| Summary: | This thesis is a collection of three empirical essays investigating the effects of affirmative action for socially disadvantaged groups in India.
Using school census data, the first chapter examines enrolment trends of socially disadvantaged children post the Right to Education (RTE) Act, which mandated the reservation of 25% private school places for such children. Post-RTE, a significant increase was observed in disadvantaged children attending private schools. Difference-in-differences analysis revealed greater increases in schools previously below the 25% quota, especially those participating in the reservation policy. The results are however driven by a `substitution' of places, where private schools are replacing free places under the policy with fee-paying disadvantaged children.
The second chapter examines the impact of the RTE Act's reservation policy on private school expenditure by socially disadvantaged households. Leveraging the age of school entry and using a difference-in-differences approach, the study finds a significant decrease in private school fees for disadvantaged children post-policy. This reduction was more pronounced in districts with higher enrolment rates under the policy. The change is attributed to a rise in low-cost private schools post-policy, facilitating cheaper education for disadvantaged students. Moreover, a strong correlation was observed between the growth of low-cost schools and increased policy enrolments in a district.
The third chapter provides new evidence on the causal impact of elected representatives on socio-economic development, using candidate data from state assembly elections (1974-2017). It exploits a discontinuity in constituency reservations for Scheduled Castes (SCs). Reservations do not just increase the chances of an SC representative but also increase the odds of a female representative, younger in age and affiliated with political parties. The study uses socio-economic indicators such as census outcomes, nightlight luminosity, and primary school outcomes. The estimates suggest no differences in census outcomes and nightlight luminosity between SC reserved and unreserved constituencies. However, SC representatives appear to have positively impacted private education after the RTE Act's introduction.
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