Rachel M. Gisselquist is Professor in Governance and Development, and Director, Governance and Social Development Resource Centre (GSDRC), University of Birmingham, UK.Anustup Kundu is an Associate Researcher at UNU-WIDER and a Visiting Researcher at the University of Helsinki.Kunal Sen is Professor of Development Economics in the Global Development Institute, University of Manchester, and former Director of UNU-WIDER.

• 1 The subnational state and the impact of COVID-19 across India 2 The COVID-19 pandemic and state myopia in Bihar 3 The social foundations of (in)effective states: the COVID-19 pandemic and Uttar Pradesh’s response 4 State capacity in mitigating health emergencies: a case study of COVID-19 response in West Bengal 5 The role of state capacity and clientelism in shaping COVID-19 pandemic responses in Kerala 6 Pandemic precarity, state capacity, and governance fault lines: interrogating the paradoxical case of Maharashtra 7 Concluding thoughts

Rachel M. Gisselquist is Professor in Governance and Development, and Director, Governance and Social Development Resource Centre (GSDRC), University of Birmingham, UK.Anustup Kundu is an Associate Researcher at UNU-WIDER and a Visiting Researcher at the University of Helsinki.Kunal Sen is Professor of Development Economics in the Global Development Institute, University of Manchester, and former Director of UNU-WIDER.

• 1 The subnational state and the impact of COVID-19 across India 2 The COVID-19 pandemic and state myopia in Bihar 3 The social foundations of (in)effective states: the COVID-19 pandemic and Uttar Pradesh’s response 4 State capacity in mitigating health emergencies: a case study of COVID-19 response in West Bengal 5 The role of state capacity and clientelism in shaping COVID-19 pandemic responses in Kerala 6 Pandemic precarity, state capacity, and governance fault lines: interrogating the paradoxical case of Maharashtra 7 Concluding thoughts

Rachel M. Gisselquist is Professor in Governance and Development, and Director, Governance and Social Development Resource Centre (GSDRC), University of Birmingham, UK.Anustup Kundu is an Associate Researcher at UNU-WIDER and a Visiting Researcher at the University of Helsinki.Kunal Sen is Professor of Development Economics in the Global Development Institute, University of Manchester, and former Director of UNU-WIDER.

• 1 The subnational state and the impact of COVID-19 across India 2 The COVID-19 pandemic and state myopia in Bihar 3 The social foundations of (in)effective states: the COVID-19 pandemic and Uttar Pradesh’s response 4 State capacity in mitigating health emergencies: a case study of COVID-19 response in West Bengal 5 The role of state capacity and clientelism in shaping COVID-19 pandemic responses in Kerala 6 Pandemic precarity, state capacity, and governance fault lines: interrogating the paradoxical case of Maharashtra 7 Concluding thoughts