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Social Protection and Welfare Delivery in India

Reading list

Every reading this course assigns, module by module, with the best free copy we could find.

109 readings96 free to read13 on request

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Module 1. Module 1: What Social Protection Is, and What India Spends on It

  1. International Labour Organization (2024). World Social Protection Report 2024-26: Universal Social Protection for Climate Action and a Just Transition. ILO, Geneva.Read it free
  2. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2025). India's Rise in Social Security Coverage: From 19% to 64.3% Coverage. PIB backgrounder, 27 June 2025.Read it free
  3. Ministry of Finance, Government of India (2026). Economic Survey 2025-26, Chapter 13: Rural Development and Social Progress: From Participation to Partnership.Read it free
  4. Ministry of Finance, Government of India (2026). Economic Survey 2025-26, Chapter 12: Employment and Skill Development: Getting Skilling Right.Read it free
  5. Government of India (2013). The National Food Security Act, 2013 (Act No. 20 of 2013).Read it free
  6. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2025). National Social Assistance Programme: Strengthening India's Social Security Framework through Inclusive Assistance. PIB backgrounder, November 2025.Read it free
  7. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2025). Securing Every Plate: India's Multi-Faceted Mission to Ensure Food and Nutritional Equity for 81 Crore Citizens. PIB backgrounder, October 2025.Read it free
  8. PRS Legislative Research (2025). The Viksit Bharat: Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, 2025: bill page and summary.Read it free
  9. Ministry of Finance, Government of India (2017). Economic Survey 2016-17, Chapter 9: Universal Basic Income: A Conversation With and Within the Mahatma.Read it free

Module 2. Module 2: Food Security, the NFSA and the Public Distribution System

  1. Muralidharan, K., Niehaus, P. and Sukhtankar, S. (2020). Identity Verification Standards in Welfare Programs: Experimental Evidence from India. NBER Working Paper 26744 (revised 2021).Read it free
  2. Government of India (2013). The National Food Security Act, 2013 (Act No. 20 of 2013).Read it free
  3. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2025). Securing Every Plate: India's Multi-Faceted Mission to Ensure Food and Nutritional Equity for 81 Crore Citizens. PIB backgrounder, October 2025.Read it free
  4. Drèze, J. and Khera, R. (2015). Understanding Leakages in the Public Distribution System. Economic and Political Weekly, 50(7), 39-42.Publisher pageSubscription
  5. Puri, R. and Pingali, P. (2025). Declining PDS leakages: A look at the numbers. Ideas for India, 11 August 2025.Read it free

Module 3. Module 3: Who Gets Counted: Identification, Targeting and Exclusion

  1. Mkandawire, T. (2005). Targeting and Universalism in Poverty Reduction. Social Policy and Development Programme Paper No. 23. United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, Geneva.Read it free
  2. Ghosh, J. (2015). The Socio Economic and Caste Census. Macroscan, August 2015.Read it free
  3. Government of India (2013). The National Food Security Act, 2013 (Act No. 20 of 2013).Read it free
  4. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2025). Securing Every Plate: India's Multi-Faceted Mission to Ensure Food and Nutritional Equity for 81 Crore Citizens. PIB backgrounder, October 2025.Read it free
  5. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2025). National Social Assistance Programme: Strengthening India's Social Security Framework through Inclusive Assistance. PIB backgrounder, November 2025.Read it free
  6. Ministry of Finance, Government of India (2026). Economic Survey 2025-26, Chapter 12: Employment and Skill Development: Getting Skilling Right.Read it free
  7. Ministry of Finance, Government of India (2017). Economic Survey 2016-17, Chapter 9: Universal Basic Income: A Conversation With and Within the Mahatma.Read it free
  8. Kidd, S., Gelders, B. and Bailey-Athias, D. (2017). Exclusion by Design: An Assessment of the Effectiveness of the Proxy Means Test Poverty Targeting Mechanism. ESS Working Paper No. 56. International Labour Office and Development Pathways.Read it free
  9. Hanna, R. and Olken, B.A. (2018). Universal Basic Incomes versus Targeted Transfers: Anti-Poverty Programs in Developing Countries. Journal of Economic Perspectives, 32(4), 201-226.Read it free
  10. Drèze, J. and Khera, R. (2015). Understanding Leakages in the Public Distribution System. Economic and Political Weekly, 50(7), 39-42.Publisher pageSubscription
  11. Muralidharan, K., Niehaus, P. and Sukhtankar, S. (2020). Identity Verification Standards in Welfare Programs: Experimental Evidence from India. NBER Working Paper 26744 (revised 2021).Read it free

