Wheels of power: Long-term effects of the Bihar cycle programme

Abstract

The Bihar government introduced a programme in 2006 to give cash to grade 9 girls to buy bicycles to go to school. Based on a survey undertaken in 2016, this article shows that beneficiaries were more likely to complete their education, look for productive jobs outside agriculture, and delay marriage. However, a lot of them were not permitted to work or did not find suitable jobs. The Mukhyamantri Balika Cycle Yojana was initiated by the government of Bihar in 2006. Under the scheme every girl who enrolled in grade 9 would receive a cash amount to buy a cycle, which she would use to go to school. The idea was that since school density is low and girls drop out of school, having a cycle reduces the time to reach distant schools. So without much investment you are able to bring the school closer. The initial reports of the scheme were very favourable. It worked without much misuse: Enrolment increased by over 30% in the first year itself (Muralidharan and Prakash 2017); leakages from the scheme were below 5% (Ghatak, Kumar and Mitra 2016). These results are impressive enough. Yet, a girl on a cycle is not just a girl going to school: she signifies a change in society and the rise of new social norms and aspirations. To assess the impact of the cycle programme as a mere increase in enrolment numbers would limit the scope of the scheme. The total impact must include an assessment of the changes in attitudes of both males and females towards the role of girls and women in society. It is in this broader context that we study the long-term impact of the cycle programme (Mitra and Moene 2017; International Growth Centre (IGC) research). Read more at: https://www.ideasforindia.in/topics/social-identity/wheels-of-power-long-term-effects-of-the-bihar-cycle-programme.html