New Delhi, Sept. 18 -- The government may be echoing the World Bank's recent 'finding' that India is the fourth most equal country in the world, but this isn't true. In reality, India is a high inequality country and any complacency based on artificially adjusted estimates as a result of statistical jugglery should be avoided. More than estimates of inequality, what matters is its nature and impact on growth, mobility and democracy.

For historical reasons, and rightly so, India's debate has focused on poverty more than the distributional aspects of inequality. This was understandable, given our large numbers languishing in poverty. But with India's rising per capita income and growth, poverty is no longer as pervasive.

On the other hand...