Prof Pushkar Maitra - Researcher Profile

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Address

Department of Economics
Building 11E, Clayton

Biography

Finding the skills to share India’s boom

India’s economic boom has delivered great gains to some and done nothing to relieve the poverty of others. The former need skilled people to sustain the growth; the latter simply need the skills. Rather than theorise about solutions, Professor Pushkar Maitra is running field experiments to test programs that have the potential to benefit both labour market and individuals. 

The plight of women in underprivileged areas in Delhi prompted one of Pushkar’s recent projects. 

 “It’s a pity that a certain section of the population is not getting anything out of this boom but staying home, basically waiting to get married,” he says. “So the point was: let’s see if we can do something for these people.”

With funding from Fordham University in the US and Monash, he worked with two non-government organisations to offer training to women aged between 18 and 39. A preliminary survey established a widespread interest in learning how to sew; coincidentally, the Indian garment industry suffers from a shortage of people with the requisite skills. 

The organisers invited women to apply for a six-month training course in sewing and tailoring, and randomly selected two groups.  One group undertook the course, the other acted as a control. 

Pushkar has become increasingly interested in this kind of field experiment, assessing test programs with processes similar to those that govern laboratory experiments.

“We are interested in the effect of this training program on outcomes,” he says. “We have data pre- and post-training for women who did and did not receive training, so we can compare.”

In a similar vein, Pushkar is setting up a program to teach English to third-year university students. 

“For urban youth, the big lure is getting a job in a call centre,” he says. 

AusAID funding and international collaboration will help another, larger project he is also getting underway. It will provide credit to villagers and small farmers in the hope of breaking their dependence on exploitative local moneylenders. 

Pushkar’s own background in his native India has influenced his research choices. 

“Growing up in a developing country, one is always very interested in these issues,” he says. 

He derives great satisfaction from following the results of his projects. Six months after the Delhi women completed their training, they were showing increased confidence. Many were taking on sewing work for friends or family, without charge, recognising the benefits of refining their newly acquired skills before seeking a job or setting up a small business.

Pushkar expects that more significant effects will become evident with time, and hopes to survey the women after another year. 

He stresses that this is a pilot program whose chief purpose is to test the waters on a small subset of the population. If it proves effective, it opens up the potential to help a much larger group of people.

 “We use technical econometric tools to estimate the effect of these programs,” he says. “There’s no point in going ahead with a big program without knowing what the effect can be.” 

Qualifications

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
Institution: University of Southern California
Year awarded: 1997
MA ECONOMICS
Institution: Delhi School of Economics
Year awarded: 1992
B SC (HONOURS)
Institution: Presidency College, Calcutta
Year awarded: 1990

Publications

Book Chapters

Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2006, Equity implications of reforms on living standards and child health in post-apartheid South Africa, in Trade, Growth and Inequality in the Era of Globalization, eds Kishor Sharma and Oliver Morrissey, Routledge, Abingdon UK, pp. 86-101.

Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2004, Analysis of resource inflows and their impact on household behaviour: evidence from South Africa, in Household Behaviour, Equivalence Scales, Welfare and Poverty, eds Camilo Dagum, Gido Ferrari, Physica-Verlag, Germany, pp. 107-127.

Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2004, Household characteristics and living standards: evidence from India, in South Asia in the Era of Globalization: Trade, Industrialisation and Welfare, eds Mita Bhattacharya, Russell Smyth, Marika Vicziany, Nova, New York NY USA, pp. 165-194.

Maitra, P., 2003, Are the poor more vulnerable to income shocks? An analysis of consumption insurance in rural India, in Indian Economic Reforms, eds Raghbendra Jha, Palgrave MacMillan, Hampshire UK, pp. 373-389.

Journal Articles

Islam, A., Maitra, P., 2012, Health shocks and consumption smoothing in rural households: Does microcredit have a role to play?, Journal of Development of Economics [P], vol 97, issue 2, Elsevier BV, Amsterdam Netherlands, pp. 232-243.

Cason, T., Gangadharan, L., Maitra, P., 2012, Moral hazard and peer monitoring in a laboratory microfinance experiment, Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization [P], vol 82, issue 1, Elsevier BV, Amsterdam Netherlands, pp. 192-209.

Ahmed, S., Maitra, P., 2010, Gender wage discrimination in rural and urban labour markets of Bangladesh, Oxford Development Studies [P], vol 38, issue 1, Routledge, UK, pp. 83-112.

Maitra, P., Pal, S., 2008, Birth spacing, fertility selection and child survival: Analysis using a correlated hazard model, Journal of Health Economics, vol 27, issue 3, Elsevier BV, North-Holland, Netherlands, pp. 690-705.

Lancaster, G., Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2008, Household expenditure patterns and gender bias: Evidence from selected Indian states, Oxford Development Studies, vol 36, issue 2, Routledge, UK, pp. 133-157.

Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2008, Is there gender bias in the household's time allocation in a developing country? The Indian experience, Journal of Quantitative Economics [P], vol 6, issue 1-2, The Indian Econometric Society, India, pp. 81-100.

Chaudhuri, K., Maitra, P., 2008, School attainment, completion, and economic development: A cross-country analysis, Review of Development Economics, vol 12, issue 1, Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Ltd, UK, pp. 90-105.

Maitra, P., Smyth, R.L., Nielsen, I.L., Nyland, C., Zhu, C.J., 2007, Firm compliance with social insurance obligations where there is a weak surveillance and enforcement mechanism: Empirical evidence from Shanghai, Pacific Economic Review, vol 12, issue 5, Wiley-Blackwell Publishing Asia, Carlton South Vic Australia, pp. 577-596.

Lancaster, G., Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2006, Endogenous intra-household balance of power and its impact on expenditure patterns: Evidence from India, Economica, vol 73, issue 291, Blackwell Publishing Ltd, Oxford UK, pp. 435-460.

Lancaster, G., Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2006, Gender bias in nutrient intake: evidence from selected Indian states, South Asia Economic Journal, vol 7, issue 2, Sage Publications India Pvt Ltd, New Delhi India, pp. 255-298.

Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2006, Household expenditure patterns and resource pooling: evidence of changes in post-apartheid South Africa, Review of Economics of the Household, vol 4, issue 4, Springer New York LLC, USA, pp. 325-347.

Maitra, P., 2006, Mukul Sharma (ed.). Improving people's lives: Lessons in empowerment from Asia, South Asia: Journal of, vol 29, issue 1, Routledge, London UK, pp. 176-178.

Maitra, P., Peng, X., Zhuang, Y., 2006, Parental education and child health: evidence from China, Asian Economic Journal, vol 20, issue 1, Blackwell Publishing Asia, Carlton Vic Australia, pp. 47-74.

Chaudhuri, A., Graziano, S., Maitra, P., 2006, Social learning and norms in a public goods experiment with inter-generational advice, Review of Economic Studies, vol 73, issue 2, The Review of Economic Studies Ltd, Oxford UK, pp. 357-380.

Maitra, P., Vahid, F., 2006, The effect of household characteristics on living standards in South Africa 1993-1998: a quantile regression analysis with sample attrition, Journal of Applied Econometrics, vol 21, issue 7, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, UK, pp. 999-1018.

Maitra, P., Smyth, R.L., 2005, Determinants of retirement on the High Court of Australia, The Economic Record, vol 81, issue 254, Blackwell Publishing Asia, Australia, pp. 193-203.

Deumert, A., Inder, B.A., Maitra, P., 2005, Language, informal networks and social protection: Evidence from a sample of migrants in Cape Town, South Africa, Global Social Policy, vol 5, issue 3, SAGE Publications, London UK, pp. 303-328.

Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2005, The impact of intra household balance of power on expenditure pattern: the Australian evidence, Australian Economic Papers, vol 44, issue 1, Blackwell Publishing Asia, Australia, pp. 15-29.

Maitra, P., 2004, Effect of socioeconomic characteristics on age at marriage and total fertility in Nepal, Journal of Health Population and Nutrition, vol 22, issue 1, International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh, pp. 84-96.

Maitra, P., Smyth, R.L., 2004, Judicial independence, judicial promotion and the enforcement of legislative wealth transfers - An empirical study of the New Zealand high court, European Journal of Law and Economics, vol 17, issue 2, Kluwer Academic Publishers, USA, pp. 209-235.

Maitra, P., 2004, Parental bargaining, health inputs and child mortality in India, Journal of Health Economics, vol 23, Elsevier, The Netherlands, pp. 259-291.

Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2004, The impact of resource inflows on child health: evidence from Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa, 1993-98, The Journal of Development Studies, vol 40, issue 4, Frank Cass Publishers, UK, pp. 78-114.

Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2003, Resource inflows and household composition: evidence from South African panel data, Journal of International Development, vol 15, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, UK, pp. 1037-1047.

Maitra, P., 2003, Schooling and educational attainment: evidence from Bangladesh, Education Economics, vol 11, issue 2, Routledge, UK, pp. 129-153.

Gangadharan, L., Maitra, P., 2003, Testing for son preference in South Africa, Journal of African Economies, vol 12, issue 3, Oxford University Press, UK, pp. 371-416.

Gangadharan, L., Maitra, P., 2003, The effect of education on the timing of marriage and first birth in Pakistan, Journal of Quantitative Economics, vol 1, issue 1, Indian Econometric Society, India, pp. 114-133.

Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2003, The effect of transfers on household expenditure patterns and poverty in South Africa, Journal of Development Economics, vol 71, issue 1, Elsevier, Amsterdam The Netherlands, pp. 23-49.

Chaudhuri, A., Maitra, P., 2002, On the choice of tenancy contracts in rural India, Economica, vol 69, issue 275, London School of Economics and Political Science, London UK, pp. 445-459.

