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With research staff from more than 60 countries, and offices across the globe, IFPRI provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries.

researcher spotlight

Kalyani Raghunathan

Kalyani Raghunathan is Research Fellow in the Poverty, Gender, and Inclusion Unit, based in New Delhi, India. Her research lies at the intersection of agriculture, gender, social protection, and public health and nutrition, with a specific focus on South Asia and Africa. 

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IFPRI currently has more than 600 employees working in over 80 countries with a wide range of local, national, and international partners.

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Development Strategies and Governance

Avinash Kishore

Senior Research Fellow

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Bio

Avinash Kishore is a Senior Research Fellow in the Development Strategies and Governance Unit, based in IFPRI’s South Asia Office in New Delhi. His research focuses on understanding how public policies and markets affect the adoption and non-adoption of sustainable technologies and practices in agriculture in South Asia. He leads research projects on understanding food systems in Bangladesh, India, and Nepal and the policy research component of the Cereals Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA)—a program implemented jointly by CIMMYT, IFPRI, and IRRI. Avinash also studies agriculture-nutrition linkages in India and the rising consumption of highly processed foods and food away from home.

Avinash joined IFPRI in 2012. He started his research career at the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), where he worked on the energy-irrigation nexus in India. He is a founding board member of the Research Institute for Compassionate Economics (r.i.c.e.). Avinash has a PhD in Public Policy from Harvard University and a master’s degree in Public and International Affairs from Princeton University. He studied at the Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA).

Languages spoken: Hindi, English

Publications

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Publications

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Conference Paper

Climate shocks and fertilizer responses: Field-level evidence for rice production in Bangladesh

2024Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Kishore, Avinash; Kumar, Anjani
Details

Climate shocks and fertilizer responses: Field-level evidence for rice production in Bangladesh

The fertilizer response of yield has been one of the major indicators of agricultural productivity in both developed and developing countries. Filling the evidence gap remains vital regarding fertilizer response in Asia, particularly in South Asia, given the evolution and emergence of new challenges, including intensifying climate shocks. We aim to partly fill this knowledge gap by investigating the associations between climate shocks and fertilizer response in Bangladeshi rice production. Using three rounds of nationally representative farm household panel data with plot- level information, we assess fertilizer response functions regarding rice yield and how the shapes of these response functions are heterogeneous in relation to anomalies in temperatures, droughts, and rainfall. We find robust evidence that climate anomalies have adverse effects on fertilizer responses, including higher temperatures for the Boro and the Aman irrigated systems and higher temperatures and droughts for the Aman rainfed systems. These findings hold robustly under various fertilizer response function forms, i.e., polynomial function and stochastic Linear Response Plateau. Furthermore, results for stochastic Linear Response Plateau are also consistent for both switching regression type models and Bayesian regression models. JEL Codes: Q01, Q12, Q01, Q19

Year published

2024

Authors

Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Kishore, Avinash; Kumar, Anjani

Citation

Takeshima, Hiroyuki; Kishore, Avinash; and Kumar, Anjani. 2024. Climate shocks and fertilizer responses: Field-level evidence for rice production in Bangladesh. 32nd International Conference of Agricultural Economists Conference, August 2-7, 2024, New Delhi, India. http://dx.doi.org/10.22004/ag.econ.344280

Country/Region

Bangladesh

Keywords

Asia; Southern Asia; Climate Change; Crop Production; Fertilizers; Rice

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Project

Agroecology

Record type

Conference Paper

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Conference Paper

Remoteness, farm production, and dietary diversity in Nepal

2024Singh, Tushar; Kishore, Avinash; Alvi, Muzna
Details

Remoteness, farm production, and dietary diversity in Nepal

This paper explores the relationship between agriculture, dietary diversity, and market access in Nepal, testing the complex causal chains involved, and the nuanced connections between production diversity and dietary diversity among smallholder farmers. While diversifying farm production could enhance dietary diversity, the case of Nepal indicates a varied and context specific relationship. Market access emerges as a crucial factor, often exerting a more significant impact on smallholder farm households than production diversity. Access to markets not only influences economic viability but also contributes directly to food and nutrition security, offering a practical solution to address dietary needs. Focusing on Nepal’s diverse terrain, the study analyzes the interplay of remoteness, market access, irrigation availability, and complementary inputs in shaping farmers’ decisions, providing valuable insights into sustainable agricultural strategies for improved dietary outcomes in low- and middle-income countries. JEL Codes: D13, I15, O12, Q10, Q12, Q18

Year published

2024

Authors

Singh, Tushar; Kishore, Avinash; Alvi, Muzna

Citation

Singh, Tushar; Kishore, Avinash; and Alvi, Muzna. 2024. Remoteness, farm production, and dietary diversity in Nepal. 32nd International Conference of Agricultural Economists Conference, August 2-7, 2024, New Delhi, India. http://dx.doi.org/10.22004/ag.econ.344288

Country/Region

Nepal

Keywords

Asia; Southern Asia; Agriculture; Dietary Diversity; Households; Market Access; Smallholders

