Panchayats and Household Vulnerability in Rural India

In the context of rural India this paper focuses on six questions. a) Does gender of the elected representatives’ matter; specifically do political reservations help in reducing vulnerability? b) What will be the impact of regime changes on resource re-allocation and on household consumption? Do all types of regime changes (based on Jati or gender) have similar impacts on household vulnerability? c) Do households fall into poverty traps, i.e. experience chronic poverty, due to inefficiencies associated with governance? d) Has local governance contributed to households undertaking less risky coping strategies in response to adverse shocks? (e) During periods of distress, are local governments able to provide insurance through welfare programs? (f) After experiencing adverse shocks, is the insurance that Panchayats provide sufficient to eliminate the need for households to cut their food consumption to less than two meals, and to avoid selling of productive assets, and thereby reduce both vulnerability and poverty?