IFMR Digest - September 2018

Cover Story ISSUE 5, September, 2018

Status of Digital Financial Inclusion in India

Expert Article Expert Article
Reducing maternal mortality Evidence for the ultra poor in
rate in India Bihar

ISSUE 5, 2018

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CONTENTS Page
7
Happenings 20
News from the B-School
Expert Article 32
Reducing maternal mortality rate in India
BY JITIN JOSE 38
Expert Article
Evidence for the ultra poor in Bihar 44
BY GAUTAM PATEL
50
Cover Story 56
Status of Digital Financial Inclusion in India 66
BY JYOTI PRASAD MUKHOPADHYAY 68

Student Article
How much could be enough?
BY KABYAYAN ROY

Student Article
Two months into IFMR
BY ASHISH BASTIA

Food for Thought & Fun Spot
Student Experience
Alumni Corner

Milestones
Awards and Accolades

On the cover : Art by Sambhav Jain - IFMR
Icons Created by Dooder and Macrovector
Inside : Event photos by IFMR Photography Club

IFMR Digest

CONTENTS

Editor’s desk

Hello Everyone,

Man chose Knowledge to be supreme, in the mystery of present enter-
prises he strived for definition. Amongst all the debates of idealism, we
were always looking for the underlying simple causality. Thus was his
journey from a nature worshipper to a rainmaker, passing the baton
through generations. A journey which bound, stretched and tested all
our human faculties. As we continue towards new possibilities let us pay
our obeisance to the supreme Knowledge.
With this aspiration, we present you IFMR DIGEST September issue,
our homage for Knowledge. From the abundance of information, we
have assimilated the best to suit your interest. As James Keller has said,
‘A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle’. We believe it would
indeed help you to cultivate, harvest and disseminate Knowledge.
Happy Reading!

Issue 5, September 2018



Inauguration of 19th baHtAcPhPEoNfINGS
Full time MBA

Program in Management, IFMR, Sricity

7

HAPPENINGS

Institute for Financial Management and Research
(IFMR), (Part of KREA University), inaugurated its 19th
batch of post graduate program in Management at H C
Kothari Hall in the campus on 4th June, 2018. The new
batch comprises of students from 22 states all over the
country, coming from different disciplines which in-
cludes engineering, arts and science. The induction pro-
gram for the new students started with the inaugural cer-
emony and was aimed at orienting the students towards
self-introspection, self-discovery and mindfulness. The
inauguration programme commenced with the welcome
address by Prof Kamal Ghosh Ray, Acting Resident Di-
rector, IFMR B-School and Inaugural Address by Chief
Guest
Mr. Vikas Gupta, Managing Director-Talent, Deloitte
Consulting India Pvt. Ltd. It was followed by a special
address by Mr.T.A Varghese, Global Business HR Head,
Tata Consultancy services.

HAPPENINGS

Session on Various Career
Opportunities in BFSI

Mr. Parth Parikh, FRM, and growth opportunities
Finance Consultant, in every distinct finance
Finshiksha, addressed the field. The finale saw a
first year students on the var- question and answer ses-
ious career opportunities sion in which every ques-
available in BFSI. He shared tion was answered with
deep insights on the various an in-depth explanation.
career prospects and avenues The event was organized
present in the field of bank- by the External Relations
ing and finance. He discussed Committee.
about the various skill sets

9 Issue 5, September 2018

HAPPENINGS

Flea Market 2018

Flea market comes from the French word marché aux puc-
es, a name originally given to a market in Paris. TEC
(The Entrepreneurship Committee) of IFMR organised a
one day flea market on 26th July 2018. The students from
both the batches displayed various stalls comprising of
games, food stalls, and entertainment stalls showcasing
their entrepreneurial traits.

IFMR Digest 10

HAPPENINGS

Consuldea

Consuldea event in progress

The Consulting committee of IFMR organized the first con-
sulting event of the academic event – Consuldea. It saw
active participation from both the senior and junior
batches. It involved mini cases allotted to various teams
and were to be cracked within a time limit before a
discussion with an opponent team and a rapid-fire session
with the judges – Prof. Amar Saxena and
Prof. Ram Kumar Dhurkari. The mini cases touched upon
various topics from E-commerce to NPA, with a second
round involving a quiz broadly about mergers and acqui-
sitions. The event was successful and it served as a good
starting point for future events on similar lines.

11 Issue 5, September 2018





HAPPENINGS

Students Council
Swearing-in Ceremony

IFMR saw a new energetic ties. To start with, the presi-

batch of 2018-2020 taking dent of student council took

over the position of his oath followed by the secre-

representatives for various tary from the junior batch, the

clubs and committees. The treasurer and finally the CEO.

formal function was presid- The senior and the junior rep-

ed over by Dr. Kamal Ghosh resentatives of all the clubs and

Ray, Resident Director, committees took their oath to

IFMR B School, Dr. Vinodh be responsible and to abide by

Madhavan, PGP Chairper- the rules to maintain the pride

son and our eminent facul- of the institution.

