When India became independent in 1947 after two centuries of colonial rule, it immediately adopted a firmly democratic political system, with multiple parties, freedom of speech, and extensive political rights. Maintaining rapid as well as environmentally sustainable growth remains an important...

We set up a model of economic and demographic long-run development, where inequality in income and reproductive success (polygynous mating) plays a central role. The model generates a slow and gradual compression of the income gap between landholders and landless, together with rising levels of...