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Purpose: This study aims to provide a critique of the institutional framework of the National Asset Reconstruction Company Limited (NARCL), India's "bad bank." Design/methodology/approach: The approach followed is the development of an economic model of the gains to trade of an Asset Reconstruction Company. Findings: Using an economic model, the paper shows that the rules of the game create an uneven playing field and are likely to lead to a systematic overpricing of nonperforming loans (NPLs). While this might increase the upfront cash received by the bank, it will come at the cost of higher liabilities for the government on account of the sovereign guarantee that is part of the proposed structure. The overpricing is also likely to act as an obstacle to efforts aimed at the revival of the distressed company. The NARCL could become a warehouse for NPLs subverting the objective of reconstruction. Practical implications: Solutions to create a vibrant market for NPLs are proposed. Originality/value: The Indian case is unique in the sense that a bad bank backed by the government has been introduced after almost two decades of the existence of similar entities in the private sector. To the best of the author's knowledge, this paper is the first that addresses the design of such a market using economic modeling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between financial sector development and poverty reduction in India using annual data from 1970 to 2012. The paper attempts to answer the critical question: does financial sector development lead to poverty reduction? Design/methodology/approach – Stationarity properties of the series are checked by using Ng-Perron unit root test. The paper uses the Auto Regressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) bound testing approach to co-integration to examine the existence of long-run relationship; error-correction mechanism for the short-run dynamics and Granger non-causality test to test the direction of causality. Findings – The co-integration test confirms a long-run relationship between financial development and poverty reduction for India. The ARDL test results suggest that financial development and economic growth reduces poverty in both long run and short run. The causality test confirms that there is a positive and unidirectional causality running from financial development to poverty reduction. Research limitations/implications – This study implies that poverty in India can be reduced by financial inclusion and financial accessibility to the poor. For a fast growing economy with respect to financial sector development this may have far-reaching implication toward inclusive growth. Originality/value – This paper is the first of its kind to empirically examine the causal relationship between financial sector development and poverty reduction in India using modern econometric techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to examine the factors that lead to the failure of startups in India and proposes a 'Four Dimensional (4D) Strategic Framework' to drive success. Design/methodology/approach: This study is exploratory and uses a narrative analysis methodology to analyse the accounts of key startup stakeholders – founders, investors, former employees and consumers; to identify their failure factors. A conveniently selected sample of 165 startups was studied to understand better the reasons for their failure within a thematic framework developed from David Feinleib's (2012) handbook "Why Startups Fail". Findings: Results indicate that a dearth of capital or running out of money and inadequate sales and marketing strategy, which leads businesses to fall behind rivals and lose money on each transaction, are the most common factors for startup failure in India. Originality/value: "Startups" are substantial for emerging economies like India because they fuel technological innovation and economic progress and provide for the modern workforce's needs and aspirations. However, they seem to be typically unprofitable, with a modest probability of survival. Subsisting studies mainly focus primarily on success factors and very few on why startups fail, with significant disagreement on an appropriate methodology. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that analyses failure factors of Indian startups using narrative analysis of its key stakeholders. It aims to aid the conception of profitable entrepreneurship by reducing the failure frequency in the startup and small business ecology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is investigate the dynamic linkages among industrial energy use, industrial value added, financial development (FD) and trade openness, in case of India. The study covers the annual frequency data on both aggregate and disaggregate variables for the period 1971–2016. Design/methodology/approach: The autoregressive distributed lag bounds testing approach is applied to examine the long-run relation among variables under consideration. Also, Johansen and Juselius (1990) and vector error-correction mechanism results confirm the result of cointegration. Furthermore, non-linear relationship in the model is also tested. Findings: It has been found that there exists long-run relationship among variables. Long-run estimates show that increasing FD leads to more energy uses. Hence, FD should be directed in such a way that it incentivises firms to invest in energy-efficient technology. Furthermore, it is also found that study supports the evidence of conservative hypothesis, which supports that the energy conservation policy should be adopted in the industrial sector. Energy efficiency programme needs to be designed very carefully to achieve a higher level of energy efficiency. This leads to a sustainable growth and low carbon emission. Originality/value: This paper examines the recent trend in Indian industrial energy consumption and does a comprehensive analysis using a robust econometric method. We have developed a lucid model to examine the deriving factors of industrial energy consumption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the direction of causality between firm productivity and export status. The correlation can arise from multiple alternative causal models, and the authors study if more productive firms export, and/or if firms learn to export, and/or if firms learn by exporting.Design/methodology/approach The authors investigate these relationships, harnessing the natural experiments offered by firms which transitioned into exporting, in a dataset of Indian firms from 1989 to 2015. Each firm which made the transition is matched against a control which did not. The transitions take place across many years, thus permitting a matched event study in firm outcomes.Findings The authors find there is self-selection of more productive firms into exporting. Firms that make the transition into exporting become bigger, but there is little evidence of learning by exporting, of improvements in productivity right after exporting commences. However, there is evidence of learning to export, that is there is improvement in productivity of export starters in comparison to their productivity a couple of years before they begin to export.Originality/value The strength of the paper lies in an opportunity for sound measurement: we observe firms make a transition from domestic market into exporting. The transitions take place across many years, thus permitting a matched event study in firm outcomes. Using this methodology, the authors find that firms become more productive a few years before they export, that is they learn to export. They contribute to the literature by bringing evidence of "learning to export" from a developing country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine income inequality and income mobility, which have been central to understanding India’s recent economic development.Design/methodology/approach This paper uses the first two waves of the India Human Development Survey data for the year 2004–2005 and 2011–2012 to analyze income inequality and income mobility using longitudinal data, and is the first to do so at a nationally representative level. In this research paper, we address three related research questions: How have been the patterns of income mobility in India? What are the trends, levels and sources of income inequality in India? and finally And What is the structure of household income mobility?Findings The paper examines the trends, levels, sources and factors of income inequality and income mobility in India between 2005 and 2012. The results further show the case for high persistence at the top of income distribution but lower persistence at the bottom.Research limitations/implications Because of the chosen research approach, the research results may lack spatial analysis. Therefore, researchers are encouraged to test the proposed propositions further.Practical implications The paper suggests that, in the end, the nature of longer-term well-being is crucial to designing policy interventions to effectively tackle inequality, and economic mobility can be seen as an avenue to long-term equality.Social implications This study can further be extended to look at polarization issues at the national and sub-national levels.Originality/value This paper shows the analytical framework of additive decomposition of income mobility out of two sources, namely mobility due to the transfer of income within given structure and mobility due to economic growth or contraction in rural and urban India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The study aims to understand how various channels of financial sector development affect the income inequality across Indian states and whether the inequality widening or narrowing hypothesis of financial development may be confirmed at a sub-national level. Design/methodology/approach: Using state-wise annual data for the period from 1999-2000 to 2011-2012, a panel data analysis using generalised method of moments (GMM) estimator is conducted for a sample of 15 major Indian states. Findings: The results confirm the inequality widening hypothesis of financial sector development in India. While each channel affects different section of the population in a different way, their overall effect on the income inequality remains unfavourable. Originality/value: This paper is the first ever study to provide a comparative empirical evidence for the effect of each channel of financial development on the income inequality in India. The results provide significant insights to the policymakers, practitioners and academia in the financial sector with respect to the efficiency of each channel of financial development in bridging the gap between the poor and rich. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose Manufacturing sector growth continues to be topical in the growth journey of Indian economy. The purpose of this paper is to present the modelling and analysis of the combined impact of three key driving sub-systems on the Indian manufacturing growth. It has provided relevant insights and recommendations for its sustainable growth.Design/methodology/approach The impact of three key driving sub-systems: quality of highway-related infrastructure, manufacturing labour productivity and circular material-consumption in the growth of manufacturing has been studied. A System Dynamics (SD) based model to understand long-term implications of the policy variables on manufacturing growth has been developed. Five scenarios have been simulated for analysis.Findings Seven policy variables have been identified which have a significant impact on Indian manufacturing growth. Some relevant insights from the analysis of SD based system-behaviour have been provided which would facilitate the manufacturing growth.Research limitations/implications The paper has addressed the dynamics of only three sub-systems in the study of manufacturing growth. The other sub-systems which also have an impact on the manufacturing growth: Good governance, education quality and technology are recommended to be studied through SD based modelling.Practical implications Specific recommendations for accelerating the manufacturing growth have been made in the paper which has strong practical implications for growth of Indian economy.Social implications Manufacturing sector continues to have a significant impact on the prosperity of India. It facilitates in enhancement of employment and the micro-economic health aspects. Therefore, there is a need to understand the dynamics of the key policy variables affecting manufacturing growth which is very relevant for the society at large.Originality/value An application of the SD approach to analyse long-term implication of policy variables of three sub-systems that have a significant impact in manufacturing growth and five specific recommendations to the policy makers is the value-add. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – This study aims to analyze how Indian management practices have influenced the international management research agenda. International interest in India as a business destination has been growing since the Indian policy-makers began opening up the economy in 1991. India’s continuing economic development and integration with global economy has led to a reassessment of its political, social and commercial relevance by the international community. Design/methodology/approach – The authors choose four management disciplines and examine 40 peer-reviewed international journals for research related to India over the period 1991-2014. From the sample of 217 papers, the authors identify the trends, themes and motivations, and discuss the potential for future research. Findings – The authors find that research on India remains flat for the 1991-2000 decade, and starts growing from 2005 onwards. Organizational behavior remains non-participative in the overall growth of research. The authors find very low levels of qualitative research, and none on endogenous phenomena that have been tested for applicability in non-Indian contexts. Marketing research remains mainly peripheral to Indian contexts. Review of highly cited papers reveals that management research on India is at an early stage, and offers fairly significant opportunities for future researchers. Research limitations/implications – Normal limitations of sample-based literature review apply. Further, the literature search is limited to a select set of highly ranked journals. Originality/value – Studies analyzing themes related to Indian contexts in international publications are sparse. To the best of authors’ knowledge, no study of this nature exists in literature. This study makes a primary contribution for future management researchers across the four areas by informing on the research trends, journal outlets, and the characteristics of the research agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between financial development and income inequality in India using annual data from 1982-2012. Design/methodology/approach -- Stationarity properties of the series are checked by using ADF, DF-GLS, KPSS and Ng-Perron unit root tests. The paper applied the auto regressive distributed lag (ARDL) bound testing approach to co-integration to examine the existence of long run relationship; and error correction mechanism for the short run dynamics. Findings -- The co-integration test confirms a long run relationship between financial development and income inequality for India. The ARDL test results suggest that financial development, economic growth, inflation aggravates the income inequality in both long run and short run. However, trade openness reduces the gap between rich and poor in India. Research limitations/implications -- The present recommend for appropriate economic and financial reforms focussing on financial inclusion to reduce income inequality in India. Originality/value -- Till date, there is hardly any study that makes a clear comparison between market-based indicator and bank based indicator of financial development in India and those examining the relationship between finance and income inequality nexus. Further there is hardly any study to include gini coefficient as a proxy for inequality for India and apply ARDL techniques of co-integration, using the basic principles of GJ hypothesis and provide short run and long run dynamics for India. So the contribution of the paper is to fill these research gaps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to provide a broad overview of welfare schemes in India and their impact on social protection during a period of high economic growth. It summarizes India's performance with respect to select economic and social indicators relative to select low and middle-income countries in the Asia Pacific region. It further overviews trends in some key select economic and social indicators for India and discusses India's attainment in Social Protection relative to an index of such protection provided by the Asian Development Bank. Design/methodology/approach – This paper uses a comparative statistical approach and evaluates India's performance in key social welfare areas vis-à-vis that of countries with economic performance comparable to that of India. It also evaluates India's progress along these parameters over time. Findings – The basic messages of this paper are: first, compared to low and middle-income countries in the Asia Pacific India's economic performance has outstripped its performance in social and welfare indicators. Second, nevertheless India is spending less on social welfare programs and other welfare schemes than many countries in the Asia Pacific, including some of those whose economic performance has been less impressive than India's. Third, the efficiency and effectiveness of key welfare programs in India need to be substantially improved. Particular attention needs to be paid to female participation in and their access to social welfare programs. Originality/value – Informed analyses of social sector spending in India and their impact on welfare outcomes are relatively scarce although descriptive studies of social sector spending and welfare schemes abound. This paper attempts to fill this gap with a cross-country as well as intertemporal analysis of India's performance in these key areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate the value relevance of segment information for both public and private sector banks in India. In doing so, this paper examines a rapidly developing economy and perhaps its most critical sector during this period of strong economic growth.Design/methodology/approach In this study uses the simplified Ohlson model, for a sample of 136 private sector and public sector banks for the period 2007-2010 in India.Findings The paper finds that public sector banks have higher share prices, higher earnings and more equity compared with private sector banks. Segment earnings data is highly value relevant for both sectors; however, segment equity data is only marginally value relevant for Indian banks. The number of segments is also value relevant and associated with higher share prices.Originality/value The results of this study contribute additional evidence to the literature on segment reporting by studying the effect of adoption of segment reporting in an emerging market. Findings from the paper are particularly relevant as India is currently in the process of changing its segment reporting requirements and moving to an IFRS-based segment standard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Most of the research studies on entry mode have been done through the lens of manufacturing firms from mature economic countries entering the Global South countries, and most of the related frameworks and theories have been developed to explain this perspective. This paper presents an understanding of entry mode strategies of services firms from the Global South countries entering into countries with mature economies by considering six software services firms in India entering the US market. The study develops a framework that incorporates multiple theories – both from an emerging economy perspective as well as a services perspective. Design/methodology/approach: This study is exploratory in nature and focuses on the how and why aspects of strategic decisions. Qualitative research has traditionally been chosen when the main research objective is to improve understanding of a phenomenon. A multiple case study approach was used in this research. One of the key aspects of this study is the impact of different theories (institutional, network and other theories) on enterprises of different sizes. Therefore six cases – two each on small, medium and large enterprises – were selected. Findings: Results identify addressable market size, cultural aspects, firm size, resource and service characteristics as dominating factors that influenced choice of entry modes. From a theoretical perspective, the author finds that theories such as transaction cost theory, eclectic paradigm and other