Module 4. Module 4: Paying People: DBT, Aadhaar and the Last Mile

  1. Comptroller and Auditor General of India (2016). Report on Implementation of PAHAL (DBTL) Scheme, Union Government (Commercial), Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Report No. 25 of 2016.Read it free
  2. Ministry of Finance, Government of India (2015). Economic Survey 2014-15, Volume 1, Chapter 3: 'Wiping every tear from every eye': the JAM Number Trinity Solution.Read it free
  3. LibTech India (2024). MGNREGA Implementation in India: Insights and Trends, April-Sept 2024. LibTech India.Read it free
  4. Muralidharan, K., Niehaus, P. and Sukhtankar, S. (2016). Building State Capacity: Evidence from Biometric Smartcards in India. American Economic Review, 106(10), 2895-2929.Publisher pageSubscription
  5. Banerjee, A., Duflo, E., Imbert, C., Mathew, S. and Pande, R. (2020). E-governance, Accountability, and Leakage in Public Programs: Experimental Evidence from a Financial Management Reform in India. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 12(4), 39-72.Publisher pageSubscription
  6. Muralidharan, K., Niehaus, P. and Sukhtankar, S. (2020). Identity Verification Standards in Welfare Programs: Experimental Evidence from India. NBER Working Paper 26744 (revised 2021).Read it free
  7. Bheemarasetti, S., De, A., Narayanan, R., Saboo, P. and Tamang, L. (2025). MGNREGA as a Technological Laboratory: Analysing Wage Payment Delays as a Result of Two Digital Interventions. Indian Journal of Labour Economics, 68(2), 681-706.Publisher pageSubscription

Module 5. Module 5: Rural Work Guarantees, from MGNREGA to the 2025 Act

  1. Dutta, P., Murgai, R., Ravallion, M. and van de Walle, D. (2012). Does India's Employment Guarantee Scheme Guarantee Employment? Policy Research Working Paper 6003. World Bank.Read it free
  2. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2026). Viksit Bharat: Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin), 2025: VB-G RAM G Act, 2025. PIB Research note, 11 May 2026.Read it free
  3. PRS Legislative Research (2025). The Viksit Bharat: Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, 2025: bill page and summary.Read it free
  4. LibTech India (2024). MGNREGA Implementation in India: Insights and Trends, April-Sept 2024. LibTech India.Read it free
  5. Imbert, C. and Papp, J. (2015). Labor Market Effects of Social Programs: Evidence from India's Employment Guarantee. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 7(2), 233-263.Publisher pageSubscription
  6. Muralidharan, K., Niehaus, P. and Sukhtankar, S. (2017). General Equilibrium Effects of (Improving) Public Employment Programs: Experimental Evidence from India. NBER Working Paper 23838.Read it free
  7. Narayanan, R., Dhorajiwala, S. and Golani, R. (2019). Analysis of Payment Delays and Delay Compensation in MGNREGA: Findings Across Ten States for Financial Year 2016-2017. Indian Journal of Labour Economics, 62(1), 113-133.Publisher pageSubscription
  8. Bheemarasetti, S., De, A., Narayanan, R., Saboo, P. and Tamang, L. (2025). MGNREGA as a Technological Laboratory: Analysing Wage Payment Delays as a Result of Two Digital Interventions. Indian Journal of Labour Economics, 68(2), 681-706.Publisher pageSubscription

