Affirmative Action in India: Restricted Strategy Space, Complex Constraints, and Direct Mechanism Design
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2023-11-22
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Economics
Abstract
Since the 1950s, India has instituted an intricate affirmative action program
through a meticulously designed reservation system. This system incorporates
vertical and horizontal reservations to address historically marginalized groups’ socioeconomic imbalances. Vertical reservations designate specific quotas of available
positions for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, and
Economically Weaker Sections. Concurrently, horizontal reservations are employed
within each vertical category to allocate positions for additional subgroups, such as
women and individuals with disabilities. In educational admissions, the legal framework
recommended that unfilled positions reserved for the OBC category revert to
unreserved status. Moreover, we document that individuals from vertically reserved
categories have more complicated preferences over institution-vertical category position
pairs, even though authorities only elicit their preferences over institutions. To
address these challenges, the present paper proposes a novel class of Generalized
Lexicographic (GL) choice rules. This class is comprehensive, subsuming the most
salient priority structures discussed in the extant matching literature. Utilizing the GL
choice rules and the deferred acceptance mechanism, we present a robust framework
that generates equitable and effective solutions for resource allocation problems in the
Indian context.
Comments
JEL Classification: C78, D02, D47, I38
Length: 41 pages
Original Release Date: October 4, 2023
Revision: November 1, 2023
Latest Revision: November 22, 2023
Copyright 2023, The Authors
Length: 41 pages
Original Release Date: October 4, 2023
Revision: November 1, 2023
Latest Revision: November 22, 2023
Copyright 2023, The Authors