Report: Billionaires increased by 300% in 10 years, public income decreased by 50%; Economic inequality emerging as a warning

Recent analyses by Credit Suisse Wealth Report and Forbes India reveal that India's billionaire count has surged by over 300% in the past decade. Meanwhile, over half the population's real income has stagnated or declined. This growing inequality threatens the social fabric, as economic benefits are increasingly confined to the wealthy. Oxfam International's 'Survival of the Richest' report states that roughly $11.6 trillion of India's total wealth is held by just 1% of the population.

The Global Inequality Report further indicates that the top 10% of Indians earn about 57% of the nation's income, while the bottom 50% receive only 13%. Nobel laureate Thomas Piketty warns that if the income and wealth gap persists, democracy may become a tool for the wealthy. Joseph Stiglitz, author of 'The Price of Inequality,' emphasizes that when most resources are concentrated in a few hands, the rest become marginalized, leading to economic instability. 

The Credit Suisse Wealth Report notes that wealth inequality in India has roots going back to post-independence reforms like the abolition of zamindari, which primarily benefited a limited elite with access to industry, business, and politics. 

The economic reforms initiated in 1991 opened doors for private capital, corporations, and global investments, but the immediate gains largely favored those with advanced technology, capital, and education, rather than workers or rural communities. 

Over the past decade, the BSE-Sensex has surged dramatically, vastly increasing the wealth of the rich. Simultaneously, more than half the population, dependent on labor, agriculture, and the unorganized sector, has seen minimal income growth.