IFMR Digest 14

HAPPENINGS - ABHYUDAYA

Caesar’s Palace
A Quizzing evening by

IFMR Quiz Club

The Quiz club of IFMR, luck, it was wit and presence
known for its quirky and of mind that eventually de-
entertaining quiz events cided the winners through
conducted its first event of the final poker round in-
the academic year 2018-19. volving participants liter-
A Casino themed quiz was ally playing poker – albeit
conducted wherein quizzers without the cards.
were involved in betting It was a breather of an event
and winning points – simi- during the hectic schedule
lar to a casino game. Though of Batch 19. Another feath-
the rounds involved a bit of er in the cap for the IFMR
Quiz Club.

15 Issue 5, September 2018

HAPPENINGS - ABHYUDAYA

FUTSAL 2018 – IFMR conducted
its first sporting event

The sports committee of IFMR conducted the first
sporting event FUTSAL 2018 on 9th and 10th of July.
FUTSAL is a short timed, fast paced and a 5 men+ 3
women membered team playing football. It’s a tra-
dition in IFMR to conduct the knockout event every
year. The game saw 7 teams participating with the
blend of juniors and seniors. The finale was a clash
between the senior team “All stars” and the junior
team “Falcons”, with the senior team lifting the tro-
phy.

IFMR Digest 16

HAPPENINGS - ABHYUDAYA

IFMR Celebrated
International Day of Yoga

It was a journey back to the ethos as the essence of Yoga
was explored to the fullest on International Day of Yoga
on 21st June, 2018 at the IFMR Sri City campus. As
budding managers and future corporate leaders, the
MBA students of IFMR showed dedicated interest
while learning the need and importance of yoga. A stu-
dent who has been practicing yoga for the past six years,
demonstrated and trained her peers.

17 Issue 5, September 2018

HAPPENINGS

Fresher’s Night 2018

The Fresher’s party took place on the day the mid-
term exams for batch-19 got over and it began at
around 8:30 P.M. Abhinay(the drama club)started the
event with a beautifully constructed skit on the story
of Laila and Majnu. After the play, there was a solo
performance by a member of Nritya(the dance club)
which was met with great applause. The party ended
with the traditional ‘DJ Night’ which saw the guys and
girls of batch 19 let their hair down and dance like it
was the end of the world.

IFMR Digest 18

HAPPENINGS

19 Issue 5, August 2018

EXPERT ARTICLE

Reducing
maternal
mortality
in India: A
four-pronged
strategy

while India’s maternal mortality rate declined substantially

during 2004-06 to 2014-16, at an annual rate of 5%, the reduc-
tion is still short of the reduction required to achieve the National
Health Policy (NHP) target. Jithin Jose proposes a four-pronged
strategy to accelerate and sustain the decline, RAFT – review of
medical records, death certificates or autopsy reports of mothers;
access to quality and respectful healthcare for women; funding for
infrastructure, medicines, and interventions in the labor room;

IFMR Digest 20

EXPERT ARTICLE

As per the Sample Registra- as any further reductions in the

tion System (SRS) data, India MMR at the national level would

has achieved the Millennium require ending preventable ma-

Development Goal (MDG) 5A, ternal mortality. Moreover, con-

which stated that all countries siderable amount of resourc-

should reduce Maternal Mor- es need to be instituted for per

tality Rate (MMR) by 75% of unit of count reduction in order

their respective 1990 figures by to accelerate and sustain India’s

20151. However, other sourc- successes. This would require

es seem to put the MMR at a continuous reductions in both

higher figure2 . Irrespective, we mortality and morbidity, with

have seen a pan-India decline complementary improvements

in (MMR), at an annual rate of along the continuum of care for

5% during 2004-06 to 2014-16. women (World Health Organi-

In March 2017, with the aim of zation (WHO), 2015). Within this

achieving the Sustainable De- context, strengthening of health

velopment Goals (SDGs)3 , systems and continuous learn-

Government of India proposed ing; enabling and mobilising in-

the National Health Policy dividuals and communities; and

(NHP), which set an MMR tar- advancing quality, respectful

get of 100 to be achieved by care have been identified as crit-

2020. This means that India ical to making progress towards

would have to reduce its MMR this goal (United States Agency

at an annual rate of 5.75% in the for International Development

coming years, which is more (USAID), 2014).

than its annual average reduc-

tion during 2004-06 to 2014-16.

However, achieving this tar-
get would be an uphill task,

1As per the SRS, MMR for 2014-16 is 130. As per the government of India the target was 140.
2 The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Factbook, World Bank, UNICEF (United Nations Children’s
Emergency Fund), WHO (World Health Organization) have all calculated the MMR as 176 (2015 esti-
mate).
3 So far, Kerala, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu have achieved the goal set by the SDGs.

