Title: Using the Gini index to measure the inequality in infrastructure services provided within an urban region

Authors: Abhik Kumar Das; Jai Asundi

Addresses: Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy, Dr. Raja Ramanna Complex, Raj Bhavan Circle, High Grounds, Bangalore – 560001, India. ' Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy, Dr. Raja Ramanna Complex, Raj Bhavan Circle, High Grounds, Bangalore – 560001, India

Abstract: In this article, we suggest the use of the Gini index to measure the inequality in infrastructure services provided within an urban region. We develop a functional form for the Lorenz curve, the basis of measurement of the Gini index. The sparse nature of data available to measure the distribution of infrastructure services within an urban region makes estimating the Lorenz curve challenging. However, the proposed functional form for the Lorenz curve requires a sparse amount of data (only 25th and 50th percentile) and it is simple to estimate and compute the coefficients of the equation as well as the Gini index. Our methodology is shown to be relatively accurate in estimating the Gini index for national level income data compared to other formulations found in the literature. In this paper, with the help of collected data, we demonstrate the use of the Gini index to characterise urban regions in terms of their accessibility of public infrastructure services.

Keywords: Gini index; inequality; infrastructure services; cities; urban regions; Lorenz curve; national income; public services; critical infrastructures.

DOI: 10.1504/IJCIS.2012.049037

International Journal of Critical Infrastructures, 2012 Vol.8 No.2/3, pp.178 - 186

Published online: 31 Jul 2014 *

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