Unequal India Decoded – Details, episodes & analysis

In the last episode of Unequal India Decoded, journalist Raksha Kumar speaks to Alison Schultz,  a Research Fellow at the Tax Justice Network on the 2025 State of Tax Justice Report. India  has lost 88 billion US dollars between 2016-2021 to tax abuse by corporations and individuals.

Plus, in the regular segment on colonialism, Raksha speaks to Purendra Prasad Professor in the department of sociology at University of Hyderabad about the history of wealth inequalities in peninsular India, particularly undivided Andhra Pradesh.

Raksha Kumar tries to draw a straight line between negotiations in COP30 in South America and UN Tax Convention in Africa and tries to understand how just taxation can help fund the climate crises. Her guests are Anirban Bhattacharya of the Center for Financial Accountability who helps her draw the linkages.

Plus, in the regular segment on colonialism, Raksha speaks to Maanik Nath, Assistant Professor in Economic and Social History at Utrecht University about how credit for small farmers was tough even during the colonial period due to climate risks. He also talks about how the British created the image of the evil money lender.

Raksha Kumar plays fact checker on Indian government data - which claimed that India was the fourth most equal country in the world. Her guest is Prof Himanshu of Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, who helps in clearing the air on the data.

Plus, in the regular segment on colonialism, Raksha speaks to retired Prof Arun Kumar about monopolies in independent India and how successive government tried to curb them. 

Our website with more podcast information: https://podcasts.taxjustice.net/hi/production/unequal-india-decoded/

More Tax Justice podcasts: https://podcasts.taxjustice.net/

Unequal India Decoded is a monthly podcast from the Tax Justice Network which dissects inequalities and offers solutions for building a fairer place for its billion and a half people. Podcast host and journalist Raksha Kumar has covered social and economic justice in India for over 15 years.

Here's our website with all the Unequal India Decoded podcasts: https://podcasts.taxjustice.net/hi/production/unequal-india-decoded/ 

In the third episode Raksha Kumar asks if ordinary Indians will really benefit from the reduction in India's Goods and Services Tax.  Plus, the story of wealth accumulation in India's financial capital over four and a half centuries. 

Guests:

Thomas Franco, former general secretary of All India Bank Officers Confederation and coordinator of Peoples Comission on Public Sector and Public services.

Sripad Motiram, associate professor in the Department of Economics of Massachussets Boston and associated with the Asian Studies Department.

Journalist Raksha Kumar dissects economic inequalities in India – one of the most unequal countries in the world – and tries to offer solutions for building a fairer place for its billion and a half people. In the second episode Raksha ruminates the chaos in the world economy asking whether BRICS+ can change the course of history or if those countries will stand by and watch mutely? Plus, Raksha tries to go back to the colonial times to understand how taxation introduced back then still casts a shadow on India's economy inequalities.

Hosted by Raksha Kumar, production and sound design by Leo Schick, featuring Jayati Ghosh Professor of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and of The Independent Commission for the Reform of International Corporate Taxation and Surajit Mazumdar, Professor of Economics at the Jawaharlal Nehru University.

Further Reading:

A BRICS agenda for enhancing climate finance https://unctad.org/publication/brics-agenda-enhancing-climate-finance from UNCTAD.

China and India rebuild ties after Modi's rupture with Trump https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-13/india-china-thaw-takes-shape-as-modi-embraces-brics-over-trump from Bloomberg.

The Guardian view on Brics growing up: a new bloc seeks autonomy - and eyes a post-western order https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jul/13/the-guardian-view-on-brics-growing-up-a-new-bloc-seeks-autonomy-and-eyes-a-post-western-order Editorial from The Guardian

Check out our website with all our podcasts in different languages covering dofferent regions https://podcasts.taxjustice.net/ 

Meet Raksha Kumar, who'll dissect economic inequalities in India - one of the most unequal countries in the world - and try to offer solutions for building a fairer place for its billion and a half people. In this first episode Raksha investigates the news that India has apparently become the fourth largest economy in the world. Really? And what does that mean for the average Indian? Plus, Raksha goes to the UN's fourth financing for development conference in Seville, southern Spain and separates the silver lining from the dark clouds.

Hosted by Raksha Kumar and co-produced with Naomi Fowler, sound design by Leo Schick, featuring Deputy Associate Editor of the Indian Express Udit Misra and Jayati Ghosh Professor of Economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and of The Independent Commission for the Reform of International Corporate Taxation

Music credit: Night in India by Elvenheim

Transcript of the show: https://podcasts.taxjustice.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Transcript_Episode1.pdf (some is automated and may not be 100% accurate)

Further Reading:

Why India is the third-largest economy, not fourth or fifth, by Udit Misra https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-economics/india-third-largest-economy-10033187/

Financing for Development for Whom? FfD4 preaches development but reeks of privilege and repression https://apwld.org/financing-for-development-for-whom-ffd4-preaches-development-but-reeks-of-privilege-and-repression/ (Asia Pacific Forum on Women Law and Development)

Our verdict on FfD4: Job not yet done https://www.eurodad.org/ffd4_job_not_yet_done from Eurodad

The "Compromiso de Sevilla': A Hope for Tax Justice—Now Governments Must Deliver https://www.icrict.com/corporate-taxation/the-compromiso-de-sevilla-a-hope-for-tax-justice-now-governments-must-deliver/ from The Independent Commission for the Reform of International Corporate Taxation

Trump's walkout fumble is a golden window to push ahead with a UN tax convention https://taxjustice.net/2025/02/05/trumps-walkout-fumble-is-a-golden-window-to-push-ahead-with-a-un-tax-convention/ from the Tax Justice Network

Check out our website with all our podcasts in different languages covering dofferent regions https://podcasts.taxjustice.net/