ABSTRACT
This chapter provides the theoretical underpinning of the negative relationship between the English language and inclusive growth in India. It reveals that 81.16% of the non-English-speaking population falls in the deprived strata. The chapter also deduces that the likelihood of a non-English speaker moving out of the deprived income strata is 33.4% lesser than that of an English speaker.
The chapter substantiates that non-English speakers are disadvantaged due to India’s reliance on the service sector. This reliance results in two disadvantages. First, it causes a barrier to entry into employment for non-English speakers, as individuals with no English-speaking skills are on an average 14.4% less likely to participate in service sector employment relative to individuals with fluent English skills. Second, it acts as a barrier to entry to high-post-high wage jobs, with lower posts being predominantly occupied by non-English speakers (who constitute 84.06% of the low-post labour force earning substantially fewer wages relative to English speakers).