29 EXPERT ARTICLE

The RAFT strategy ery maternal death lies with
the hospital. The personal
In this post, I propose a four- details of the patient and the
pronged strategy, presiding physician are kept
confidential so as to prevent
RAFT - Review of medical any bias in understanding
records, death certificates or the actual factors that caused
autopsy reports of mothers; the death of the mother. This
Access to quality and respect- process is currently being
ful healthcare for women, followed regularly in Kerala
Funding for infrastructure, since the initiation of Confi-
medicines, interventions in dential Review of Maternal
the labour room; and Train- Deaths (CRMD) in 2004, with
ing for personnel4. This strat- support from WHO (Paily
egy encompasses the three 2014). During that period,
goals mentioned above and for Kerala, where 99.3% of
is to be implemented at the deliveries were institutional5 ,
state level with strong back- such a process was feasible as
ing from the Centre. Review the probability of all maternal
of medical records, death cer- deaths being reported and
tificates, and autopsy reports captured was high. However,
will ensure that the underly- this might not be the case with
ing causes of maternal deaths other Indian states currently,
are understood. In such a re- especially the ones that are
view, each and every mater- part of the Empowered Ac-
nal death case sheet in a par- tion Group (EAG)6 where the
ticular year is examined by an average rate of institutional
expert committee comprising birth is around 72.6% (NFHS-
obstetric and non-obstetric 4). Therefore, in such cases, an
assessors. The responsibility alternative would be a review
of sending the details of ev- of the death certificate report
or the autopsy report. Since

4 The components within this strategy are complements and the overall objective may not be realised if these
are implemented individually or as substitutes for one another.
5This figure is from 2005-06, when National Family Health Survey-3 (NFHS-3) was published. Presently, it is
99.9% as per NFHS-4.

EXPERT ARTICLE

the causes of maternal deaths may differ across regions due to
various factors, each states should make this process mandato-
ry. For EAG, such a process is necessary, given the dismal per-
formance in terms of reducing MMR (See Figure 1 below). Sec-
ondly, access to healthcare in terms of maternal health should
be given to all women. This encompasses a broad spectrum of
interventions ranging from educating and empowering wom-
en with regard to maternal health; family planning initiatives;
addressing inequities in access to and quality of sexual, repro-
ductive, and maternal healthcare; and enhanced mobilisation of
individual and communities. A good starting point would be to
learn from past experiences through a thorough review of exist-
ing demand-side interventions7 . This will aid in identifying ma-

Figure 1. MMR by state groups

Source: SRS 2014-16 estimates.

4 In India, the nine socioeconomically backward states of Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa,
Rajasthan, Uttaranchal, and Uttar Pradesh, referred to as the Empowered Action Group (EAG) states, lag behind in the
demographic transition and have the highest maternal mortality rates in the country (Arokiasamy 2008).

EXPERT ARTICLE

Figure 2: MMR in EAG states

Source: SRS 2014-16 estimates.

jor gaps in the provision and ac- health education were less
cess of basic maternal healthcare likely to experience preg-
that impede reduction in mater- nancy and labour-related
nal mortality, and guide stake- issues (Banerjee et al. 2013,
holders in adopting practices Leon et al. 2014, Achyut et
that have been proven to work. al. 2016). Moreover, such
For example, assessments of the interventions can be ef-
Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY)8 fectively complemented
show that it had an impressive by community-led inter-
effect on rates of institutional de- ventions to hold the gov-
livery, but no effect on maternal ernment and providers
mortality (Lim et al.2010, Ran- accountable, in case the
dive et al. 2013, Paul et al. 2010). quality of existing ser-
Certain studies show that target- vices falls. For example,
ed delivery of messages through Subha et al. (2012) show
media campaigns was found to how following local pro-
be more effective than peer ed- tests against a high num-
ucation, and women receiving ber of maternal deaths in

8In order to reduce neonatal and maternal deaths, JSY scheme provides a cash incentive for women to deliv-
er at healthcare facilities. It covers about 9·5 million women per year, making it the largest conditional cash
transfer programme in the world.

2010 in Barwani district in Mad- EXPERT ARTICLE
hya Pradesh, a maternal death managed pregnancy compli-
review was conducted by civ- cations (Neil et al. 2017). In
il society to investigate the 27 such cases, the review pro-
maternal deaths reported in the cess would not be effective
district. unless funding is set aside
by each state for improving
Furthermore, in order to save infrastructure and training
mothers’ lives, we need to pro- staff to tackle major causes
vide them with skilled obstetric of maternal deaths across all
care, which can be accessed in delivery points9.
facilities. But what happens once
you have ensured that moth- Finally, none of the above
ers opt for institutional deliver- processes would work effi-
ies and these facilities turn out ciently without continuously
to be ill-equipped? Muldoon et updating personnel knowl-
al. (2011) finds that almost one- edge related to the manage-
third of rural health sub-centres ment of labour and delivery
lack regular water and electrical and also in terms of improv-
supply, elevating the risk of in- ing the quality of “respectful
fection ( Neil et al. 2017). care”. Das et al. (2015, 2012)
Additionally, Hulton et al. find that less than one-third
(2007), Ghodki and Sardesai of providers in India adhere
(2014), Jadon and Bagai (2014) to clinical guidelines and
show that one-third of PHCs fewer than half of clinical in-
lacked labour rooms, and some teractions result in correct di-
hospitals lacked essential drugs, agnoses and treatment (Neil
performed surgical procedures et al. 2017). Hence, a direct
such as Caesarean sections with complement to review, ac-
no onsite blood banks or reli- cess, and funding is a homo-
able anesthetics and sometimes genised emergency obstetric
without health professional, care (EMOC) training pro-
further increasing the risk of un- gramme, which should be
initiated at the state level. It

9For example, if the major causes have been identified as PPH, PIH, and Sepsis, drugs like uterotonics and anti-hyperten-
sive; instruments like oxygen masks, delivery kits with blood-absorbing pads, sepsis kits, and anti-shock garments; and
basic infrastructure like blood storage unit or blood bank, water, electrical supply, and so on, are the most basic supplies
that any delivery point should have without which it would be difficult for the personnel to dispense quality treatment.

