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Lost in Partition? Culture, Ethnicities and Education from the British Raj to Modern Pakistan

If early childhood exposure to shocks influences educational outcomes, how long does the effect last, and does it differ among ethnic groups? This study answers these questions by presenting a theoretical model that explains the differentiated impact of a shock on different ethnic groups, and by exploiting the historical experiment of partition, i.e., the splitting of the British Raj into India and Pakistan. We use different rounds of Pakistan social and living standard measurement (PSLM) survey from 2007- 08 to 2015-16 and compare, first, the educational outcomes for the cohorts that are born at partition time. Partition has had a negative impact on the probability of being educated, and this is even more marked for Sindhi-speaking people, revealing differentiated impacts across ethnic groups. Second, we analyze the data for the grandchildren of partition (i.e., whose grandparents were born during the partition). We show that the scar from partition lasts for long, as this generation is also impacted. Yet, if the disadvantage of being Sindhi remains, Punjabi-speaking people in Punjab are the relatively most affected ones in Punjab, a feature that reveals different strategies of adaptation of ethnic and cultural groups over the long run.

Author(s): 
Maqsood Aslam* Etienne Farvaque† Muhammad Azmat Hayat‡
Language: 
English
URL: 
bit.ly/3dSwd8F
Publisher/Sponsor: 
Laboratory of Economics and Management (LEM), Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa, Italy