India’s progress in human development

Source: The post India’s progress in human development has been created, based on the article “India’s SDG focus and its human development issues” published in “The Hindu” on 18th October 2024

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 2- Issues Relating to Development and Management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources

Context: The article discusses India’s progress in human development, highlighting its HDI ranking, gender gaps in labor participation, and rising income inequality. It emphasizes the need to address these challenges to achieve sustainable development and meet the SDGs.

For detailed information on Prioritizing Human Development read this article here

How are human development and the SDGs connected?

1. The Human Development Index (HDI) measures progress in three key dimensions: a long and healthy life, knowledge, and a decent standard of living.
2. These dimensions are directly linked to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) such as SDG-3 (good health), SDG-4 (quality education), SDG-5 (gender equality), SDG-8 (decent work), and SDG-10 (reduced inequality).
3. Achieving sustainable development requires boosting human development through improvements in health, education, and income equality.

What is India’s progress in human development?

1. According to the UNDP’s Human Development Report (HDR) 2023-24, India is in the ‘medium human development category’ with an HDI value of 0.644. India ranks 134 out of 193 countries.
2. Neighboring countries like Bangladesh (129), Bhutan (125), and China (75) have seen faster progress.
3. Its HDI value increased from 0.434 in 1990 to 0.644 in 2022, marking a 48.4% rise.
4. However, the HDI value stagnated in 2019-20 at 0.638 and fell to 0.633 in 2021 before improving again.

What are the gender development issues in India?

1. India has a large gender gap, especially in the Labor Force Participation Rate (LFPR), with a difference of 47.8% between men (76.1%) and women (28.3%).
2. Female participation in labor is much lower compared to countries like China (53.6%) and Bangladesh (39.2%).
3. In rural areas, female participation has risen from 24.6% in 2017-18 to 41.5% in 2022-23, but in urban areas, it has only increased slightly, from 20.4% to 25.4%.

How severe is income inequality in India?

1. India has high income inequality, with the richest 1% holding 21.7% of the country’s wealth.
2. This is higher than countries like Bangladesh (11.6%), China (15.7%), and Nepal (9.7%).
3. India’s inequality also exceeds the global average of 17.5% and South Asia’s average of 19.6%.

Way forward

India must address gender gaps in labor participation and growing income inequality. These challenges need attention to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and foster human development.

Question for practice:

Discuss how gender gaps in labor participation and income inequality affect India’s progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)