EXPERT ARTICLE

should be directed at two lev- Kerala’s experience

els of caregivers, that is, at the

facility level for obstetricians, In Kerala, the CRMD com-
nurses and nursing atten- mittee consistently reviewed
dants/cleaners10 , and at the an average of 50% case sheets
frontline worker level for ac- related to maternal deaths
credited social health activists during 2004-2009 (Smith 2014).
(ASHA) and auxiliary nurse Upon review, the major causes
midwives (ANM). Ideally this were identified to be Post-Par-
training programme should tum Hemorrhage (PPH) and
cover evidence-based clinical Pregnancy Induced Hyperten-
guidelines and techniques to sion (PIH). As a result of this
ensure that caregivers are up- process, Kerala initiated the
dated with the latest informa- quality standards programme.
tion and best practices. Anec- This programme consisted of
dotal evidence has shown that a training based on a set of 10
training and feedback reduces evidence-based guidelines to
unnecessary and potentially reduce PPH- and PIH-relat-
harmful practices, improves ed deaths. In April 2013, six
access to skilled maternal and public delivery points11 were
neonatal care in rural areas, provided with funds to pur-
and helps in managing ma- chase adequate medicines and
ternal complications with and equipment along with training
without the need for referral on quality standards to tackle
(Iyengar and Iyengar 2009, Je- hemorrhage and hypertension
jeebhoy et al. 2011, Iyengar et as part of the Emergency Ob-
al. 2014). Training clinicians stetric Care and Life Support
and programme managers (EMOCALS)12 training pro-
also improve in adherence gramme. This brought down
to evidence-based practices the occurrence of PPH and
(Iyengar et al. 2014). PIH deaths and also reduced

referrals in the hospitals where

these training programmes

10Training of obstetricians, nurses, and nursing assistants together, does not seem to lead to any improvements
in the quality of work of the nursing assistants; the responsibilities of doctors and nurses are starkly different
from that of the nursing assistants. A separate module for nursing assistants should be created, which directly
deals with their work and training should be imparted to them on the basis of this module.

EXPERT ARTICLE

were piloted. cases, we can observe a fall

in the proportion of mater-

As per the latest CRMD data nal deaths for PPH and PIH

provided to me by the Kera- around 2013-14. Additional-

la Federation of Ostetricians ly, during this period, the av-

and Gynecologist (KFOG), the erage proportion of maternal

proportion of deaths related death cases reviewed by the

to PPH amongst the cases re- committee out of the total ma-

viewed fell from 20.4% in 2010- ternal deaths cases was 66.8%.

11 to 9.4% in 2015-16. PIH as a This is an increase from the

cause of maternal death also previous average of around

declined during this period. As 50% during 2004-2009.

we can see in Figure 3 below, it

declined from 14.1% in 2010-11

to 12.3% in 2015-16. However,

it had declined considerably till

2014-15. The huge jump for the

year 2015-16 can be attributed

to many factors like shortage of

medicines and lack of trained

staff, all which points towards

administrative apathy. In both

11General Hospital Ernakulam, DH Peroorkada, Taluk Hospital Chirayinkeezhu, CHC Kanyakulangara,
Women & Children Hospital, Thycaud and SAT Hospital.
12Also referred to as the “Quality Standards Programme”.

EXPERT ARTICLE support the states, firstly in their
efforts to adopt this strategy, es-
Conclusion pecially the CRMD process by
institutionalising it and making
Kerala’s example should it mandatory for all public hos-
pave the way for more states pitals to report maternal deaths
to adopt RAFT as a viable with complete documentation to
strategy to improve MMR. a CRMD committee at the state
This experience also points level13. This can be further extend-
out where the strategy could ed to private hospitals over a pe-
fail especially if the admin- riod of time. In addition, special
istration becomes lax in its attention should also be given to
implementation. Moreover, improving documentation prac-
only about one-third of the tices among physicians and their
case sheets being reviewed interns (house surgeons)14. With-
between 2010-2016 in Ker- in this capacity, a central mandate
ala, is indicative of incom- conveying such responsibilities
plete reporting in the case to relevant obstetrician and gy-
sheets by the physicians necologist unions15 in each state
responsible. This will be a would be a way to go. In this pro-
potential logistical problem cess, the states could work with
that the states might face these unions to set up a CRMD
while implementing the Re- committee. Such unions could
view component of the strat- decide on the methodology for
egy in the beginning. There- the review committees to follow,
fore, in this context, the given the situation in a particular
central government should state, that is, review of case sheet,
death report or autopsy reports.
Secondly, the Centre should also
extend funds to each state for the
purchase of necessary equipment,
improving infrastructure, and for
training labour-related personnel.
Presently, LaQshya and Dakshata

13In this process, a centralised Pregnancy Mortality Surveillance System (PMSS) could be set up, on the lines
of the existing Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) under the NHM, which could ideally be a
database of information on maternal deaths.

