India has a federal system of governance with both the state or provincial and the Central governments responsible for the development of the nation as a whole. Policies at the Central as well as state levels influence the state level variations in economic conditions in turn. It is in this...

This paper examines the Engel curve for major expenditure categories and estimates equivalence scales for Bangladesh. We compare Engel curves estimated by semi-parametric techniques to those arising from models based on consumer theory. Our analysis supports the argument that quadratic food...

Our study examines changes in diets over the period 1993-2009. Diets have shifted away from cereals towards higher consumption of fruits, vegetables, oils and livestock products. Using household data, a food diversity index (FDI) is constructed, based on five food commodities. Significant price...

Using official data this paper evaluates India's National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) according to four criteria a) average number of days of employment per household, b) percentage of households completing 100 days of employment under NREGS, c) percentage of expenditure against...

Derived from livelihoods surveys and ethnographic material about people living on the chars, or river islands, in deltaic lower Bengal, this paper illustrates the complex, diverse and ingenious ways that the poor manage money. These islands constitute some of the most vulnerable locations...

The present study seeks to build on earlier work by identifying the factors associated with the frequency of natural disasters and the resulting mortality. Drawing together the main findings, some observations are made from a policy perspective to focus on key elements of a disaster reduction...

The increasing awareness of climate change and its impact on overall economic growth has encouraged many countries to pursue environmental friendly production and consumption of goods and services. Based on their comparative advantages, developing countries too are emerging as exporters of...

Using NSS data for 1993-94 and 2004-05 this paper highlights the impact of growing incomes, social and household decisions of households, and regional and ethnic factors on patterns of household level fertility in India. These have helped determine the composition of India's young (aged 9 to 34)...

India suffered humiliations in terms of balance of payments crises in 1991 but since then it has weathered all crises, which have hit the world economies despite the fact that subsequent periods have seen even larger current account and fiscal deficits. It is in this context that an analysis of...

This paper underscores the substantial spatial disparities across India and evaluates the case for putting together (various versions) of the Goods and Service Tax (GST) and also indicates the risks involved in the process. This paper argues that, on balance, there is a case for an appropriately...