India: 4th Most Equal Country – World Bank Report (Spring 2025 Poverty and Equity Brief)

World Bank Report (Spring 2025 Poverty and Equity Brief) Key Highlights:

• Gini Index (2022-23): 25.5

  • Ranks 4th globally in equality (after Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Belarus)

  • Better than all G7 and G20 nations

  • Declined from 28.8 in 2011 to 25.5 in 2022

  • Places India in the “moderately low inequality” category

• Extreme Poverty Decline:

  • Dropped from 16.2% (2011-12) to 2.3% (2022-23)

  • Under revised $3/day poverty line, 5.3% live in poverty

  • 171 million Indians lifted out of poverty between 2011–2023

Contributing Factors to Equality:

1. Financial Inclusion & Direct Benefit Transfers:

• Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY):

  • 55.69 crore bank accounts opened (as of June 2025)

• Aadhaar:

  • Over 142 crore Aadhaar cards issued

• DBT Savings:

  • ₹3.48 lakh crore saved by eliminating leakages in welfare delivery

2. Healthcare Interventions:

• Ayushman Bharat – PMJAY:

  • 41.34 crore Ayushman Cards issued

  • ₹5 lakh annual health cover per family

  • Ayushman Vay Vandana: Health coverage extended to all citizens aged 70+

  • 32,000+ empaneled hospitals

3. Entrepreneurship & Skill Development:

• Stand-Up India:

  • Loans worth ₹62,807 crore to SC/ST and women entrepreneurs

• PM Vishwakarma Yojana:

  • Nearly 30 lakh artisans registered for skill and financial support

Global Comparison (Gini Index 2022):