EXPERT ARTICLE 32

programmes under the aegis of India to achieve its MMR
the National Health Mission are target set by the SDGs.
steps in that direction. Thirdly,
an expert panel should be set up This post has been reprint-
at the national level to review ed with permission from
the present course structure of Ideas for India (www.ideas-
the EMoC (Emergency Obstet- forindia.in). It is based on
ric Care) initiative16 which all the author’s observations
the states could follow, thereby from the ongoing 3ie-fund-
ensuring homogeneity in train- ed IFMR LEAD study “Im-
ing content across the country. pact Evaluation of an Inter-
Fourthly, a separate cadre of vention to Reduce Maternal
obstetric nurses should also be Mortality in Kerala, India”,
formed. This would ensure that being conducted in part-
such trainings do not suffer from nership with the Nation-
administrative bottlenecks like al Health Mission, Kerala.
staff rotation. This would help
in retaining staff trained in such
methods within the delivery unit.
Therefore, if the administration
is able to adopt the core princi-
ples of RAFT and provide nec-
essary support to states for its
implementation, we can expect

14It has been observed that house surgeons are sometimes given the responsibility of filling up information
in the case sheets of mothers. This practice is part of their training and helps them to understand the doc-
umentation processes so that they are fully aware of their roles and responsibilities as future Obstetricians/
Gynecologists (OBGYN).
15The Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Societies of India (FOGSI) is the professional organisation
representing practitioners of obstetrics and gynecology in India. It comprises 241 member societies and over
33,000 individual members spread across the country.
16The EMOC is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, FOGSI, and the Indian Col-
lege of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.

EXPERT ARTICLE

About the author
Jithin Jose is a Senior Research Associate at IFMR LEAD.
Prior to LEAD, he worked with J-PAL South Asia in
Bengaluru, and has interned at the Asian Development
Research Institute (ADRI), Patna, and Centre for Devel-
opment Studies (CDS), Trivandrum. He has extensive
field experience in the research and implementation of
government programmes in the field of maternal health.
His research interests include public health and gender
issues. Jithin holds a B.A. (Hons.) in Economics from Shy-
am Lal College, Delhi University, and a Masters in Eco-
nomics from Gokhale Institute of Politics and
Economics, Pune.

IFMR Digest 30

Blood Moon by Lashron - IFMR 31 Issue 5, August 2018

EXPERT ARTICLE

Evidence for
the
Ultra-Poor
in Bihar

IFMR Digest 32

EXPERT ARTICLE

Targeting the Ultra-Poor The idea is to provide a “big
push” with the hope of
(TUP) Programme, consists of unlocking a poverty trap. The
six components, each designed programme was developed
to address specific constraints by the NGO BRAC in Bangla-
faced by the ultra-poor house- desh over the years, to engage
holds. This set of activities women-headed households
(participatory rural appraisal left out of the self-help group
for beneficiary selection, as- micro-loan model, and was
set-grant, enterprise training, then rigorously evaluated in
temporary consumption al- seven different countries.
lowance, savings encourage-
ment, health and education Evidence from six of these
information, and weekly men- evaluations were by J-PAL
toring) which was held for 24 affiliates, and the seventh
months to help households was by IPA in Bangladesh.
start a productive self-employ- The findings from Ethiopia,
ment activity and improve the Ghana, Honduras, India, Pa-
outcomes of health, food se- kistan, and Peru, were pub-
curity and overall well-being. lished in Science in 2015,

33

EXPERT ARTICLE

highlighting the gains in con- graduated out of extreme pov-
sumption, income and over- erty in 2017, through a USAID
all well-being. Results of all DIV funded policy project.
the studies are summarised in
a J-PAL and IPA Policy Bulle- This evidence has informed
tin. For the India evaluation, policy decisions by state gov-
held in West Bengal, the re- ernments, along with the op-
searchers went back to mea- erational and process details,
sure how durable the impact and understanding of the lo-
was on the households who cal context. In Rajasthan, the
had joined the programme State Rural Livelihoods Mis-
seven years back. This long- sion is funding Bandhan Kon-
term study found that house- nagar for 1,000 households
holds had increased gains in in Jhalawad district, and in
income and consumption, Jharkhand the Welfare De-
which showed the one-off in- partment is funding for 2,000
tensive support, had a dura- households in West Singh-
ble effect in pushing house- bhum and Dumka. Both these
holds out of extreme poverty. state governments are assess-
Policy outreach by J-PAL ing their local pilots and ex-
South Asia included presen- ploring how to expand TUP
tation of the impact which the to more households. The Gov-
TUP approach had on a num- ernment of Bihar has decided
ber of state governments, on using these evidence from
and study of the local context the randomised evaluations
of poverty and structures in to inform a large scale govern-
place to implement TUP. An ment implemented version of
additional segment included TUP, to address persistent ex-
our team completing process treme poverty with this one-
documentation at two policy off big push approach.
pilots: Kendrapara in Odis-
ha and Bhagalpur in Bihar,
where over 4,000 households