popular theories associated with entry mode do not successfully explain the entry mode strategies for firms from the Global South. Strategic theory, such as resource-based view, motivation of a firm, have some application but do not explain, in isolation, all aspects of the entry mode choices. Research limitations/implications: The study is an exploratory study and needs more data to validate the themes expressed in its conclusions. The study also focused on one industry and one country. Different industries within the same country may have different characteristics and may not follow the observations found in this study. Similarly, firms from other countries with similar economic characteristics may exhibit very different behavior. As a result, the themes that were expressed for software companies in India may not be generalizable across other industries and countries. Originality/value: This study is significant for both academics and managers. For academics, the study addresses a significant gap in the literature. For managers, this study provides a framework for managers to evaluate and select the entry mode strategy that would be most effective in a successful expansion into foreign countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore the emissions of SO2, NO2 and SPM in India during 1991-2003. The Environmental Kuznets' Curve (EKC) is applied to explore the relationship between economic development measured in terms of State Domestic Product (SDP) per capita and different air quality parameters for industrial and residential locations respectively. Several developmental factors contribute to change in emissions of these air quality parameters. These factors generally include the scale effect, composition effect and the pollution abatement effect. Design/methodology/approach - The methodology has focused on testing the EKC hypothesis at state level in India, using cross-section and time series data for 15 major states. The study has made use of fixed effect version of pooled data estimation technique. Findings - The findings in the paper indicate only a directional inverted U-shaped EKC relationship for both industrial and residential locations, without being significant statistically. Basically, some developmental factors such as population density, urbanization and policy variables are significant with expected signs in explaining the relationship for most of the cases. The calculated turning point of SDP per capita for different air quality parameters ranges between $163.46 and $408.66 Research limitations/implications - The present study has been restricted to a shorter time period (i.e. 1991-2003) because of the unavailability of continuous time series data. The study only includes 15 major Indian states and excludes other states due to lack of proper data sources. Practical implications - The inclusion of several developmental variables (such as urbanization, infrastructure development, population density, policy) helps to detect whether the emissions of different air quality is mainly due to economic growth or other reasons. Originality/value - The investigation in the paper allows determination of the level of SDP per capita, the emissions of different types of air quality will start to decrease in different Indian states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to bring out the shortcomings of the ETA model imported from developed countries when it is assessed for its focus on poverty alleviation in a developing nation (India) and to suggest improvements in the existing framework. Design/methodologylapproach - The paper explores the current performance of ETA process in India, critically analyses the philosophy of continued sidelining of environmental protection in favour of unrestricted economic growth in the light of evidence regarding growing inequality. Findings - The paper finds that for the proponent driven ETA model to contribute towards poverty alleviation, a new ‘socio-ecological linkage document’ is needed. This will bring out the fragile linkages that marginalized communities have with their local ecosystems and can be prepared with the help of local ecological knowledge. A framework to integrate the socio-ecological linkage document into the ETA-SEA-SA domain is presented. Practical implications - The paper shows that the supportive framework of generating the ‘socio-ecological linkage document’ has the potential to enhance the EIA-SEA-SA process in terms of ensuring that plans, policies, programs and projects are sensitive to the need of ecosystem dependent poor. Originality/value - The paper proposes a framework to support the alternative thinking that poverty alleviation can be enhanced through preservation of ecosystem linkages, in contrast to the modern paradigm of economic growth at the cost of ecosystem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose According to the 70th round of the National Sample Survey published by the Government of India in 2014, the incidence of indebtedness among households in the rural areas of Telangana state, India, is twice that of rural all-India. Around 59 per cent of rural households are indebted in Telangana as against 31 per cent all-India. The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent and magnitude of indebtedness among rural households in the Medak district of Telangana state. Further, the authors wanted to identify the sources of credit to these households and for what purpose the loans were utilised.Design/methodology/approach To achieve the objective, the authors conducted a primary-level household survey in one of the distressed districts in newly formed state. The authors applied the Bayesian and the Lasso regression methods to identify the factors that impact indebtedness of a household.Findings The OLS results based on the Lasso regression results show that among all the explanatory variables, principal occupation, use of modern technology, the rate of interest, household medical expenditure and source of loan are significant, indicating that these variables significantly affect the loan taken by the farmers in the study area. The study shows that alternative sources of non-farm income and promotion of modern technology in agriculture can reduce the incidence of farmers’ indebtedness in India.Originality/value The paper contains significant information with regard to indebtedness. It focusses on the issue troubling the authorities the most. It provides the ground realities of the incidence of indebtedness in Medak, one of the most distressed districts of Telangana, a Southern Indian state. There have been very few similar studies done in the newly formed state. The paper has employed an advanced statistical technique, i.e. Heckman’s selection regression technique, to study farmers’ indebtedness in India. It provides a means of correcting for non-randomly selected samples, which otherwise can lead to erroneous conclusions and poor policy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse the labour force participation of older persons (aged 60 and above) in India from 1983 to 2011-2012. The paper also briefly reviews the conditions of work for the elderly and examines different socio-economic and demographic factors that are associated with labour force participation of elderly in India. Design/methodology/approach – The author uses data from repeated cross-sectional rounds of Employment and Unemployment Surveys of National Sample Survey Office from 1983 to 2011-2012. The author uses probit regression model to identify the socio-economic and demographic variables that are associated with the labour participation of the elderly in India. Findings – The results show that labour force participation rate of older persons in rural India remained almost stable between 1983 and 2011-2012, despite the rapid economic growth that India experienced during the same period. Further, the results show that among the elderly, those who belong to relatively poor socio-economic status are more likely to participate in the labour force. It is observed that large percentage of the elderly workforce are engaged in poorly paid jobs in the informal sector, either as casual workers or as self-employed in low-skilled or unskilled occupations. Research limitations/implications – This paper is mostly descriptive in its analysis and it only points to the possible socio-economic and demographic determinants of elderly labour force participation in India. Originality/value – Given that the studies on employment of elderly in India are scanty, this paper provides new evidence on changes in labour force participation of elderly over last three decades. Further, this study makes an attempts to understand who among the elderly most likely to participation in labour force in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – China and India are two of the fastest growing economies in the world, and poverty reduction has been substantial in both countries through the past few decades. Yet they have very different profiles in terms of food security and undernutrition – while at the micro-level China has performed well in terms of undernutrition, India has not. The purpose of this paper is to examine linkages between poverty, food security, and undernutrition in both countries. Design/methodology/approach – In this paper, the authors discuss the linkages between poverty, food security, and undernutrition at the micro level, describe the literature, and make inferences for targeting the remaining poor, food insecure, or undernourished in both countries. Findings – In China, there is a need for better tools for targeting the poor or malnourished. In India, more effective state-level policies should be better understood by the central government and disseminated to less successful states. Originality/value – In this paper, the authors describe data sources on poverty, food security, and undernutrition in both China and India, and correlates with changes in all three. The authors try to understand what factors appear to lead to reductions in all three, pointing out data gaps in both countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of financial development, economic growth and energy consumption on environment degradation for Indian economy by using the time series data for the period 1971-2011. Design/methodology/approach – The stationary properties of the variables are checked by ADF, DF-GLS, PP and Ng-Perron unit root tests. The long-run relationship is examined by implementing the Autoregressive Distributed Lag bounds testing approach to co-integration