Institute for Social and Economic Change
 

 

  

R Manjula
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Assistant Professor (on contractual basis), Centre for Decentralisation and Development

Academic Qualification

  • Ph.D. in Economics from University of Mysore, Mysore.

Area of Specialisation
  • Decentralisation and public service delivery, Women Leadership in Panchayats and Cooperatives, Social Security, Rural Development
Selected Publications

Books/Monographs

  1. (D Rajasekhar, M Devendra Babu and R Manjula) Decentralised Governance, Development Programmes and Elite Capture, Springer (in press), 2018.

  2. (D Rajasekhar, M Devendra Babu and R Manjula) Institutions, Governance and Development: A Study of Selected Grama Panchayats in Karnataka, ISEC monograph No.52, 2017.

  3. (D Rajasekhar, K S Manjunath and R Manjula) Improving the Delivery of Social Security Benefits in Karnataka: A Review of Application and Submission Procedures of Government Social Security Schemes, ISEC monograph No.47, 2016.

  4. (D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) Decentralised Governance and Service Delivery: Affordability of Drinking Water Supply by Gram Panchayats in Karnataka, ISEC Monograph 23, 2011.

  5. (D Rajasekhar, R Manjula, Suchitra J Y and Sanjiv Kumar) Child Labour in Bidar and Chamarajanagar Districts: A Status Report and Ways Forward, ILO, 2007.

  6. (D Rajasekhar, N Krishne Gowda and R Manjula) Impact of Bank Interest Rates on SHG Members, Concept Publishing Co., New Delhi, 2006.

Articles in Journals

  1. (Erlend Berg, Maitreesh Ghatak, R Manjula, D Rajasekhar and Sanchari Roy) Motivating Knowledge Agents: Can Incentive Pay Overcome Social Distance? The Economic Journal (forthcoming) (online version is available).

  2. (Erlend Berg, Sambit Bhattacharyya, D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) Can Public Works Increase Equilibrium Wages? Evidence from India’s National Rural Employment Guarantee, World Development, 103 (2018): 239-254.

  3. (R Manjula) Decentralisation and Participation of Marginalised Groups in MGNREGS: Evidence from Karnataka, Man and Development, XXXIX (3): 129-146, September 2017.

  4. (D Rajasekhar, Santosh Kesavan, R Manjula) Are our Contributory Pension Schemes Failing the Poor? Economic and Political Weekly, LII (27), pp 77-85, July 8th 2017.

  5. (D Rajasekhar, R Manjula and Suchitra J Y) Can Micro-Finance promote Livelihoods and reduce Vulnerability among Adivasis? A Study of some NGO Interventions from Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, Social Change, 47 (1), pp 65-80, 2017.

  6. (Salim Lakha, D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) Collusion, Cooption and Capture: Social accountability and Social Audits in Karnataka, India, Oxford Development Studies, 43 (3), pp 330-348, 2015.

  7. (D Rajasekhar, G Sreedhar, R Manjula, R R Biradar and N L Narasimha Reddy) Is There a Case to Extend Social Pension Schemes to all Unorganised Workers? Evidence from Karnataka, The Grassroots Governance Journal, Vol.12, No.2 July-December, 2014.

  8. (R Manjula and D Rajasekhar) How did Grama Panchayats perform in Own Revenue Mobilisation? Lessons from Karnataka, The Grassroots Governance Journal, Vol.10, No.2, July-December 2013.

  9. (D Rajasekhar, Salim Lakha and R Manjula) How effective are Social Audits under MGNREGS? Lessons from Karnataka, Sociological Bulletin, Vol. 62, No. 3, pp. 431-455, September-December 2013.

  10. (D Rajasekhar, R Manjula, Suchitra J Y and Sanjeev Kumar) Vocational Education for Adolescent Workers: Some Policy Options, Social Work Chronicle, Vol.2, Issue 1, 2013.

  11. (D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) Affordability of Streetlight Services by Grama Panchayats in Karnataka: Status, Determinants and Ways Forward, Journal of Rural Development, Vol.31, No.4, October - December 2012.

  12. (D Rajasekhar, M Devendra Babu and R Manjula) Are Checks and Balances in MGNREGS Effective?, The Indian Journal of Social Work, Vol.73, Issue 4, October 2012.

  13. (D Rajasekhar, Erlend Berg, Maitreesh Ghatak, R Manjula and Sanchari Roy) Implementing Health Insurance: The Rollout of Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana in Karnataka, Economic and Political Weekly, Vol.XLVI, No.20, May 14, 2011.

