Suchergebnisse

The impact assessment of macroeconomic policies on public health expenditure is very relevant in Indian economy because of tax reform, fiscal consoli- dation, and expenditure policy reform. These have been undertaken after economic liberalization in order to sustain a high economic growth. Despite the several fis- cal policy initiatives, there is a persistent slowing down of growth in public health expenditure and a huge disparity in the allocation of budget toward health care among the Indian states. Using the period 1990-2014, the study examines the dynamic relationships between public health expenditure and macroeconomic fac- tors (economic growth, domestic revenue, domestic debt, fiscal balance, and central government transfer) of 15 major states of India. Our empirical result shows that state's revenue (i.e. tax revenue and indirect tax) and central transfer (i.e. tax devo- lution) are the major public providers for financing the health care of Indian states. Other sources of revenue of the government, namely non-tax revenue and direct tax show no impact on public health expenditure in the short run, while it shows a positive impact in the long run. As a consequence, we find that economic growth and fiscal balance lead to a favorable impact on public health expenditure in the long run. The result suggests the improvement in revenue collection, increase in the tax base and the efficient utilization of central grants would generate fiscal space in the economy, and thereby the government can allocate more funds toward public health care.

AbstractThis paper examines the effects of globalization (i.e., economic, social, and political) and sectoral growth shifts (i.e., changes in relative shares of agriculture, industry, and services) on income inequality in India from 1976 to 2012. We have used two unique datasets: the Standardized World Income Inequality Database (SWIID) and the KOF Globalization Index – Revisited, and employed the Stock and Watson Dynamic Ordinary Least Square cointegrating regression model for empirical estimation. This study finds that economic globalization reduces income inequality, while social and political globalization increases income inequality in India. Additionally, socioeconomic factors, such as per capita income, fiscal spending, and agricultural dependency are pertinent factors that reduce income inequality. On the contrary, factors such as rapid urbanization, changes in society, international interference in public policy, and rapid services sector growth that have been triggered by the social and political globalization processes show a detrimental effect on income inequality, which merits special attention in future development policies and actions. Additionally, the growth in agricultural value added helps reduce income inequalities in India, which is a desirable trend and justified on the grounds of continued rural dependence on the sector for income and employment. This underscores the need to strengthen the agricultural sector through strategies including crop diversification, value‐added processing, and investments for expansion of rural infrastructure, so that growth in the primary sector is sustained despite the decline in its relative contribution to gross domestic product (GDP).