Human Development Index

The Human Development Index was created by the United Nations Development Programme in its 1990 report. It is considered as a breakthrough which serves as a frame of reference for socio-economic development. The Human Development Index serves as a composite (combined) index by using three separate indexes which are Life Expectancy, Education and Per Capita Income. The achievement and standing of the countries are highlighted in terms of “Goalposts”. The HDI of India after 2020 saw a downfall which followed global trends as the world was affected by the COVID - 19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine War. India currently ranks at the 132nd position out of the 191 countries with a score of 0.633 in the 2021/2022 HDI.

For decades, rising economic output, measured by GDP and per capita income, was equated with progress and better lives. This meant economic growth was seen as synonymous with development. However, the 1960s revealed a glaring disconnect: some countries with high growth rates had surprisingly low living standards. This sparked the emergence of "economic development" as a distinct concept. Unlike growth, development focuses on a broader range of factors, including improvements in quality of life, education, and health, reflected in indices like the Human Development Index (HDI), Human Poverty Index (HPI), Gender Development Index (GDI), Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI) etc. So, while growth measures the size of the pie, development considers how fairly and broadly it's shared. To ensure that Economic Growth translates into Development, specific measures must be implemented. Challenges in measuring development include difficulties in defining and quantifying development. The Human Development Report addressed this challenge. The First Human Development Report (“HDR”) defines “Human Development” as a process of enlarging people’s choice, to lead a long and healthy life, to be educated and to enjoy a decent standard of living, which means improving people’s lives by giving them more choices, ensuring good health, providing education and enabling a decent standard of living.

The United National Development Programme (UNDP) in its report titled “Human Development Report” in 1990, introduced a new way of measuring development by combining indicators of life expectancy, educational attainment and income into a combined Human Development Index (“HDI”). It was established with the principle that the true measure of a country’s development should be based on the abilities and potential of its people, rather than solely on economic growth.

• By UNDP
• Titled “Uncertain Times, Unsettled Lives: Shaping our Future in a Transforming World”
• COVID: The advent of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, HDI saw aglobal decline with over 90% of the countries having registered a reduction in their HDI value in 2020 and 2021.
• HDI had stalled for the first time in 32 years.

Human Development Report 2023-24 with the title, Breaking the Gridlock: Reimagining Cooperation in a Polarised World,’ India’s rank is 134 with the score of 0.644 on the global Human Development Index (HDI).

• India is categorised under the ‘medium human development’.
• Switzerland tops the index with the score of 0.967 followed by Norway (0.966) and Iceland (0.959).
• Somalia with the score of 0.380 is at the bottom of the index.
• Countries North Korea and Monaco are not included in the index.

The UNDP report recommends the Three- ‘I’s policy which is Investment, Insurance and Innovation Insurance and Innovation for countries to tackle the uncertain times. However, India has already lead the charge with its push for renewable energy, boosting of social security for the vulnerable in the form of various schemes that provide benefits like subsidies to the bank accounts of people (with the introduction of JanDhan) and launching and successfully completing the largest vaccination drive in the world with Co-win campaign. India has also boosted the access to social protection for the vulnerable by increasing the budget allocation in the Social Service Sector. India has as a result lifted 271 million out of multidimensional poverty.With the introduction of Swachh Bharat Mission and other schemes India has provided higher standards of sanitation further improving the lives of the citizens.