ISSN (Print) - 0012-9976 | ISSN (Online) - 2349-8846

Articles by Ashish SinghSubscribe to Ashish Singh

Socio-economic Inequality in Longevity in India

Two new indices, the index of representation in longevity and the index of socio-economic inequality in longevity, are presented for examining socio-economic inequality in longevity in India. The India Human Development Survey data from the 2004–05 and 2011–12 rounds are used to investigate socio-economic inequality based on caste, occupation, economic classes, and geographic regions. The findings suggest that India suffers from substantial socio-economic inequality in longevity with the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Muslims being worst off. Groups such as agricultural and non-agricultural labourers, petty traders, and lower economic classes were substantially under-represented in longevity. Regionally, the south and west have over-representation, whereas the central, east, and north-east have under-representation in longevity. 

Exclusion within the Excluded

An investigation into the trends in economic disparities within the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes for the past three decades (1983-2012) shows that the economic disparity ratio has increased substantially for both SCs and STs. The increase is much more in the case of the SCs. The economic inequality (Gini coefficient) has increased for both SCs and STs in urban India. In rural areas, it has increased for the SCs but has remained almost the same for the STs. In the post-economic reforms period (1993-2012), there is an unambiguous increase in inequality among both SCs and STs, and in the interstate inequality within the SCs and STs, for both rural and urban areas.

How Close Does the Apple Fall to the Tree?

Using data from the India Human Development Survey 2005, this paper examines intergenerational occupational mobility in India, an issue on which very few systematic and rigorous studies exist. It groups individuals into classes and documents patterns of mobility at the rural, urban and all-India levels, and for different caste groups. It finds substantial intergenerational persistence, particularly in the case of low-skilled and low-paying occupations, e g, almost half the children of agricultural labourers end up becoming agricultural labourers. The paper also documents differences across caste groups. Overall, the results suggest considerable inequality of opportunity in India.

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