and error correction method (ECM) is applied to examine the short-run dynamics. The direction of the causality is checked by VECM framework and variance decomposition is used to predict exogenous shocks of the variables. Findings – The empirical evidence confirms the existence of long-run relationship among the variables. Financial development appears to increase environmental degradation in India. The main contributors to environmental degradation are: economic growth, energy consumption financial development and urbanization. The results also lend support to the existence of environmental Kuznets curves for Indian economy. Research limitations/implications – The present study suggests that environmental degradation can be reduced at the cost of economic growth or energy efficient technologies should be encouraged to enhance the domestic product with the help of financial sector by improving environmental friendly technologies from advanced economies. Originality/value – This paper proposes to make a contribution to the existing literature through examining the relationship between financial development and environmental degradation in Indian economy during 1971-2011 by employing modern econometric techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – This paper aims to discuss the opportunities and challenges that India offers in terms of leveraging the cultural and economic potential of the fairs and festivals. Design/methodology/approach – This paper sets the tone for the theme by evaluating “fairs and festivals” being organized all year round in different parts of the country, as drivers of economic growth and cultural continuity. Findings – The paper probes the key opportunities and challenges with respect to leveraging the cultural and economic potential of fairs and festivals in India. Practical implications – There are a number of practical implications for practitioners and policymakers that will allow India to optimally leverage the huge cultural and economic potential that the various fairs and festivals offer. This requires a holistic understanding that will ensure that aspirations and concerns of all key stakeholders are taken into account. Originality/value – The research through this theme issue will document the cultural and economic impact of a range of specific fairs and festivals in India. Can these cultural resources be sustained and deployed effectively to have a positive economic impact on the lives of communities connected? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is motivated by research-based assertions that: the causes of economic growth in countries like India are not well understood; they are not elucidated by using simple bivariate relationships between economic growth and other variables, taken one at a time; and dynamic linkages between growth, trade openness and financial sector depth are required for any comprehensive treatment of this inquiry. Design/methodology/approach – This paper investigates the pivotal role of financial depth (defined as the relative importance in the economy of the banking sector or the stock market) and whether it bears any evidential relationship to trade openness and economic growth during the era of Indian post-globalization since 1990. Two key objectives are to uncover whether there is a long-run relationship between the variables and whether they can be said to cause one another. Autoregressive distributive lag (ARDL) bounds testing procedures and vector autoregressive error correction model (VECM) approaches were used to derive the results. Findings – This paper affirms that the variables are indeed formally cointegrated. It was also found that trade openness, economic growth and financial sector depth Granger-cause each other. Practical implications – This paper demonstrates that greater trade openness can predictably accelerate India’s economic growth. If policymakers wish to maintain sustainable economic growth in India, they can do so by encouraging both freer trade and financial market development in the long run. Originality/value – No investigation of this type and sophistication has hitherto been performed for India. The methods developed for this study can also be applied to any of the vast range of countries for which dynamic growth-openness-financial depth interactions have not already been investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - This paper aims to examine the relationship between the industrial and the service sector outputs at the aggregate level and for different sub-services in India and also tries to find out whether the relationship is changing over time. Design/methodology/approach - This paper studies a panel of 16 major Indian states in India over the period 1980-2011. Using an econometric analysis, it proceeds to estimate the increase in inter-linkage between the output of the service sector and the output of the industrial sector. This study considers a variable coefficient model where the output elasticity of the service sector with respect to the output of the industrial sector changes with time. The changing element here is considered to be the result of the changing structure of production within these industries. Findings - It has been observed that the output of the services sector at the aggregate level and the output of the industrial sector are highly correlated, and demand generated for services output from the industrial sector over the period 1993-2011 is mostly due to the changing structure of production within these sectors. Originality/value - This paper takes the initiative to estimate the increase in inter-linkage between the output of the service sector and the output of the industrial sector resulting from the changing structure of production within the industrial and the service sectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- The purpose of this paper is to contribute to existing literature by examining whether development aid has any measurable impact on food security, whether the impact is conditioned on the quality of governance and whether it differs based on the type of aid provided. Design/methodology/approach -- Panel-data analysis of 85 developing countries between 1994 and 2011, using generalized method of moments and two-stage least squares estimators. Findings -- The paper finds that aid in general has a small positive impact on food security; that multilateral aid, grants and social and economic aid have a positive effect on food security in their own right, and that bilateral aid, loans and agricultural aid are more conditioned on the quality of governance that other aid. Research limitations/implications -- The main limitations rest with the imperfect nature of cross-country data on food security and governance, which I have tried to overcome through a series of robustness tests. Practical implications -- The findings suggest that aid, despite its many deficiencies, can play a positive role in strengthening food security. Furthermore, they indicate that concessional loans, bilateral aid and agricultural aid are likely to foster food security only in countries with better governance. Originality/value -- The paper constitutes a novel contribution to existing literature because it is one of the first to use cross-country data to explore the impact of aid on food security and because it utilizes a relatively complex aid categorization, which allows its conclusions to be more nuanced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to estimate the relationship between the current account (CA) and fiscal deficit (FD), and the real exchange rate for India, for the managed float period 1996 Q2 to 2015 Q4, after controlling for output growth and oil shocks. It also examines the cyclicality of the CA, the size of each shock, and assesses whether aggregate demand, forward-looking smoothing, or supply shocks dominate outcomes.Design/methodology/approach The authors use several variants of structural vector autoregression (SVAR), implemented with quarterly Indian data, to control for effects of oil prices, and the output cycle, and then see how FD shocks affect the current account deficit (CAD) and the real exchange rate. For robustness, the authors tried different identifications, changed variable definitions, added new variables, or substituted with other variables. The cyclicality issue is addressed by examining the effect of growth shocks. The relative size of each shock is assessed through co-movement decompositions of the forecast errors. Responses to shocks help identify dominant influences on India’s CAD.Findings The CAD is found to be countercyclical. A FD shock raises the CAD, but high impact growth shocks and large variance oil shocks lead to overall divergence of the deficits. There is some support for the aggregate demand channel, but it is moderated by supply shocks and compositional effects. Consumption is sticky rather than forward-looking.Originality/value The paper contributes to the literature by including supply shocks, compositional effects, cyclicality, real interest and exchange rate in a theoretically and empirically consistent way for the analysis of twin deficits. The large empirical literature on twin deficits in EMs has not yet done this. There is no study using quarterly data in an SVAR allowing the dynamic relationship between the variables to be explored. The extensions bring in the supply side and compositional effects qualify the working of both the channels, with empirical exercises supporting theoretical predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose India is a developing nation where the marginal benefit of infrastructure development is tremendous. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the relationship between infrastructure development and poverty reduction for India using the yearly data from 1991 to 2015.Design/methodology/approach The authors use the principal component analysis to construct indices for four major sub-sectors, namely, transport, water and sanitation, telecommunications and energy, falling under the broad infrastructure sector and then using these sectorwise indices, the authors construct an overall index which represents infrastructure development. The authors provide evidence on the link between infrastructure development and poverty reduction by using the auto regressive distributed lag (ARDL) bound testing approach.Findings The ARDL test results suggest that infrastructure development and economic growth reduce poverty in both long run and short run. The causality test confirms that there is a positive and unidirectional causality running from infrastructure development to poverty reduction.Research limitations/implications The study confirms that India’s Infrastructure development plays a vital role in reducing poverty and calls for the Indian Government to adopt economic policies which are aimed at developing and strengthening the infrastructure levels and bringing in more investment in the infrastructure sector in order to help the poor population by making them exposed to better opportunities of employment and income growth, thereby achieving the goal of poverty reduction.Originality/value This paper is a fresh and unique attempt of its kind to empirically investigate the causal relationship between infrastructure development and poverty reduction in India using modern econometric techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of female human capital on economic growth in the Indian economy during 1970-2014.Design/methodology/approach The paper employs Ng-Perron unit root test to check the order of integration of the variables. The study also used ARDL-bounds testing approach and the unrestricted error-correction model to investigate co-integration in the long run and short run; Granger’s causality test to investigate the direction of the causality; and variance decomposition test to capture the influence of each variable on economic growth.Findings The study constructed a composite index for both male and female human capitals by taking education and health as a proxy for human capital. The empirical findings reveal that female human capital is significant and positively related to economic growth in both short run and long run, while male human capital is positive but insignificant to the economic growth; same is the case for physical capital, it implies that such investment regarding female human capital needs to be reinforced. Further, there is an evidence of a long-run causal relationship from female human capital, male human capital and physical capital to economic growth variable. The results of variance decomposition show the importance of the female human capital variable is increasing over the time and it exerts the largest influence in change in economic growth.Research limitations/implications The empirical findings suggest that the Indian economy has to pay attention equally on the development of female human capital for short-run as well as long-run growth of the economy. This implies that the policy makers should divert more expenditure for developing support for female education and health.Originality/value To the best of authors’ knowledge, this is the first attempt to study the relationship between female human capital and economic growth in the context of the Indian economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of the paper is to examine the impact of exchange rate misalignment on economic growth in India using annual data from 1980 to 2014.Design/methodology/approach First, misalignment is measured, which is defined as the deviations of the actual real exchange rate (RER) from its equilibrium level. The equilibrium real exchange rate (ERER) is estimated using the auto-regressive distributed lag (ARDL) model by considering key macroeconomic fundamentals of the determinants of RER. Zivot and Andrews’ unit root with structural break is used to test the stationarity property of data. The impact of exchange rate misalignment on economic growth has been examined using ARDL and variance decomposition techniques.Findings Our results find an overvaluation of 21the exchange rate till 2000, and thereafter, an undervaluation of the exchange rate prevails in India. Further, the result indicates that an increase in exchange rate misalignment leads to a decrease in economic growth and vice versa. Moreover, a positive misalignment (overvaluation) hurts the economic growth and a negative misalignment (undervaluation) promotes the economic growth.Research limitations/implications From the policy perspective, the results highlight that India needs to maintain an appropriate exchange rate which can reduce the RER misalignment. It is better for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)’s intervention to smoothen the fluctuations of the exchange rate to avoid the inefficiency in the allocation of resources. However, to minimize the RER misalignment, the intervention should be conducted only in the short run.Originality/value The study contributes to the existing literature by estimating the exchange rate misalignment for India and its impact on economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to evaluate e-governance projects for the social and economic development and citizen services by ten major states of India: Haryana, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and West Bengal. Design/methodology/approach - ICT and e-governance policy framework of these ten states was captured from their published policy documents/ literature, as well as through the in-person interviews and discussions with the concerned Secretary/Director/Managing Director level officials at different forums on the basis of a structured questionnaire. Findings - The results highlight the policy gaps and suggest that there is a need to look at improving such factors as capacity building, common standards, security guidelines, quality, completeness, depth and spread of services, coordination, mindset, etc. In terms of overall performance, four e-governance projects, e-Sewa in Andhra Pradesh, Bhoomi in Karnataka, Setu in Maharashtra and Suwidha in Punjab had higher scores than other projects. Originality/value - The paper introduces the best e-governance projects which can be role models for other states in improving e-governance initiatives. This will help policy makers to understand the policy gaps and focus on those parameters which lead to good governance, not only in India but in other similar developing economies as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of public expenditure on economic growth and poverty alleviation in developing countries like India. If poverty and inequality are high, the government may resort to distributive policies at the cost of long-term growth. The distributive policies and poverty alleviation measures fail to achieve success due to lack of good governance, lack of proper targeting and problems in the implementation of such schemes. On the other hand, if the nature of public expenditure is such that it enhances per capita income, it will help reduce poverty. Design/methodology/approach – After analytical digression and construction of hypotheses panel regression has been done using state-level data in the Indian context to empirically verify the above propositions. Both Fixed effects and Random effects models have been used for this purpose. Findings – The results show that in states where ratio of public expenditure on the development of infrastructure such as road, irrigation, power, transport and communication is higher, per capita income is also higher and incidence of poverty is lower indicating that economic growth is important for poverty alleviation and development of infrastructure is necessary for growth. Originality/value – This study demonstrates how public policy and public finance can be used as instruments for removal of poverty. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to construct a financial development index (FDI) for the Indian economy and also examine the relationship between FDI and economic growth. Design/methodology/approach - Augment Dickey Fuller, Phillips Perron and Ng Perron unit root tests are employed in order to determine the level of integration. The long- and short-run dynamics are obtained by using auto-regressive distributed lag approach to cointegration and rolling window approach to estimate coefficient of each observation. Findings - The results indicate that long-run relationship is presented among the economic growth, FDI, real-interest rate (RIR), labor force and capital. But FDI negatively associated with economic growth in the case of long- and short-run and RIR also negatively determine the economic growth only in the long run. The rolling regression result confirms that FDI negatively associated to growth in the years of 1978, 1979, 1984-1987, 1990, 1996-2000, 2004 and 2005 and RIR is impede economic growth in the years of 1978, 1979, 1986, 1988-1997, 2001, 2002, 2006 and 2008. Originality/value - The paper constructs an FDI for the Indian economy by using the four indicators of financial development. The findings are useful for India's policy makers in order to maintain the parallel expansion of financial development and economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to identify the pathways through which social protection policies in China and India can address the key challenges facing poor, vulnerable, and disadvantaged groups under rapid transformation in both countries. Design/methodology/approach – This paper reviews the main social protection policies in China and India and analyzes the challenges that they are facing. This analysis is based on an evaluation of poverty and food security trends in both countries among vulnerable and disadvantaged groups followed by an overview of major experiences and gaps in social protection policies in the two emerging Asian giants. Findings – Improving the coverage and targeting of social protection systems is vital, and will require a multi-faceted reform portfolio that promotes more integrated and horizontally equitable systems. Emphasis should be placed on developing productive, cross-sectoral social protection programs that combine short-term social safety support with long-term tools to enhance productivity, paying special attention to nutrition, health, and human capital development. More efficient coverage and targeting should bridge the rural and urban divide and be grounded in transparent criteria and procedures that govern program implementation at all levels of the government. As both countries become more urbanized, social protection programs need to give equal attention to emerging food insecurity and nutrition issues within urban areas without detracting from food security and nutrition efforts in rural areas. Originality/value – Faced with a sizable population of undernourished and poor people, India and China have applied rather different approaches to address food insecurity. The originality and value of this paper lie in an in-depth parallel analysis of how China and India can better use their social protection systems to address food insecurity and undernutrition among poor, vulnerable, and disadvantaged groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – Environmental friendliness, in context of industrial operations, is an issue that has evoked much interest among environmentalists, governments, academicians and other sections of society in recent times. The said development has been more profound and broad-based in developed economies of the world, though, the trend is catching fast in developing countries, as well. Green Supply Chain Management (GSCM) is a management technique that aims to make a supply chain eco-friendly, without diluting the organizational objectives. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the scale of adoption and implementation of GSCM practices in the context of Indian industries. Design/methodology/approach – The investigation used literature review approach to determine the current status of implementation of GSCM by Indian industry, and associated aspects of the same. Literature pertaining to the subject in context of non-Indian industries has also been studied for the purpose of rudimentary knowledge on the management concept, as well for comparing the measures taken by foreign-based companies with Indian ones. Findings – The study shows that in general, Indian companies are lacking on the front of adoption and implementation of GSCM measures in their supply chains. Though, certain companies are showing appreciable enthusiasm for the eco-friendly concept, the same does not apply to majority of the Indian enterprises, owing to a multitude of factors. GSCM has the potential to drive economic gains, and can act as a big motivator for companies to go green. As India leaps towards higher levels of industrialization and economic growth, GSCM becomes more of a necessity rather than an option for Indian companies to survive the competition. Practical implications – Findings from this study helps in discerning the present status of GSCM in the country, and assess the same in comparison to that of developed countries. The findings will also help the firms to have a greater understanding of their current standing and the possible gains that can accrue by adoption of GSCM practices in real. The philosophy, stance and endeavours of government with respect to GSCM has also been spelt out in the paper. The paper contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence on various aspects of GSCM in the country and the trajectory that it will chart in future. Originality/value – The paper though, brings forth the findings of other researches on the subject of GSCM practices in India in a consolidated manner, yet its value is reflected in the cohesive manner in which contrary findings have been analysed to present a comprehensive and holistic picture of GSCM implementation in India. An attempt has been made not only to assess the inputs of individual firms, but also of government and other stakeholders in their efforts to make supply chains more environment friendly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to advance the research on the relationship between developmental human resource management (HRM) practices and voluntary intention to leave among information technology (IT) professionals from the Indian IT sector by investigating the mediating role of affective commitment.Design/methodology/approach This study adopted a cross-sectional design at the individual-level of analysis. Data on the study constructs (i.e. developmental HRM practices, affective commitment, and voluntary intention to leave) were collected from 752 IT professionals from 17 Indian IT organizations from the city of Bengaluru through a web-based survey between February 2016 and March 2017. Further, this study used the confirmatory factor analysis technique to establish reliability and construct validity for the study constructs. Furthermore, this study tested the research hypotheses empirically through mediated multiple-regression analysis using the bootstrap procedure.Findings Empirical results of the present study suggest that espousal of robust developmental HRM interventions enhances affective commitment and significantly attenuates the voluntary intention to leave among employees. Further, the results of this study have indicated that the relationship between developmental HRM practices and voluntary intention to leave was partially mediated by affective commitment.Originality/value Past empirical studies on HRM – turnover discourse, in the IT sector, have predominantly examined the direct influence of HRM systems and/or internal labor market strategies on turnover intentions and actual turnover behavior. Rarely have the past studies in the IT domain attempted to examine the intervening role of employee attitudes in the relationship between HRM practices and employee-level outcomes. Addressing this gap, the present study enunciates the critical role of affective commitment and situates it as an important variable that mediates the relationship between developmental HRM practices and voluntary intention to leave among IT professionals in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose This paper aims to examine how financial development affects the growth of industries that are more dependent on external finance, demystifying the roles played by the banks, stock and bond markets.Design/methodology/approach The authors apply panel fixed-effects and dynamic panel generalized methods of moments on disaggregated industry-level data of the Indian manufacturing sector for the period of 2001-2015 to examine the relationship between financial development, banking market structure and economic growth.Findings The study finds that financial development has a significant impact on the growth process by reducing cost of external finance. Among the three sources of finance, the study finds that while the banking sector has been the most preferred source of external finance, increasing concentration and selective disbursement of credit have continued to dent the prospects of the industry. This paradoxical result explains the dismal performance of the Indian manufacturing sector.Originality/value The effect of financial development (encompassing banking market structure) on economic growth has received sparing attention. Related literature is unclear regarding the impact of banking market structure on the growth process in the context of emerging economies. The authors attempt to fill this important gap in the literature. Moreover, they add novelty to the literature by calculating the external dependence at the firm level, diverging from using US industry as a proxy for calculation of external dependence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the entrepreneurship education and training (EET) needs of small family businesses operating in the agricultural sector of the Indian economy. Design/methodology/approach – Quantitative and qualitative data were collected through a survey of 122 agricultural family firms in the Indian state of Punjab. Responses were analysed using descriptive statistical methods to establish causal relationships between key variables and EET needs in these family firms. Findings – Results show that owner/managers of small family businesses have low levels of EET and hence higher needs. Lack of sufficient funds and low awareness about the availability of training are the most significant challenges for these family firms in accessing financial education and training. Factors such as level of education and training of the owner/manager were found to be major determinants of family firms' take up of EET. Originality/value – This research paper makes an empirically rigorous contribution to a relatively under-researched aspect of small family businesses operating in India. The results established that EET is a prerequisite for economic growth in the agricultural sector of the Indian economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to employ a two-step approach to investigate the bi-directional causal linkage between: economic growth (measured by GDP) and public expenditure on health; public expenditure on health and infant mortality rate (IMR); and economic growth and IMR in the Indian context.Design/methodology/approach The present study uses econometric analysis, namely, panel cointegration and Granger causality on 20-year panel data on 16 major Indian states to investigate the causality.Findings The results suggest GDP to Granger cause public expenditure on health both in the short run and in the long run, but public expenditure on health to Granger cause GDP only in the long run. Further, public expenditure on health and economic growth were found to Granger cause IMR in the long run. However, the reverse linkage from IMR to public expenditure on health and/or economic growth was not significant.Research limitations/implications The present study provides support to the existing literature on the effects of economic growth on health expenditure and health outcomes but also raises a question on the time required to realize the same.Practical implications The findings have implications for policy makers on the time frame and application of health expenditure to achieve better results.Originality/value The present study is one of the first to test the tripartite linkage between economic growth, public health expenditure and health outcomes at a state-level analysis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose The importance of banking and insurance, as an important part of the financial system, has been well accepted in the growth literature. Acting as financial intermediaries they perform important functions that may contribute in economic growth. Addressing this issue, the purpose of this paper is to empirically examine the relationship between banking, insurance and economic growth in India in the post-liberalized era when the private sector was allowed to operate banking and insurance business.Design/methodology/approach In order to find the long-run and short-run relationship between banking, insurance and economic growth, the study uses the VAR-vector error correction model (VECM) along with Granger causality test to explore any causal relationship.Findings The results indicate that there is the long-term relationship between banking, insurance and economic growth and the causality results show a bi-directional relationship between insurance activity and economic growth; however, banking is not granger cause of insurance or economic growth rather it is economic growth that cause banking