Context: Recently, The State of Inequality in India Report was released by Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM).

About the report

• Written by the Institute for Competitiveness, it presents a holistic analysis of the depth and nature of inequality in India.
• The report compiles information on inequities across sectors of health, education, household characteristics and the labour market.
• It consisted of two parts – Economic Facets and Socio-Economic Manifestations.
• The data is derived from various rounds of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS), National Family and Health Survey (NFHS) and UDISE+.
• It explains the current state of affairs, areas of concern, successes and failures in terms of infrastructural capacity and finally, the effect on inequality.
• Significance: It will help formulate reform strategies, a roadmap for social progress and shared prosperity.

Key findings of the report

• In 2019-20, the highest percentage was of self-employed workers (45.78%), followed by regular salaried workers (33.5%) and casual workers (20.71%).
• The country’s unemployment rate is 4.8% (2019-20), and the worker population ratio is 46.8%.
• Improved and increased infrastructural capacity in rural areas.
• There has been an increase in the number of Sub-Centres, Primary Health Centres, and Community Health Centres,
• Women and children received postnatal care from auxiliary doctor or nurse.
• Nutritional deprivation in terms of overweight, underweight, and prevalence of anaemia remains areas of huge concern requiring urgent attention.
• Education and household conditions have improved enormously due to targeted efforts through several social protection schemes.
• The Gross Enrolment Ratio has increased between 2018-19 and 2019-20 at the primary, upper primary, secondary and higher secondary.
• In terms of improvement in household conditions, emphasis on providing access to sanitation and safe drinking water has meant leading a dignified life for most households.

Wealth concentration has worsened

• A 44.4% wealth concentration in the highest quintile in urban areas is contrasted with a meagre 7.1% concentration in that in rural India.

Key Recommendations

• Creating income slabs that provide class information
• Establishing universal basic income
• Creating jobs, especially among the higher levels of education
• Increasing the budget for social protection schemes

By: Shubham Tiwari