Other ESW Reports
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This includes miscellaneous ESW types and pre-2003 ESW type reports that are subsequently completed and released.
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India's Transport Sector : The Challenges Ahead, Volume 2. Background papers
(Washington, DC, 2002-05-10) World BankIndia's transport system--especially surface transport--is seriously deficient, and its services are highly inefficient by international standards. The economic losses from congestion and poor roads are estimated at 120 to 300 billion rupees a year. This report takes a critical assessment of the key policy and institutional issues that continue to contribute to the poor performance of the transport sector in India. After an introduction, Chapter 2 provides an overview of rapid demand change and poor supply response, and the resulting adverse impacts on the Indian economy and society. Chapter 3 examines the causes of poor supply response by focusing on four major problems: unclear responsibilities, inadequate resource mobilization, poor asset management, and inadequate imposition of accountability. Chapter 4 reviews recent reforms and lessons learned. Chapter 5 proposes short to medium term actions for each of the main transport subsectors. Three factors make it particularly opportune time for India to expedite transport reform: 1) Initial reform momentum has been built up. 2) There is a growing consensus within India that transport should be managed as an economic sector. 3) There are many successful models for transport reform from around the world. The resistance to reform should be overcome considering the high cost of slow or inadequate action to the Indian economy and society. -
Publication
Poverty in India : The Challenge of Uttar Pradesh
(Washington, DC, 2002-05-08) World BankThe report analyzes poverty incidence in India and in particular, in Uttar Pradesh (UP), and defines its poverty levels, trends, and vulnerability. While UP once appeared positioned to be the pace-setter for India's economic, and social development in light of its rich potential in human, and natural resources, economic growth faltered in the 1990s. UP fell behind India's better performing states, and, despite a recent acceleration in growth suggesting the state's performance has been arrested, problems still remain. The report documents poverty along a number of dimensions, i.e., material and human deprivation, where poverty, if measured in terms of material deprivation, is high, and progress at reducing it, has been uneven over the past two decades. Statistics regarding human deprivation, reveal averages, e.g., in literacy well below the all-India average, likewise in female literacy, while mortality rates indicate a much higher ratio than in the country as a whole. Chapter 2 reviews the causes of poverty, stipulating poverty is caused by a scarcity of private assets, where ineffective social programs prevail. Governance, and the policy challenges are examined in Chapter 3, addressing the need to transform UP's public sector, through administrative and civil services reforms to reduce fragmentation, with complementary reforms at the sector levels to improve regulation. To achieve economic growth, Chapter 4 provides recommendations that include improvements in the investment climate, accelerated growth in rural areas, and corrections in gender bias, while Chapter 5 stresses on improving the quality, and access to social services, and safety nets.