IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/wdevel/v201y2026ics0305750x2500381x.html

Can indigenous political representation improve forest conservation? India’s experience

Author

Listed:
  • Agarwal, Bina
  • Roy, Shamindra Nath
  • Sharma, Shiva Chakravarti

Abstract

Can political representation by indigenous communities – often seen as stewards of forests – help enhance forest conservation? Or would indigenous political control over forests catalyse greater extraction for revenue gains? Does the level of representation matter? This paper addresses these under-researched questions, drawing on India’s multi-layered enactments which granted Scheduled Tribes political representation, and hence influence over local resources including forests, in constituencies reserved for them in state assemblies and village councils.

Suggested Citation

  • Agarwal, Bina & Roy, Shamindra Nath & Sharma, Shiva Chakravarti, 2026. "Can indigenous political representation improve forest conservation? India’s experience," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 201(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:201:y:2026:i:c:s0305750x2500381x
    DOI: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2025.107295
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305750X2500381X
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.worlddev.2025.107295?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to

    for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Rohini Pande, 2003. "Can Mandated Political Representation Increase Policy Influence for Disadvantaged Minorities? Theory and Evidence from India," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 93(4), pages 1132-1151, September.
    2. Kathryn Baragwanath & Ella Bayi, 2020. "Collective property rights reduce deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon," Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 117(34), pages 20495-20502, August.
    3. Timothy Besley & Rohini Pande & Vijayendra Rao, 2005. "Political Selection and the Quality of Government: Evidence from South India," STICERD - Political Economy and Public Policy Paper Series 08, Suntory and Toyota International Centres for Economics and Related Disciplines, LSE.
    4. Kumar, Sanjay, 2002. "Does "Participation" in Common Pool Resource Management Help the Poor? A Social Cost-Benefit Analysis of Joint Forest Management in Jharkhand, India," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 30(5), pages 763-782, May.
    5. Nandini Krishnan, 2007. "Political Reservations and Rural Public Good Provision in India," Boston University - Department of Economics - The Institute for Economic Development Working Papers Series dp-175, Boston University - Department of Economics.
    6. Deng, Xiangzheng & Huang, Jikun & Uchida, Emi & Rozelle, Scott & Gibson, John, 2011. "Pressure cookers or pressure valves: Do roads lead to deforestation in China?," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 61(1), pages 79-94, January.
    7. Francesca Refsum Jensenius, 2015. "Development from Representation? A Study of Quotas for the Scheduled Castes in India," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 7(3), pages 196-220, July.
    8. Stephen T. Garnett & Neil D. Burgess & Julia E. Fa & Álvaro Fernández-Llamazares & Zsolt Molnár & Cathy J. Robinson & James E. M. Watson & Kerstin K. Zander & Beau Austin & Eduardo S. Brondizio & Neil, 2018. "A spatial overview of the global importance of Indigenous lands for conservation," Nature Sustainability, Nature, vol. 1(7), pages 369-374, July.
    9. Chin, Aimee & Prakash, Nishith, 2011. "The redistributive effects of political reservation for minorities: Evidence from India," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 96(2), pages 265-277, November.
    10. Sam Asher & Paul Novosad, 2017. "Politics and Local Economic Growth: Evidence from India," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 9(1), pages 229-273, January.
    11. Timothy Besley & Rohini Pande & Vijayendra Rao, 2005. "Political Selection and the Quality of Government: Evidence from South India," STICERD - Political Economy and Public Policy Paper Series 08, Suntory and Toyota International Centres for Economics and Related Disciplines, LSE.
    12. Bardhan Pranab K. & Mookherjee Dilip & Parra Torrado Monica, 2010. "Impact of Political Reservations in West Bengal Local Governments on Anti-Poverty Targeting," Journal of Globalization and Development, De Gruyter, vol. 1(1), pages 1-38, January.
    13. Agarwal, Bina, 2013. "Gender and Green Governance: The Political Economy of Women's Presence Within and Beyond Community Forestry," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199683024.
    14. Dunning, Thad & Nilekani, Janhavi, 2013. "Ethnic Quotas and Political Mobilization: Caste, Parties, and Distribution in Indian Village Councils," American Political Science Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 107(1), pages 35-56, February.
    15. Saad Gulzar & Nicholas Haas & Benjamin Pasquale, 2023. "Does Political Affirmative Action Work, and for Whom? Theory and Evidence on India’s Scheduled Areas," Springer Books, in: Ashwini Deshpande (ed.), Handbook on Economics of Discrimination and Affirmative Action, chapter 32, pages 729-759, Springer.
