Divine Intervention: State Capacity, Public Goods and Decentralized Religious Institutions in Rural India

Spring 2023 GGR Recipient

Avantika Prabhakar (Economics)

I study the interaction of state capacity and an underexplored religious institution – religious cults that center around one figure of authority. I will investigate how the emergence of these cults impact state provision of public services, household voting patterns and if they subvert or reinforce democratic processes.