Hello Ji, It's Me: The Economic Impact of Mobile Technology in Rural India

Abstract

The role of technology in Indian society and economy has been widely-discussed and debated. Existing literature points to the benefits that information and communications technology (ICT) bestows, not just on India, but on developing countries across the world. However, despite the hype that surrounds the ubiquity and efficacy of the mobile phone in India, the role of mobile technology has been studied only through the lens of narrow regional examples (such as Jensen's study of Kerala fishermen and their mobile phones) and never in a comprehensive way that includes all the mechanisms by which mobile technology can impact the lives and livelihoods of rural Indian citizens. In this thesis, I pursue a broader picture of mobile technology's positive impact on the economic outcomes of rural Indians by using mixed-methods (a combination of in- depth case studies, interviews and state- and national-level data). Specifically, I argue that the increased access to information that mobile technology provides leads to better economic outcomes through three mechanisms. These are 1) improved prediction and capture of demand, 2) enhanced production processes and increased productivity, and 3) improved access to general education and literacy tools. Not only do I demonstrate that these trends are validated at the hyper-local level through the use of case studies - namely, companies that enable rural Indians to achieve these very goals using mobile platforms - but I also show that there is strong evidence hinting that these mechanisms also wield influence on the state and national levels. Through empirical analysis, I find that price dispersion is lower in states with higher mobile penetration, that there is increased demand for and utilization of production-specific information via mobiles in these states, and finally, that national productivity and yield of crops increase with increased mobile penetration. I conclude by connecting the economic influence of mobile technology to the current Indian government's vision for a "Digital India". Given the ambitions of the digital public service delivery programs currently being debated, designed and implemented, I suggest that the utilization of mobile platforms, over other forms of technology, is an idea worth considering.