ABSTRACT
This empirical chapter tightens the lens of observation even further and examines the impact of aid on food security using personally collected household and individual data. I conducted the field research in north-western India, close to the Nepali border. The choice to conduct the study in India was driven by my desire to study in more depth the ‘South Asian enigma’, in which India’s food-insecurity levels have remained high despite rapid economic growth in the past few decades. The specific locality was selected in response to finding an aid organisation implementing a multi-sector development project that allowed me and my research assistant access to its project beneficiaries. The fact that this organisation works in Uttar Pradesh made the choice quite suitable for the purpose of my study, as Uttar Pradesh is one of India’s most food-insecure states (IIPS, 2007).
