Inegalitarian growth : India and Brazil compared

Economic inequality has deep roots, in the histories, structures and institutions of each society, and how they connect with international economic forces. To understand how and why the extent and trend of inequality differs from one country to another it is necessary to examine and compare these histories and institutions. This chapter compares Brazil and India, two countries with high levels of inequality, but with different trajectories over time. It suggests that a comparison of Brazil and India can help us to understand these trajectories, provided that the differences are understood as well as the similarities. Growth regimes comprise a variety of economic and social relations, usually grouped under five institutional forms in the analysis of industrialised countries: monetary/fiscal regime; wage labour relations; the competition regime; type of integration in the international economy; and the role of the state. In India and Brazil, we found it desirable to add a sixth institutional form: the agrarian system.