"The book is concerned with development economics, agricultural economics, and development studies. The author has made a valuable contribution in the area of agrarian markets in rural India." --Vikalpa "This book is interesting in view of the impressive field work carried out by the author and the richness of the empirical data presented." --Development and Change The phenomenon of interlinked agrarian markets is essentially a manifestation of the survival strategies of the rural poor and explains the weakness of their bargaining power. Sarap sets out to prove this thesis in Interlinked Agrarian Markets in Rural India. By exploring the structures of the agricultural credit market in India, he analyzes the implications of these interlinked markets and the factors affecting the distribution of formal credit among different classes of borrowers, including small and marginal farmers, tenant cultivators and landless laborers. Based on a detailed study of six villages in Orissa, Sarap discusses the nature and extent of different types of interlinked credit transactions among the various sections of borrowers and identifies the household characteristics associated with these linkages. He evaluates several prevailing hypotheses pertaining to the informal credit market as it affects laborers and tenants in rural India. Sarap"s study brings forth many policy implications, including reducing the transaction costs of loans; improving the collection of arrears; and curbing the influence of large farmers in credit institutions by plugging loopholes in the by-laws of cooperatives and by giving adequate representation to poorer farmers in the management of these institutions. Even though some reforms have been initiated in the formal credit structure, the benefits to the poor farmers are not yet commensurate with their numbers. In view of this, mechanisms must be developed to improve the access of the rural poor to the credit market on better terms.