We study the impact of the COVID‐19 lockdown in 2020 on the monthly savings of self‐help groups (SHGs) in India, and the role of SHGs in mitigating the economic effects of the lockdown. Administrative data suggest that monthly savings of SHGs declined by 66% between March and July of 2020, with larger declines in areas with more stringent lockdowns. Survey data revealed that SHG and non‐SHG households had similar consumption and income losses during the lockdown. Households with SHG members and those that received assistance from SHGs in procuring ration or accessing community kitchens reported significantly higher food security, however.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.