World Bank Report – ‘Poverty and Equality’
▪ According to a World Bank report, Inequality in India has come down significantly between 2011-12 and 2022-23, making it the fourth-most equal country globally.
▪ This is in addition to a sharp decrease in extreme poverty, which has dropped from 16.2% in 2011- 12 to 2.3% in 2022-23.
▪ India’s Gini Index stands at 25.5 in 2022-23 from 28.8 in 2011-12, making it the fourth most equal country in the world, after the Slovak Republic, Slovenia and Belarus.
▪ The report also pointed to various government initiatives that have helped drive this transformation.
▪ The PM Jan Dhan Yojana has widened financial inclusion with over 55 crore bank accounts.
▪ Aadhaar, the national digital ID system, now covers more than 142 crore people, making welfare delivery through Direct Benefit Transfers more efficient and saving Rs 3.48 lakh crore by March 2023.
▪ Schemes like Ayushman Bharat, which offers Rs 5 lakh health cover and has issued over 41 crore cards, has also improved healthcare equity.
▪ Schemes like Stand-Up India support SC/ST and women entrepreneurs, while the PM Vishwakarma Yojana helps artisans with loans and training.
▪ The PMGKAY(Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana) food security programme has supported more than 80 crore people
About Gini Index
▪ The Gini Index helps in understanding how equally income, wealth or consumption is distributed across households or individuals in a country.
▪ It ranges in value from zero (Perfect inequality) to 100(Maximum inequality).
▪ The higher the Gini Index, the more unequal a country is.
