Author: cprindia

ADITYA BHOL EXPLAINS THE INEQUALITIES BASED ON NATIONAL SAMPLE SURVEY’S DATA
SANITATION URBAN SERVICES

What is the research about?

In a new working paper, Aditya Bhol presents the levels of disparities in access to toilets based on varying socio-economic characteristics of households in urban India.

This analysis is based on data from the sixty-ninth round of the National Sample Survey (NSS) of India on ‘Drinking Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Housing Condition in India (July 2012 – December 2014)’, conducted by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.

State-wise disparities in access to urban sanitation have been analysed drawing on data based on inequalities with respect to the following factors:

Economic conditions – Monthly Per Capita Expenditure (MPCE – taken as a proxy for income)
Access to public infrastructure – drainage and drinking water supply
Social conditions – caste status of households (social groups)
Spatial conditions – slum and non-slum status of households
Behavioural conditions – adequacy of water supply and perceived housing condition of sampled households
What are the key findings?

The findings of the paper corroborate the existence of disparities in access to toilets across 15 states (selected on the basis of population) and the factors that drive the inequalities vary in the different states. For example:

Economic well-being gauged in terms of monthly per capita expenditure is observed to be a crucial determinant of access to toilet. Except Kerala and West Bengal, disparities in access to toilets are high based on MPCE of households in almost all the states.
Rajasthan, Bihar, Odisha, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu show disparities in access to toilets based on differential access to drainage.
Caste based inequalities are seen to exacerbate disparities in access to toilets in the states of Rajasthan, Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
Highly urbanised states of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu exhibit acute spatial inequalities in access to toilets when slum and non-slum households are compared.
How was the research conducted?’

The findings mentioned above are the result of a regression analysis and hence represent the combined effect of different predictors. With MPCE taken as the base for comparison of the disparities, the relative effects of other factors – drainage or caste system or both combined have been measured. For instance, the disparities in access to toilets, which are based on either differential access to drainage or differential caste status of households or both taken together are seen to be acute at low levels of MPCE and become less severe with increasing MPCE.

Conclusion

The bashful acknowledgement of the poor sanitation figures in India has been substituted with a fervour to attain Clean India by 2019, engendered by the recent Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM/ Clean India Mission), Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and Smart Cities Mission. These policies and the policy makers stand to benefit from the acknowledgement of the inequalities inherent in India which have continued to impede the overall development of sanitation infrastructure in India. The findings of this research paper have far-reaching policy implications in this regard and urge the policy makers and stakeholders to address these inequalities while delivering the ascertained infrastructure towards the achievement of our collective goal – Swachh Bharat.

The full working paper can be accessed here.

A presentation on this research, made at the Population Association of America Conference in Chicago on 28 April 2017, can be accessed here.

This research is part of the Scaling City Institutions For India: Sanitation project at the Centre for Policy Research.

FULL AUDIO OF TALK
LAND ACQUISITION RIGHTS

Listen to the full audio (above) of the talk by Dr Michael Levien, based on his upcoming book, where he offers a reconstruction of existing theories of the relationship between dispossession and capitalism.

Drawing on his ethnographic study of Rajasthani villages dispossessed for one of North India’s largest Special Economic Zones, Dr Levien attempts to address three major questions: how has land dispossession changed with the shift from state-led development to neoliberalism in India? What are the consequences of this change for dispossessed farmers? And what are the implications of this change for our understanding of India’s land wars?

Dr Michael Levien is assistant professor of sociology at Johns Hopkins University.

This talk was organised by the CPR Land Rights Initiative.

CURATED COMMENTARY BY CPR FACULTY
INTERNATIONAL POLITICS

As Donald Trump won one of the most contentious elections in the history of United States, find below a curated analysis by CPR faculty.

