GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

MINISTRY OF PLANNING

LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO: 6527

ANSWERED ON: 16.05.2012

SURVEY ON DISTRIBUTION OF ECONOMIC BENEFITS AND BURDENS

ANANT KUMAR HEGDE

RAJIV RANJAN (LALAN) SINGH

Will the Minister of PLANNING be pleased to state:-

(a) whether the attention of the Government has been drawn towards the report of the survey

conducted by Globe Scan for BBC world service relating to distribution of economic benefits and

burdens in different countries;

(b) if so, the details of India-specific points brought out in the said survey;

(c) whether the Government has studied the said report;

(d) if so, the details thereof;

(e) whether as per the said survey, only 21 per cent people in the country believe the present

economic system to be appropriate; and

(f) if so, the reaction of the Government thereto?

ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE FOR PLANNING, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY AND EARTH SCIENCES (DR. ASHWANI KUMAR)

(a) to (f): The Government is aware of the report titled ‘Economic System Seen as Unfair: Global

Poll’ released by GlobeScan, an international opinion research consultancy on 25th April 2012. The

report is based on the results of a 22-nation global poll conducted for BBC World Service. The poll,

conducted among 11,740 people, shows that majorities in 17 of the 22 countries surveyed believe that

economic benefits and burdens are not fairly shared in their countries. These 17 countries do not

include India.

As per the Report, only a total of 604 people were interviewed in India during 4-12 January, 2012. Of

these 604 people interviewed, it is reported that 21 percent think that economic benefits and burdens

have been shared very fairly, 30 percent think that it has been shared somewhat fairly, 17 percent

think that the benefits and burdens have been shared not very fairly and 25 percent think that it has

not been shared fairly at all in India in the past few years. Since the survey is based on a sample size

of only 604 people from India and it cannot be considered a representative sample survey to draw

general conclusions.