BANKING SECTOR REFORMS AND EQUITY - A SUB-REGIONAL ANALYSIS IN ANDHRA PRADESH

The changes in government policies are continuous to correct the ill effects of its earlier policies. In this study an attempt is made to examine the equity aspect due to reforms in the banking sector at sub-regional level in the state of Andhra Pradesh covering the period 1985 to 2004. The analysis indicates that the share of rural areas in number of branches, number of accounts, deposits and credit declined during pre and post liberalisation periods. Despite declining shares in most of the parameters especially those of credit and deposits, there is positive growth in both the periods. However, the growth of these parameters is more in urban areas. The distribution of credit among the sectors indicates that the share of agricultural sector in accounts and credit declined during pre and post liberalisation periods. The share of agricultural credit declined in all the regions during pre and post liberalisation periods. This is true with respect to credit and number of credit accounts. In the case of other sectors, the share in accounts and credit increased in both the periods. Though, the share in the agriculture sector declined in all the regions, per account credit increased in all the regions during both the periods. It may be concluded that liberalisation has increased inequalities. But the rate of increase in inequalities is arrested to a certain extent in the recent past. But if one looks at the growth of credit given to different sectors and growth of credit in rural and urban areas, one may not come to this kind of conclusion.Banking Sector Reforms, Equity, Andhra Pradesh

How Participatory is Participatory Irrigation Management (PIM)? A Study of Water User Associations (WUAs) in Andhra Pradesh

It is argued that the reason for the ills of irrigation management is the alienation of farmers from the process of planning and implementation. Often 'lack of political will' is identified as the main reason for the tardy progress in irrigation reforms at the state level. Andhra Pradesh has demonstrated the political will by initiating widespread irrigation reforms through legislation. This paper, based on the situation after six years of WUAs in existence, makes an attempt to provide a comprehensive view on the status and functioning of the Water Users' Associations in the State. It is argued that while substantial amounts of money were spent on the reform process, the money was used mainly for improving the ailing irrigation systems rather than strengthening the formal institutional structures. Though some benefits in terms of increased area under irrigation in canal systems and improved quality of irrigation is evident, the sustainability of these benefits is rather uncertain in the absence of efficient institutional structures. Despite the fact that WUAs are promoted as non-political institutions, 'elite capture' and political involvement dominate their functioning. And the present trend appears to be towards further politicization of these institutions. More importantly, even after six years of their existence devolution of powers to WUAs has not taken place, as most of the important functions like assessment, collection of water charges, sanctioning of works, etc., are still in the hands of the irrigation department. In the absence of devolution of powers the WUAs are aiming for political gains rather than improving the systems. It is argued that political will is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for making the WUAs autonomous and self-sufficient. Restructuring and reforming of the State irrigation departments and the bureaucracy is critical for effective and sustainable irrigation institutions.participatory, Irrigation Management, water, Andhra Pradesh

Socio-economic assessement of farmers' vulnerability as water users subject to global change stressors in the hard rock area of southern India. The SHIVA ANR project

International audienceDemand for vulnerability assessments is growing in policy-making circles, to support the choice of appropriate measures and policies to reduce the vulnerability of water users and resources. Through the SHIVA ANR project, we are seeking a method to assess and map the vulnerability of farmers in southern India to both climate and socioeconomic changes, and secondly, to assess the costs and benefits associated with trends farmers' vulnerability in the medium and long-term. The project is focusing on southern India 's hard rock area, as in the geological context, both surface and ground water resources are naturally limited. We are also focusing on farming populations as these are the main water users in the area and rely exclusively on groundwater. The area covers southern India's semi-arid zone, where the rainfall gradient ranges from 600 mm to 1100 mm. Vulnerability is expected to vary according to local climatic conditions but also the socioeconomic characteristics of farming households. The SHIVA research team has been divided into six thematic groups in order to address the different scientific issues : downscaling the regional climate scenario, farm area projections, vulnerability assessments and quantification, vulnerability mapping, hydrological modelling and upscaling, and vulnerability impact assessements. Our approach is multidisciplinary to cater for for numerous inherent themes, and integrated to cater for vulnerability as a dynamic and multidimensional concept. The project 's first results after 10 months of research are presented below

How Participatory is Participatory Irrigation Management (PIM)? A Study of Water User Associations (WUAs) in Andhra Pradesh

It is argued that the reason for the ills of irrigation management is the alienation of farmers from the process of planning and implementation. Often 'lack of political will' is identified as the main reason for the tardy progress in irrigation reforms at the state level. Andhra Pradesh has demonstrated the political will by initiating widespread irrigation reforms through legislation. This paper, based on the situation after six years of WUAs in existence, makes an attempt to provide a comprehensive view on the status and functioning of the Water Users' Associations in the State.irrigation, farmers, andra pradesh, water, WUA, shortage of water

Young Lives: Andhra Pradesh Round 2 Survey: Summary

This report presents initial findings from the second round of quantitative data collection which was carried out in Andhra Pradesh in late 2006 to early 2007. It aims to give a broad outline of some of the key indicators of childhood poverty and changes that have taken place in the children’s lives between the first round data collection in 2002 and this second round. Data are mainly presented for the entire age group cohort, in most cases separated into wealth groups or by rural/urban location. The data reflect the growth and poverty reduction witnessed in recent years. Also there is evidence that the Young Lives households have become better off over the four years of the survey. However, inequalities in wealth and consumption expenditure between castes and ethnic groups, and the incidence of poverty between urban and rural areas, and between different regions of AP, are reflected in the Young Lives sample. These disparities fell slightly between the two rounds but remained prominent in 2006. Parental education, caste and household size were important determinants of poverty. Households afflicted by drought before Round 1 data collection were also more likely to be worse off by the time of the Round 2 data collection. The full richness of the data is not contained in this report, but it gives enough information to prompt other researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders to start to engage with the data

Young Lives Round 2 Survey Report: Initial findings: Andhra Pradesh, India

This report presents initial findings from the second round of quantitative data collection which was carried out in Andhra Pradesh in late 2006 to early 2007. It aims to give a broad outline of the some of the key indicators of childhood poverty and changes that have taken place in the children’s lives between the first round of data collection in 2002 and this second round. Data are mainly presented for the entire age group cohort, in most cases separated into wealth groups or by rural/urban location. The data reflect the growth and poverty reduction witnessed in recent years. Also, there is evidence that the Young Lives households have become better off over the four years of the survey. However, inequalities in wealth and consumption expenditure between castes and ethnic groups, and the incidence of poverty between urban and rural areas, and between different regions of AP, are reflected in the Young Lives sample. These disparities fell slightly between the two rounds but remained prominent in 2006. Parental education, caste and household size were important determinants of poverty. Households afflicted by drought before Round 1 data collection were also more likely to be worse off by the time of Round 2 data collection. The full richness of the data is not reflected in this report, but it contains enough information to prompt other researchers, policymakers and other stakeholders to start to engage with the data