Context

NITI Aayog has released the second edition of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) India Index, which comprehensively documents the progress made by India’s States and Union Territories towards achieving the 2030 SDG targets.

About

• The SDG India Index—which has been developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), United Nations in India, and Global Green Growth Institute—was launched by NITI Aayog.
• NITI Aayog has committed itself to building capacities and monitoring progress at the state level.
• Close coordination with the states over the next 5 years will further accelerate SDG localization and ensure greater improvement.
• In 2020, the world enters the final decade for achieving the SDGs—the ‘Decade for Action’. And the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change tells us that we have 12 years left to save the planet from the worst effects of climate change.

Major Outcomes of the index

• India’s composite score has improved from 57 in 2018 to 60 in 2019, thereby showing noticeable progress.
• The maximum gains been made in Goals 6 (clean water and sanitation), 9 (industry, innovation, and infrastructure) and 7 (affordable and clean energy).
• All three states that were in the ‘Aspirant’ category (with score/s in the range of 0–49)—Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Assam—have graduated to the ‘Performer’ category (50–64).
• Five states—Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Goa, and Sikkim—moved up from the ‘Performer’ category to the ‘Front Runner’ category (65–99).
• Kerala achieved the first rank in the composite SDG Index with a score of 70, followed by Himachal Pradesh at 69.
• Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu ranked at the third position with the score of 67.
• The biggest improvers since 2018 are UP (which has moved from the 29th position to the 23rd), Orissa (23rd to 15th), and Sikkim (15th to 7th). While Bihar improved its score from 48 in 2018 to 50 in 2019, it still has a long way to go in achieving the targets.

Other information

• The world is now in the fifth year of the SDG era. India’s National Development Agenda is mirrored in the SDGs. India’s progress in the global Goals is crucial for the world as the country is home to about one-sixth of the world’s population.
• The SDG India Index 2019 tracks progress of all States and UTs on 100 indicators drawn from the MoSPI’s National Indicator Framework (NIF).
• The process of selection of these indicators included multiple consultations with Union ministries/departments and States/UTs.
• The SDG India Index 2019 is more robust than the first edition on account of wider coverage of goals, targets, and indicators with greater alignment with the NIF.
• A composite score was computed in the range of 0–100 for each State/UT based on its aggregate performance across 16 SDGs.
• The higher the score of a State/UT, the closer it is towards achieving the targets.

Classification criteria based on SDG India Index score is as follows

• Aspirant: 0–49
• Performer: 50–64
• Front Runner: 65–99
• Achiever: 100