Agricultural growth and the structure of ‘casual’ labour‐hiring in rural West Bengal

There are two main arguments in this article. First, if wages and employment are to be used as indicators of changing levels of rural poverty they need to be complemented by micro and meso level studies of how increases or declines in wages and employment are distributed among individuals and households. Secondly, if the nature of the relationship between employer and labourer is to be understood, aggregates such as ‘casual’ labour need to be unravelled. Evidence from a study of two small localities in rural West Bengal between 1991 and 1993 suggests that the poorest workers receive the lowest remuneration across a range of informal contracts, including daily time‐rate, piece rate, seasonal beck‐and‐call and migrant labour arrangements. Levels of remuneration are also determined by locally specific ideologies of gender and social rank and by party politics.     

Plain tales from the rice trade: Indications of vertical integration in foodgrain markets in Bangladesh

Through a series of case studies of the interactions between foodgrain traders and between traders and producers, this article questions the widespread belief that foodgrain markets in Bangladesh are characterised by low trading margins, no vertical integration and a general competitive health. The article indicates that merchant's capital plays two key roles in the market (i) in some areas of the country, the provision of merchant's credit deprives the poor producer of access to the market price for his or her output; (ii) working capital extended to subordinate traders may also enable a small group of large traders to influence prices. Further case studies of the interaction between traders and the state food distribution system indicate ways in which the private market may be able to frustrate or limit policies intended to regulate its operation. These insights suggest that the domination of merchant's capital may be one factor explaining low levels of productivity in the Bangladesh countryside. They also raise questions about the consequences of policies intended to increase the role of private trade in the economy.