When a recent IMF report sparked debate about India’s gross domestic product (GDP), the discussion spilled into my undergraduate WhatsApp group. The group members are sharp, accomplished engineers, but many are unfamiliar with issues related to GDP; I realized I know more about the topic than some of them do. It’s all about the background; […]

India is now the world’s fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP—a milestone that has sparked widespread celebration. An explanatory note at the end of the post provides information for those unfamiliar with the GDP measure. However, when this vast economic output is divided across 1.4 billion people, India’s GDP per capita ranks a sobering 136th out […]

Income inequality is among India’s most pressing socioeconomic problems. Not surprisingly, opposition parties repeatedly highlighted this problem in the recent general election campaign. In this post, let’s explore what to make of this complex economic issue. Inequality Measure The Gini Coefficient (GC) is the most widely used measure of income inequality. It ranges from 0, […]