Inter-Caste Differences in Formal Sector Earnings in India: Has the Rise of Caste-Based Politics had an Impact?

Sumon Bhaumik and Manisha Chakrabarty ()

No KERP 2006/13, Keele Economics Research Papers from Centre for Economic Research, Keele University

Abstract: Since 1989, there has been a sharp increase in the role of caste in determining political fortunes at both state and federal levels in India. As a consequence, significant inter-caste differences in earnings have the potential to stall the process of economic reforms. Yet, the patterns and determinants of such differences remain unexplored. We address this lacuna in the literature, and explore the determinants of the differences in inter-caste earnings in India during the 1987-99 period, using the 43rd and 55th rounds of National Sample Survey (NSS). Our results suggest that earnings differences between upper castes and SC/ST have declined between 1987 and 1999, and (b) inter-caste differences in earnings can be explained largely by corresponding differences in educational endowment and returns on age (and, hence, experience). However, differences in returns on education do not explain inter-caste earnings differences to a great extent.

Keywords: Inequality; Caste; India (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O15 O17 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 23 pages
Date: 2006-06
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cwa and nep-dev
Note: Revised from an earlier paper, "Earnings Inequality in India: Has the Rise of Caste and Religion Based Politics in India had an Impact?", IZA Discussion paper No 2008, March, 2006. The authors would like to thank Ralitza Dimova, Olivier Bargain, Zhang Zhou, Indraneel Dasgupta and seminar participants at Keele University for their helpful comments. They remain responsible for all remaining errors.
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.keele.ac.uk/depts/ec/wpapers/kerp0613.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:kee:kerpuk:2006/13

Ordering information: This working paper can be ordered from
Centre for Economic Research, Research Institute for Public Policy and Management, Keele University, Staffordshire ST5 5BG - United Kingdom
http://www.keele.ac.uk/depts/ec/cer/pubs_kerps.htm

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Keele Economics Research Papers from Centre for Economic Research, Keele University Department of Economics, University of Keele, Keele, Staffordshire, ST5 5BG - United Kingdom. Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Martin E. Diedrich ( this e-mail address is bad, please contact ).