development.Research limitations/implications The only limitation to the study is the non-availability of monthly figures of GDP. The study therefore, as suggested by RBI, uses monthly data set of Index of Industrial Production to measure economic growth.Practical implications The findings of the study give policy directions to the policymakers to make strategies that are conducive toward boosting development in insurance in order to achieve the targeted economic growth.Originality/value This work is the first attempt to study the conjoint relationship between banking, insurance and economic growth on the Indian economy after the reforms were initiated in the financial sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine a much-overlooked aspect of the rise of China: when will it end? Obviously, the Chinese economy will not grow at an annual rate of 10 percent forever. At some point Chinese growth will stabilize. When is of vast importance for the political, economic, and ecological future of the world. Design/methodology/approach – Data from the World Development Indicators database are used to benchmark the recent economic growth of China (and India) to the long-term trajectory of Brazil. A structuralist approach derived from world-systems analysis predicts that Chinese growth will stabilize once China reaches an equilibrium income level characteristic of the semiperiphery of the world-economy. Findings – Based on recent trends, the structuralist perspective suggests that China's extraordinary rate of economic growth will fall back to global norms after 2020. China is unlikely to reach US or EU levels of total national income before mid-century. Research limitations/implications – The research presented here is highly speculative. The data are of very poor quality and the assumptions are quite heroic. That said, the China 2020 prediction is relatively robust to variations in data and assumptions. Social implications – The rise of China is unlikely to have much impact on the structure of the modern world economy or the continuation of US hegemony for the foreseeable future, and its impact on greenhouse gas emissions may be less than anticipated. Originality/value – This study will hopefully open a debate about planning for the end game of rapid Chinese economic growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - Economic policy reforms, characterised by a market-driven, privatised policy regime, are being adopted as a strategy by India to promote economic development. As markets become liberalised, public sector organisations face extreme vulnerability unless they can identify and develop the competencies necessary to thrive in these competitive markets. This paper, drawing on the resource-based view, aims to identify the pre-reform capabilities of public sector organisations in India and similar developing country contexts that would be relevant even in the post-reform context. Design/methodology/approach - An interpretative and theoretical approach is used to put forth the arguments and a framework is proposed to explain the possibility of deriving competitive advantages from pre-reform capabilities in the post-reform context. Findings - Several unique capabilities of Indian public sector organisations can be identified using the resource based perspective which can be leveraged in the post-reform context. They have superior resource-picking capacity compared to private firms, especially for government-regulated resources, international financial assets and modern technologies. Their internal integrative managerial systems and structures offer them an advantage in meeting the competitive demands of speed and promptness. Under effective leadership, the loyalty of a large workforce and their number of years of experience gives them an advantage of effective coordination and knowledge sharing and flow. Also, their capability in delivering economies of scale and scope due to their size and supply chain integration gives them a cost advantage over others. Practical implications - This paper takes a practical approach. It accepts the existing organisational culture, processes and systems of public sector organisations as given and matters of long-term change, and identifies existing capabilities in the current organisational context that could help them survive better. Originality/value - Unlike most papers that focus on how policy changes affect public sector organisations or those that conduct a comparative analysis with the private sector on various parameters, the main focus of this paper is to identify existing capabilities that can be leveraged by public sector organisations for effective adaptation in the new scenario. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to specify some historical and current issue regarding this subject. Like, what has been the relative importance attached to the different aspects of policy; what has been the pace and progress of reform process. Design/methodology/approach - The paper begins with a short discussion of the background of the study and overview of post-independence economic policy. Hence it is a descriptive study that it finds some data from government site. This paper is thought to provide more reliable information about above impacts for policy makers and State and Central Government. Findings - The paper specifically focuses upon economic reforms and social justice in India, issues relating to the progress of economic reforms, need of reforms for human face. More generally, the paper suggests that government should make relatively limited use of key performance Indicators for economic reforms and have high-level participation rates benchmarking for social justice exercises. Research limitations/implications - Some implications are the timing of the various policies and, more importantly, their sequencing and the relative importance attached to the different aspects of policy, in as much as domestic priorities relating to the provision of education, health and employment, globalization of the economy. Practical implications - The paper can help to promote administrative, managerial, and financial support for economic reforms and social justice in India and emphasis the responsibility to the state and central to enlarge reforms opportunities and encourage economic development. Originality/value - Indian Government decides to accelerate the rate of economic growth and to speed up industrialization, to develop heavy industries, to reduce disparities in income and wealth through economic reforms and social justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - This study aims to examine the current status of road infrastructure in India, working out the gap in the availability of required length and the quality of roads besides the comparison with other economies. It also seeks to analyse the socio-economic-political environment in India to assess the country's attractiveness towards private sector participation in road infrastructure development. Design/methodology/approach - The targets for the road sector development set by the Government of India and the current road status of China are taken as benchmarks to enumerate the existing gap in road development in the country. Growth trends of the road sector and their impact on the manufacturing sector have been worked out to assess the development of road infrastructure and its impact on the industry in the country. Findings - The study advocates that the present pace of road infrastructure development is inadequate in India vis-à-vis other developing economies. The quality of roads compared with China is far below expectations and this poor hinterland connectivity is affecting the trade growth in the country. Originality/value - The paper significantly contributes in assessing the state of road infrastructure in India and highIighting the weaknesses while comparing it with other developing and developed economies. The key issues identified are of immense help to the policy makers in the country for having detailed insight and correcting the road infrastructure development programmes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - This paper seeks to develop a framework for Indian labour reforms that lay emphasis on economic growth and social development by balancing growth needs of firms and socio-economic imperatives of a developing nation. It proposes four management systems and details their interactional dynamics at three levels, namely, at the level of economic security, employment regulation and system flexibility. Design/methodology/approach - This paper provides a literature review of current developments in India with respect to employment, and an analysis of existing labour relations frameworks for similar country contexts. Findings - Labour relations in developing countries is characterised by recent shift to market driven external environment, economically vulnerable surplus labour; low skills, inflexible employment laws, politicised unions with low labour representation, and low corporate involvement in governance. There is a need for policy changes that incorporate economic stability for labour, employment regulation for organisational flexibility, union management for true representation and corporate contribution in labour security and governance. Originality/value - While market driven, privatization policy regime, are being adopted as a strategy by developing economies to promote economic growth, the resultant need for constant innovation faced by the organisations demand a new policy system for effective labour regulation. Governments are unable to define an effective labour relations policy, constrained and discouraged by the difficulty in balancing the socio-economic complexity of a developing country. The framework proposed in this paper is a multilevel model, which allows for more efficient and socially effective balance between needs of the firm and the labour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose — The purpose of this study is the empirical measurement and analysis of economic size and performance of dispersed and clustered small-scale enterprises (SSEs) in India. Design/methodology/approach — Methodology is descriptive and comparative, using a combination of different official databases. Economic size is measured by distribution of SSEs by employment, output, fixed capital investment, and export variables. Measurement of economic performance is focused on output/capital ratio, output/labour ratio, and labour/capital ratio. Findings — The results offer evidence for economic