Photo by Dr. Mekhala Krishnamurthy
Based on the work of CASI post-doctoral fellow, Mekhala Krishnamurthy, we initiated a study of “mandis” (rural markets) which play a key role in enhancing food security and the growth and development of the nation’s settlement system. Understanding the diversity and complexity of these rapidly changing markets and their relationships to larger economic forces, especially the transformations in the linkages between rural and urban India is vital to enabling greater participation, inclusion, and dynamism in India’s economic growth. With a modest preparatory grant we conducted two exploratory research projects:
- A supply chain study of tuar (pigeon pea) in Karnataka (led by IIM-Bangalore) This is one of the very few studies that carefully analyzes the entire supply chain of an agricultural commodity, and the distribution of costs, profits and risks across all agents along the supply chain.
- Exploratory fieldwork to understand the marketing system in rural Bihar after the abolition of the APMC Act by the Government of Bihar (conducted by Jeffrey Witsoe, Union College) and a comparative analysis of regulatory reforms in Madhya Pradesh and Bihar (conducted by Mekhala Krishnamurthy)
This project concluded in summer 2013.
Publications
“Understanding Mandis: Market Towns and the Dynamics of India’s Rural and Urban Transformations.”
"Understanding Agricultural Commodity Markets", P.S. Vijay Shankar & Mekhala Krishnamurthy, Economic & Political Weekly, December 29, 2012
Partnering Institution
India Institute of Management-Bangalore
Research Affiliates
CASI Non-Resident Visiting Scholar
Associate Professor, Department of Sociology,
School of Humanities and Social Sciences,
Shiv Nadar University
CASI Spring 2012 Visiting Scholar
Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology
Union College
Project Funding
International Growth Centre in London (IGC, a funding unit of the London School of Economics and Political Science)