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Rural road infrastructure & agricultural production: Evidence from India

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  • Shamdasani, Yogita

Abstract

A large share of the world’s poor live in remote regions, where high costs associated with limited connectivity constrain economic activity. This paper estimates the effects of improvements in infrastructure under a large rural road-building program on production decisions in agriculture. Remote households that gain access to program roads diversify their crop portfolio, adopt modern agricultural technologies and increase hired-labor use. Supporting evidence suggests that program roads increase the mobility of agricultural workers by integrating village labor markets across space, in turn enabling the adoption of labor-intensive production practices. These findings highlight the importance of last-mile connectivity in remote areas across the developing world.

Suggested Citation

  • Shamdasani, Yogita, 2021. "Rural road infrastructure & agricultural production: Evidence from India," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:deveco:v:152:y:2021:i:c:s0304387821000638
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jdeveco.2021.102686
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Infrastructure; Agricultural productivity; Technology adoption; Labor markets;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Q12 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Micro Analysis of Farm Firms, Farm Households, and Farm Input Markets
    • J43 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Agricultural Labor Markets
    • O13 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Agriculture; Natural Resources; Environment; Other Primary Products
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure

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