diversity in the size compositions and performance variations of dispersed and clustered SSEs; and bigger economic size and higher economic performance of clustered than dispersed SSEs. Research limitations/implications — Subject to the comparability of economic structure, the results and implications for India are of relevance for promotion and development of clustered SSEs in other developing countries. Practical implications — From the viewpoint of policy formulation, the results offer a strong empirical basis for a cluster approach rather than a dispersed approach for promotion and development of SSEs in India. The cluster approach has implications for establishing linkages between formal and informal SSEs and for elimination of smallness of dispersed SSEs. Originality/value — The paper provides a comparative analysis of economic size and performance of the dispersed and clustered SSEs by consolidating the diverse databases in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multinational network hypothesis (Doukas and Travlos 1988), in line with internalization theory argue that due to differential degree of economic development between USA and developing countries, US firms' investments in these countries will enhance their multinational network. The multinational expansion will in turn substantially enhance firms' ability to internalize its foreign operations profitably, increasing shareholders' wealth. There are no studies to the best of our knowledge on the Indian market. In this paper, we look at investor reactions to US investments made in India, using event study methodology. We find mixed investor response to investments in India. The firms experience both positive and negative abnormal returns. There are also number of firms for which we do not get any significant results. Possible reasons for the results are; small investment by US firms in comparison to total investments, and most of the investments studied were sequential and not the first investment by a firm to Indian market. We also carry out a regression analysis, where we regress abnormal returns on important firm level characteristics, such as firm size, cash flows, and Research and Development expenditure. We find firm size has a significant positive impact on abnormal returns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - This paper aims to present a review of the main features of India's economic growth and human development during nearly 50 years of India's planned development. Design/methodology/approach - The paper examines all major aspects of India's growth such as growth in net total national product and per capita product, changes in the production and occupational structure resulting from growth, changes in government revenue, infrastructure and social services, in income distribution and in poverty. Findings - Although the growth was uneven and low up to 1980, the country recorded a reasonable and steady improvement in most aspects of growth. Nevertheless the effects of growth have not produced better results in poverty alleviation. Originality/value - Reviews the main features of India's economic growth and human development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The current situation of Indian public libraries has been viewed by some as follows: the public library system in India is condemned to remain peripheral to the actual information needs of the masses; that it is in a depressed state, and serves as little more than a warehouse of recreational reading materials, a majority of which are in regional languages. This paper suggests possible remedies on how to transform the situation, and details new technological developments which are already showing the potential to change public libraries in rural India for the better. Design/methodology/approach – A descriptive account of the contemporary situation in India with regard to public libraries, digital technologies and development possibilities, using official statistics and the LIS literature. Findings – The challenges that face public libraries in India are listed and a vision for their future based on the concept of "ICT for development" is sketched out. Research limitations/implications – It is difficult to get an overall view of this topic: authorized statistics on public libraries in India as a whole are not collected, because these libraries are the responsibility of a variety of agencies who, for various reasons, never disclose such information on a national scale. Practical implications – The author details new technological developments, the practical outcome of which would in particular facilitate the establishment of digital library services in rural India. Originality/value – This paper provides a useful overview of a library scenario on which aggregated statistical data is hard to find; and, from this summary of the present situation, goes on to suggest possible ways to transform the "digital divide" into "digital opportunities". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the role of culture in economic growth in areas where the Shilpgram fair is facilitated in Rajasthan. Design/methodology/approach – The data are acquired through primary and secondary data with individual meetings, interviews and questionnaires. Findings – The study uncovered that the Shilpgram fair is expanding mindfulness and financial development of rural life and crafts particularly for younger people. Originality/value – This study presents recognition of the financial effects of tourism on neighbouring group association in tourism development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The total number of widows in India exceeds 33 million. Yet, despite the large number of women affected, little is known about their living conditions. Widows are particularly vulnerable and deserve special attention within the study of public policy and economic development. This paper is based on an analytical research study conducted by interviewing 300 randomly selected rural widows of all age groups from rural parts of the Vidarbha region. An attempt is made to achieve better understanding of social and economic condition of widows, by focusing attention on widowhood as a social problem. This study explores the dominant ideological construction of widowhood in the context of patriarchy, religion, and customs. Nearly 69% widows were illiterate, 96% had economic problems, and 47% faced discrimination due to caste and religious obligations. Elderly widows constituted 49% of the sample, age had placed them in a difficult position to discrimination, dependence, oppression, and health problems. Among elderly widows there was a wide spread feeling of psychological neglect and isolation. The paper also discusses some key issues of social, economic policy, and action in support of widows' property rights, social security, employment, social identity, and participation in society. The study identifies factors that account for high levels of deprivation which includes limited freedom to remarry, insecure property rights, living arrangement of elderly, social stigma, restricted employment opportunities, and lack of social support. The study extensively deals with social work intervention aspects in helping the widows and discusses social, economic, and policy implications of the problems of widows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The author studies the determinants of public trust in government doctors and hospitals (DH) – a crucial indicator of the quality of a country's healthcare system – in India by analyzing the India Human Development Survey (IHDS) 2011–2012. Design/methodology/approach: The author uses descriptive statistics and a set of ordered probit regression models controlling for a set of individual-specific, household-level and other covariates and analyze across heterogeneous contexts (national/rural/urban/male heads/female heads/social groups). Findings: Across contexts, people reporting a great deal of trust in private DH (PDH) are significantly more likely to report a great deal of trust in government DH. Those people with a great deal of trust in government schools to provide good education (vis-à-vis people with only some trust in government school) have significantly higher likelihood of reporting a great deal of trust in government DH. Visiting a private doctor last time (vis-à-vis a government doctor) makes reporting higher trust levels in government DH less likely. Practical implications: India's healthcare system is afflicted with several resource allocation problems and low public trust issues are indicative of misgovernance. In presence of limited state capacity, ubiquitous corruption and underwhelming institutional trust, understanding the factors influencing public trust in healthcare providers is critical to designing appropriate trust-enhancing public health policies. Originality/value: Given the sparse empirical literature on public trust in healthcare systems in the developing countries such as India, this study is a pertinent contribution as the study explains the determinants of public trust in DH using a comprehensive unit-recorded household survey dataset. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to conduct an investigation into the interaction of three factors: ownership (public and private sector organizations), gender (male and female), and level of manager (senior, middle, junior) in relation to the concept of effectiveness in the Indian context. Design/methodology/approach - The study is based on a data set of primary responses from 200 Indian executives. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis was employed to retrieve and validate the instrument. Finally, 2 × 2 × 3 factorial ANOVA (GLM) was performed. Findings - First, the study proposes a valid and reliable measure of managerial effectiveness. Second, the interaction pattern of predictor variables in relation to managerial effectiveness provides further insights. Practical implications - Through its empirical evidence the study offers insight into issues of managerial effectiveness and provides suggestions for managerial action. Originality/value - The study attempted to gather the views of executives regarding issues of productivity, adaptability and flexibility as constructs of managerial effectiveness. Last, comparative analysis of different categories of managers (based on gender, organizational position, and institutional ownership status) provide an understanding of these issues in the Indian context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]