Photo Gallery Passed Over by Prosperity
An analysis by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) finds that the gap between poor and rich is growing in India almost faster than anywhere else on the globe. The formerly socialist country is failing to give the huddled masses a fair share of the country's economic miracle. Here, children gather in a slum in New Delhi in October 2012.
This is one of the main differences between India and China, its rival up-and-coming Asian economic powerhouse. India has too few factories with low-paid jobs for the rural masses. Indeed, it is the relatively well-educated who primarily benefit from the Indian economic miracle: IT engineers and college graduates who speak fluent English and work in call centers.
Cosmetics queen Shahnaz Husain rules over more than 400 beauty salons in India and around the world. When she is chauffeured through the streets of New Delhi in her silver Rolls-Royce, beggars rush up to the vehicle at each intersection. "They are, of course, familiar with my car," she says "and I always have a few rupees on hand for them."
Dijeet Titus, a 48-year-old lawyer, has a growing collection of vintage cars. He occasionally visits slums to help children there receive a better education. Sometimes he invites them to his home, shows them his antique cars and delights in the wonder in their eyes. But, Titus admits, "My philanthropy is just a drop in the ocean."
