Abstract:

The Mukhyamantri Balika Cycle Yojana is a conditional cash transfer (CCT) scheme of the Bihar government in India that awards Rs. 2000 to every student enrolled in standard IX in a government high school to purchase a bicycle. While media and quantitative studies purport the scheme to have been immensely successful in raising enrollment and curbing dropout rates, qualitative findings based on interviews with beneficiaries, their families, school and government officials also realize important psycho-social benefits. With regards to implementation, however, there appear consistent gaps in deployment. Funds are usually delayed and the entire allotment for disbursement seldom comes. This paper documents institutional processes and fund flows in the implementation of the scheme and assesses its qualitative impact from field notes and personal interviews conducted in a sample of government high schools and madrassas in Purnea district, Bihar. It recognizes and appraises the distribution of bicycles as effective policy and efficient investment in education while also highlighting the procedural problems in deploying the scheme.

Keywords:

Conditional cash transfer, innovation, education, enrollment, accountability, transparency, service delivery.