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.

Inequality, Employment and Public Policy

Abstract: This paper examines dimensions of inequality including labour market inequalities and discusses public policies needed for reduction in inequalities. It discusses both inequality of outcomes and inequality of opportunities. In terms of income, India is the second highest inequality country in the world next to South Africa. Wealth inequalities are also high in India. Most of the inequalities will have labour market dimension. Labour market inequalities can be found across sectors, wages and earnings, quality of work, labour market access and, between organised and unorganised sectors. On public policies and inequalities, the paper discusses redistribution measures, macro policies, sectoral policies and impact on employment, social policies such as education, health, hunger and malnutrition, social protection, corruption, gender disparities and climate change. The paper argues for fundamentals change to human capital and universal basic services. Investments in social infrastructure, health, education, affirmative action and provision of public services can lead to the creation of egalitarian society.

Union-oligopoly bargaining and entry deterrence: a reassessment of limit pricing

Abstract: This paper introduces wage bargaining in the framework of Milgrom and Roberts (Econometrica 50(2):443–459, 1982) where the workers’ reservation wage is the private information parameter critical for entry. We show that entry threat significantly distorts the wage, which in some cases adversely affects the firm’s ability to signal through price. Consequently, the separating equilibrium (in price) does not always exist. If, however, wage agreements are made public, signalling occurs with or without distortions in wage depending on whether the union’s bargaining power is high or low. Pooling equilibrium also exists and it features similar distortions. We also examine which signal, wage or price, generates greater social welfare.

Demand or supply for schooling in rural India

Abstract: Is the poor human capital investment of rural India n families primarily a supply side or a demand side issue? Can time use data help analyze some of the hidden dimen sions of development? We examine school attendance and total human capital investment time (time in school plus travel time plus in-home instructional time) using the Indian Time Use Survey of 1998-1999 and the 7th All India School Education Survey (AISES). Probit and sample selection bias regression estimates indicate th at the influence of supply side factors (school qua lity and availability) is large relative to the impact of househo ld characteristics (e.g. low income). We discuss th e policy implications and illustrate the advantages of time us e data in analysis of development. JEL-Codes: I2, I24, I25, O15