Inequality in earnings has doubled in
India over the last two decades, making
it the worst performer among all
emerging economies, says a new OECD
report. It also says that 42% of Indians
live below the poverty line, as against
the official figure of 37%.
The Organisation for Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD)
says the top 10% of wage-earners make
12 times more than the bottom 10%,
compared to six times 20 years ago.
The OECD says India has the highest
number of poor in the world.
Some 42% of its 1.21 billion people
live on less than $1.25 a day.
Poverty line
"Brazil, Indonesia and, on some
indicators, Argentina have recorded
significant progress in reducing
inequality over the past 20 years,"
the report, entitled Divided
We Stand: Why Inequality Keeps Rising,
says.
"By contrast, China, India, the
Russian Federation and South Africa
have all become less equal over time."
In India, the report says, the ratio
between the top and the bottom
wage-earners has doubled since the
early 1990s.
India has also not fared well in
poverty reduction, the report says.
It says 42% of Indians live below the
poverty line, as against the official
Indian figure of 37%.
The Paris-based OECD is a grouping of
34 advanced and emerging economies.
Recently, the Indian government was
criticised for saying that an
individual income of 25 rupees (52 US
cents) a day would help provide for
adequate "private expenditure on food,
education and health" in villages.
In cities, it said, individual
earnings of 32 rupees a day (66 US
cents) were adequate.
Many experts said the income limit to
define the poor was too low and aimed
at artificially reducing the number of
people below the poverty line.
A World Bank report in May said
attempts by the Indian government to
combat poverty were not working.
It said aid programmes were beset by
corruption, bad administration and
under-payments.
