Does History Matter? Colonial Education Investments in India
36 Pages Posted: 19 Jul 2013
Date Written: May 2013
Abstract
We study the role of colonial education investments on post-independence outcomes in India using district-level data for 148 districts of former British India. Controlling for observable differences in geographical endowments and income between districts, OLS estimates suggest large and positive effects of 1911 colonial spending on rural primary education on rural literacy up to 1991. But, an instrumental variables strategy addressing the potential endogeneity of colonial investments suggests the effects of historical spending were short-lived in the Indian context. Colonial investments significantly influenced education outcomes only up to 1971. We believe these findings can be explained in the context of shifting political priorities of the central government in the 1970s to a universal provision of public goods. Broadly, the results suggest the long run effects of historical policies can be short lived in the presence of a strong state with clear political mandates.
Keywords: India, Education, Institutions, History
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