Targeting public investments by agro-ecological zone to achieve growth and poverty alleviation goals in rural India

This paper shows that improved technology and rural infrastructure have made important contributions to agricultural growth and poverty reduction in India. However, these effects have varied widely across agro-ecological zones, In the past, the government has devoted more resources to irrigated areas, and this has led to significant production growth and poverty reduction in those areas. However, as investments in irrigated areas continue to increase, their marginal returns diminish, and it is now in many of the rainfed areas, including some of lower agricultural potential, where the marginal returns from additional government investments in technology and infrastructure are largest. (C) 2000 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.