Paper short abstract:

This paper examines the changing contours of caste disparities and discrimination, and the role of affirmative action, during a period of rapid globalisation of the Indian economy.

Paper long abstract:

Do traditional socioeconomic hierarchies persist or wither away in the face of globalization, and do preferential policies, designed to lower intergroup disparities, deliver the outcome they were set up for? We examine these issues in the context of India by comparing successive age cohorts of three broad social groups - Scheduled Castes and Tribes (SC-STs), Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and "Others" (proxy for upper castes) - and provide the first disaggregated picture of the evolution of inter-caste disparities. Our results show that on a range of key indicators - higher education, white-collar jobs, average household expenditure and daily wages - caste gaps have remained static or increased. We find that extending job quotas to OBCs in 1993 had positive effects on access to government jobs, as well as on secondary schooling attainment. Finally, we explore some reasons behind the persistence of gaps between caste groups despite the positive effects of affirmative action. Using anthropometric data from National Family Health Survey (NFHS) we find substantial caste gaps in incidence of wasting and stunting among children - early life deprivations that most likely carry forward into adult life. Using data on learning outcomes and practice of "untouchability" from the India Human Development Survey (IHDS), we find that the variation in this illegal but widespread practice, is associated with lower learning outcomes in SC children. We argue that childhood deprivations and discrimination are the likely factors underlying persistent caste gaps among adults, despite significant positive effects of affirmative action.