India lives in her hamlets: asymmetric caste segregation and last-mile inequality

<jats:p>'India lives in her villages' is among the most globally recognized demographic adages. The village is the elementary spatial demographic unit in administrative praxis and sociological inquiries centred on rural India. However, intra-village spatial segregation is a principal element of India's caste-based agrarian social order. The typical Indian village consists of several perfectly segregated hamlets that are spatialized caste units. We use unique administrative data containing rich demographic and public goods information from the universe of nearly 1.7 million rural hamlets to develop the first ever nationwide portrait of intra-village caste segregation. We document significant asymmetries between how Dalits and 'upper' caste residents experience segregation. On average, Dalits (formerly 'untouchable' caste groups) live in more diverse villages than 'touchable' groups. The marginalization and stigmatization of Dalit groups are related to intra-village rather than inter-village segregation. Over 90% of the spatial variation in public goods placement is accounted for by intra-village variation between segregated hamlets. We complement our large-n quantitative analysis with qualitative fieldwork to delineate mechanisms that undergird this 'last-mile inequality' in the discretionary placement of state-provided public goods. Local public goods placement is central to the making, remaking, and maintenance of both spatial and symbolic boundaries that demarcate 'touchables' from 'untouchables'. Our results force a rethink of India's elementary spatial unit of analysis and show how 'India lives in her caste hamlets' rather than in her villages.</jats:p>