Wealth of 9 rich Indians equivalant to 50% of the bottom population: Report

New Delhi : In the year 2018, the wealth of 1% Indian rich people grew by over 39% as against the 3% of the bottom half of the nation, an Oxfam study said on Monday.

Globally, billionaires' fortunes rose by 12 per cent or $ 2.5 billion a day in 2018, whereas the poorest half of the world's population saw their wealth decline by 11 per cent, the international rights group said in its annual study released before the start of the five-day World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in this Swiss ski resort town.

The report mentioned that 13.6 crores Indians, nearly 10 per cent of the population, remained under debt since 2004.

Oxfam International Executive Director Winnie Byanyima, one of the key participants at the WEF summit, said it is "morally outrageous" that a few wealthy individuals are amassing a growing share of India's wealth, while the poor are struggling to eat their next meal or pay for their child''s medicines.

"If this obscene inequality between the top 1 percent and the rest of India continues then it will lead to a complete collapse of the social and democratic structure of this country," she added.