Module 6. Module 6: Pensions for Old Age, Widowhood and Disability

  1. Lok Sabha (2025). Unstarred Question No. 3825, Review of National Social Assistance Program, answered by the Ministry of Rural Development on 12 August 2025.Read it free
  2. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2025). National Social Assistance Programme: Strengthening India's Social Security Framework through Inclusive Assistance. PIB backgrounder, November 2025.Read it free
  3. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India (2024). Household Consumption Expenditure Survey: 2023-24. Press note, 27 December 2024.Read it free
  4. International Institute for Population Sciences, National Programme for Health Care of Elderly, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and University of Southern California (2020). Longitudinal Ageing Study in India (LASI) Wave 1, 2017-18, India Report. IIPS, Mumbai.Read it free
  5. Unnikrishnan, V. and Imai, K.S. (2020). Does the old-age pension scheme improve household welfare? Evidence from India. World Development, 134, 105017.Free copy of the published versionPublisher page

Module 7. Module 7: Cash for Farmers and for Women

  1. Ministry of Finance, Government of India (2026). Economic Survey 2025-26, Chapter 2, Box II.7: Unconditional cash transfers: fiscal trade-offs and medium-term implications, pp. 64-65.Read it free
  2. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2026). 23rd Instalment of PM-KISAN. PIB backgrounder, 20 June 2026.Read it free
  3. Singh, S. (2025). State of State Finances, October 2025. PRS Legislative Research.Read it free
  4. Crosta, T., Karlan, D., Ong, F., Rüschenpöhler, J. and Udry, C. (2024). Unconditional Cash Transfers: A Bayesian Meta-Analysis of Randomized Evaluations in Low- and Middle-Income Countries. NBER Working Paper 32779.Read it free

Module 8. Module 8: Health Protection and Maternity Benefits

  1. Garg, S., Bebarta, K.K. and Tripathi, N. (2024). The Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY) after four years of implementation: is it making an impact on quality of inpatient care and financial protection in India? BMC Health Services Research, 24, 919.Read it free
  2. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2024). National Health Account (NHA) Estimates 2020-21 and 2021-22: A Comprehensive Overview. PIB backgrounder, 4 October 2024.Read it free
  3. Lok Sabha (2026). Unstarred Question No. 2111, Progress of AB-PMJAY, answered by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on 31 July 2026.Read it free
  4. Lok Sabha (2026). Unstarred Question No. 3415, Out-of-Pocket Expenditure on Healthcare, answered by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on 7 August 2026.Read it free
  5. Lok Sabha (2026). Starred Question No. 287, Financial Disbursements under AB-PMJAY, answered by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on 7 August 2026.Read it free
  6. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2024). Ayushman Bharat: Vay Vandana Cards Achieves Milestone. PIB backgrounder, 17 November 2024.Read it free
  7. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2026). Affordable and Accessible Healthcare for All. PIB backgrounder, 12 August 2026.Read it free
  8. Government of India (2013). The National Food Security Act, 2013 (Act No. 20 of 2013).Read it free
  9. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2025). Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana: Empowering Mothers, Shaping Generations. PIB factsheet, 24 August 2025.Read it free
  10. Lok Sabha (2026). Unstarred Question No. 1018, Holistic Development of Women and Children, answered by the Ministry of Women and Child Development on 24 July 2026.Read it free
  11. Lok Sabha (2026). Unstarred Question No. 3264, Beneficiaries under PMMVY, answered by the Ministry of Women and Child Development on 7 August 2026.Read it free
  12. National Health Mission, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. Janani Suraksha Yojana (scheme page and guidelines).Read it free
  13. International Institute for Population Sciences (2026). National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6), 2023-24: India and State/UT Fact Sheets. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, May 2026 (copy hosted by OpenCity).Read it free
  14. International Institute for Population Sciences and ICF (2021). National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), 2019-21: India and State/UT Fact Sheets Compendium, Phase II. IIPS, Mumbai.Read it free
  15. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and National Health Systems Resource Centre, Government of India (2026). National Health Accounts Estimates for India 2022-23. NHSRC, New Delhi.Read it free

