Data and Code for: Climate Change and Labor Reallocation: Evidence from Six Decades of the Indian Census

Principal Investigator(s): View help for Principal Investigator(s) Maggie Liu, Smith College; Yogita Shamdasani, National University of Singapore; Vis Taraz, Smith College

Version: View help for Version V1

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Data			03/24/2022 03:07:PM
Do			03/24/2022 03:07:PM
Figures			03/24/2022 03:16:PM
readme.pdf	application/pdf	142.4 KB	03/24/2022 11:07:AM

Project Citation:

Liu, Maggie, Shamdasani, Yogita, and Taraz, Vis. Data and Code for: Climate Change and Labor Reallocation: Evidence from Six Decades of the Indian Census. Nashville, TN: American Economic Association [publisher], 2023. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2023-04-07. https://doi.org/10.3886/E150441V1

Project Description

Summary: How do rising temperatures affect long-term labor reallocation in developing economies? In this paper, we examine how increases in temperature impact structural transformation and urbanization within Indian districts between 1951 and 2011. We find that rising temperatures are associated with lower shares of workers in non-agriculture, with effects intensifying over a longer time frame. Supporting evidence suggests that local demand effects play an important role: declining agricultural productivity under higher temperatures reduces the demand for non-agricultural goods and services, which subsequently lowers non-agricultural labor demand. Our results illustrate that rising temperatures limit sectoral and rural-urban mobility for isolated households.

Scope of Project

Subject Terms: climate change; structural transformation; labor reallocation; urbanization; migration

JEL Classification:
      O12 Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development
      O13 Economic Development: Agriculture; Natural Resources; Energy; Environment; Other Primary Products
      Q54 Climate; Natural Disasters and Their Management; Global Warming
      R23 Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics: Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population; Neighborhood Characteristics

Geographic Coverage: India

Time Period(s): 1951 – 2011

Universe: Districts in India

Data Type(s): aggregate data; census/enumeration data; geographic information system (GIS) data; survey data

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Published Versions

V1 [2023-04-07]

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DDI 2.5

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