IFMR Digest 34

EXPERT ARTICLE 32

The Government of Bihar is leading the devel-
opment of a large scale-up of TUP, with tech-
nical assistance from Bandhan Konnagar at two
pilot sites in rural Bihar, and with a randomised
evaluation by J-PAL affiliates. The randomised
evaluation, for the first-time, will evaluate gov-
ernment-implementation (till now implementa-
tion had been by grassroots NGOs in multiple
countries around the world). This new version
of the programme is meant for co-design of op-
erations informed by both evidence as well as
the available apparatus of the state rural liveli-
hoods mission, in Bihar. The process evaluation
part of this research will be important to shape
a policy tool-kit for other state governments to
consider embedding TUP approach in their state
rural livelihoods mission’s set-up.

We’re excited at the multiple layers of engage-
ment, where a state government is understand-
ing and utilising scientific evidence of a pro-
gramme that addresses extreme poverty, and is
ready to work with partners to build up a ver-
sion that can be operationalised at large scale.
Such work will develop in phases over the years,
but we hope with a durability for the poorest of
the poor households, as well as for a system that
a government can sustain to graduate 100,000s
of households out of extreme poverty.

35 Issue 5, September 2018

EXPERT ARTICLE

About the author
Gautam Patel is a Senior Policy Manager at J-PAL South
Asia and works to build partnerships with policymakers
in the region to ensure that policy is driven by evidence
and effective programs are scaled up. Prior to joining
J-PAL South Asia in 2013, he worked in research and
management positions for governments in Gujarat,
Rajasthan, and Oxfordshire. Gautam graduated from
London School of Economics and Political Science in
2007 with a Masters of Development Management and a
concentration in India’s development, history, and pol-
itics. He also holds a Masters in Molecular and Cellular
Biochemistry from Oxford University (2003).

IFMR Digest 36

Daybreak by Anu Amruth - IFMR 37

COVER ARTICLE

Status of
Digital
Financial
Inclusion in
India

The launch of Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana (PMJDY),

a flagship program of the Modi Government, in 2014 gen-
erated a lot of hope for achieving financial inclusion in In-
dia. In addition to opening of bank accounts for unbanked
masses, PMJDY also aimed for providing Direct Benefit
Transfer (DBT) to beneficiaries of various welfare schemes

IFMR Digest Photo by Niels Steeman on
38 Unsplash

The latest data available on COVER ARTICLE
PMJDY portal shows that The rapid penetration of mo-
more than 32 crore bank ac- bile phones and emergence of
counts have been opened fintech firms in recent years
so far through which sav- have brought paradigm shift
ings balance to the tune of in the delivery of financial
over Rs.79,000 crore have services to the intended ben-
been mobilized. According eficiaries. India currently has
to Rangarajan (2008) Com- the 2nd highest number of
mittee Report financial in- mobile phone users (COAI
clusion is the “process of Annual Report, 2017-18) in
ensuring access to financial the world. The ubiquitous
services and timely and ad- mobile phone is no longer
equate credit where needed just a device for communi-
by vulnerable groups such cation but has become a fa-
as weaker sections and low cilitator in doing monetary
income groups at an afford- transactions with ease in to-
able cost.” Towards this end, day’s world. Mobile wallets
Bank Mitras have been roped have replaced leather wallets
in to provide timely branch- and soon the latter would be-
less banking services at the come a thing of the past. The
door step of account holders. diffusion of mobile telephony
has added further fillip to the
Increased process of financial inclusion
Digitization: in India. The Global Findex
Database 2017 documented
Over the last few years ad- that more than 50 percent of
vancements and innovations the unbanked population in
in digital technology space India have a mobile phone.
have enabled us to solve the Embracing this, the govern-
last mile problem of reaching ment has made Jan-Dhan-
out to account holders in re- Aadhaar-Mobile (JAM) trin-
motest parts of the country. ity the fulcrum of financial
inclusion in India. An inevi-

The RuPay debit card provided under PMJDY scheme to account holders comes with accident insurance
of INR 1 lakh and a life insurance cover of INR 30,000 (if account opened between Aug 15, 2014 and Jan 31,
2015).

COVER ARTICLE

table consequence of increased 2013 and the third wave was
digitization is cashless trans- conducted in 2015. It covered
action. A study conducted by nearly 45000 odd adults (15
The Institute for Business in years and above) across 22
the Global Context at Tufts states in India in each wave
University found that in India of the survey. It is a fairly
the total cost of cash intensive comprehensive survey which
economy measured in terms of captures access and usage of
ATM fees, opportunity cost of financial services of adults
obtaining cash, cash handling including their financial be-
charges, transportation costs haviour, financial literacy,
of cash etc. is as high as INR and adoption of mobile mon-
20,000 crore. Thus, the transi- ey. Thus, we used data per-
tion of an economy like India taining to a year (2013) prior
from a cash intensive economy to PMJDY and also for a year
to a cashless economy through (2015) post PMJDY. We esti-
digitization would favourably mated the impact of PMJDY
impact economic growth. by comparing the results for
2013 with that of 2015.
Usage of Digital Financial Ser- We measured usage of digital
vices financial services in terms of
Against this backdrop in a re- the following: ATM usage, in-
cent research paper we made an ternet banking usage, mobile
attempt to examine the impact banking usage, and mobile
of PMJDY on usage of digital money usage. An adult was
financial services (DFS) across considered to have used DFS
states in India. For the said pur- if he/she used at least one
pose we used micro-data avail- of these services ever in life.
able from the two waves viz. the Thus, we defined DFS usage
first and the third of Financial in a fairly loose way. Since, a
Inclusion Insight (FII) survey precondition for usage of DFS
conducted at a pan-India level is having a bank account we
by Intermedia. The first wave also examined bank account
of the survey was conducted in

