these informal lenders and banks in rural India, from the e...
- Vaishnavi Surendra
- 24 March, 2021
- Articles
Covid-19 crisis: How policy can revive lending appetite among banks
- K. Srinivasa Rao
- 09 November, 2020
- Perspectives
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Productivity & Innovation Show this topicHide this topic
Would a four-day work week benefit women?
In February 2021, the Indian government stated that it may allow firms the flexibility of having a four-day work week, while retaining the norm of 48 hours of work per week. In this post, Koustav Maju...
- Koustav Majumdar
- 20 April, 2021
- Perspectives
Can technology mitigate the impact of heat on worker productivity?
- Anna Custers Prathap Kasina Deepak Saraswat Anjali P. Verma
- 16 April, 2021
- Articles
India’s new labour codes: A pre-condition for long-run growth
- Aakanksha Shrawan
- 11 March, 2021
- Perspectives
‘Outside’ managers’ productivity, firm dynamics, and economy growth
- Ufuk Akcigit Harun Alp Michael Peters
- 26 February, 2021
- Articles
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Urbanisation Show this topicHide this topic
Challenges of solid waste management: The case of Patna city
Rapid urbanisation with insufficient planning has led to problems of solid waste management in several Indian cities. In this note, Uma Sarmistha discusses preliminary findings from a field study in t...
- Uma Sarmistha
- 25 January, 2021
- Notes from the Field
Residential segregation in urban India and persistence of caste
- Naveen Bharathi Deepak Malghan Sumit Mishra Andaleeb Rahman
- 01 July, 2020
- Articles
Mobility and congestion in urban India
- Prottoy A. Akbar Victor Couture Gilles Duranton Adam Storeygard
- 24 July, 2019
- Articles
Special purpose vehicles for smart cities: A question on governance
- Meenakshi Sinha
- 05 July, 2019
- Notes from the Field
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Trade Show this topicHide this topic
Boosting India’s capital goods’ exports
Union budget 2021-22 has proposed a sharp 34.5% hike in capital expenditure, which is expected to boost the capital goods sector. While the sector has grown since liberalisation, its share in the glob...
- Parthapratim Pal Swathysree S S
- 10 February, 2021
- Articles
Import competition, formalisation, and role of contract workers
- Pavel Chakraborty Rahul Singh Vidhya Soundararajan
- 27 January, 2021
- Articles
Trade disruption, industrialisation, and how the sun set on British rule in India
- Roberto Bonfatti Björn Brey
- 18 May, 2020
- Articles
Inequality and trade: Simulation evidence for 54 developing nations
- Erhan Artuc Guido Porto Bob Rijkers
- 05 March, 2020
- Articles
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Miscellany Show this topicHide this topic
How effective are unenforced mandates for corporate social responsibility?
By enacting the Companies Act in 2013, India became the first country in the world to mandate spending by large corporations on socially responsible initiatives. Using firm data from 2010 and 2016, th...
- Sangeeta Bansal Madhu Khanna
- 05 April, 2021
- Articles
Phone survey methodology for social and economic research in India
- Diane Coffey Payal Hathi Nazar Khalid Nidhi Khurana Amit Thorat
- 11 November, 2020
- Perspectives
