Working Paper: NBER ID: w17257
Authors: Pravin Krishna; Guru Sethupathy
Abstract: To study the effects of the dramatic economic reforms undertaken in India in the early 1990s on inequality, this paper examines Theil inequality as well as other inequality measures constructed using Indian household expenditure survey data from 1988-2005. Overall inequality shows some variation over the period, falling between 1988 and 1994, rising between 1994 and 2000, but falling again by 2005. The evolution of inequality in the post reform period is thus non-monotonic. A similar inequality trend is seen within most Indian states over this time period. Finally, the change in inequality across households within states is found to be uncorrelated with the change in state-level measures of tariff and non-tariff protection.
Keywords: Trade; Inequality; Economic Reforms; India
JEL Codes: F1; F14; F16
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Economic reforms (E69) | Inequality (D63) |
| Change in inequality across households within states (I24) | Change in state-level measures of tariff and non-tariff protection (F13) |
| Inequality within households (J12) | Overall inequality (D63) |