IFMR Digest 40

COVER ARTICLE
access figures at the state-level for 2013 and 2015. As we
know PMJDY led to phenomenal increase in bank account
ownership. But this huge surge in bank account ownership
did not result in similar growth in DFS usage across states.

Key Findings : Table 1 presents the bank account access and

DFS usage figures across states for 2013 and 2015.
Column 1 and 3 show the proportion of adults who had access to
a bank account in their own name in 2013 and 2015 respectively.
Column 2 and 4 show the proportion of adults having a bank ac-
count who also used DFS services in 2013 and 2015 respectively.
From Table 1 it is evident that access to bank account or bank ac-
count ownership significantly increased between 2013 and 2015.

41 Issue 5, September 2018

COVER ARTICLE Way forward:
This happened predominant-
ly due to the bank account Some of the major factors which
opening drives undertaken inhibit adoption of DFS are as
by majority of the commercial follows:
banks under PMJDY from Au-
gust, 2014 onwards. However,  Lack of digital literacy
it is intriguing to find that such  Lack of trust in digital
phenomenal growth in bank
account ownership did not re- payments
sult in similar rate of growth of  Absence of broadband
DFS usage. As a matter of fact,
except Delhi in no other states internet facility in remote
there was any statistically sig- corners of the country
nificant increase in DFS usage  Lack of penetration of
digital payment systems
. Thus, PMJDY could not pro- like point-of-sale (POS)
mote DFS usage at least until devices in retail stores
2015. Interestingly the next  Unavailability of reliable
year in 2016, in an attempt to electricity and mobile net
crack down on black money, works
Modi Government went for  Quick authentication of
demonetization of INR 500 account ownership
and INR 1000 banknotes with
a hope that people would Thus, the introduction of
switch to digital payments Unified Payment Interface
for doing day-to-day transac- (UPI), *99# mobile banking ser-
tions. This disruptive policy vices of National Payment Cor-
measure of course led to in- poration of India (NPCI), BHIM
creased use of DFS in India. and other payment apps are the
right steps taken to encourage
adoption of digital payment
methods. Additionally, the
need of the hour is to ensure
data protection of account hold-

IFMR Digest 42

COVER ARTICLE
ers at all levels. This would eventually enable the banks to win
trust of their customers and as a result adoption of DFS would
become faster and spontaneous. Finally, financial products
should be tailored to the needs of the underprivileged sections
of the society to unleash the potential of increased digitization.

About the author:
Dr.Jyoti Prasad Mukhopadhyay works as an Assistant
professor in the Economics area at IFMR B-School and has
previously worked with IFMR Research and The World
Bank on various researchprojects. He graduated from
Delhi School of Economics with a Masters and complet-
ed his Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) at IFMR.

43 Issue 5, September 2018

STUDENT ARTICLE

How much could be
enough?

“Never test the depth of river
withboththefeet”-WarrenBuffet

A wise man once said, “If you cial institutions in the com-
are not willing to risk the un- ing financial year, as a risk
usual, you will have to settle for management enthusiast it is
the ordinary”. Well, true! How- intriguing to dive deepandun-
ever, what he did not mention derstand the possible impacts
was it’s of equal importance of the same on Indian banks.
to have the ability to efficient- At the same time, with IFRS
ly manage the risk! What’s the 9 reclassification and mea-
point in gulping down spicy surement, and impairments
food if you’re bad at digest- taking a toll on some of the
ing them as well as picking the major Non-US bank’s finan-
right medicine when in need! cial statements, understand-
Post the 2008 financial crisis, the ing IND AS 109 is albeit not
regulations of banking and fi- so pleasing, but pretty critical.
nancial institutions and efficient Before we try to understand
risk management of those enti- the possible impact of IND
ties have become a very import- AS 109 on Indian banks, lets
ant concern at the global level. quickly go through the ad-
As ICAI (The Institute of Char- vancements of financial reg-
tered Accountants of India) ulations in the last 10 years.
looks forward to implementing So, the aspect of minimum
the IND AS 109 Financial In- capital requirements that was
struments for the Indian finan- addressed in BASEL III, was

