Horizontal inequality, COVID-19, and lockdown readiness: Evidence from India

Arbeitspapier

A growing body of research shows that COVID-19 both reflects and exacerbates existing inequalities. However, there are significant gaps in this research area with respect to 'horizontal' or group-based inequalities in Global South countries. Lack of group-disaggregated data often contributes. In this paper, we use available data to explore how horizontal inequality in India may influence COVID-19's impact through the differential impact of lockdown policies across caste and religious groups, as well as across states and urban-rural areas. In so doing, we build upon Egger et al. (2020)'s lockdown readiness index. India, the second most populous country in the world, is a relevant case for such analysis, not only because it has pronounced horizontal inequality, but also because it adopted an especially stringent lockdown policy. Our analysis illustrates stark differences in lockdown readiness across groups, which in turn could exacerbate existing horizontal inequalities.

Angaben zum Objekt

• ISBN: 978-92-9256-913-6
• Sprache: Englisch

Verweise und Beziehungen

• Erschienen in: Series: WIDER Working Paper ; No. 2020/156

Klassifikation und Themen

• Klassifikation: Wirtschaft ; Health and Inequality ; Health: Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health ; Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination ; Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification
• Thema: horizontal inequality ; ethnic inequality ; caste ; India ; COVID-19 ; coronavirus ; lockdown

Beteiligte, Orts- und Zeitangaben

• Ereignis: Geistige Schöpfung
• (wer): Gisselquist, Rachel M. ; Kundu, Anustup
• Ereignis: Veröffentlichung
• (wer): The United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER)
• (wo): Helsinki
• (wann): 2020

Weitere Informationen

• DOI: doi:10.35188/UNU-WIDER/2020/913-6
• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/229380
• Letzte Aktualisierung: 10.03.2025, 11:44 MEZ