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MGNREGA is the biggest drive in human history to ensure social protection of vulnerable rural people by providing at least 100 days of wage employment in a financial year. Several studies have been made so far to capture the impact of the program on livelihood related outcomes. This paper is to examine the potential impact of the scheme upon livelihood security of rural people across different regions of the country. More precisely, it compares if the scheme has equal beneficial impact upon different regions of the country as a whole. The study exploits unit level large sample data of the national sample survey. The study is a distinctive attempt to date seeing that it has immense policy implications in terms of locating the regions that lagging behind and need for special attention. Propensity score matching technique has been applied for identification of target households and, difference and differences frame work has been utilised for estimating the impact of the program. We find a varied extent and pattern of impact across the regions. On the whole, growth impact is stronger than true program impact in improving the spending capacity of beneficiary households, and, who did not avail the scheme were better-off compared to those who took the treatment.

Key Words: Livelihood security, Social protection, Employment generation scheme, National sample survey, Policy evaluation

Saswati Das (2021). Does MGNREGA have an equal Impact on Livelihood Security Across Different Regions? A Study based on National Sample Survey Data. Indian Development Policy Review, Vol. 2, No. 1, 2021, pp. 1-24

This study aims to give an overview on agricultural insurance, focusing the most common insurance contracts and identifying the main reasons associated with low general demand for agricultural insurances, namely in Brazil. The Indemnity Based Insurance and Revenue Insurance are the most common, but the Index Based Insurance contracts can avoid problems of adverse selection and moral hazard and the operational costs are lower. Like in European Union the subscription of agricultural insurances in Brazil is also low. It might be due to the low occurrence of weather advents with high adverse magnitude in the country. The development of agricultural insurances in this context requires new insurance products well adapted to the country conditions and highly subsided premiums by public funds.

Key words: agricultural insurance; Brazil; risk; Index based Insurance; Crop Insurance; revenue insurance

Rui Fragoso, Márcia Carla Pereira Ribeiro, Oksandro Gonçalves & Weimar Rocha-Junior (2021). Insurance Contracts in the Agribusiness: A Global Overview of Agricultural Insurance with a Focus on Brazil. Indian Development Policy Review, Vol. 2, No. 1, 2021, pp. 25-47

A fatigue in studying economic remittance has prompted the scholars to look into the intangible changes by incorporating social and cultural remittances that are happening in the migrant community. Though larger body of research focuses on international migration to understand social remittance, the current study focuses on both international and internal migrants. There are two objectives of the paper, namely to highlight the remittance use behaviour of the households and to document the changes that are occurring in the social and cultural life of the migrants. The study is based on information collected through household survey covering 510 migrant households from 127 villages of 8 districts. The migrants use major part of their remittance for household expenditure and creation of fixed asset is very low in proportion. Migrants receive remittances in terms of kind namely food, clothes, electronic items, cosmetics etc. At the outset the migrants renovate their existing house and also purchase land or house. They also purchase two wheelers which improves their communication over a wider geographic region. The spending on education has been realised in the community. The extravaganza in celebration of marriage, religious festivals and local mela or paravs increased substantially. The demonstration effect of the changed life style may perpetuate migration further until local economic opportunities are improved.

Key words: Migration, social remittance, cultural change, remittance, West Bengal

Bhaswati Das, Pranamita Banerjee, Rabiul Sani & Abhishek Roy (2021). Learning from Life: Social and Cultural Changes in Migrant Households of West Bengal. Indian Development Policy Review, Vol. 2, No. 1, 2021, pp. 49-61

Purpose- The present study is undertaken to assess the impact of microfinance on economic empowerment of poor rural women.

Design/methodology/approach – Primary data were collected from 286 women bank customers animating in Jammu district of J&K by using purposive sampling technique. The data were collected during the month of May-December 2020. Multivariate statistical techniques like EFA, CFA and SEM were used for data analysis and scale purification.

Findings –The finds of the study reveals that microfinance has a direct and significant impact on economic empowerment of poor rural women. Further, the study depicts that despite a range of initiatives taken by the govt. towards empowering rural women, there is a denial from the financial institutions to provide access to various financial services to the women due to illiteracy, lack of collateral security, lack of awareness, mind-set of bank employees and policy guidelines to the banking sector, which impound this section of the society to feel self reliant, secure and splendid.

Research limitations/implications – First, the scope of the study is constrained to Jammu district only due to paucity of time and financial resources. Second, the data were collected from women respondents only belonging to rural areas. Third, comparative study of women households who are covered under the banking system and those who are still financially excluded has not been done yet. Fourth, the possibility of subjectivity cannot be ruled out.

Originality/value–The study makes unique addition in the direction of microfinance narrative relating to economic empowerment of poor rural women. It looks into how for the economic aspects of rural women influence their exclusion from the financial system of the country. The study also provides valuable suggestions for the policy makers to devise and put into practice programmes that will broaden right of women to make use of microfinance for their social & economic empowerment.

Tarsem Lal & Jatinder Kaur (2021). Impact of Microfinance on Economic Empowerment of Rural Women. Indian Development Policy Review, Vol. 2, No. 1, 2021, pp. 63-76

Uttar Pradesh with the advantage of its larger size contributed 18.9 per cent of cereals, 8.65 per cent of pulses, 3.65 per cent of oilseeds and 46.56 per cent of sugarcane to the country during 2017-18. This study has been conducted to explore the trends, patterns and spatial variations of agricultural growth in Uttar Pradesh. Furthermore, the study builds the phases of agricultural growth and clustering of districts. It has been well established from the analysis that the western part is more developed in terms of agriculture than other parts of Uttar Pradesh. Results of Bai and Parron test established four break points (1999-00, 2006-07, 2011-12 and 2016-17) in agricultural productivity of the state. The growth pattern of agriculture of the state was found to be cyclical. Moreover, the averages values of development indicators were estimated to be different. Consequently, level of agriculture also varied across regions in Uttar Pradesh. To reduce the gap between levels of development, it is necessary that less developed regions should catch up the average level of the developed regions. State should make different region specific policies instead of state as a whole.

Key words: Agriculture, Inter-regional Disparity, Structural change, Agricultural Productivity.

Jaspal Singh, Shilpi Kapoor, Tanima Dutta, Jagdeep Singh, Nirmal Singh & Saira Banoo (2021). Determinants of Agricultural Inter-Regional Disparity: A Case Study of Uttar Pradesh. Indian Development Policy Review, Vol. 2, No. 1, 2021, pp. 77-89