334 research outputs found
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Wage inequality in Indian manufacturing: Is it trade, technology or labour regulations?
No full textThis paper investigates the question of wage inequality in Indian manufacturing in the
years of trade and investment liberalization. The objective is to test the hypothesis of
skill biased technological change (SBTC) due to capital-skill complementarity and the
impact of labour regulations on wage inequality between skilled and unskilled labour.
The skill-wage bill share equation is estimated for a panel of 46 three-digit industries
spanning the period 1981-2004 followed by 113 four-digit industries panel covering
the period 1993 to 2004.The econometric results suggest the positive contribution of
change in output (scale effect), capital-output ratio and contract-worker intensity to
wage inequality in Indian manufacturing
Does partial privatization improve the environment?
No full textThis paper shows that, in case of differentiated products mixed duopoly, environmental damage
increases (decreases) with the level of privatization, if the level of privatization is less (more) than
certain level. It also shows that partial privatization is optimal from the social welfare point of view.
However, the social welfare maximizing level of privatization damages the environment most
Auditor and audit committee independence in India
No full textThis article reviews the regulations and governance reforms carried out in India with respect to auditor
and audit committee independence. In doing so it critically compares them with the regulations existing
in the US. This is followed by a discussion of the existing research on the effectiveness of audit
committees and audit independence in corporate governance. Recent trends in audit committee and
auditor characteristics for a sample of large listed companies in the Indian corporate sector are then
discussed. The article concludes by suggesting some governance reforms that may be considered to
further strengthen auditor independence and the functioning of audit committees in India
An Analysis of household's tobacco consumption decisions: Evidence from India
No full textTobacco products such as bidi and cigarette, both of which are smoked, cater to di erent kinds
of households in India, and analyzing them separately may yield results that are useful for public
policy. Hence, we analyze the consumption patterns, socio-economic distribution and the household
choice of a variety of tobacco products across rural and urban India. Using a Multinomial Logit
Model, we analyze the choice behavior of a household in deciding whether and which tobacco
products to consume. Household level data from National Sample Survey in India for the year
1999-2000, which has information on 120,309 households, has been used for this purpose. We nd
that most forms of tobacco consumption are higher among socially disadvantaged and low-income
groups in the country. Variables such as education, sex ratio, alcohol and pan consumption were
found to be signi cant factors determining tobacco consumption habits of Indian households. The
e ect of some of the factors on the probability of consumption di ers for certain types of tobacco
products, increasing some, and decreasing others. Addictive goods such as alcohol and pan were
found to be complimentary to tobacco consumption
Crowding-out effect of tobacco expenditure and its implications on intra-household resource allocation
No full textThe aim of this paper is to examine if tobacco consumption crowds-out consumption of basic
needs and whether it has implications for nutrition intake and intra-household resource
allocation in developing countries. In the process we also examine whether preference over
other commodities for tobacco users and non users vary significantly. Using a nationally
representative household sample survey from India for the year 1999-2000, we analyze the
pattern of spending on various groups of commodities by the status of tobacco consumption
of households. Average per capita per diem intake of nutrients such as calorie, fat and
protein were reported to be lower among the high tobacco spending group of households
vis-`a-vis the no-spending category. A system of quadratic conditional Engel curves was
estimated for a set of ten broad groups of commodities. Separability between tobacco and
most other goods was rejected. The results suggest that tobacco consuming households
had lower consumption of certain commodities such as milk, clean fuels and entertainment
which has direct bearing on mostly children and female members in the household suggesting
possible ‘gender effects’ and biases in intra-household resource allocation. Tobacco
spending also found to have negative effects on household nutrition intake
Estimation and determinants of chronic poverty in India: An Alternative approach
No full textThe paper conceptualizes chronic poverty by using the spaces of income and nutrition and estimates its incidence among states and social groups. It also aims to improve our understanding of the determinant of chronic poverty by considering economic, demographic and social factors. It attempts to answer the following questions: How important a determinant of chronic poverty is household income? What factors inhibit escape from chronic poverty? How different are the other poor from chronic poor? The analysis uses the unit level NSS and NFHS data
Barriers and drivers to energy efficiency: A New taxonomical approach
No full textThis paper develops a new systematic classification and explanation of barriers and drivers to energy efficiency. Using an ‘actor oriented approach’, the paper tries to identify (i) the drivers and barriers that affect the success or failure of energy efficiency investments and (ii) the institutions that are responsible for the emergence of these barriers and drivers. This taxonomy aims to synthesise ideas from three broad perspectives, viz., micro (project/end user), meso (organization), and macro (state, market, civil society). The paper develops a systematic framework by looking at the issues from the perspective of different actors. This not only aids the understanding of barriers and drivers; it also provides scope for appropriate policy interventions. This focus will help policy-makers evaluate to what extent future interventions may be warranted and how one can judge the success of particular interventions
Application of analytic hierarchy process to prioritize urban transport options : Comparative analysis of group aggregation methods
No full textThe present study presents a comparative analysis of different group aggregation
methods adopted in AHP by testing them against social choice axioms with a case study of
Delhi transport system. The group aggregation (GA) methods and their correctness were tested
while prioritizing the alternative options to achieve energy efficient and less polluting transport
system in Delhi
It was observed that among all group aggregation methods, geometric mean method
(GMM) - the most widely adopted GA method of AHP - showed poor performance and failed to
satisfy the most popular “pareto optimality and non-dictatorship axiom” raising questions on
its validity as GA method adopted in AHP. All other group aggregation methods viz. weighted
arithmetic mean method with varying weights and equal weights (WAMM, WeAMM) and
arithmetic mean of individual priorities (AMM) resulted in concurring results with the
individual member priorities.
This study demonstrates that WeAMM resulted in better aggregation of individual
priorities compared to WAMM. Comparative analysis between individual and group priorities
demonstrates that the arithmetic mean (AMM) of priorities by individual members of the group
showed minimum deviation from the group consensus making it the most suitable and simple
method to aggregate individual preferences to arrive at a group consensus
Risks, farmers' suicides and agrarian crisis in India: Is there a way out?
No full textPoor returns to cultivation and absence of non-farm opportunities are indicative of the larger
socio-economic malaise in rural India. This is accentuated by the multiple risks that the
farmer faces – yield, price, input, technology and credit among others. The increasing
incidence of farmers’ suicides is symptomatic of a larger crisis, which is much more
widespread. Risk mitigation strategies should go beyond credit. Long term strategies requires
more stable income from agriculture, and more importantly, from non-farm sources. Private
credit and input markets need to be regulated. A challenge for the technological and
financial gurus is to provide innovative products that reduce costs while increasing returns.
The institutional vacuum of organising farmers needs to be addressed through a federation of
self-help groups (SHGs) or alternative structures
Economic co-operation in South Asia: The Dilemma of SAFTA and beyond
No full textThis paper attempts to evaluate the Pareto optimality of SAFTA for all the member states.
Besides, the welfare optimality of three other alternative sets of coordinated trade policies
that go beyond SAFTA has also been studied here. These include (a) extended preferential
trading between SAFTA and three other major trading blocs (ASEAN, NAFTA and EU27),
(b) coordinated full trade liberalisation (carried out unilaterally or as part of a multilateral
agreement) by South Asian countries, and (c) SAFTA plus a customs union (two variants with
5% and 10% CET). The analysis, using the standard static GTAP model, shows that the
welfare basis for establishing SAFTA or for deeper trade policy coordination is not very
strong. Nor is it obvious that cooperation among the South Asia would be forthcoming given
the anticipated welfare impacts