Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research

About: Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research is a facility organization based out in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Monetary policy & Inflation. The organization has 307 authors who have published 1021 publications receiving 18848 citations.

Tax Efficiency in Selected Indian States

Abstract: This paper attempts to measure pure tax efficiency of fifteen major Indian states (Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Haryana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamilnadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal) for the period 1980-81 to 1992-93 in a manner that allows this efficiency to vary both across time as well as across states. It is discovered that there is a moral hazard problem in the design of central grants in that higher grants by the central government to the state governments reduce efficiency of tax collection by these states. The less poor states are more efficient in tax collection. The rankings of states by tax efficiency for the various years do not converge. An index of aggregate tax efficiency is calculated and it appears that this index has been stagnating. It is argued that the weight placed on tax effort in the formula determining central grants to state governments should be increased to improve tax efficiency of state governments.

Purchasing Power Parity, Wages and Inflation in Emerging Markets

Abstract: Three open economy puzzles are, first, the price level of an advanced economy (AE) is higher compared to that of an emerging or developing economy (EDE) measured in the same currency. But, second, inflation tends to be much higher in EDEs. Third, there is a persistent deviation of real exchange rates from equilibrium values although nominal shocks, which cause such deviation, are expected to have only short-run effects. Balassa Samuelson (BS) explained the first puzzle by introducing two sectors with differential productivity growth. The article presents a framework that allows a new simple proof of the BS result. Inflation in EDEs is often attributed to the catch-up process where productivity in traded goods starts growing faster than that in non-traded goods. But if wages grow at a relatively higher non-traded goods productivity growth, nominal shocks can trigger deviations from equilibrium and adjustments that sustain inflation. This explanation retains the BS ranking of relatively lower traded goods p...

Spatial economic analysis of agricultural land use changes: a case of peri-urban Bangalore, India

Abstract: The present study analyses the drivers of agricultural land use in the peri-urban areas of Bangalore, India. The study uses a unique data set on land use, extracted from satellite images, for 1046 ...

The macroeconomics of gender equality

Abstract: This study investigates the association between gender gap and economic progress. Using a panel VAR study as well as a comprehensive gender gap index and its sub‐indices from the World Economic Forum, the study confirms the existence of bidirectional Granger causality between gender gap and economic progress, for OECD countries and developing countries. On the one hand, economic progress encourages equity for both sexes. On the other hand, gender equity helps developing nations prosper and significantly improve their human capital, which, in turn, drives long‐run economic progress. By contrast, closing the gender gap negatively affects OECD output. For the sample of developing countries, the aforementioned results are robust to sub‐indices measured by gender gap in economic participation as well as opportunity, educational attainment, and political empowerment. We recommend that gender policies specifically aim at eliminating gaps in female education.

Corporate insolvency resolution in India: Lessons from a cross-country comparison

Abstract: In this paper we analyse the corporate insolvency resolution procedures of India, UK and Singapore within a common framework of well-specified principles. India at present lacks a single, comprehensive law that addresses all aspects of insolvency of a firm. It has a multiple laws, regulations and adjudication fora, each of which have created opportunities for debtor firms to exploit the arbitrage between these to frustrate recovery efforts of creditors. This adversely affets the resolution process, the time to recovery and the value recovered. The importance of a comprehensive, well-functioning insolvency resolution framework has been documented in literature. In India, the Bankruptcy Law Reforms Committee (BLRC) was constituted in 2014 with the objective of proposing a comprehensive framework for resolving the insolvency of firms and individuals. We undertake a comparison of the corporate insolvency resolution framework in UK, Singapore and India, with the underlying motivation to highlight the similarities and differences across the laws, procedures and institutional context of the three countries. The objective of this comparison is to draw lessons for the Indian reform process, in context of the formation of the BLRC. The BLRC has recently proposed an Insolvency and Bankruptcy Bill (IBB) which has been presented in Parliament and is currently being deliberated upon by a Joint Parliamentary Committee.