Crop Yield Convergence across Districts in India's Poorest State

Sinha, Rishabh

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: CROP MANAGEMENT;    CROP YIELD;    PRODUCTIVITY;    BIHAR DISTRICT;    IDIOSYNCRATIC PRODUCTIVITY;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-9339
RP-ID  :  WPS9339

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Bihar, India's poorest state,witnessed impressive yield growth in each of its threeprincipal crops over 2005-17. This paper examines whether aconvergence in district yields accompanied the improvementin yields at the state level, thereby reducing regionalinequalities in land productivity. The convergence testallows the idiosyncratic element of productivity to betime-varying, thus allowing yields to diverge in someinterim phases. Rice yields across districts appear to beconverging to a common level, while maize yields havediverged over the same period. However, the sub-periodanalysis shows a trend of divergence for both crops goingforward. In contrast, wheat yields seem to be converging toa common level recently, although the convergence for theentire period is weak. The analysis also identifies districtclubs, which are converging to similar steady states. Theclub classification transcends agro-climatic boundaries,indicating a need for policy action to aid yield growth inlagging districts. Finally, there is no evidence that thedivergence in yields was driven by a divergence in creditallocation, highlighting the limitations of a macrocredit-driven policy. Credit supply might not be enough whenthere are structural snags in the availability of directagricultural inputs.