Economic Development and Inequalities

The extent of economic inequality in its different dimensions is one parameter that has an effective bearing on (1) the choice of policies and strategies; and (2) the very development process, both form and spread, in a democratic society. Some pertinent questions from an economic perspective would be:

What is the nature and extent of economic inequality? What are its policy imperatives in a welfare state?

What would be the secular behaviour of wealth and income distribution during the development process?

How far would this pattern differ in a context marked by state intervention, as given by the Indian experience, in pursuit of ‘growth with distributive justice?

What would be their implications for economic inequalities and human development?