Module 9. Module 9: Children, Anganwadis and School Meals

  1. Chakrabarti, S., Scott, S.P., Alderman, H., Menon, P. and Gilligan, D.O. (2021). Intergenerational nutrition benefits of India's national school feeding program. Nature Communications, 12, 4248.Read it free
  2. Government of India (2013). The National Food Security Act, 2013 (Act No. 20 of 2013).Read it free
  3. Lok Sabha (2026). Unstarred Question No. 1018, Holistic Development of Women and Children, answered by the Ministry of Women and Child Development on 24 July 2026.Read it free
  4. Lok Sabha (2026). Unstarred Question No. 1114, Skill Development through Anganwadi, answered by the Ministry of Women and Child Development on 24 July 2026.Read it free
  5. Lok Sabha (2026). Unstarred Question No. 1121, POSHAN Tracker App, answered by the Ministry of Women and Child Development on 24 July 2026.Read it free
  6. Lok Sabha (2026). Unstarred Question No. 1265, Nutritional Standards under the PM POSHAN Scheme, answered by the Ministry of Education on 27 July 2026.Read it free
  7. Lok Sabha (2026). Unstarred Question No. 2388, Serving of Mid Day Meals under PM-POSHAN, answered by the Ministry of Education on 3 August 2026.Read it free
  8. Lok Sabha (2026). Starred Question No. 15, Implementation of National Education Policy (NEP), 2020, answered by the Ministry of Education on 20 July 2026.Read it free
  9. International Institute for Population Sciences (2026). National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6), 2023-24: India and State/UT Fact Sheets. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, May 2026 (copy hosted by OpenCity).Read it free
  10. International Institute for Population Sciences and ICF (2021). National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), 2019-21: India and State/UT Fact Sheets Compendium, Phase II. IIPS, Mumbai.Read it free
  11. Observer Research Foundation (2026). Reducing stunting, building human capital: Lessons from NFHS-6. ORF Expert Speak, 24 June 2026.Read it free
  12. Afridi, F. (2010). Child welfare programs and child nutrition: Evidence from a mandated school meal program in India. Journal of Development Economics, 92(2), 152-165.Publisher pageSubscription
  13. Singh, A., Park, A. and Dercon, S. (2014). School Meals as a Safety Net: An Evaluation of the Midday Meal Scheme in India. Economic Development and Cultural Change, 62(2), 275-306.Publisher pageSubscription

Module 10. Module 10: Informal Workers, the Social Security Code and e-Shram

  1. Government of India (2020). The Code on Social Security, 2020 (Act No. 36 of 2020).Read it free
  2. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2025). Code on Social Security, 2020: Towards Universal and Inclusive Social Protection. PIB backgrounder, 22 November 2025.Read it free
  3. Press Information Bureau, Government of India (2026). 5 Years of e-Shram Portal: Building an Inclusive Social Security Ecosystem. PIB backgrounder, 25 August 2026.Read it free
  4. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India (2024). Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Annual Report, July 2023 to June 2024.Read it free
  5. Government of Rajasthan (2023). The Rajasthan Platform Based Gig Workers (Registration and Welfare) Bill, 2023 (Bill No. 30 of 2023), as introduced.Read it free
  6. Government of Rajasthan (2023). The Rajasthan Platform Based Gig Workers (Registration and Welfare) Act, 2023 (Act No. 29 of 2023).Read it free
  7. Rajya Sabha (2024). Unstarred Question No. 411, Utilization of Labour Cess Funds, answered by the Ministry of Labour and Employment on 25 July 2024, with Annexure.Read it free

