Income Inequality

2023 income inequality exceeded 1950s levels in India, says report

The Gini coefficient measures the extent to which the distribution of income among individuals or households within an economy deviates from a perfectly equal distribution

Indian billionaires: The rise of the few sparks concern about equality

The super-rich increasingly hold more of the national income; their wealth has grown by 263% to $905.6 bn in a decade

78th Independence Day: 5th largest economy needs growth to trickle down

India's population reached close to 1.5 billion in 2024, according to data from the United Nations, but the average annual growth rate has slowed down to below replacement level

India needs new poverty line for estimating extent of deprivation: Debroy

We still do not have an official (definition of) poverty line that goes beyond the Tendulkar Committee, says Debroy

India may remain poor even after becoming 3rd largest economy: Ex-RBI chief

Even after becoming the third largest economy in the world by 2029 as envisaged by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India may still be a poor country and therefore there is no reason for celebration, former Reserve Bank Governor D Subbarao said here on Monday. Addressing a gathering at a book launch programme, Subbarao also said, citing Saudi Arabia, that becoming a rich country does not necessarily mean becoming a developed nation. Recalling PM Modi saying that if he returns to office, India will become the third-largest economy before 2029 -- before the end of his third term, he said many economists predict that the country would become the third largest after the US and China, much sooner. In my view, that is possible (India becoming the third-largest economy), but it's not a celebration. Why? We are a large economy because we are 1.40 billion people. And people are a factor of production. So we are a large economy because we have people. But we are still a poor country, Subbarao ..

Best of BS Opinion: Use of tech data, fuss over income inequality, more

Here is the best of Business Standard's opinion pieces for today

Why this fuss about income inequality?

Most Indians do not care about the income gap between the top 1 per cent and the rest. They have their own logic that merits listening

Many countries bouncing back from Covid-19 but poorest are not: UN report

Many countries are bouncing back from the COVID-19 pandemic, but the poorest are not and a significant number are seeing conditions deteriorating, a report from the UN Development Progamme said on Wednesday. Achim Steiner, head of the agency, said that after two decades during which rich and poor countries were coming closer in terms of development, the finding is a very strong warning signal that nations are now drifting apart. The Human Development Index that the agency has produced since 1990 is projected to reach record highs in 2023 after steep declines during the pandemic years of 2020 and 2021. But development in half of the world's poorest countries remains below 2019 pre-pandemic levels, the report said. It's a rich person's versus a poor person's world in which we are seeing development unfolding in very unequal, partially incomplete ways, Steiner said at a news conference. Why does this matter? Not only because it creates more vulnerability, it creates also more misery a

Modi govt intends to put India in high-income category, says Kiren Rijiju

Union minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday said the focus of the Narendra Modi government in its third term would be on putting India in the higher-income category for it to be counted amongst the developed countries of the world. In a video interview, Rijiju told PTI that a per capita income of USD 18,000 would be required for India to be counted among the world's developed countries and it would be the Modi government's endeavour in its third term to put the nation in the higher-income category. He said despite lagging on many counts, the prime minister's "aggressive and inspiring" leadership has catapulted India into another league in the global comity of nations. "The whole world looks at India as a leader except that we are not a high-income country yet. But our status has reached here," the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said. Rijiju slammed the previous Congress governments for "not delivering" on basic necessities, such as toilets, bank accounts for people, food security,

Putting rural India first

Amarjeet Sinha draws on four decades of work experience as a bureaucrat, offering valuable lessons for effective programme delivery in poverty reduction and gender empowerment in his book

'Discontents' notwithstanding, India has done well in last quarter century

While India should be concerned about disparities, the fact is that whereas three decades ago about half the people had incomes greater than $2.15 a day, today seven out of eight do, writes T N Ninan

Uneven growth

Income inequality can affect development

India among top countries with high income, wealth inequality: UNDP report

India has emerged among top countries with high income and wealth inequality but the share of the population living in multidimensional poverty fell from 25 to 15 per cent between 2015-16 and 2019-21, the UNDP said in a new report. The 2024 Asia-Pacific Human Development Report, launched on Monday, paints a qualified picture of long-term progress but also persistent disparity and widespread disruption, foreseeing a turbulent development landscape and urgently calling for new directions to boost human development. In India, between 2000 and 2022, per capita income soared from USD 442 to USD 2,389. Whereas, between 2004 and 2019, poverty rates (based on the international poverty measure of USD 2.15 per day) plummeted from 40 to 10 per cent. Titled Making our Future: New Directions for Human Development in Asia and the Pacific', the new report argues that unmet aspirations, heightened human insecurity, and a potentially more turbulent future create an urgent need for change. Moreover,

Inclusive growth a global challenge: Sonal Varma at BS BFSI Summit 2023

At the BS BFSI Insight Summit 2023, economists unanimously said that the global economy is facing difficulties and there is no room for complacency in India

WEF 2022: How Web3 will level the playing field and unlock income equality

After the sun and human aspiration, the world's most abundant resource is data and Web3 gives us a new way to compartmentalize and monetize it.

Governments need to take urgent action to combat inequality, says Oxfam

The combination of COVID-19, rising inequality, and rising food prices could push as many as 263 million people into extreme poverty in 2022, Oxfam said

Dollar millionaires in India rise 11% in pandemic-hit 2021: Survey

Dollar millionaires or those possessing a personal wealth of over Rs 7 crore rose by 11% to 4.58 lakh households in India at the end of the pandemic-hit 2021, says a survey.

What should the government do to address deepening inequality?

A recent survey claimed that the annual income of the poorest 20% of Indian households dropped by 53% in 2020-21 from their levels in 2015-16. This report tries to delve into the reasons behind it

Wealth of richest 98 same as bottom 552 million, says Oxfam report

4% tax on the wealth can fund mid-day meal for 17 years

India 'poor and very unequal' with affluent elite: World Inequality Report

Fruits of economic reforms monopolised by the elite: World Inequality Report