alok K bohara - Profile on Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by alok K bohara

We test the implication of the full consumption insurance hypotheses in the presence of violent c... more We test the implication of the full consumption insurance hypotheses in the presence of violent conflict due to the Maoist People’s War using household survey data from Nepal. We find that food consumption is more vulnerable than non-food consumption if we do not account for the non-linear relationship between the consumption and the level of violence. The level of food consumption vulnerability, however, is not severe for the households with low levels of education and income. Contrary to the common notion of vulnerability of low-caste/ethnic group, we find complete consumption insurance for this socially excluded social group. This result is surprising as the socially disadvantaged caste/ethnic group has been considered more vulnerable in Nepal.

It is the institution that makes a long-lasting difference in the making of a nation and the peop... more It is the institution that makes a long-lasting difference in the making of a nation and the people. Any division of the nation solely based on ethnicity and without any regard for its natural resources, comparative advantage, economy of scale, carrying capacity, geography or a long-run pragmatism will not be very wise. Furthermore, dividing up the country along the ethnic line into ethnic regions (along the line of Pahadis versus Madhesis), or including other ethnic groups, would hardly be practical in incorporating all of the ethnic and cultural aspirations of a nation of 100 ethnic groups and 80 languages.

Biogas: A promising renewable technology and its impact on rural households in Nepal

Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2009

... 3. Historical background and current status of biogas in Nepal. ... It also increases the ris... more ... 3. Historical background and current status of biogas in Nepal. ... It also increases the risk of bronchitis, asthma, lung cancer, ear infection etc [15]. Firewood burning, which is most common in Nepal, is the principal causes of indoor air pollution. ...

Poverty alleviation has become one of the main development agendas of the twenty first century wo... more Poverty alleviation has become one of the main development agendas of the twenty first century worldwide. But, the identification targeting of poor has been facing fundamental
problems due to the lack of required information. Using the micro-level estimation technique we estimate household expenditure for the census households using 1995/96 and 2003/04 household surveys, and estimate different measures of poverty and inequality using the estimated expenditure for those two years at the country level as well as at the regional, districts and village levels, and for the different caste/ethnic households. The public good aspects of this research is that these measures can be used as a guide for formulating decentralization and fiscal policies for decentralized communities across Nepal. Despite the indication that the aggregate level of poverty went down by 10 percentage points during the past eight years (1995/96 – 2003/04), our findings indicate that the reduction is not uniform in the first place, and the level of poverty actually went up in the significant part of the country. The increased poverty accompanied by the accelerating inequality throughout the country has compounded the divide between the haves and the have-nots and provided a suitable atmosphere for the conflict. As the foremost contributors of rising inequality are enterprise income and remittance, and agriculture income, high school and college level education help to reduce it, there are some clear policy implications of our findings that focusing on agricultural sector, high school and college education along with fiscal policy-mix (tax-transfer) could address the rising inequality and poverty.

Policy Studies Journal, Jan 1, 2004

In this article we evaluate the influence of democracy on perceived levels of corruption. We argu... more In this article we evaluate the influence of democracy on perceived levels of corruption. We argue that the control of corruption depends on the compensation and accountability of public officials, and on an open and competitive economy. We analyze the influence of democracy, controlling for the influence of other political and economic factors including federalism, economic development, and economic competition. The findings for the importance of economic factors are consistent. The finding in earlier research that federalism increases corruption is not robust. The findings for democracy are influenced importantly by the way that democracy is measured, but we do find that citizens' repetitive participation in competitive elections increases the control of corruption. In doing so, we move beyond the composite indices of democracy in constructing an alternative compound measure of democracy, which we argue is likely to be useful in other research contexts 0162-895X

Social Science Quarterly, Jan 1, 1993

Further investigation of voluntary contribution contingent valuation: Fair share, time of contribution, and respondent uncertainty

Journal of Environmental …, Jan 1, 2002

In the spirit of Randall&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#x27;s [Resource Energy Econom. 20, 197–206 ... more In the spirit of Randall&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;#x27;s [Resource Energy Econom. 20, 197–206 (1998)] argument for focusing on mapping the performance characteristics of alternative contingent valuation designs and formats, the focus of this study is on three tests of the voluntary contribution mechanism. We investigate the response effects of three crossed treatments:(1) an informational treatment that randomly varies the total cost of providing the good to identify possible fair share effects;(2) a split-sample informational treatment that makes the time of ...

Trade diversion and declining tariffs: evidence from Mercosur

Journal of International …, Jan 1, 2004

American Journal of …, Jan 1, 2002

A test of tariff endogeneity in the United States

The American Economic Review, Jan 1, 1991

... On the other hand, while we find a causal im-pact of tariffs on inflation and the ... envi-ro... more ... On the other hand, while we find a causal im-pact of tariffs on inflation and the ... envi-ronment, the role of tariffs in causing changes to real GNP and unemployment might prove ... Baack, Bennett D. and Ray, Edward John, &quot;The Political Economy of Tariff Policy: A Case Study of the ...

Review of International Economics, Jan 1, 2001

This study uses a large panel of industrialized and developing countries to investigate the link ... more This study uses a large panel of industrialized and developing countries to investigate the link between exchange rate volatility and exports. Although the empirical literature on this relationship is extensive, a clear consensus about its nature and importance is yet to emerge. Using fixed-and random-effects models to capture cross-country differences, pooled export equations are estimated for the entire panel and various subsets of countries. The results, which are robust across different volatility measures, indicate that negative effects exist for LDC exports, especially from Latin America and Africa, but not for exports from Asian LDCs or industrialized countries. . We would like to thank King Banaian, Volker Clausen, and two anonymous referees for their insightful comments and suggestions. We also wish to acknowledge Pingo Wang for preparing the substantial database and Lou Ann Lora-Platt for editorial assistance. Any remaining errors or omissions are our responsibility.

The American Economic …, Jan 1, 2004

Journal of …, Jan 1, 2004

This contingent valuation study investigates the related issues of information access and respond... more This contingent valuation study investigates the related issues of information access and respondent effort, and is based on a series of national telephone and Internet samples. The particular focus is on a crossed split-sample information treatment, Basic Information (BI) versus Enhanced Information (EI). In the latter a vastly expanded quantity of information is provided about the complex environmental good and proposed policy change (global climate change and the Kyoto Protocol). Using a national advisory referendum format, we compare the split-sample treatment effect (BI versus EI) on willingness to pay (WTP). Additionally, we develop various measures of respondent effort in learning about global climate change through the unique process and technology of Web-based surveys; then, we jointly model respondent effort and WTP using a simultaneous estimation approach (for the EI treatment group only).

Political …, Jan 1, 2003

The authors present the results of parallel telephone and Internet surveys to investigate their c... more The authors present the results of parallel telephone and Internet surveys to investigate their comparability. The telephone survey was administered to a national probability sample based on random digit dialing. The contemporaneous Internet survey was administered to a random sample of the data base of willing respondents assembled by Harris Interactive. The survey was replicated by Harris Interactive six months later, and by Knowledge Networks, which employs a randomly recruited panel, nine months later. The data facilitate comparisons in terms of demographic characteristics, environmental knowledge, and political opinions across survey modes. Knowledge and opinion questions generally show statistically significant but substantively modest difference across modes. With inclusion of standard demographic controls, typical relational models of interest to political scientists produce similar estimates of parameters across modes. The use of commercial Internet samples may thus already be reasonable for many types of social science research.