Aparajita Dasgupta

Bio: Aparajita Dasgupta is an academic researcher from Ashoka University. The author has contributed to research in topics: School choice & Caste. The author has an hindex of 3, co-authored 9 publications receiving 35 citations. Previous affiliations of Aparajita Dasgupta include University of California, Riverside.

Can the Major Public Works Policy Buffer Negative Shocks in Early Childhood? Evidence from Andhra Pradesh, India

Abstract: The study examines the role of the largest public works program in the world—the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS)—in buffering the negative effects of early childhood exposure to rainfall shocks on long-term health outcomes. Exploiting the spatial and temporal variation in NREGS coverage, the study estimates the extent to which nutritional shocks in early childhood can be offset by access to the program. The study employs a unique identification strategy by integrating detailed administrative records of drought shock and phased rollout information of NREGS with household-level panel data—the Young Lives survey—conducted over three waves (2002, 2007, and 2009–10) in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. Using individual fixed effects estimation, the study finds that while the policy does not help correct for long-term past health deficiencies it is useful in buffering recent drought shocks, which vary by policy relevant subgroups.

Systematic measurement error in self-reported health: is anchoring vignettes the way out?

Abstract: This paper studies systematic reporting heterogeneity in self-assessed health in India using World Health Survey (WHS)-SAGE survey that has subjective assessments on own health and hypothetical vignettes as well as objective measures like measured anthropometrics and performance tests on a range of health domains. The study implicitly tests and validates the assumption of response consistency in a developing country setting, thus lending support to the use of vignettes. Additionally, we are able to control for unobservable heterogeneities of reporting behavior at the individual level by employing individual fixed-effects estimation using multiple ratings on a set of vignettes by the same person. The study confirms identical pattern of systematic bias by the socioeconomic subgroups as is indicated by vignette technique. It further highlights that substantial amount of reporting heterogeneity remains unexplained after controlling for the usual socioeconomic control variables. The finding has potentially broader implications for research based on self-reported data in a developing country. JEL Classification: C83, D91, I12, I18, I15, I32, J10

Service utilization and cost of implementing a comprehensive HIV prevention and care program among people who inject drugs in Delhi, India

Abstract: WHO, UNODC, and UNAIDS recommend a comprehensive package for prevention, treatment, and care of HIV among people who inject drugs (PWID). We describe the uptake of services and the cost of implementing a comprehensive package for HIV prevention, treatment, and care services in Delhi, India. A cohort of 3774 PWID were enrolled for a prospective HIV incidence study and provided the comprehensive package: HIV and hepatitis testing and counseling, hepatitis B (HB) vaccination, syndromic management of sexually transmitted infections, clean needles-syringes, condoms, abscess care, and education. Supplementary services comprising tea and snacks, bathing facilities, and medical consultations were also provided. PWID were referred to government services for antiretroviral therapy (ART), TB care, opioid substitution therapy, and drug dependence treatment/rehabilitation. The project spent USD 1,067,629.88 over 36 months of project implementation: 1.7% on capital costs, 3.9% on participant recruitment, 26.7% for project management, 49.9% on provision of services, and 17.8% on supplementary services. Provision of HIV prevention and care services cost the project USD 140.41/PWID/year. 95.3% PWID were tested for HIV. Of the HIV-positive clients, only 17.8% registered for ART services after repeated follow-up. Reasons for not seeking ART services included not feeling sick, need for multiple visits to the clinic, and long waiting times. 61.8% of the PWID underwent HB testing. Of the 2106 PWID eligible for HB vaccination, 81% initiated the vaccination schedule, but only 29% completed all three doses, despite intensive follow-up by outreach workers. PWID took an average of 8 clean needles-syringes/PWID/year over the project duration, with a mid-project high of 16 needles-syringes/PWID/year. PWID continued to also procure needles from other sources, such as chemists. One hundred five PWID were referred to OST services and 267 for rehabilitation services. A comprehensive HIV prevention, treatment, and care package is challenging to implement. Extensive efforts are needed to ensure the uptake of and retention in services for PWID; peer educators and outreach workers are required on a continuous basis. Services need to be tailored to client needs, considering clinic timing and distance from hotspots. Programs may consider provision of ART services at selected drop-in centers to increase uptake.

Understanding the "Sorting Hat": the Role of Family and Caste Network in School Choice Decision

Abstract: Sorting of students over school type by their social standing creates the problem of social segregation and educational inequality. This paper, both theoretically and empirically, identifies factors which are responsible for sorting of students by socio-economic groups across different types of schools. We elaborate on the sorting mechanism by analyzing schools choice decisions where parents decide on the following: whether to send their children to private/public school and conditional on that whether to send them to good or bad school. We find that household characteristics such as the number of siblings, caste identity affect these two choices differently. For example we find that general caste students are more likely to attend private school but within the private category they are more likely to end up in bad schools. We develop our theory using a two period household level optimization framework and validate the prediction using a school survey data (Young Lives Survey). ∗This is a preliminary draft †University of Calcutta. Email:bsukanta@gmail.com ‡Population Council, New Delhi. Email:aparajita.dasgupta@email.ucr.edu §University of Calcutta. Email:kumarjitm@hotmail.com ¶University of Calcutta. Email:anirban1976@gmail.com

Understanding the Intergenerational Transmission of Human Capital: Evidence from a Quasi-natural Experiment in China

Abstract: This paper exploits the closure of senior secondary schools in urban China from 1966 to 1971 in order to identify the causal intergenerational transmission effects of education. The paper uses the instrumental variable approach to examine the intergenerational causality of educational transmission at the senior secondary schooling level in urban China. The exogenous variation in parental senior secondary educational attainment both over time and across regions allows us account for selection bias and thus identify the causal intergenerational transmission effect in education. We further show that our conclusion is robust to alternative identification strategies and data sets.

Poverty and Crime: Evidence from Rainfall and Trade Shocks in India *

Abstract: Does poverty lead to crime? We shed light on this question using two independent and exogenous shocks to household income in rural India: the dramatic reduction in import tariffs in the early 1990s and rainfall variations. We find that trade shocks, previously shown to raise relative poverty, also increased the incidence of violent crimes and property crimes. The relationship between trade shocks and crime is similar to the observed relationship between rainfall shocks and crime. Our results thus identify a causal effect of poverty on crime. They also lend credence to a large literature on the effects of weather shocks on crime and conflict, which has usually assumed that the income channel is the most relevant one.

The Political economy of MGNREGS spending in Andhra Pradesh

Abstract: Are ostensibly demand-driven public programs less susceptible to political clientelism even when private goods are allocated? This is examined using expenditure data at the local level from India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme.

The Impact of Teacher-Student Gender Matches: Random Assignment Evidence from South Korea

Abstract: Gender disparities in academic performance may be driven in part by the interaction of teacher and student gender, but systematic sorting of students into classrooms makes it difficult to identify causal effects We use the random assignment of students to Korean middle school classrooms and show that the female students perform substantially better on standardized tests when assigned to female teachers; there is little effect on male students