The billionaire's club in India has grown significantly more crowded. Photo: iStock
India has 576 billionaires earning Rs 100 cr-plus a year; 300 pc rise in 5 yrs: Govt
Government tells Parliament ultra-high-income taxpayers rose from 142 in AY 2021-22 to 576 in AY 2025-26; but they have no official data on billionaires' wealth
India's highest-income taxpayers are growing at an unprecedented pace.
Data shared by the Union finance ministry shows the number of individuals earning at least Rs 100 crore annually has surged by over 300 per cent since 2021 – to 576 from 142 – even as the government says it does not maintain data on the wealth of billionaires.
The club of India's ultra-rich has grown significantly more crowded. According to data shared by the Union Finance Ministry in Parliament, the number of individuals reporting an annual income of Rs 100 crore or more, has risen to 576 in Assessment Year (AY) 2025-26, The figure for AY 2024-25 was 415.
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The figures were provided by Minister of State (MoS) for Finance, Pankaj Chaudhary, in a written reply on Monday (July 27). The MoS was responding to a question on whether the government had observed an increase in the number of billionaires in the country.
From 142 to 576
Five years ago, in AY 2021-22, only 142 taxpayers reported annual incomes of at least ₹100 crore — meaning the latest figure represents an increase of more than 300% over the period.
The numbers have climbed steadily, albeit with a brief dip: from 142 in AY 2021-22 to 301 in AY 2022-23, before slipping to 284 in AY 2023-24. The count then rebounded to 415 in AY 2024-25 and surged further to 576 in AY 2025-26.
No official definition of "billionaire"
While the question in Parliament referred to "billionaires," the government clarified that it has no official definition of the term. Instead, it relied on Income Tax Return (ITR) data of taxpayers reporting annual incomes of Rs 100 crore or more as a proxy for the country's highest earners.
MoS Chaudhary noted that there is no statutory definition of "billionaire" under either the Income-tax Act, 2025 or the former Income-tax Act, 1961.
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On whether the government maintains data on the aggregate wealth of Indian billionaires and how it has changed over the past five years, Chaudhary said no such official data is maintained.
"The Wealth-tax Act, 1957 was abolished with effect from 01 April 2016, and the Government does not maintain data on aggregate wealth of taxpayers," he said.
On rising inequality
On concerns over rising inequality, the finance ministry's written reply cited existing surveys rather than a separate study.
The MoS pointed to the latest Household Consumption Expenditure Survey (HCES) 2023-24, which showed the Gini coefficient, which is a statistical measure of economic inequality, declining in both rural and urban areas. The rural Gini coefficient fell from 0.266 to 0.237, while the urban figure dropped from 0.314 to 0.284, indicating a narrowing gap in consumption inequality.
The government also cited labour market data, noting that the unemployment rate for people aged 15 and above fell from 3.6 per cent in 2022 to 3.1 per cent in 2025. It further referenced NITI Aayog estimates showing multi-dimensional poverty declining over the past decade, with 24.82 crore people estimated to have moved out of poverty between 2013-14 and 2022-23.
How govt addressing wealth inequality
The finance ministry said it is addressing income and wealth inequality through a mix of tax measures and welfare programmes. It noted that India's progressive income-tax structure requires individuals with very high incomes to pay an additional surcharge over and above normal income tax.
The government also highlighted tax incentives for employment, start-ups, cooperatives and infrastructure, along with flagship schemes such as PM Awas Yojana, PM Jan Dhan Yojana, PM-KISAN, Ayushman Bharat and Jal Jeevan Mission.
The latest Income Tax Return data offers a rare official glimpse into India's growing pool of ultra-high-income earners, even as it stops short of revealing the full picture of wealth concentration.
While the number of taxpayers reporting annual incomes of Rs 100 crore or more has risen 300 per cent in five years, the absence of official wealth data means the true scale of India's billionaire class remains unknown.