IFMR Digest 44

further stressed upon in IFRS 9. STUDENT ARTICLE
In the light of the global finan- due to be effective 2020 on-
cial crisis, the International wards, with an early adop-
Accounting Standards Board tion deadline of 1st January
(IASB) took a significant step 2019). IFRS 9 is effective for
towards simplifying the ac- annual periods beginning on
counting rules for identifying or after 1st January 2018 with
and classifying financial in- early applications permitted.
struments, reducing the com-
plexities associated with the The Major Nuances of
financial transactions made by IFRS 9: Forward-look-
the business entities through- ing expected loss model
out the world. With this ob- IFRS 9 introduced a signifi-
jective, International Financial cant improvement in terms
Reporting Standards 9 (Com- of impairment requirements
monly referred to as IFRS 9) over IAS 39. IFRS 9 pioneered
was published in July 2014. the idea of Expected Credit
IFRS 9 came into effect on 1st Loss. The basic underlying
January 2018 and is supposed concept behind this approach
to replace the prevailing IAS is that any improvement or
39 standards of accounting. deterioration in the credit
Business entities across the quality of an underlying fi-
world, apart from the US, look nancial instrument should be
forward for implementing reflected in terms of adjust-
IFRS in order to strengthen ed loss allowances. Hence,
their business model in terms the scope of impairment has
of reduced risk. (The Fi- been broadened by IFRS 9 as
nancial Accounting Standards compared to the IAS 39.
Board continues to build on
the idea of CECL, which is 45 Issue 5, September 2018

STUDENT ARTICLE

The IASB issued the impairment require-
mentsinJuly2014aspartofthefinalIFRS9and
set up an IFRS Transition Resource Group
for Impairment of Financial Instruments.
In the G20 London summit in 2009,
the commitment was made to con-
verge the Indian Accounting Stan-
dards with the then in-progress IFRS 9.
Although,theproceedingsgotpostponedin
2010-11, while presenting the union budget
of FY14-15 the hon’ble Minister of Finance,
Corporate Affairs and Information and
Broadcasting proposed to adopt IND AS.
Now, essentially, the classification and
measurement and impairment require-
ments of IND AS 109 Financial Instru-
ments are similar to that stated in IFRS 9.
Hence, it can be commented that under
the forward-looking expected loss model,
the loss allowances for the Indian financial
institutions would substantially increase.

IFMR Digest Photo by Bekir Dönmez on
46 Unsplash

STUDENT ARTICLE

Here, an important question arises- What is
the magnitude of such an impact? Can it actu-
ally be quantified?

The answer is Yes! It can be quantified.
However, the amount of information that we
need (includes business model of the enti-
ty, nature of contractual payments associat-
ed with the loan assets, classification criteria
of loan assets as performing or non-perform-
ing, credit risk parameter estimation tech-
niques etc.) to come up with an approximate
figure for the loss allowances is not made
available by most of the Indian banks as on
the current date. Also, this computation de-
pends on the company policies, micro and
macroeconomic factors and many other de-
pendent variables which require making a
bundle of informed and logical assumptions.
Not only the financial statements, the net NPA
(Non-Performing Assets, one of the trending
keywords in the financial newspapers for the
last few years!) of banks are also impacted to a
great extent. With the advent of the regulation,
the risk management approaches of the banks
would go through some serious acid tests.

47 Issue 5, September 2018

STUDENT ARTICLE

Clearly, the Indian banks are not going to have a nice
time, with the date of implementation of IND AS
109 Financial Instruments coming nearer (April 2019
it is, provided it does not get postponed…Again!)

In the underlying scenario, it is to see how efficient-
ly the financial institutions tackle the situation in order
to smoothen the impact of the regulation. And, banks
would have to make multiple important decisions in or-
der to align their profitability strategies, operational ef-
ficiency as well as sound risk management techniques.

IFMR Digest 48

STUDENT ARTICLE

Article by Kabyayan – Batch 18
49 Issue 5, September 2018

CSOTUNDTENTSARTICLE

Two months into IFMR

It all started for me on the sweltering afternoon of 1st June.

The heat was unbearable, humidity out of the world. It was a
combination of sweat, heat, and too much of Sunshine. Still,
I was there, standing like a knight in shining armour, staring
numbly at the place which was going to be my home, school,
college, university and everything for the coming two years.
It’s been two months since and I am sitting in the comfort of
my room writing this piece. Wise men had once rightly said
“smooth sailing does not make a good captain, it is the rough
seas,incessantrainsandabatteredshipwhichbringsthebestout
of someone”. I find the same happening with me here at IFMR.

At the time of induction, we were fortunate enough to
come across Industrial stalwarts like Mr. Vikas Mehta,
Managing Director (Talent) Deloitte Consulting India Pri-
vate Limited, Guest of Honour Mr. T A Varghese, Glob-
al Business, HR Head, Tata Consultancy Services, and
Dr Sunder Ramaswamy Vice-Chancellor, Krea Universi-
ty. There was a small briefing by Professor Kamal Ghosh
Ray, Acting resident Director, IFMR B-School and Dr Vi-
nodh Madhavan Chairperson – PGP, IFMR B-School.
We were also fortunate to attend a 4 days’ workshop by “Hi
Happy Monk and Team” led by Shounak Chakraborty, a
leading Corporate Motivation Guru. We were given sessions
on managing time, stress and negativity. Key Takeaways

IFMR Digest 50 Photo by Anu Amruth - IFMR