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Governments worldwide administer social programs for vulnerable
groups, yet many eligible citizens fail to benefit. This paper studies
barriers to take-up of an unconditional cash transfer program for
poor women in Delhi, India, where only one-third of eligible individuals
were enrolled. In a randomized experiment with eligible
women, providing program information alone increased applications
only among the literate. Adding basic or intensive application
assistance, however, raised average application rates by 41%
and 70%, respectively, and expanded access among more vulnerable
women. These results suggest that application ordeals can limit
take-up by those with high need.