  14. (M Devendra Babu, D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) Role of Grama Sabha in the Implementation of MGNREGS: Field Insights from Karnataka, The Grassroots Governance Journal, Vol.IX, No.2, July – December, 2011.

  15. (D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) Magnitude, Dimension and Causes of Child Labour in Karnataka: A Secondary Source Review, Indian Journal of Rural and Urban Development, Vol. 1 and Issue 1, April – September, 2011.

  16. (R Manjula) 'Poverty: In Search of Solutions', One India One People, Vol.13/7, February 2010.

  17. (D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) Affordability of Water Supply Services by Decentralised Government in India, The Environ Monitor – Monthly Journal of Environmental Sciences, Technologies and Engineering, Vol.VIII, No.3 & 4, Mar – April 2008.

  18. (D Rajasekhar, Suchitra J Y and R Manjula) 'Women Workers in Urban Informal Employment: the Status of Agarbathi and Garment Workers in Karnataka', The Indian Journal of Labour Economics, Vol. 50, No. 4, December 2007.

Papers in Edited Books

  1. (D Rajasekhar, Erlend Berg and R Manjula) ‘Randomised Controlled Trials and Programme Evaluations: Our Experience and Lessons’ in N Jayaram (ed.) Knowing the Social World: Perspectives and Possibilities, Orient BlackSwan, 2017.

  2. (D Rajasekhar, G Sreedhar, R Manjula, R R Biradar, N L Narasimha Reddy) ‘Urban Governance and Delivery of Pensions: A Study of Urban and Rural Households in Selected Districts in Karnataka’, in Anil Kumar Vaddiraju, Satyanarayana Sangita and Kala Seetharam Sridhar (eds) Urban Governance in Karnataka and Bengaluru: Global Changes and Local Impacts, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, New Delhi, 2016.

  3. (D Rajasekhar, Manjula R and Suchitra J Y) Does Micro-Finance Reduce Vulnerability: A Study of Dalit Households in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. In N Jayaram and D Rajasekhar (eds). Vulnerability and Globalisation: Perspectives and Analyses from India, Rawat Publications: Jaipur, 2012.

  4. (D Rajasekhar, R Manjula and K H Anantha) 'Charges for Rural Drinking Water: Grama Panchayats in Karnataka', in K V Raju (ed.) Elixir of Life: The Socio-Ecological Governance of Drinking Water, Books for Change, 2006.

  5. (D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) ‘Voices of the Women Garment Workers’, in B C Prabhakar (ed.) Gender Sensitivity at Workplace, Karnataka Employers’ Association (KEA), Bangalore and International Labour Organisation (ILO), Geneva, 2006.

Working Papers

  1. (Erlend Berg, D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) Delivering Self-Targeted Welfare Using Mobile Phones, CSAE Working Paper WPS/2017-14, University of Oxford, 2017.

  2. (D Rajasekhar, M Devendra Babu and R Manjula) Are Elections to Grama Panchayats Party-less? The Evidence from Karnataka, ISEC Working Paper 402, 2017.

  3. (D Rajasekhar, Salim Lakha and R Manjula) Is Decentralisation Promoting or Hindering the Effective Implementation of MGNREGS? The Evidence from Karnataka, ISEC Working Paper 395, 2017.

  4. (D Rajasekhar, K S Manjunath and R Manjula) Simplifying Delivery of Social Security Benefits in Karnataka, Indo-German Social Security Papers, Paper III, 2016.

  5. (D Rajasekhar, Santosh Kesavan and R Manjula) Contributory Pension Schemes for the Poor: Issues and Ways Forward, ISEC Working Paper 377, 2016.

  6. (R Manjula and D Rajasekhar) Participation of Scheduled Caste Households in MGNREGS: Evidence from Karnataka, ISEC Working Paper No.339, ISEC, Bangalore, May 2015.

  7. (Erlend Berg, Sambit Bhattacharyya, D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) Can Public Employment Scheme Increase Equilibrium Wages? Evidence from a Natural Experiment in India, CMPO Working Paper No.14/317, University of Bristol, UK, 2014.

  8. (Erlend Berg, Maitreesh Ghatak, R Manjula, D Rajasekhar and Sanchari Roy) Motivating Knowledge Agents: Can Incentive Pay Overcome Social Distance? CSAE Working Paper WPS/2013-06, University of Oxford, 2013.

