India is now among the most unequal countries in the world, according to updated data used in the World Inequality Report. Inequality, which has been widening across a number of countries since the 1980s, has worsened in the aftermath of the COVID crisis, reveals a report prepared by the World Inequality Lab, authored by Lucas Chancel and coordinated by Thomas Piketty, among others.

The COVID pandemic has exacerbated even more global inequalities, the report adds. “Our data shows that the top 1 per cent took 38 per cent of all additional wealth accumulated since the mid-1990s, with acceleration since 2020.”

Updated data for India, in particular, shows that the top 1 per cent of Indians now own 33 per cent of the country’s wealth compared to 31.7 per cent previously. The top 10 per cent own 64.6 per cent of the country’s wealth. The share of the bottom 50 per cent now stands at 5.9 per cent, down from 6 per cent earlier. 

The average household wealth in India stands at Rs 9,83,010. “The bottom 50 per cent own almost nothing, with an average wealth of Rs 66,280,” the report says. 

Income inequality in India also remains wide but has not worsened over the past year, the data shows. The top 1 per cent of Indians earn 21.7 per cent of pre-tax national income. The top 10 per cent earn 57.1 per cent. The share of the bottom 50 per cent in pre-tax national income is at 13.1 per cent.