I'm in American living in Mumbai. India has a huge population, but I doubt serious running will take off. The heat, bad roads, rains, stray dogs all conspire for slow running. Plus the AQI is terrible, some of the worst in the world. In Mumbai half the year is above 150, and lots of the country are even worse.
Cricket is the main sport. Badminton is popular. Local stuff like khokho or kabaddi are popular too.
Looking at IAAF it looks like the top Indian male ran 28:15 for the 10k and 13:29 for the 5k in 2023. That's a long way off being a powerhouse.
As far as poverty there is no comparision with the US. I've been to around 60 countries, and the only poorer place than India I've seen is Liberia....parts are wealthy but even those areas are full of slums. Racism is huge too. When I rented my apartment owners would ask my caste and religion. Not to mention the complete and utter disdain Indians show for poor people and service workers, who they view as below them.