Fight inequality alliance pre-budget survey

The Union Budget 2021-22 comes at a time that is unprecedented. 122 million people have lost their jobs and millions are at risk of falling back into poverty (Vyas, 2020). At the same time, the wealth of billionaires in India has continued to grow at a rapid pace— Mukesh Ambani earned INR 90 crore per hour since the lockdown began (Kumar, 2020). Given this context, the Fight Inequality Alliance India sough to find what people want from the upcoming budget. This led to a country-wide survey that reached out to 1451 people spread across 24 states which covered people across genders, social groups, religions and income classes.

The survey findings indicate a clear mandate for the Union Budget 2021-22 to focus on strengthening social protection mechanisms for the poor and increasing taxation on the super-rich and large corporations.