The survey data contain four measures of household experience with the COVID-19 pandemic from an economic perspective. These measures, summarized in Table 1, include indicators for (i) lost wages because of the COVID-19 lockdown; (ii) return of migrant household members during the COVID-19 lockdown; (iii) delayed purchases due to the COVID-19 lockdown; and (iv) loans taken during the COVID-19 lockdown. Many households experienced various types of economic disruptions during the first COVID-19 lockdown. A quarter of households had migrant members return; 86% lost wages; three quarters held off on purchases; and nearly half took loans. Using this data, we define two measures of economic COVID-19 disruption: (i) a continuous count (ranging from 0 to 4) of the number of economic disruptions (return of migrants, lost wages, delayed purchases, and loan taking) a household experienced during the first COVID-19 lockdown and (ii) an indicator for households that experienced at least two economic disruptions during the first COVID-19 lockdown. The average household in our sample experienced 2.3 economic disruptions as a result of the COVID-19 lockdowns, and approximately 80% of the sample experienced at least two economic disruptions. While we also have data on lost wage and loan amounts, due to reporting inconsistencies we use only the indicator variables for having experienced lost wages or taken loans in our construction of economic COVID-19 disruptions.
Dimensions of economic COVID-19 disruption
| . | Mean . | Standard deviation . | Minimum . | Maximum . | Observations . |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return migrants (%) | 25.1 | 0 | 1 | 897 | |
| Lost wages (%) | 85.9 | 0 | 1 | 886 | |
| Lost wages (Rs.) (among impacted) | 12,459 | 11,789 | 1,000 | 80,000 | 308 |
| Delayed purchases (%) | 77.0 | 0 | 1 | 880 | |
| Loan (%) | 49.3 | 0 | 1 | 897 | |
| Loan amount (Rs.) (by takers) | 55,976 | 76,147 | 1,000 | 600,000 | 442 |
| . | Mean . | Standard deviation . | Minimum . | Maximum . | Observations . |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return migrants (%) | 25.1 | 0 | 1 | 897 | |
| Lost wages (%) | 85.9 | 0 | 1 | 886 | |
| Lost wages (Rs.) (among impacted) | 12,459 | 11,789 | 1,000 | 80,000 | 308 |
| Delayed purchases (%) | 77.0 | 0 | 1 | 880 | |
| Loan (%) | 49.3 | 0 | 1 | 897 | |
| Loan amount (Rs.) (by takers) | 55,976 | 76,147 | 1,000 | 600,000 | 442 |
Notes: Return migrants refer to the percent of households that had migrants return during the COVID-19 lockdown in spring 2020. Lost wages refer to the percent of households that reported losing wages due to the COVID-19 lockdown in spring 2020. Lost wages (Rs) were calculated among households that reported lost wages due to the COVID-19 lockdown in spring 2020. Delayed purchases refer to the percent of households that held off on household purchases as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown. Loan refers to the percent of households that reported taking loans as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Loan amount (Rs.) is calculated among households that reported taking loans due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Share practicing social restrictions refers to households that limited social interactions to immediate neighbors, family members, and household members during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Source: All data are from the endline household survey wave collected in December 2020–January 2021.