This paper investigates the incidence of poverty in Indian towns and cities of various sizes of population. It also tests the hypothesis that larger towns and cities, because of their size, are capable of supporting more complex economic activities, improving labor productivity, and hence...

Agricultural policy in developing countries is strongly shaped by views about speculation in the foodgrain markets. The central issue is whether speculative expectations are rational. Yet, data availability and the absence of futures markets rarely permits a direct examination of this...

The paper uses the theoretical framework of the theory of tax reform to analyze whether a "small" change in an existing food subsidy program can be both welfare-improving and revenue-neutral. It shows how existing econometric methods can be adapted to estimate demand parameters even when...