  9. (D Rajasekhar, Salim Lakha and R Manjula) How Effective are Social Audits under MGNREGS? Lessons from Karnataka, ISEC Working Paper 294, Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore, 2013.

  10. (Erlend Berg, Sambit Bhattacharyya, D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) Can Rural Public Works Affect Agricultural Wages? Evidence from India, CSAE Working Paper WPS/2012-05, University of Oxford, May 2012.

  11. (D Rajasekhar, Erlend Berg, Maitreesh Ghatak, R Manjula and Sanchari Roy) Implementing Health Insurance for the Poor: The Rollout of RSBY in Karnataka, EOPP Working Paper No.25, London School of Economics, UK, 2011.

Policy Brief

  1. (D Rajasekhar, Salim Lakha and R Manjula) Social Audits under MGNREGS: Lessons from Karnataka, ISEC Policy Brief, Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore, 2013.

  2. (D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) Providing Community Streetlights in Karnataka, ISEC Policy Brief, Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore, 2013.

  3. (Erlend Berg, Maitreesh Ghatak, Rajasekhar Durgam, Manjula Ramachandra and Sanchari Roy) How to improve knowledge and take-up of public services by the poor: The case of the RSBY National Health Insurance in India, iiG Policy Brief No.20, University of Oxford, July 2012.

  4. (Erlend Berg, Rajasekhar Durgam, Manjula Ramachandra and Sanchari Roy) Hospitalisation Means India’s Poor go Hungry, iiG Policy Brief No.13, University of Oxford, July 2010.

  5. (Erlend Berg, Rajasekhar Durgam and Manjula Ramachandra) India's poor rely mainly on private health care, iiG Policy Brief No.8, University of Oxford, March 2010.
Articles in Newspapers

  1. (D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) ‘Panchayats need to mop up more taxes’, Deccan Herald, August 29, 2018.

  2. (D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) ‘Sustaining incomes’, Deccan Herald, August 1, 2018.

  3. (D Rajasekhar, Santosh Kesavan and R Manjula) 'Taking pensions to the poor', The Hindu Business Line, July 15, 2016.

  4. (D Rajasekhar and R Manjula) 'Reasons for garment workers’ stir against PF rule changes', Deccan Herald, May 11, 2016.

  5. (D Rajasekhar, M Devendra Babu and R Manjula) 'Definite Progress in representation of SCs/STs in Gram Panchayats', The Hindu, May 12, 2010.

  6. (D Rajasekhar, R Manjula and M Devendra Babu) 'Contesting Elections without Full Knowledge', Deccan Herald, May 8, 2010.

Papers Presented in Seminars/ Workshops (including International)

  1. Implementing Workfare through Decentralised Government for Poverty Reduction’, paper presented at the seminar on ‘Twenty Five Years of Decentralised Governance in India: Status, Issues and the Way Forward’ during 28-30 August 2018 at ISEC, Bengaluru.

  2. (Co-author) ‘Simplifying Social Security Schemes for Differently abled Persons’, paper presented at the seminar on ‘Persons with disabilities and their socio-economic status in India’ on 28th June 2018 at ISEC, Bengaluru.

  3. ‘Decentralisation, Gender and Local Politics’, paper presented at the International seminar on ‘Peace and Stability through Decentralization’ during 13-14 November 2017 at Hiroshima University, Japan. 

  4. ‘Role of Cooperatives in Climate Smart Agriculture, paper presented at the 12th ICA-AP Cooperative Research Conference 2017 on 'Cooperatives: The Key Solution for Social Innovation’ during November 11-12, 2017 at Sungkonghoe University, Seoul.

  5. (Co-author) ‘Interaction between Citizens and Grama Panchayat Functionaries:
    A Study in Karnataka’     in a national seminar on  ‘25 Years of Panchayati Raj Institutions Reforms in India: Experiments, Experiences and Challenges’, organised by Academy of Grassroots Studies in India (AGRASRI), Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development and ISEC held on 19-20 August, 2017 at Tirupati.

  6. (Co-author) ‘Decentralised Delivery of Educational Services: The Case of SDMCs’ at an orientation workshop on ‘Framework for strengthening of school management committees under RTE’ organised by National University of Education, Planning and Administration (NUEPA) on March 22, 2017 at ISEC, Bangalore.

  7. (Co-author) ‘Quality of Governance in Grama Panchayats: Evidence from Karnataka’, paper presented at the National seminar on ‘Participatory Decentralized Planning at the Grassroots: Problems, Challenges and Opportunities’ during February 9-10, 2017 at NIRD, Hyderabad.

