Data and Dogma : The Great Indian Poverty Debate

What happened to poverty in India in the 1990s has been fiercely debated, both politically and statistically. The debate has run parallel to the wider debate about globalization and poverty in the 1990s and is also an important part of that debate....

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Main Authors: Deaton, Angus, Kozel, Valerie
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
en_US
Published: Oxford University Press on behalf of the World Bank 2013
Subjects:
Online Access:http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2005/09/17592041/data-dogma-great-indian-poverty-debate
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/16403
id okr-10986-16403
recordtype oai_dc
repository_type Digital Repository
institution_category Foreign Institution
institution Digital Repositories
building World Bank Open Knowledge Repository
collection World Bank
language English
en_US
topic ACCOUNTING
AGRICULTURAL LABORERS
AGRICULTURAL WAGES
AGRICULTURAL YIELDS
ANNUAL GROWTH
AVERAGE INCOMES
CHANGES IN POVERTY
CONFLICT
CONSUMER DURABLES
CONSUMER EXPENDITURE
CONSUMER EXPENDITURES
CONSUMER PRICE INDEX
CONSUMER PRICES
CONSUMER SPENDING
CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURE
CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURES
COUNTRY SPECIFIC
CREDIBILITY
DECLINE IN POVERTY
DEPOSITORS
DETERMINANTS OF POVERTY
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
DROP IN POVERTY
DUMMY VARIABLES
DURABLE
DURABLE GOODS
DURABLES
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
ECONOMIC GROWTH
ECONOMIC REFORM
ECONOMIC REFORMS
ECONOMICS
EMPIRICAL WORK
ESTIMATES OF POVERTY
EXPLANATORY VARIABLES
EXTERNAL FACTORS
FEDERAL RESERVE
FEDERAL RESERVE BANK
FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES
FOOD ITEMS
GLOBAL MARKETS
GLOBAL POVERTY
GLOBALIZATION
GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT
GROWTH RATE
GROWTH RATES
HEADCOUNT POVERTY
HEADCOUNT RATIO
HIGH POVERTY
HOUSEHOLD BUDGET
HOUSEHOLD CONSUMPTION
HOUSEHOLD INCOME
HOUSEHOLD SIZE
HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS
INCOME
INCOME DATA
INCOME DISTRIBUTION
INCOME INEQUALITY
INCOME SHARE
INCOME TAX
INCREASING INEQUALITY
INEQUALITY
INFLATION
INFLATION RATE
INSTRUMENT
INSURANCE
INSURANCE COMPANIES
INTERNATIONAL BANK
INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICS
INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS
LAND HOLDING
LENDERS
LIVING STANDARD
LIVING STANDARDS
MARKET INFORMATION
MEASUREMENT OF POVERTY
MEASURING POVERTY
MILK
NATIONAL ACCOUNTS
NATIONAL POVERTY
PER CAPITA EXPENDITURE
POLICY ANALYSIS
POLICY CHANGE
POLICY CHANGES
POLICY RESEARCH
POLITICAL INFLUENCE
POOR
POOR COUNTRIES
POVERTY ALLEVIATION
POVERTY ASSESSMENTS
POVERTY DATA
POVERTY DEBATE
POVERTY DECLINE
POVERTY ESTIMATES
POVERTY INCIDENCE
POVERTY LEVELS
POVERTY LINE
POVERTY LINES
POVERTY MEASURE
POVERTY MEASUREMENT
POVERTY MEASURES
POVERTY MONITORING SYSTEM
POVERTY RATE
POVERTY RATES
POVERTY REDUCTION
RATE OF RETURN
REDUCED POVERTY
REDUCING POVERTY
REDUCTION IN POVERTY
REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE
RETURNS
RICH COUNTRIES
RURAL
RURAL AREAS
RURAL CONSUMER
RURAL HEADCOUNT
RURAL HOUSEHOLDS
RURAL POOR
RURAL POOR PEOPLE
RURAL POPULATION
RURAL POVERTY
RURAL POVERTY LINES
SOCIAL PROTECTION
STOCKS
UNEMPLOYMENT
URBAN AREAS
URBAN POVERTY
VEGETABLES
VULNERABLE GROUPS
WAGE RATES
spellingShingle ACCOUNTING
AGRICULTURAL LABORERS
AGRICULTURAL WAGES
AGRICULTURAL YIELDS
ANNUAL GROWTH
AVERAGE INCOMES
CHANGES IN POVERTY
CONFLICT
CONSUMER DURABLES
CONSUMER EXPENDITURE
CONSUMER EXPENDITURES
CONSUMER PRICE INDEX
CONSUMER PRICES
CONSUMER SPENDING
CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURE
CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURES
COUNTRY SPECIFIC
CREDIBILITY
DECLINE IN POVERTY
DEPOSITORS
DETERMINANTS OF POVERTY
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
DROP IN POVERTY
DUMMY VARIABLES
DURABLE
DURABLE GOODS
DURABLES
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
ECONOMIC GROWTH
ECONOMIC REFORM
ECONOMIC REFORMS
ECONOMICS
EMPIRICAL WORK
ESTIMATES OF POVERTY
EXPLANATORY VARIABLES
EXTERNAL FACTORS
FEDERAL RESERVE
FEDERAL RESERVE BANK
FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES
FOOD ITEMS
GLOBAL MARKETS
GLOBAL POVERTY
GLOBALIZATION
GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT
GROWTH RATE
GROWTH RATES
HEADCOUNT POVERTY
HEADCOUNT RATIO
HIGH POVERTY
HOUSEHOLD BUDGET
HOUSEHOLD CONSUMPTION
HOUSEHOLD INCOME
HOUSEHOLD SIZE
HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS
INCOME
INCOME DATA
INCOME DISTRIBUTION
INCOME INEQUALITY
INCOME SHARE
INCOME TAX
INCREASING INEQUALITY
INEQUALITY
INFLATION
INFLATION RATE
INSTRUMENT
INSURANCE
INSURANCE COMPANIES
INTERNATIONAL BANK
INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICS
INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS
LAND HOLDING
LENDERS
LIVING STANDARD
LIVING STANDARDS
MARKET INFORMATION
MEASUREMENT OF POVERTY
MEASURING POVERTY
MILK
NATIONAL ACCOUNTS
NATIONAL POVERTY
PER CAPITA EXPENDITURE
POLICY ANALYSIS
POLICY CHANGE
POLICY CHANGES
POLICY RESEARCH
POLITICAL INFLUENCE
POOR
POOR COUNTRIES
POVERTY ALLEVIATION
POVERTY ASSESSMENTS
POVERTY DATA
POVERTY DEBATE
POVERTY DECLINE
POVERTY ESTIMATES
POVERTY INCIDENCE
POVERTY LEVELS
POVERTY LINE
POVERTY LINES
POVERTY MEASURE
POVERTY MEASUREMENT
POVERTY MEASURES
POVERTY MONITORING SYSTEM
POVERTY RATE
POVERTY RATES
POVERTY REDUCTION
RATE OF RETURN
REDUCED POVERTY
REDUCING POVERTY
REDUCTION IN POVERTY
REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE
RETURNS
RICH COUNTRIES
RURAL
RURAL AREAS
RURAL CONSUMER
RURAL HEADCOUNT
RURAL HOUSEHOLDS
RURAL POOR
RURAL POOR PEOPLE
RURAL POPULATION
RURAL POVERTY
RURAL POVERTY LINES
SOCIAL PROTECTION
STOCKS
UNEMPLOYMENT
URBAN AREAS
URBAN POVERTY
VEGETABLES
VULNERABLE GROUPS
WAGE RATES
Deaton, Angus
Kozel, Valerie
Data and Dogma : The Great Indian Poverty Debate
geographic_facet South Asia
India
description What happened to poverty in India in the 1990s has been fiercely debated, both politically and statistically. The debate has run parallel to the wider debate about globalization and poverty in the 1990s and is also an important part of that debate. The economic reforms of the early 1990s in India were followed by rates of economic growth that were high by historical standards. The effects on poverty remain controversial, however. The official numbers published by the government of India, showing acceleration in the rate of poverty reduction from 36 percent of the population in 1993 to 1994 to 26 percent in 1999 to 2000, have been challenged for showing both too little and too much poverty reduction. The various claims have often been frankly political, but there are also many important statistical issues. The debate, reviewed in this article, provides an excellent example of how politics and statistics interact in an important, largely domestic debate. Although there is no consensus on what happened to poverty in India in the 1990s, there is good evidence both that poverty fell and that the official estimates of poverty reduction are too optimistic, particularly for rural India. The issues covered in this article, although concerned with the measurement of poverty in India, have wide international relevance discrepancies between surveys and national accounts, the effects of questionnaire design, reporting periods, survey nonresponse, repair of imperfect data, choice of poverty lines, and interplay between statistics and politics.
