No Country With 28% Poverty Can Claim High Equality, Says Congress
The Indian National Congress has sharply rebutted the government’s recent assertion that India ranks as the fourth most equal nation based on its Gini index, emphasizing that such a claim is baseless while nearly 28.1% of the population lives in poverty.
Poverty Equality
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh condemned the government’s selective use of World Bank data, stating that no country with a poverty rate above 28% can reasonably be considered highly equal. He called the public relations narrative “staggeringly out‑of‑touch” and accused the government of intellectual dishonesty in presenting consumption-based equality as representative.
Data Concerns
Ramesh noted that using the $3 per day poverty threshold understates the real extent of deprivation. Under the globally recognized $3.65 per day benchmark, India’s poverty rate stands at 28.1%. He also highlighted inconsistencies: in 2023–24, the top 10% earned 13 times more than the bottom 10%—a clear indicator of inequality. Concerns were also raised about the change in purchasing power parity (PPP) baselines and sampling methods, potentially masking rising consumption inequality.
Benchmark Manipulation
The Congress accused the government of mixing consumption data for India with income data for other countries to inflate India’s equality ranking. Citing global metrics, Ramesh asserted India would rank around 176th in income equality, revealing stark disparities that consumption surveys alone cannot reflect.
Policy Proposals
To address the twin evils of poverty and inequality, the party urged strengthening welfare programs—like MGNREGA, food security initiatives, and social safety nets—while including 10 crore more households under coverage. It also called for an updated population census and reforms to the tax and subsidy systems to make them more progressive.
