Overview

• The government cites a fall in India’s consumption-based Gini index from 28.8 in 2011–12 to 25.5 in 2022–23 to claim a fourth-place global ranking in equality.
• The World Bank’s own brief warns that consumption surveys often miss high-income households and may understate real disparities.
• Data from the World Inequality Database indicates income inequality rose with the Gini coefficient climbing from 52 in 2004 to 62 in 2023.
• Leading economists including Thomas Piketty report the top 1% earned 22.6% of national income and held 40.1% of wealth in 2022–23, while the bottom half controlled just 6.4% of wealth.
• Editorials and analysts are calling for the use of tax records alongside surveys and adoption of broader metrics to inform redistributive policies.