Bridging the income gap: Inequality in India has reduced in the last decade but the key to reducing the still yawning spread in incomes is supporting an entrepreneurial ecosystem with gusto

ABOUT: Among the keenest watchers of Indian consumers, Rama Bijapurkar and Rajesh Shukla are co-founders of People Research on India's Consumer Economy, a not-forprofit research centre on India's consumer economy and citizen environment. Bijapurkar has served on boards of several Indian companies and is author of We are Like That Only and A Never before world. Shukla, formerly director at NCAER Centre of Macro Consumer Research, is author of 'How India Earns, Spends, Saves'. LET'S STOP THINKING IN CONCEPTUAL SILOS. LET'S FOCUS ON DOING whatever we can to help people help themselves earn more - make big bold moves and let small entrepreneurs flourish.But our efforts on financial inclusion have neither focused on them nor specifically included student loans in large enough numbers for people to get skilled (also, it has not hugely funded skill building institute entrepreneurs). This is where skilling missions have failed us so far - the skilling ecosystem has to be built in its entirety and with a strategy in mind to achieve a thought-through outcome. We know that the only way things work in India is if we enable people to find their way. Let's put the cart before the horse for a change. If enough people with skills exist, online exchanges will mushroom and aggregators will provide shared services. It isn't difficult - but it isn't something the corporate mindset can think about. As the organised sector develops, it may pay a premium to acquire these aggregations of skilled workers. How do the people of India think about income inequality? They worry about fairness and improving their own lot. They want their children to have far more opportunities than they do today or their parents did, so that they can earn and live disproportionately better. They want entertainment, leisure, and family life to improve. Talk to them and they are not asking, "Why do you have a Mercedes car and send your child abroad to study?" They are asking, "Why can't my child go to college and get a well-paying office job which is permanent?" and "Why can I not have running water, my own toilet and not have seven people to a room?" What is the equality being sought? Equality of opportunity to go up in life and improve your condition. Equality of getting a basic good education and timely health care and an equal opportunity for talented children to realise their potential and access to public recreational facilities. China has provided many of these without worrying about income inequal