Survival of the Richest: The India Story

The Delhi-based Oxfam India published this India supplement of the Survival of the Richest report on January 15, 2023. It was written by Apoorva Mahendru, Kanishk Gomes, Mayurakshi Dutta, Noopur, and Pravas Ranjan Mishra, researchers working with Oxfam. Quoting the World Inequality Report 2022, this paper states that India’s rising poverty and wealthy elite make it one of the most unequal countries in the world. The paper states that India has around 228.9 million people living in poverty, making it the country with the largest number of poor people. At the same time, the number of billionaires in the country increased from 102 in 2020 to 166 in 2022. The wealth of the top 10 richest people in India showed a 32.8 per cent rise over 2021 figures. Despite this, the top 10 per cent account for only three to four per cent of the total goods and services tax (GST) collected as compared to the bottom 50 per cent who contribute almost two-thirds (64.3 per cent) of it. Recommendations of the paper include progressive taxation to reduce the stark income inequality in the country...