<p>Inequality is a fact of social and economic life all over the world. It pervades other areas of life too. There have been conclusions based on studies that show that primitive societies were less unequal and that civilisation and what is described as progress may have widened the gulf among people and groups of people. The idea has led to responses of various kinds at individual and collective levels, which range from altruistic sentiments to ideologies to political and social actions to policies and practices of governance that seek to reduce inequality. Inequality is also measured statistically now and the Gini coefficient, the globally accepted measure, has shown a progressive increase in inequality. India is among the most unequal societies in the world. The latest World Inequality Report shows that the top 10% of the country’s population holds 57% of the national income and the bottom 50% receives just 13.1%. The top 1% accounts for as much as 22% of wealth and income. </p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/opinion/panorama/fault-lines-in-economic-landscape-and-the-great-labour-shakeup-1060169.html" target="_blank">Fault lines in economic landscape and the great labour shakeup</a></strong></p>.<p>The report describes India as a "poor and very unequal country, with an affluent elite’". The middle class holds about 29.5% of the national income. The gap between the rich and the poor has grown over the years, especially after the 1980s, and the pandemic has made it wider. According to Pew Research, the middle class shrank by about 32 million people as a result of it. At the global level, the top 10% holds 52% of the world’s income and the bottom 50% about 8%. Developing countries, mainly in South America, Africa and Asia, account for a large part of the global inequality. Latin America, the Middle East and North Africa are the most unequal, with the bottom 50% owning just 1%. But that should be no consolation for India. </p>.<p>The usual excuses that inequality is a way of life and poverty has always been a fact of life cannot justify the deprivation suffered by many millions of people. About 25% of the people in India are absolutely poor and the country has been sliding on the hunger index. Even a fraction of a per cent means millions of poor and hungry people, and today’s one per cent is much more than a per cent some years ago. The report shows that the world is as unequal now as it was at the height of imperialism in the early 20th century. If today's poor man is as poor as his forefather was 100 years ago, what have liberation, development and progress done for him? Inequality has many dimensions in India because it is complicated by divisions based on religion, caste and other parameters. It should be realised that growing inequality and rising poverty will have serious consequences if they are left unaddressed.</p>.<p><strong>Check out DH's latest videos:</strong></p>
<p>Inequality is a fact of social and economic life all over the world. It pervades other areas of life too. There have been conclusions based on studies that show that primitive societies were less unequal and that civilisation and what is described as progress may have widened the gulf among people and groups of people. The idea has led to responses of various kinds at individual and collective levels, which range from altruistic sentiments to ideologies to political and social actions to policies and practices of governance that seek to reduce inequality. Inequality is also measured statistically now and the Gini coefficient, the globally accepted measure, has shown a progressive increase in inequality. India is among the most unequal societies in the world. The latest World Inequality Report shows that the top 10% of the country’s population holds 57% of the national income and the bottom 50% receives just 13.1%. The top 1% accounts for as much as 22% of wealth and income. </p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/opinion/panorama/fault-lines-in-economic-landscape-and-the-great-labour-shakeup-1060169.html" target="_blank">Fault lines in economic landscape and the great labour shakeup</a></strong></p>.<p>The report describes India as a "poor and very unequal country, with an affluent elite’". The middle class holds about 29.5% of the national income. The gap between the rich and the poor has grown over the years, especially after the 1980s, and the pandemic has made it wider. According to Pew Research, the middle class shrank by about 32 million people as a result of it. At the global level, the top 10% holds 52% of the world’s income and the bottom 50% about 8%. Developing countries, mainly in South America, Africa and Asia, account for a large part of the global inequality. Latin America, the Middle East and North Africa are the most unequal, with the bottom 50% owning just 1%. But that should be no consolation for India. </p>.<p>The usual excuses that inequality is a way of life and poverty has always been a fact of life cannot justify the deprivation suffered by many millions of people. About 25% of the people in India are absolutely poor and the country has been sliding on the hunger index. Even a fraction of a per cent means millions of poor and hungry people, and today’s one per cent is much more than a per cent some years ago. The report shows that the world is as unequal now as it was at the height of imperialism in the early 20th century. If today's poor man is as poor as his forefather was 100 years ago, what have liberation, development and progress done for him? Inequality has many dimensions in India because it is complicated by divisions based on religion, caste and other parameters. It should be realised that growing inequality and rising poverty will have serious consequences if they are left unaddressed.</p>.<p><strong>Check out DH's latest videos:</strong></p>
