Working Paper: NBER ID: w21983
Authors: Gaurav Datt; Martin Ravallion; Rinku Murgai
Abstract: Longstanding development issues are revisited in the light of our newly-constructed dataset of poverty measures for India spanning 60 years, including 20 years since reforms began in earnest in 1991. We find a downward trend in poverty measures since 1970, with an acceleration post-1991, despite rising inequality. Faster poverty decline came with both higher growth and a more pro-poor pattern of growth. Post-1991 data suggest stronger inter-sectoral linkages: urban consumption growth brought gains to the rural as well as the urban poor and the primary-secondary-tertiary composition of growth has ceased to matter as all three sectors contributed to poverty reduction.
Keywords: Poverty; Urbanization; Economic Growth; India
JEL Codes: I32; O15; O18; O47
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Rising inequality (D31) | Poverty reduction (I32) |
| Urbanization (R11) | Poverty outcomes (I32) |
| Economic growth (O49) | Poverty reduction (I32) |
| Urban growth (R11) | Poverty reduction (I32) |
| Rural growth (R11) | Poverty reduction (I32) |
| Urban growth (R11) | Rural poverty (I32) |