WORKING PAPERS

The direct and indirect effects of crime on social capital: Evidence from India
revision requested at B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis and Policy [ABDC - A; ABS - 2]
[Abstract]

This paper studies the effect of crime on a household’s social capital. Using longitudinal information on households’ social capital and crime victimization from India, we address identification concerns due to endogenous sorting and moving. We distinguish between the direct effect on victims and the indirect effect to society due to the risk of victimization. We find that direct crime victimization leads to significant deterioration in households’ institutional trust (0.056σ) but increases their social networks (0.065σ) and civic engagement (0.072σ). We find similar indirect effects due to the risk of victimization. Households’ expectations and their media exposure plausibly drive the results. The results are not explained by omitted variables or reverse causality. Our results suggest that as households lose trust in institutions, they expand their own networks and become socially more connected plausibly to insure themselves from future victimization.

Violence, son preference and fertility: Evidence from India [JMP]
with Debayan Pakrashi and Sounak Thakur
[Abstract | Presentations]

Human behavior is influenced by both biology and social norms. Natural selection favors an increase in the ratio of females to males in times of adversity (war, food shortage, etc.). Is it possible that natural selection may be counteracted by social norms? We present novel evidence from Punjab — an Indian state with intense son-preferring norms rooted in culture. We find that exposure to a violent insurgency (1978-93) leaves the overall sex ratio unchanged and intensifies son-biased fertility stopping behaviors. Since most casualties are male, our results are consistent with exposed parents demanding more sons due to a replacement motive.

This paper has been presented at the following conferences:

1. 2^nd Meeting of Young Minds in Frontiers of Economics, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India (2025)
2. Reflections on Development Economics Conference, Presidency University Kolkata, India (2024)
3. 7^th Australian Gender Economics Workshop (AGEW), University of Technology Sydney, Australia (2024)
4. Asian Meeting of the Econometric Society (AMES-CSW), Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India (2024)
5. Winter School, Delhi School of Economics and The Econometric Society, India (2023)

Civil unrest and learning outcomes in India
with Debayan Pakrashi and Sounak Thakur
[Abstract | Presentations]

We study the effect of civil unrest on learning outcomes of schoolgoing children. The context of the study is the Indian province of Jammu and Kashmir, a part of which (namely, the Kashmir valley) witnessed a sudden intensification in violence in 2010. We exploit this plausibly exogenous intensification in a difference-in-differences framework. Exposed children perform poorly on a basic (grade 2-3 level) literacy and numeracy test as compared to their non-exposed counterparts. The effects are fairly substantial in magnitude (about 0.54 σ and 0.37 σ for language and math, respectively), and persist for at least 2 years. All exposed students, including those in higher classes (grades 6-8 and 9-12), are affected. We provide suggestive evidence that reduced school quality and increased psychological stress amongst students may drive these results.

This paper has been presented at the following conferences:

1. Asian Meeting of the Econometric Society (AMES), Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India (2023)
   
2. Research Scholar’s Day, Department of Economic Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, India (2023)
3. 18^th Annual Conference on Economic Growth and Development, Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi (2023)
4. 17^th Annual Conference on Economic Growth and Development, Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi (2022)

Alcohol prohibition, home environment and learning: Evidence From India
with Deeksha, Sarani Saha and Sounak Thakur
[Abstract]

We study the effects of alcohol prohibition on children’s learning outcomes. We exploit a plausibly exogenous change in the availability of alcohol in the Indian state of Bihar, which implemented a state-wide ban on the manufacturing, sale, transport and consumption of alcohol. Using a difference-in-differences framework, we find that the ban reduced alcohol consumption and improved the learning outcomes of school-going children in Bihar. The results are plausibly driven by lower domestic violence and improvements in the home environment induced by reduced alcohol consumption on the part of adult males.

WORK IN PROGRESS

Informal financial institutions and crime: Evidence from ROSCAs in India
with Debayan Pakrashi and Sounak Thakur

Does exposure to conflict during the formative years of life impact the ability to work in adulthood? Evidence from India