format Journal Article
author Deaton, Angus
Kozel, Valerie
author_facet Deaton, Angus
Kozel, Valerie
author_sort Deaton, Angus
title Data and Dogma : The Great Indian Poverty Debate
title_short Data and Dogma : The Great Indian Poverty Debate
title_full Data and Dogma : The Great Indian Poverty Debate
title_fullStr Data and Dogma : The Great Indian Poverty Debate
title_full_unstemmed Data and Dogma : The Great Indian Poverty Debate
title_sort data and dogma : the great indian poverty debate
publisher Oxford University Press on behalf of the World Bank
publishDate 2013
url http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2005/09/17592041/data-dogma-great-indian-poverty-debate
http://hdl.handle.net/10986/16403
_version_ 1764433490921652224
spelling okr-10986-164032021-04-23T14:03:30Z Data and Dogma : The Great Indian Poverty Debate Deaton, Angus Kozel, Valerie ACCOUNTING AGRICULTURAL LABORERS AGRICULTURAL WAGES AGRICULTURAL YIELDS ANNUAL GROWTH AVERAGE INCOMES CHANGES IN POVERTY CONFLICT CONSUMER DURABLES CONSUMER EXPENDITURE CONSUMER EXPENDITURES CONSUMER PRICE INDEX CONSUMER PRICES CONSUMER SPENDING CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURE CONSUMPTION EXPENDITURES COUNTRY SPECIFIC CREDIBILITY DECLINE IN POVERTY DEPOSITORS DETERMINANTS OF POVERTY DEVELOPING COUNTRIES DROP IN POVERTY DUMMY VARIABLES DURABLE DURABLE GOODS DURABLES ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ECONOMIC GROWTH ECONOMIC REFORM ECONOMIC REFORMS ECONOMICS EMPIRICAL WORK ESTIMATES OF POVERTY EXPLANATORY VARIABLES EXTERNAL FACTORS FEDERAL RESERVE FEDERAL RESERVE BANK FINANCIAL INTERMEDIARIES FOOD ITEMS GLOBAL MARKETS GLOBAL POVERTY GLOBALIZATION GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT GROWTH RATE GROWTH RATES HEADCOUNT POVERTY HEADCOUNT RATIO HIGH POVERTY HOUSEHOLD BUDGET HOUSEHOLD CONSUMPTION HOUSEHOLD INCOME HOUSEHOLD SIZE HOUSEHOLD SURVEYS INCOME INCOME DATA INCOME DISTRIBUTION INCOME INEQUALITY INCOME SHARE INCOME TAX INCREASING INEQUALITY INEQUALITY INFLATION INFLATION RATE INSTRUMENT INSURANCE INSURANCE COMPANIES INTERNATIONAL BANK INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICS INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS LAND HOLDING LENDERS LIVING STANDARD LIVING STANDARDS MARKET INFORMATION MEASUREMENT OF POVERTY MEASURING POVERTY MILK NATIONAL ACCOUNTS NATIONAL POVERTY PER CAPITA EXPENDITURE POLICY ANALYSIS POLICY CHANGE POLICY CHANGES POLICY RESEARCH POLITICAL INFLUENCE POOR POOR COUNTRIES POVERTY ALLEVIATION POVERTY ASSESSMENTS POVERTY DATA POVERTY DEBATE POVERTY DECLINE POVERTY ESTIMATES POVERTY INCIDENCE POVERTY LEVELS POVERTY LINE POVERTY LINES POVERTY MEASURE POVERTY MEASUREMENT POVERTY MEASURES POVERTY MONITORING SYSTEM POVERTY RATE POVERTY RATES POVERTY REDUCTION RATE OF RETURN REDUCED POVERTY REDUCING POVERTY REDUCTION IN POVERTY REGIONAL PERSPECTIVE RETURNS RICH COUNTRIES RURAL RURAL AREAS RURAL CONSUMER RURAL HEADCOUNT RURAL HOUSEHOLDS RURAL POOR RURAL POOR PEOPLE RURAL POPULATION RURAL POVERTY RURAL POVERTY LINES SOCIAL PROTECTION STOCKS UNEMPLOYMENT URBAN AREAS URBAN POVERTY VEGETABLES VULNERABLE GROUPS WAGE RATES What happened to poverty in India in the 1990s has been fiercely debated, both politically and statistically. The debate has run parallel to the wider debate about globalization and poverty in the 1990s and is also an important part of that debate. The economic reforms of the early 1990s in India were followed by rates of economic growth that were high by historical standards. The effects on poverty remain controversial, however. The official numbers published by the government of India, showing acceleration in the rate of poverty reduction from 36 percent of the population in 1993 to 1994 to 26 percent in 1999 to 2000, have been challenged for showing both too little and too much poverty reduction. The various claims have often been frankly political, but there are also many important statistical issues. The debate, reviewed in this article, provides an excellent example of how politics and statistics interact in an important, largely domestic debate. Although there is no consensus on what happened to poverty in India in the 1990s, there is good evidence both that poverty fell and that the official estimates of poverty reduction are too optimistic, particularly for rural India. The issues covered in this article, although concerned with the measurement of poverty in India, have wide international relevance discrepancies between surveys and national accounts, the effects of questionnaire design, reporting periods, survey nonresponse, repair of imperfect data, choice of poverty lines, and interplay between statistics and politics. 2013-12-19T19:17:26Z 2013-12-19T19:17:26Z 2005-09-01 Journal Article http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2005/09/17592041/data-dogma-great-indian-poverty-debate World Bank Research Observer doi:10.1093/wbro/lki009 http://hdl.handle.net/10986/16403 English en_US CC BY-NC-ND 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/igo/ World Bank Oxford University Press on behalf of the World Bank Publications & Research :: Journal Article Publications & Research :: Journal Article South Asia India