Research

1. Climate-Change , Infectious Disease Risks and Behavior in Developing Countries

The threat of increased risks of malaria, in consequence of the apprehended climate-change across the globe, is a highly debatable area that contemporary research is inquiring into from diverse perspectives viz. epidemiology, economic damage estimation , public health priorities etc. The differences in the basic theoretical principles underlying these varying research approaches often confound each other and add haze to the ongoing climate-malaria debate. The primary aim of this research is to focus on the behavioral dimensions to the climate-malaria association and understand their implications for malaria risks in developing countries. More precisely, given that malaria is largely preventable, I look into the demand-side issues to infectious disease control in developing countries broadly in the context of climate-change. Besides, given the externality dimension to malaria control, possible interactions across private and public ( government-level) disease control efforts comprise a related area of importance for my study.The theoretical framework is chiefly based on the principles of non-market valuation. But, the literature on economic epidemiology also informs the theoretical characterization adequately. For an empirical analysis of the research question, currently, a survey protocol is being developed for collection of primary health-related data from the state of West Bengal in India.

2. Infectious Diseases across the States in India: An Integrated Framework to Understand the Role of Climatic and Non-climatic Factors

The paper is an attempt at understanding the role of climatic and non-climatic factors in explaining observed changes in the prevalence and distribution of two infectious diseases viz. malaria and diarrhea across the States and Union Territories of India over the period of 1997-2002. State-level panel data on climatic variables like temperature, rainfall etc , and socio-economic, health-infrastructure, and other covariates are considered. This paper uses Fixed and Random Effects Models to explain the prevalence and distribution of the said diseases across the country. The ultimate motivation lies in exploring the association between climate-sensitive diseases and changing climatic patterns in India.

3. Growing Indian Cities, Climate-Change Threats and Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases: Is the City Man Concerned?

Fast growing Indian cities serve as core business nerves, emboldening the economy in the global economic network. However, the soaring stresses on the urban systems raise important questions of sustainability. Of the development dimensions of relevance, this paper particularly focuses on the area of sustainable health protection of the city residents. Vector-borne infectious diseases (like malaria, dengue etc) comprise a major public health burden in India that threaten the urban areas considerably ( approx. 10 % in case of malaria). Often unplanned urban expansions, inadequate sewage etc. lead to increased vector breeding, thus, threatening disease spread. Further challenges emerge when scientists apprehend that climate-change may further alter disease range and intensity (IPCC Fourth Assessment Report, 2007). This paper recognizes the need for well-informed adaptation strategies to counter such threats and make cities healthier. However, rather than a supply-side view of health management, I take a demand-side perspective. The paper theoretically analyzes how best may a rational city-dweller choose her adaptive (or protective) strategies to maximize well-being in the face of the diseases at hand which are preventable. Individual decision-making and formation of risk-perceptions are analyzed in a continuous-time optimal-control framework. The paper concludes by envisioning the possibilities of an empirical extension and the latent econometric challenges.