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Conference Paper

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Conference Paper

Rural electrification and the changing energy irrigation nexus in Bihar

2024Beniwal, Ezaboo; Kishore, Avinash
Details

Rural electrification and the changing energy irrigation nexus in Bihar

Over the past few decades Agricultural irrigation in South Asia has emerged to be dominantly groundwater sourced. The size and structure of a region’s groundwater economy is closely intertwined with its energy economy. Until only a few years ago, diesel was the main source of energy for groundwater irrigation in the region while farmers in the rest of South Asia had access to subsidized or free electricity to operate their pumps. With rapid improvements in rural energy supply, this energy-divide is now disappearing. This has potential to change the area’s groundwater energy nexus. Farmers in Bihar, a populous state of India, have installed more than 200 thousand electric pumps for irrigation since 2015. We use data from a representative sample of 1440 farmers from the state to assess the pattern of electrification of groundwater irrigation and its impact on pump ownership, water markets, and water use in agriculture. Electrification of irrigation is skewed towards west and south Bihar. On average, electric pump owners have smaller landholdings than diesel pump owners and they charge significantly lower irrigation fees from water buyers. However, three out of four pump owners report not selling water from their pumps. Farmers using electric pumps—owned or rented—irrigate their crops more intensively and have higher cropping intensity. Near free electricity for irrigation may undermine the fiscal and environmental sustainability of the irrigation led agricultural growth in Bihar.

Year published

2024

Authors

Beniwal, Ezaboo; Kishore, Avinash

Citation

Beniwal, Ezaboo; and Kishore, Avinash. 2024. Rural electrification and the changing energy irrigation nexus in Bihar. 32nd International Conference of Agricultural Economists Conference, August 2-7, 2024, New Delhi, India. http://dx.doi.org/10.22004/ag.econ.344383

Country/Region

India

Keywords

Asia; Southern Asia; Electrification; Energy; Nexus Approaches; Rural Areas

Language

English

Access/Licence

Open Access

Source

Source record

Record type

Conference Paper

Blogs

Indian diets fall short of EAT-Lancet reference recommendations for human and planetary health
IFPRI Blog
 | 
July 21, 2020

Indian diets fall short of EAT-Lancet reference recommendations for human and planetary health

By Manika Sharma, Avinash Kishore, Devesh Roy, Kuhu Joshi, and Khiem Nguyen

Research provides guideposts for tracking India's double burden of malnutrition.

Agriculture in India's budget: Paying farmers keeps them poor
IFPRI Blog
 | 
March 02, 2020

Agriculture in India’s budget: Paying farmers keeps them poor

By Avinash Kishore

Potential problems with the PM-Kisan direct benefit transfer program.

Why farmers in India adopt certain technologies but ignore others
IFPRI Blog
 | 
July 06, 2018

Why farmers in India adopt certain technologies but ignore others

By Avinash Kishore

Poor science communication and distortionary subsidies slow diffusion of better seeds and farming methods. 

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Events

South Asia Launch | Nepal | 2024 Global Food Policy Report: Food Systems for Healthy Diets and Nutrition
Series/Special Event

 | 

August 8 to 9, 2024

South Asia Launch | Nepal | 2024 Global Food Policy Report: Food Systems for Healthy Diets and Nutrition

Despite significant progress in addressing hunger and undernutrition in the early 2000s, malnutrition, in all its forms, remains a major challenge in all regions of the world. Unhealthy diets remain the primary drivers of many forms of malnutrition, including undernutrition, overweight and obesity, micronutrient deficiencies, and diet- related noncommunicable diseases. Today, the number of people […]

32nd International Conference of Agricultural Economists
IFPRI at External Event

 | 

August 2 to 7, 2024

32nd International Conference of Agricultural Economists

The triennial International Conference of Agricultural Economists (ICAE-2024), centred on the theme “Transformation Towards Sustainable Agri-Food Systems” is scheduled from August 2-7, 2024, in New Delhi, India. The conference offers a distinctive platform, providing a golden opportunity for the agricultural academic institutions and researchers to convene in person, exchange knowledge, and actively contribute to the […]

2024 GFPR India Launch
Series/Special Event

 | 

July 4, 2024, 10:00 – 5:20 pm

2024 GFPR India Launch

Unhealthy diets are a major driver of all forms of malnutrition, including undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, and overweight and obesity. At the same time, our food systems contribute about a third of greenhouse gas emissions and degrade natural resources. The 2024 Global Food Policy Report examines policies, innovations, and governance solutions to strengthen diet quality and […]

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News

July 29, 2023 | In the News

India’s food price inflation raises risks for Narendra Modi’s government (Financial Times) 

“This surge in food inflation has become a swelling source of concern for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, which last week banned exports of several rice varieties after weeks of public anger over high prices, writes the Financial Times.  “When it comes to food trade, no government — Modi or anyone — takes a longer-term […]

February 02, 2023 | In the News

A digital push for agri but with less funds (Live Mint) 

A new digital infrastructure for farmers and an accelerator fund to encourage startups were among the major announcements in India’s latest budget, writes Live Mint in a story. The digital public infrastructure for agriculture will be built as an open-source public good that will enable farmer-centric solutions. The proposed digital agri-stack will aid farmers with […]

November 22, 2020 | In the News

The peculiar rise of protein inflation (Livemint)

Live Mint published an article on how supply chain disruption in poultry continues, further hurting the nutritional standards of poorer households. An IFPRI study found high prices of eggs, in particular, also threaten to worsen the nutritional standards of poorer households. Cereals constitute about 47% of the average Indian diet and 70% of the calorie consumed by the poorest […]

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