ABSTRACT
In this chapter, Devaki Jain suggests that inequality, not religion, is the driving force behind conflict. The ‘economic other’ has been created by poverty and lack of opportunities for work with dignity, juxtaposed by high-end consumerism, perpetuated and enlarged by the media. The chapter highlights examples of inequality across the world and in India. The existence of poverty is related to political choices of economic paths and to the tolerance of inequality and injustice by society. Poverty eradication requires a substantive change in the choice of economic activity. It requires a shift in the reasoning of what drives the economy and what are the indicators of progress.