Module 11. Module 11: Grievances, Social Audits and the Right to Food Case

  1. Supreme Court of India (2001). People's Union for Civil Liberties v Union of India, W.P.(C) No. 196 of 2001, record of proceedings and order of 28 November 2001.Read it free
  2. Supreme Court of India (2003). People's Union for Civil Liberties v Union of India, W.P.(C) No. 196 of 2001, interim order of 2 May 2003.Read it free
  3. Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, Government of India (2025). CPGRAMS Monthly Report, October 2025 (Report Number 42).Read it free
  4. Government of India (2025). The Viksit Bharat: Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin): VB-G RAM G Bill, 2025 (Bill No. 197 of 2025), as introduced in Lok Sabha.Read it free
  5. Afridi, F. and Iversen, V. (2014). Social Audits and MGNREGA Delivery: Lessons from Andhra Pradesh. India Policy Forum 2013-14, 10, 297-341. NCAER.Read it free
  6. Government of India (2005). The Right to Information Act, 2005 (Act No. 22 of 2005).Read it free
  7. Muralidharan, K., Niehaus, P. and Sukhtankar, S. (2020). Identity Verification Standards in Welfare Programs: Experimental Evidence from India. NBER Working Paper 26744 (revised 2021).Read it free

Module 12. Module 12: Measuring Coverage, Adequacy and Leakage

  1. International Labour Organization (custodian agency) (2025). SDG Indicator Metadata, Indicator 1.3.1, last updated 28 March 2025. United Nations Statistics Division.Read it free
  2. World Bank. ASPIRE: The Atlas of Social Protection Indicators of Resilience and Equity, documentation and indicator definitions.Read it free
  3. World Bank. ASPIRE: performance indicators.Read it free
  4. International Institute for Population Sciences (2026). National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6), 2023-24: India and State/UT Fact Sheets. Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, May 2026 (copy hosted by OpenCity).Read it free
  5. International Institute for Population Sciences and ICF (2021). National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), 2019-21: India and State/UT Fact Sheets Compendium, Phase II. IIPS, Mumbai.Read it free
  6. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India (2024). Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Annual Report, July 2023 to June 2024.Read it free
  7. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India (2024). Household Consumption Expenditure Survey: 2023-24. Press note, 27 December 2024.Read it free
  8. Drèze, J. and Khera, R. (2015). Understanding Leakages in the Public Distribution System. Economic and Political Weekly, 50(7), 39-42.Publisher pageSubscription
  9. Muralidharan, K., Niehaus, P. and Sukhtankar, S. (2016). Building State Capacity: Evidence from Biometric Smartcards in India. American Economic Review, 106(10), 2895-2929.Publisher pageSubscription
  10. Banerjee, A., Duflo, E., Imbert, C., Mathew, S. and Pande, R. (2020). E-governance, Accountability, and Leakage in Public Programs: Experimental Evidence from a Financial Management Reform in India. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 12(4), 39-72.Publisher pageSubscription
  11. Muralidharan, K., Niehaus, P. and Sukhtankar, S. (2020). Identity Verification Standards in Welfare Programs: Experimental Evidence from India. NBER Working Paper 26744 (revised 2021).Read it free
  12. Afridi, F. and Iversen, V. (2014). Social Audits and MGNREGA Delivery: Lessons from Andhra Pradesh. India Policy Forum 2013-14, 10, 297-341. NCAER.Read it free

Module 13. Module 13: Capstone: Redesigning a Scheme for a Real District

  1. Government of India (2020). The Code on Social Security, 2020 (Act No. 36 of 2020).Read it free
  2. Government of India (2005). The Right to Information Act, 2005 (Act No. 22 of 2005).Read it free
  3. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India (2024). Household Consumption Expenditure Survey: 2023-24. Press note, 27 December 2024.Read it free
  4. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, Government of India (2024). Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Annual Report, July 2023 to June 2024.Read it free
  5. Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, Government of India (2025). CPGRAMS Monthly Report, October 2025 (Report Number 42).Read it free
  6. Rajya Sabha (2024). Unstarred Question No. 411, Utilization of Labour Cess Funds, answered by the Ministry of Labour and Employment on 25 July 2024, with Annexure.Read it free

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