Way Down in the Hole: Adaptation to Long-Term Water Loss in Rural India
David Blakeslee, Ram Fishman, Veena Srinivasan
American Economic Review · 2020 · Volume 110 · Issue 1
Abstract
Worsening environmental conditions threaten to undermine progress in reducing rural poverty. Little is known, however, about the prospects for farmer adaptations to mitigate this threat, in particular through opportunities for income diversification presented by recent non-agricultural growth. We study the effects of increasing water scarcity in India using quasi-random, geologically determined differences in access to groundwater. The drying up of wells results in a precipitous and persistent decline in farm income and wealth, with little evidence of agricultural adaptation. However, labor reallocation to off-farm employment appears successful in maintaining overall income, particularly in locations with a more developed manufacturing sector.
Keywords
Economic Development: Agriculture, Natural Resources, Energy, Environment, Other Primary Products, Economic Development: Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis, Housing, Infrastructure, Micro Analysis of Farm Firms, Farm Households, and Farm Input Markets, Land Ownership and Tenure, Land Reform, Land Use, Irrigation, Agriculture and Environment, Agricultural Policy, Food Policy, Renewable Resources and Conservation: Water, Renewable Resources and Conservation: Government Policy
Enable JavaScript for citation tools and additional paper interactions.