Impact of income inequality:

These income disparities have had many socio- economic impacts on India’s population. It is estimated that 300 million Indians live in abject poverty. This is the largest number in the world and is one of the major impacts of income inequalities in the country. India also has the highest number of homeless people. Additionally, the gap between the rich and the poor has created “Club States” with Gujar at, Punjab and other rich states forming the richest clubs, whilst Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar and other such states being left behind in terms of development. Access to social amenities such as decent shelter, clean water, nutrition and food as well as healthcare and education has become difficult for the poor in India. The situation is the exact opposite in the rich regions. Healthcare access has worsened amongst the poor with high maternal and infant mortality rates being experienced in the poorer regions. The list above on causes and effects of income inequality in India is inexhaustible.

Regional disparities have also skyrocketed. The per-capita expenditure gap between rural and urban areas jumped from 63 per cent in 1993-94 to 84 per cent in 2011-12. The gap between villages in the richest and poorest states increased from 35 to 68 per cent, and that between their urban citizens rose from 36 to 45 per cent.These obscene class and regional inequalities result from a severely skewed distribution of assets, including land and capital, access to education, coupled with growth imbalances, painfully slow job creation and worsening income distribution which favours the rich. The top 10 per cent of India’s wage-earners make almost five times more than the median 10 per cent but this median makes just 40 per cent more than the bottom tenth.

Children born to parents in low income areas are at higher risk of child mortality and disease. According to data from UNICEF, 28 percent of Indian children born between 2006 and 2010 were underweight at birth, and approximately 48 percent of children under the age of 5 were affected by moderate to severe growth stunting as a result of malnutrition.