Productivity growth in Indian agriculture: is there evidence of convergence across states?
研究了1973-1993年间印度14个主要农业邦的全要素生产率增长，发现不存在σ趋同，但存在条件β趋同，且高绩效邦向趋势缓慢移动，低绩效邦波动更大。
This paper explores the question of convergence in total factor productivity (TFP) in agriculture across fourteen major agricultural states of India. Using a Törnqvist–Theil index for TFP growth for the period 1973–1993, we find no evidence to support convergence to a single TFP level (σ-convergence). After grouping the various states on the basis of their productivity performance, we find that the high-performing states show a gradual movement towards the trend, whereas the low-performing states generally show more volatility. Testing for long-run convergence in levels of agricultural productivity, we find evidence of conditional beta-convergence after controlling for state-specific factors and idiosyncratic year-specific volatility. The results are robust to alternative specifications of tests of unit root in panel data developed recently.