15% of Indians earn less than Rs 5,000 a month: report
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The latest report by the Economic Advisory Council says around 15% of India's working population is earning less than Rs 5000 per month. Citing the vast income distribution disparity, the report said the top 1% population of the country earns 5-7% of the entire national income.
The State of Inequality in India Report was submitted to the Prime Minister to show the gaps in society that need to be addressed. It also showed a concerning trend in which the income of the top 1% keeps growing, and the bottom 10% is shrinking.
The average income of a working Indian is quoted as Rs 25,000 by the Council. The top 10% of the population falls in this wage bracket. This also accounts for about 30-35% of the total income.
The report has recommended using the principles of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005 (MGNREGA) in urban areas.
The income disparity is notably worse in rural areas and a huge part of India's population lives in rural areas. A recent report by the World Bank also suggested that India needs policies aimed at bringing a larger proportion of the population out of poverty.
The State of Inequality in India report also recommends adopting universal basic income (UBI), a policy proposal that enables all citizens of the country to regularly receive an equally set financial transfer grant from the government. In such a scenario, a basic income will be implemented nationally, regionally, and locally without doing an income test.
The report noted that the overall conditions of households, adequate water supply and sanitation, have been improved. But, measures for income parity, poverty, and employment are in need of significant improvement, reported NDTV.
54.9% of the households in the country fall in the bottom proportion of wealth concentration. The National Family and Health Survey (NFHS) 2015-16 data had also shown a big wealth gap between rural and urban spaces.
