From jobless to ‘job-loss’ growth: Experts critique gig economy and fintech risks

By A Representative 

Leading economists and social activists gathered in the capital on Friday to launch the third edition of the State of Finance in India Report 2024-25, issuing a stark warning that the rapid digitalization of the Indian economy is eroding welfare systems and entrenching "digital dystopia." 

During the release event, prominent figures including CP Chandrasekhar, Jayati Ghosh, Usha Ramanathan, Apar Gupta, and M.V. Rajeev Gowda argued that technology is being leveraged by private capital to extract surplus from the poor, who are increasingly treated as mere data subjects. The speakers highlighted a disturbing trend where welfare systems are collapsing under expanding exclusions, leaving vulnerable populations without recourse or feedback loops to correct systemic failures. 

The report, a collaborative effort by the Centre for Financial Accountability, the Economic Research Foundation, and Focus on Global South, details a shift from "jobless growth" to "job-loss growth," emphasizing the precarious nature of gig work. 

Experts noted that algorithmic control has created inhuman conditions for platform laborers, while the fintech sector operates with dangerous levels of freedom. This lack of regulation has led to widespread privacy breaches and the proliferation of digital loan apps that provide credit for consumption rather than productive purposes, often without assessing the borrower's creditworthiness.

Deepening inequalities are a central theme of the findings, with the editorial board—which includes Shalmali Guttal, Joe Athialy, and Anirban Bhattacharya—pointing to a microscopic minority in Big Tech that concentrates wealth at astronomical rates. The chapters explore the "gamification of labor," the gendered divide in e-commerce, and the volatility of venture capital-based financing models. 

By positioning Digital Public Infrastructure as a panacea for welfare delivery, the report argues that the government is erasing social realities and exposing the most marginalized to data mining and digital exclusion.

Beyond the critique, the report serves as a platform for academics, policymakers, and practitioners to propose alternatives. The authors advocate for a rights-based framework of accountability and the democratization of technology to move beyond a future of precarious employment. 

This 2024-25 edition follows the previous biennial reports launched since 2021, continuing the effort to move financial and economic discourse out of "ivory towers" and into the hands of the public.