インドにおける「中間層」の形成と実態(大会報告・共通論題:中間層とはだれか-先進国と新興国の比較-)

抄録

Since the inception of economic reforms, India has attracted increasing attention for its excellent economic performance, through the 2000s in particular. The process of economic growth and industrial structural change has led to the expansion of the so-called 'middle class', causing a change in India's image. This study examines who constitutes India's middle class, how that middle class has expanded, and whether its expansion has had any transformative effect on India's social class structure. In India's case, the definition of the term 'middle class' is not explicitly fixed. It includes different criteria such as income, consumption expenditures, jobs, educational qualification, asset holdings, etc. and remains controversial. This paper focuses mainly on the transformation of the labour market with regard to unit-size, occupation and employment status, under the direct influence of changing economic policies and conditions. This will help us understand the existing system and the constraints on further expansion of the middle class. In what sectors or jobs are middle-class workers employed in India? They are mostly found among the white-collar employees of the organized sector. Some blue-collar employees of the organized-sector units, particularly in emerging industries and foreign companies, are also included, along with some who are temporarily and/or indirectly employed in the organized sector, such as contract employees, and certain self-employed workers in the unorganized sector. This was confirmed statistically to the extent possible and was put into a table to reflect the degree of concentration of middle-class status in each group. Furthermore, some of the author's field surveys in India reveal that middle-class workers form a distinctly different group from other labour groups in terms of monthly earnings, asset holdings, personal endowment, and so on. It is also noteworthy that very few of them are from the lower social classes. The increase and spread of 'decent work' is what is primarily required for the further expansion of the middle-class population in India. At the same time, human-resource development through the universalization of compulsory education and vocational training is indispensable in order for more people, including the poor, to move up into the middle class.