  8. ‘Decentralisation and Participation of Marginalised Groups in MGNREGS: Evidence from Karnataka’, paper presented at KILA’s International Conference on ‘Marginalisation, Poverty and Decentralisation’ during November 19-22, 2016 at Thrissur.

  9. (Co-author) Paper on ‘Grama Panchayats in Karnataka: The Politics of Elections and Development’ at International Seminar on `State Politics, Governance and Development’, organised by Hiroshima University, Japan and ISEC, 27-28 December 2016 at ISEC, Bengaluru.

  10. (Co-author) Impact of Workers Facilitation Centres on access to Social protection among Unorganised Workers in India: Challenges and Responses, presented in the workshop on 'Measuring the Social, Economic and Political effects of Social Protection: How to overcome the Challenges?' held at Bonn, Germany, April 15-17, 2015.

  11. (Co-author) Talking to Ghosts Quantifying Forged Employment Records in NREG, presented at the CSAE Conference 2013 at University of Oxford, UK, on March 19, 2013.

  12. (Co-author) NREGS, Gram Panchayats and Inclusive Climate-Smart Agriculture: Evidence from South India, presented at CAPRi/CCAFS Workshop on ‘Institutions for Inclusive Climate-Smart Agriculture’ at Nairobi, Kenya during September 10-13, 2012.

  13. (Co-author) Motivating Agents to Spread Awareness. In the IGC-ISI India Development Policy Conference, at Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi, during 19-20 December, 2011.

  14. (Co-author), Role of Information: Results from a Randomised Experiment in India, presented at the University of Oxford, Oxford, UK on June 1, 2011.

  15. (Co-author) Dominance and Capture in the Implementation of MGNREGS: A Case Study in Karnataka in the Round Table on 'Barriers to Participation and Inclusion in Panchayat Raj Institutions: The Case of Elite/ Program Capture' at ISEC on June 28, 2010.

  16. (Co-author) Mechanics of Elections: Experiences of Recent GP Elections in Karnataka in the Round Table on 'Barriers to Participation and Inclusion in Panchayat Raj Institutions: The Case of Elite/ Program Capture' at ISEC on June 28, 2010.

  17. (Co-author) How Households Respond to Health Shocks: Evidence from Karnataka, India, presented at the iiG Workshop on ‘Improving Institutions for Pro-Poor Growth in Africa and South Asia’ organised by University of Oxford, March 21, 2010 at University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.

  18. (Co-author) Revising Poverty Line in India by including Health Expenditure by the Poor, presented at the iiG Workshop on ‘Improving Institutions for Pro-Poor Growth in Asia and Africa’ organised by University of Oxford, October 1, 2009 at Uganda.

  19. (Co-author) Water Supply Services by Grama Panchayats in Karnataka, presented at the National Seminar on ‘Panchayat Finances and Fiscal Decentralisation to Panchayats’ held at NIRD, Hyderabad, during November 29-30, 2007.

  20. (Co-author) Own Revenue Collection by Grama Panchayats in Karnataka, presented at the National Seminar on ‘Panchayat Finances and Fiscal Decentralisation to Panchayats’ held at NIRD, Hyderabad, during November 29-30, 2007.

  21. (Co-author) Affordability of Water Supply Services by Decentralised Government in India. Paper presented at International Workshop on ‘Water Supply, Sanitation and Waste Water Management in South Asia’ held during September 24-26, 2007 at Kandy, Srilanka.

  22. (Co-author) Community Lighting at What Cost? Streetlight Services by Gram Panchayats in Karnataka, presented at 42nd Annual Conference of The Indian Econometric Society (TIES) held on January 5-7, 2006 at Amritsar. Also presented at a National Workshop on ‘Rural Infrastructure’ held on January 10, 2006.

  23. (Co-author) Do Women Groups Promote More Equity As Compared to Men Groups? Evidence from Karnataka, presented at an International Workshop on 'Gender and Collective Action' organised by CAPRi/ IFPRI held on October 17-21, 2005 at Chiang Mai, Thailand.

  24. (Co-author) Food Security through Wage Employment: A Study of SGRY Programme in Karnataka, presented at the National Consultation on ‘Food Security for Poor’ held at National Institute for Rural Development (NIRD), Hyderabad, during June 27-29, 2005.