    16. BenYishay, Ariel & Heuser, Silke & Runfola, Daniel & Trichler, Rachel, 2017. "Indigenous land rights and deforestation: Evidence from the Brazilian Amazon," Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 29-47.
    17. Banerjee, Abhijit & Somanathan, Rohini, 2007. "The political economy of public goods: Some evidence from India," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 82(2), pages 287-314, March.
    18. Bonilla-Mejía, Leonardo & Higuera-Mendieta, Iván, 2019. "Protected Areas under Weak Institutions: Evidence from Colombia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 585-596.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Chitra Jogani, 2022. "Effect of Political Quotas on Attributes of Political Candidates and Provision of Public Goods," Eastern Economic Journal, Palgrave Macmillan;Eastern Economic Association, vol. 48(2), pages 267-316, April.
    2. Das, Sabyasachi & Mukhopadhyay, Abhiroop & Saroy, Rajas, 2023. "Does affirmative action in politics hinder performance? Evidence from India," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 214(C), pages 370-405.
    3. Bhattacharjee, Shampa & Roy Chaudhuri, Arka, 2024. "Electoral quotas and developmental outcomes: Evidence from India," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 85(C).
    4. Anirban Mitra, 2018. "Mandated Political Representation and Redistribution," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 85(338), pages 266-280, April.
    5. Sabyasachi Das & Abhiroop Mukhopadhyay & Rajas Saroy, 2018. "Does Affirmative Action in Politics Hinder Performance? Evidence from India," Working Papers 1007, Ashoka University, Department of Economics.
    6. Elizabeth Kaletski & Nishith Prakash, 2017. "Can Elected Minority Representatives Affect Health Worker Visits? Evidence from India," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 21(1), pages 67-102, February.
    7. Nagarajan, Hari K. & Deininger, Klaus & Jin, Songqing, 2011. "Can political reservations affect political equilibria in the long-term? Evidence from local elections in rural India," Proceedings of the German Development Economics Conference, Berlin 2011 59, Verein für Socialpolitik, Research Committee Development Economics.
    8. Girard, Victoire, 2018. "Don’t Touch My Road. Evidence from India on Affirmative Action And Everyday Discrimination," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 1-13.
    9. Kaletski, Elizabeth & Prakash, Nishith, 2016. "Does Political Reservation for Minorities Affect Child Labor? Evidence from India," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 50-69.
    10. Munshi, K., 2017. "Caste and the Indian Economy," Cambridge Working Papers in Economics 1759, Faculty of Economics, University of Cambridge.
    11. Lahoti, Rahul & Sahoo, Soham, 2020. "Are educated leaders good for education? Evidence from India," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 176(C), pages 42-62.
    12. Kumar Das, Pranab & Kar, Saibal & Kayal, Madhumanti, 2011. "Religious Minorities and Provision of Public Goods: Evidence from Rural West Bengal," IZA Discussion Papers 6154, IZA Network @ LISER.
    13. Abhiroop Mukhopadhyay, 2012. "The political economy of implementing the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme in India," Global Development Institute Working Paper Series esid-015-12, GDI, The University of Manchester.
    14. Ao, Chon-Kit & Chatterjee, Somdeep, 2018. "The Effects of Political Reservations on Credit Access and Borrowing Composition: New Evidence from India," GLO Discussion Paper Series 227, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    15. Das, Sabyasachi & Mukhopadhyay, Abhiroop & Saroy, Rajas, 2017. "Efficiency Consequences of Affirmative Action in Politics: Evidence from India," IZA Discussion Papers 11093, IZA Network @ LISER.
    16. Elizabeth Kaletski & Nishith Prakash, 2016. "Affirmative action policy in developing countries: Lessons learned and a way forward," WIDER Working Paper Series wp-2016-52, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    17. Astghik Mavisakalyan & Yashar Tarverdi, 2023. "Identity and support for policies towards Indigenous people: evidence from Australia," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 167(1), pages 535-570, June.
    18. Elizabeth Kaletski & Nishith Prakash, 2016. "Affirmative action policy in developing countries: Lessons learned and a way forward," WIDER Working Paper Series 052, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    19. Klaus Deininger & Songqing Jin & Hari K. Nagarajan & Fang Xia, 2015. "Does Female Reservation Affect Long-Term Political Outcomes? Evidence from Rural India," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 51(1), pages 32-49, January.
    20. Dilip Mookherjee, 2014. "Accountability of local and state governments in India: an overview of recent research," Indian Growth and Development Review, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 7(1), pages 12-41, April.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:wdevel:v:201:y:2026:i:c:s0305750x2500381x. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/worlddev .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.