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Context:
India was recently ranked among the world’s most equal societies based on the Gini Index, scoring 25.5, placing it in the moderately low inequality category. However, this stands in stark contrast to the multiple forms of inequality that continue to shape everyday life in India.
What is the Gini Index?
- A statistical measure of income inequality ranging from 0 (perfect equality) to 100 (perfect inequality).
- Lower values suggest a more equal distribution of income.
Key Concerns and Highlights:
- Mismatch Between Data and Reality:
- The Gini Index under-reports inequality due to its reliance on limited formal tax and income data.
- India’s large informal economy and non-taxable income segments are excluded, creating a distorted picture.
- Wealth Inequality:
- In 2022–23, the top 1% held 22.6% of national income, according to the study “Income and Wealth Inequality in India, 1922–2023.”
- The absence of comprehensive wealth data further masks the extent of inequality.
- Gender Inequality:
- Women account for only 35.9% of the workforce.
- At senior and middle management levels, representation drops to 12.7%.
- Only 7.5% of startups are run by women, despite India having the world’s 3rd largest startup ecosystem.
- Digital Inequality:
- Only 52.7% schools have functional computers; just 53.9% have internet access.
- Combined household broadband access across India is 41.8%.
- In rural areas, only 25% of women have internet access, compared to 49% of men.
- Interlinked Inequalities:
- Digital inequality fuels educational inequality, especially during virtual schooling phases due to weather or pollution.
- Gender gaps in digital access restrict women’s access to financial services, job opportunities, and information, compounding gender and economic inequality.
