Trends over the last 25 years suggest that nearly 80% of the social sector spending has come from state budgets. Taken together with other policy developments in the country, the centre's role in financing social welfare, including elementary education, is likely to decline further. Analysing...

Despite widespread and substantial private expenditure on private tutoring outside the formal school system in many developing countries, not much is known about their effects on learning outcomes. The main challenge in estimating such an effect is that the decision to send the child for private...

This paper is the first attempt to rigorously evaluate the short term effects of the 'Janani Suraksha Yojna' (Safe Motherhood Scheme), a nationwide conditional cash transfer program in India, launched in April 2005. Under the scheme, a woman delivering her child in a medical facility is provided...