Spatial Distribution of Economic Activities and Commuting by Workers in Rural and Urban India

CASI Seminar

Fall 2014 CASI Visiting Scholar

S. Chandrasekhar
Associate Professor, Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR), Mumbai
Center for the Advanced Study of India
3600 Market Street, Suite 560 (5th floor)
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104

About the Speaker:
S. Chandrasekhar is an Associate Professor at Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research (IGIDR), Mumbai, an advanced research institute fully funded by Reserve Bank of India. His current work focuses on Migration and Urbanization, Rural-Urban Linkages, and Labour Market Outcomes in India. Among Chandrasekhar's ongoing research projects are: "The Commuting Worker: An Overlooked Aspect of Rural-Urban Interaction," "Strengthen and Harmonize Research and Action on Migration in the Indian Context (SHRAMIC)," and "Tackling Agriculture -Nutrition Disconnect in India (TANDI)."

About the Lecture:
Unlike migration, scant attention has been paid to the phenomenon of commuting by workers in developing countries. This lecture fills this gap by using a nationally representative data set from India to analyze factors that affect the decision of workers to commute across rural and urban areas daily. The results suggest that regions with large peripheral urban areas or concentrations of secondary sector jobs are more likely to have commuting workers. Regional rural and urban unemployment rates and rural–urban wage differentials are important push and pull factors in the decision to commute.

Event Flyer

The Nand & Jeet Khemka Distinguished Lecture Series is an endowed public program of the Center for the Advanced Study of India (CASI). Launched in the 2007-08 academic year, and made possible through the generous support of the Nand & Jeet Khemka Foundation, the series brings renowned India specialists to the Penn community and serves as a critical forum for analyzing and understanding the complex economic, political, social, and cultural changes that the world’s largest democracy is experiencing, as well as the challenges that lie ahead.
The Saluja Global Fellows Program has been made possible by the generous gift from Vishal Saluja ENG’89 W’89. CASI was excited to launch the program during the 2022–23 academic year, coinciding with the Center’s 30th Anniversary. This new program enables CASI to invite eminent leaders and rising experts on contemporary India preferably from the fields of media, culture, law, and contemporary history to be in residence for one to two weeks at CASI.