  25. (Co-author) User Charges for Rural Drinking Water: A Study of Grama Panchayats in Karnataka, presented at 4th IWMI-Tata Annual Partners’ on the 'Issues in Improving Water Supply: Rural, Peri-urban and Urban' held during February 24-26, 2005 at the Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA), Gujarat.
Visits
  • Academic Visitor to the University of Oxford, Oxford, UK, during May 1-July 8, 2011.

Training Programme

  • Participated in the training programme on 'Decentralized Management of Regional Development' held during August 9-20, 2010 at Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany.
Awards and Prizes

  • Co-authored paper on 'Collusion, Co-option and Capture: Social Accountability and Social Audits in Karnataka, India' (published together with Salim Lakha and D Rajasekhar in Oxford Development Studies) has been awarded Sanjaya Lall prize for best paper in 2015 and its contribution to development studies.

  • Recipient of ‘Young Researchers Award’ from National Cooperative Union of India (NCUI), New Delhi, for the research paper on climate-smart agriculture presented in a conference at Seoul.

Current Research Studies

Member of research team for the following research projects:

  • 'Health Insurance and Role of Information: A Randomized Experiment in India' [along with D Rajasekhar (ISEC), Maitreesh Ghatak (London School of Economics), Erlend Berg (University of Bristol) and Sanchari Roy (University of Sussex)].

  • 'Corruption and Service Delivery: A Study of National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in Karnataka' [along with D Rajasekhar and Erlend Berg].

  • 'Decentralisation and Social Security: A Study of Single Window Service Centres for Unorganised Workers' [along with D Rajasekhar and Erlend Berg].

  • 'Increasing Enrolment and Savings in a long-term Pension Savings Product', sponsored by USAID [along with D Rajasekhar, Erlend Berg and Santosh Kesavan (Crosslinks Foundation)].

  • ‘Financial Inclusion and Old age Income Security through Contributory Pension Schemes for Unorganised Workers’ sponsored by Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) [along with D Rajasekhar, Erlend Berg and Santosh Kesavan].

Completed Research Studies

Co-author to the following research projects undertaken at the Centre

  1. ‘Performance and Constraints in the delivery of core functions: A Study of Taluk, Zilla and Grama Panchayats in Karnataka’ sponsored by Fourth State Finance Commission, Government of Karnataka [along with M Devendra Babu (ISEC), D Rajasekhar & N Sivanna (ISEC)]

  2. 'Decentralisation and Education in Karnataka' [along with D Rajasekhar and Erlend Berg].

  3. Institutions, Governance and Development: A Study of Selected Grama Panchayats in Karnataka (with D Rajasekhar and M Devendra Babu).

  4. 'Improving the Delivery of Social Security Benefits in Karnataka: A Review of Application and Submission Procedures of Government Social Security Schemes', sponsored by GiZ (with D Rajasekhar and K S Manjunath)

  5. ‘Improving Access to Social Security among Unorganised Workers’, sponsored by GiZ (with D Rajasekhar and Erlend Berg)

  6. ‘A Comparative Study of the Health Insurance Schemes in Karnataka’, sponsored by Planning Department, GoK (with D Rajasekhar)

  7. ‘Elite Capture in Grama Panchayats of Karnataka’, sponsored by NCAER (with D Rajasekhar and M Devendra Babu)

  8. 'Magnitude and Dimensions of Child Labour: A Study of Raichur Taluk in Karnataka', sponsored by UNICEF (with D Rajasekhar)

  9. 'Delivery of Social Security and Pension Benefits in Karnataka', sponsored by Revenue Department, GoK (with D Rajasekhar, G Sreedhar, R R Biradar and N L Narasimha Reddy)

  10. 'Assessing Micro-Finance Needs of Vulnerable Groups (dalits, adivasis, Muslims, sex workers and aravanis) from the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, sponsored by NESA (with D Rajasekhar and Suchitra J Y)

  11. 'Child Labour in Bidar and Chamarajanagar Districts: A Status Report and Ways Forward’, sponsored by ILO (with D Rajasekhar, Suchitra J Y and Sanjiv Kumar)

  12. 'Affordability of Water Supply Services by Grama Panchayats in Karnataka' (with D Rajasekhar)

  13. 'Revenues of Grama Panchayats in Karnataka' (with D Rajasekhar)

Dr. R Manjula
Assistant Professor (on contractual basis)
Centre for Decentralisation and Development
Institute for Social and Economic Change
 Dr. V K R V Rao Road, Nagarbhavi PO,
Bangalore 560 072, India
Phone: 080-23215468
E-Mail: manjula@isec.ac.in

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