India Human Development Survey

Using both rounds of the India Human Development Survey, vulnerability is measured as an ex ante measure of poverty for the Indian households. This article highlights the importance of measuring vulnerability in the overall poverty calculation and found it to be a significant predictor of the future poverty.

The police are a state institution that citizens are familiar with, but the perception of this institution among the people depends on the amount of trust vested in the police. Empirical application of ordered probit models on the India Human Development Survey-II data set suggests that the recent experience of violence faced by a household affects its trust in the police significantly. The trust varies widely across regions and communities in India, both for households that did or did not experience recent violence. Training the police forces them to approach cases with empathy and a shift to community-based policing may help to bridge the trust deficit.

Changes in the incidence of vegetarianism across time are sought to be analysed by identifying the specific trends at the level of region,caste and class. Divergence in the attitude towards vegetarianism across these axes points towards deepening divides linked to socioeconomic status and cultural-political power inequalities.

An analysis of disability among the elderly and its covariates during the period 2005–12 is provided using data from the two rounds of the nationally representative India Human Development Survey, conducted in 2005 and 2012. The increase in life expectancy has not translated into a healthier life, as prevalence of disabilities, their severity, and their association with non-communicable diseases have risen. Given the lack of access to assistive devices, specialised medical services, rehabilitation, and stigma attached to disability, the temptation to offer simplistic but largely medical solutions must be resisted. Instead, a multidimensional strategy is needed that helps the elderly overcome physical and socio-economic barriers as well as address the issues related to prevention and treatment of their underlying health conditions.