The Poor in the Indian Labour Force in the 1990s

Comparable all-India estimates of the number of workers and unemployed in 'below-poverty-line' households - together defining the poor in the Indian labour force - are presented for 1993-94 and 1999-2000. Also presented is the gender, activity-status and the rural-urban composition of this group for the two time points. From a level of 115 million (43 million females and 21 million urban) the number of working poor declined by a little over 12 million - almost entirely in rural India - over the six-year period. Over 51 (36) percent of the rural (urban) working poor were engaged in unskilled mannual labour with a further 46 percent (44 percent in urban India) being absorbed by low-productivity self-employment.India, Working Poor, Poor in Labour Force.

Poverty Among Social and Economic Groups In India in the Nineteen Nineties.

This paper examines the levels and changes in poverty indicators of the rural and urban population in India disaggregated by social and economic groups. The analysis is based on the comparable estimates of poverty on the mixed reference period computed from the unit record data for the 50 th (1993-94) and the 55 th (1999-2000) rounds of the Consumer Expenditure Surveys conducted by the National Sample Survey Organisation. The issue is how far different social and economic groups shared the overall decline in poverty in the 1990s. Four poverty indicators are considered, namely, headcount ratio,the depth and severity measures (PGI and FGT*) as also the absolute size of the poor population. The social groups most vulnerable to poverty have been identified to be the scheduled caste households and the scheduled tribe households with both these groups having above average levels of poverty indicators in the rural and the urban population.Among the economic groups, the most vulnerable groups are the agricultural labour households (rural) and the casual labour households (urban) each having the highestlevels of the poverty indicators in their respective population segments. In terms of changes in poverty in the 1990s, it is found that while the scheduled caste and the agricultural labour (rural) and the casual labour (urban) households experienced declines in poverty on par with the total population, the scheduled tribe households fared badly in both the segments. A further disaggregated analysis brings out the consequences for poverty of combined social and economic vulnerabilities. The paper also presents poverty indicators adjusted for between-(economic and social) group disparity and discusses the implications of the empirical results for the design of a strategy for poverty reduction.India, Poverty, Scheduled Castes & Scheduled Tribes, Labour Households

Near IR Astrometry of Magnetars

We report on the progress of our five-year program for astrometric monitoring of magnetars using high-resolution NIR observations using the laser guide star adaptive optics (LGS-AO) supported NIRC2 camera on the 10-meter Keck telescope. We have measured the proper motion of two of the youngest magnetars, SGR 1806–20 and SGR 1900+14, which have counterparts with K ~21 mag, and have placed a preliminary upper limit on the motion of the young AXP 1E 1841–045. The precision of the proper motion measurement is at the milliarcsecond per year level. Our proper motion measurements now provide evidence to link SGR 1806–20 and SGR 1900+14 with neighboring young star clusters. At the distances of these magnetars, their proper motion corresponds to transverse space velocities of 350 ± 100 km s^(−1) and 130 ± 30 km s^(−1) respectively. The upper limit on the proper motion of AXP 1E 1841–045 is 160 km s^(−1). With the sample of proper motions available, we conclude that the kinematics of the magnetar family are not distinct from that of pulsars

Determinants of Firm-level Export Performance: A Case Study of Indian Textile Garments and Apparel Industry

Drawing on international trade and industrial organisation theories, this paper identifies variable affecting (a) export decision function i.e. to export or sell in domestic market, and (b) export performance function i.e. share of exports in output. These functions are estimated for Garment and Apparel producing units in Delhi. Form of business organisation reflecting access to capital turns out to be a key determinant in both functions. Estimated marginal impact of identified variables (scale and share of sales expenses) on the probability of exporting in estimated Probit model declines sharply in making from single proprietorship to partnership and further to limited companies. On the other hand, every single determinant (scale, share of wages, share of sales expenses and technical efficiency) has found to have increasing marginal impact on export performance in estimated Tobit model in moving across the three forms of business organisation. Empirical results suggest two policy changes to boost export performance. One, given the importance of scale for exports, the existing policy of reserving garments and apparel for exclusive production in small scale units needs to be scrapped. Simultaneously, it is also necessary to amend current labour legislation applicable to large scale factory units as it introduces labour market inflexibility and hence serves as an impediment to expansion of existing units and entry of new units.Tobit Model, Business Organization, Economies of Scale

Fast Rotation and Trailing Fragments of the Active Asteroid P/2012 F5 (Gibbs)

While having a comet-like appearance, P/2012 F5 (Gibbs) has an orbit native to the Main Asteroid Belt, and physically is a km-sized asteroid which recently (mid 2011) experienced an impulsive mass ejection event. Here we report new observations of this object obtained with the Keck II telescope on UT 2014 August 26. The data show previously undetected 200-m scale fragments of the main nucleus, and reveal a rapid nucleus spin with a rotation period of 3.24 $\pm$ 0.01 hr. The existence of large fragments and the fast nucleus spin are both consistent with rotational instability and partial disruption of the object. To date, many fast rotators have been identified among the minor bodies, which, however, do not eject detectable fragments at the present-day epoch, and also fragmentation events have been observed, but with no rotation period measured. P/2012 F5 is unique in that for the first time we detected fragments and quantified the rotation rate of one and the same object. The rapid spin rate of P/2012 F5 is very close to the spin rates of two other active asteroids in the Main Belt, 133P/Elst-Pizarro and (62412), confirming the existence of a population of fast rotators among these objects. But while P/2012 F5 shows impulsive ejection of dust and fragments, the mass loss from 133P is prolonged and recurrent. We believe that these two types of activity observed in the rapidly rotating active asteroids have a common origin in the rotational instability of the nucleus.Comment: To appear in the 2015 March 20 issue of ApJ Letter

Proper Motions and Origins of SGR 1806–20 and SGR 1900+14

We present results from high-resolution infrared observations of magnetars SGR 1806–20 and SGR 1900+14 over 5 years using laser-supported adaptive optics at the 10 m Keck Observatory. Our measurements of the proper motions of these magnetars provide robust links between magnetars and their progenitors and provide age estimates for magnetars. At the measured distances of their putative associations, we measure the linear transverse velocity of SGR 1806–20 to be 350 ± 100 km s^(–1) and of SGR 1900+14 to be 130 ± 30 km s^(–1). The transverse velocity vectors for both magnetars point away from the clusters of massive stars, solidifying their proposed associations. Assuming that the magnetars were born in the clusters, we can estimate the braking index to be ~1.8 for SGR 1806–20 and ~1.2 for SGR 1900+14. This is significantly lower than the canonical value of n = 3 predicted by the magnetic dipole spin-down suggesting an alternative source of dissipation such as twisted magnetospheres or particle winds