TY - JOUR
T1 - India's COVID-19 social assistance package and its impact on the agriculture sector
AU - Varshney, Deepak
AU - Kumar, Anjani
AU - Mishra, Ashok K.
AU - Rashid, Shahidur
AU - Joshi, Pramod K.
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors thank two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments and suggestions. The authors are grateful to Emma Stephens, Editor of Agricultural Systems, for her comments, and advice. The financial support from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is appreciated. This study was undertaken as a part of the ICAR-IFPRI workplan. We also acknowledge the CGIAR Research Program on Policies, Institutions, and Markets of IFPRI. Mishra's time on this study was supported by the Marley Foundation.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Author(s)
PY - 2021/4
Y1 - 2021/4
N2 - Context: CVOID-19 induced significant economic and social disruptions in India. Rural households, including smallholders, were affected by loss in migrant income, livelihood and farm and non-farm incomes. During this lockdown, the Indian government enacted several emergency legislations to provide direct and indirect relief to workers and households. India's COVID-19 social assistance package, namely, PM-GKY, announced in March 2020, was designed to provide immediate relief to the vulnerable population. The PM-GKY provided cash direct benefit transfers (DBT) and in-kind supports (IKS) through existing schemes. Objectives: This study examines the impact of India's government assistance package (known as Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana or PM-GKY), announced immediately after the COVID-19 lockdown, on the procurement of agricultural inputs for the upcoming farming season. Methods: The study uses a quasi-experimental method and survey data from 1,789 smallholder households in three northern Indian states (Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh). Results: The result suggests that the fungibility of funds received under the government transfer package was significant in alleviating credit constraints and increasing agricultural investments in agricultural inputs. The farmers who received benefits from the PM-GKY scheme spent significantly more on the procurement of seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides. Conclusions: The disbursement of cash transfers in the three states showed that emergency relief packages had reached the vulnerable sections of Indian society. Overall, 89-94% of households benefited from direct cash transfers. Perhaps lower transaction costs, minimal leakages, and immediate delivery make a strong case for direct cash transfers. The above advantages facilitate the provision of relief to a large proportion of vulnerable sections of Indian society in a short period.
AB - Context: CVOID-19 induced significant economic and social disruptions in India. Rural households, including smallholders, were affected by loss in migrant income, livelihood and farm and non-farm incomes. During this lockdown, the Indian government enacted several emergency legislations to provide direct and indirect relief to workers and households. India's COVID-19 social assistance package, namely, PM-GKY, announced in March 2020, was designed to provide immediate relief to the vulnerable population. The PM-GKY provided cash direct benefit transfers (DBT) and in-kind supports (IKS) through existing schemes. Objectives: This study examines the impact of India's government assistance package (known as Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana or PM-GKY), announced immediately after the COVID-19 lockdown, on the procurement of agricultural inputs for the upcoming farming season. Methods: The study uses a quasi-experimental method and survey data from 1,789 smallholder households in three northern Indian states (Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh). Results: The result suggests that the fungibility of funds received under the government transfer package was significant in alleviating credit constraints and increasing agricultural investments in agricultural inputs. The farmers who received benefits from the PM-GKY scheme spent significantly more on the procurement of seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides. Conclusions: The disbursement of cash transfers in the three states showed that emergency relief packages had reached the vulnerable sections of Indian society. Overall, 89-94% of households benefited from direct cash transfers. Perhaps lower transaction costs, minimal leakages, and immediate delivery make a strong case for direct cash transfers. The above advantages facilitate the provision of relief to a large proportion of vulnerable sections of Indian society in a short period.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.agsy.2021.103049
DO - 10.1016/j.agsy.2021.103049
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85099438549
SN - 0308-521X
VL - 189
JO - Agricultural Systems
JF - Agricultural Systems
M1 - 103049
ER -