Pratap Bhanu Mehta analyses the larger trends that led to Donald Trump’s victory and lays out the questions that his Presidency raises for the future.
Shyam Saran writes how if Trump delivers on his promises, the world would become even more unpredictable on various fronts, including economic growth, security, trade, geopolitics, even if a ‘stronger Indo-US partnership’ was likely to endure.
Sanjaya Baru comments on how Trump’s victory is a ‘reminder of the yawning gap between ivory tower analysts and grass roots politicians’, including analysing its likely impacts, particularly vis-à-vis India.
Srinath Raghavan analyses the parallels drawn between Trump’s victory and the rise of fascism in the 1930s, as well as the depression of the late 19th century.
Anjali Chikersal writes on how Trump’s proposals will undo much of Obamacare’s progress, leaving no room to reduce the cost or improve the effectiveness of American health insurance.
Bharat Karnad writes on how Trump’s presidency will not allow America its previous global primacy, leaving India to lean less on the US for foreign policy and rely more on herself.
Neelanjan Sircar explains how issues of identity, ethnicity and race were the key drivers for Trump’s victory.
In a detailed interview, G Parthasarathy analyses if Trump’s presidency will be beneficial for India.

CPR FACULTY ANALYSE
INTERNATIONAL POLITICS

As Donald Trump is officially sworn-in as the President of the United States of America, find below a curated analysis by CPR faculty on the transition of presidency from Obama to Trump.

Speaking on NDTV (above), Brahma Chellaney and G Parthasarathy discuss the impact of Donald Trump’s presidency on world politics, and more specifically, on India.

In Open Magazine, Brahma Chellaney discusses the possibility of a ‘true’ US-India partnership going forward, if Trump succeeds in revamping US Foreign Policy.

Writing in The Indian Express, Pratap Bhanu Mehta analyses Barack Obama’s last address as President, and how it laid the path for Donald Trump.

In another piece in Hindustan Times, Brahma Chellaney analyses Nobel Peace winner Barack Obama’s ‘interventionist’ foreign policy legacy, and the ‘theatres of war’ he has handed down to Trump.

In an earlier op-ed in Hindu Business Line, G Parthasarathy analyses the potential impact of Trump’s presidency on international trade, and how it could signal ‘the end of globalisation’.

It is with profound grief and sadness that we announce the passing away of Dr Ajit Mozoomdar, Honorary Research Professor, Centre for Policy Research. This is an immeasurable loss to CPR and the wider community. We can take some consolation from his extraordinary achievement in so many fields and we know he will be lighting up heaven as he lit up this earth.

FULL AUDIO RECORDING
CLIMATE RESEARCH ENERGY RESEARCH

Listen to Dr Kaushik Deb (above) present the BP Statistical Review of World Energy 2015, an annual review of data on world energy markets used widely by media, academia, world governments, and energy companies to inform discussion, debate and decision-making.

One of the most widely respected and authoritative publications in the field of energy economics, it includes data for energy production, consumption and trade for nearly all countries.

WATCH THE FULL VIDEO
ECONOMY

Dr Mukul Asher reviewed the theoritical concept of fiscal space, and presented an integrated framework for generating fiscal space in the Indian context. The framework focuses on growth; ways to increase conventional and non-conventional sources of revenue; and better expenditure management.

CPR is delighted to share that Dr Navroz K Dubash, Senior Fellow at the Centre, was conferred the 12th T N Khoshoo Memorial Award in recognition of the impact of his work on Indian climate change policy and the international discourse on global climate governance.

This award, given by the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), honours the memory of the world-renowned environmental scientist, Dr Triloki Nath Khoshoo.

To read more about Dr Dubash’s contribution and the significance of the award, please visit the ATREE webpage

AN INTERVIEW WITH KARAN THAPAR ON INDIA TODAY
POLITICS

Watch Dr Pratap Bhanu Mehta’s interview (above) on ‘To The Point’ with Karan Thapar on India Today on the current political situation in India; the controversies faced by the present government; and how the rhetoric of ultra-nationalism will play out in the long run.

PRUDENT BUT LACKING IN POLITICAL BOLDNESS
POLITICS ECONOMY

Watch Dr Pratap Bhanu Mehta (above) talk about the politics of Budget 2016 on 5 March, 2016, at the 5-Institute Budget Seminar, where 5 policy research institutes gathered to analyse the union budget. Dr Mehta calls the budget prudent but lacking in political boldness, questioning its efficacy in the long run.

The five institutes that participate in this annual seminar, in its 10th year now, include: Centre for Policy Research; Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER); National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP); India Development Foundation (IDF); and National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER).

To access complete information on the seminar, visit the dedicated pages at NIPFP’s (host organisation) website: Videos; Presentations; Photographs.