Maitra, P., 2002, The effect of household characteristics on poverty and living standards in South Africa, Journal of Economic Development, vol 27, issue 1, The Economic Research Institute of Chung-Ang University, Seoul Korea, pp. 75-96.

Maitra, P., Ray, R., 2002, The joint estimation of child participation in schooling and employment: comparative evidence from three continents, Oxford Development Studies, vol 30, issue 1, Carfax Publishing, Oxford UK, pp. 41-62.

Maitra, P., 2001, A quantitative analysis of employment guarantee programmes with an application to rural India, Journal of International Trade and Economic Development, vol 10, issue 2, Routledge, UK, pp. 211-228.

Maitra, P., 2001, Is consumption smooth at the cost of volatile leisure? An investigation of rural India, Applied Economics, vol 33, Routledge, UK, pp. 727-734.

Chaudhuri, A., Maitra, P., 2001, Tenant characteristics and choice of tenurial contracts in rural India, Journal of International Development, vol 13, issue 2, Wiley Europe Ltd, UK, pp. 169-181.

Gangadharan, L., Maitra, P., 2001, Two aspects of fertility behavior in South Africa, Economic Development and Cultural Change, vol 50, issue 1, University of Chicago, Chicago USA, pp. 183-200.

Gangadharan, L., Maitra, P., 2000, Does Child Mortality Reflect Gender Bias? Evidence from Pakistan, Indian Economic Review, vol xxxv issue 2, University of Delhi, India, pp. 113-131.

Conference Proceedings

Tsafack, E., Maitra, P., 2004, Idiosyncratic shocks and efficient risk sharing: an investigation of rural Malawi, Program and Abstract Book: Proceedings of the Economic Society of Australia's 33rd Conference of Economists 2004, 27 September 2004 to 30 September 2004, The Economic Society of Australia, www.ecosoc.org.au/ace2004, pp. 1-29.

Inder, B.A., Maitra, P., 2004, Social pensions, migration and household composition: evidence from South Africa, Program and Abstract Book: Proceedings of the Economic Society of Australia's 33rd Conference of Economists 2004, 27 September 2004 to 30 September 2004, The Economic Society of Australia, www.ecosoc.org.au/ace2004, pp. 1-42.

Maitra, P., Peng, X., Zhuang, Y., 2003, Parental education and child health: evidence from China, Instutional Challenges for the Global China, 13/11/2003-14/11/2003, Asian Business and Economics Unit, Clayton Vic Australia, pp. 1-27.

Postgraduate Research Supervisions

Current Supervision

Program of Study:
(DOCTORATE BY RESEARCH).
Thesis Title:
Assessing the effectiveness of Catholic Education in Australia.
Supervisors:
Gangadharan, L (Main), Maitra, P (Associate).
Program of Study:
(DOCTORATE BY RESEARCH).
Thesis Title:
Essays on behavioural development economics.
Supervisors:
Maitra, P (Main), Leibbrandt, A (Associate).

Completed Supervision

Student:
Ahmed, S.
Program of Study:
Essays in economic development: education, child labour, and wage inequality. (PHD) 2012.
Supervisors:
Ray, R (Main), Maitra, P (Associate), Wang, L (Associate).
Student:
Ahmed, S.
Program of Study:
Gender wage discrimination in rural and urban labour markets of Bangladesh. (Masters) 2007.
Supervisors:
Maitra, P (Main), Miller, S (Associate).
Student:
Islam, M.
Program of Study:
Three essays on development and labour economics. (PHD) 2009.
Supervisors:
Maitra, P (Main), Harris, M (Associate), Fausten, D (Associate).
Student:
Lim, H.
Program of Study:
Studies on graduate unemployment in Malaysia: unemployment duration, labour market outcomes and psychological impact of unemployment. (PHD) 2008.
Supervisors:
Harris, M (Joint), Maitra, P (Joint-Co).
Student:
Nicholas, A.
Program of Study:
Three approaches to the economics of private and intergenerational giving. (PHD) 2010.
Supervisors:
Maitra, P (Main), Inder, B (Associate), Rai, B (Associate).
Student:
Olsen, T.
Program of Study:
World coffee markets: economic theory and time series analysis. (PHD) 2007.
Supervisors:
Inder, B (Joint), Maitra, P (Joint-Co).
Student:
Qian, J.
Program of Study:
Growth Accounting for the Chinese Provinces 1990-2000: Incorporating Human Capital Accumulation. (Masters) 2004.
Supervisors:
Smyth, R (Main), Ng, Y (Associate), Maitra, P (Associate).
Student:
Sethi, A.
Program of Study:
Group lending: an approach to eradicate poverty. (PHD) 2009.
Supervisors:
Banerjee, D (Joint), Maitra, P (Joint-Co), Fausten, D (Associate), Mui, V (Associate).
Student:
Tan, K.
Program of Study:
An empirical study of the role of women and economic growth: does an increase in women's status mean greater growth?. (Masters) 2003.
Supervisors:
Maitra, P (Main).