INDICES IN NEWS

National/International Index

Good Governance Index 2021

• Context:
  • On the occasion of Good Governance Day (25th December), the government released the Good Governance Index 2021.
  • The index was prepared by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions.
  • Earlier this year, India was ranked 49th in the Chandler Good Government Index (CGGI).
• About:
  • GGI is a comprehensive and implementable framework to assess the State of Governance across the States and UTs which enables the ranking of States/Districts.
  • The objective of GGI is to create a tool that can be used uniformly across the States to assess the impact of various interventions taken up by the Central and State Governments including UTs.
  • Based on the GGI Framework, the Index provides a comparative picture among the States while developing a competitive spirit for improvement.
  • The GGI 2021 says that 20 States have improved their composite GGI scores over the GGI 2019 index scores.
  • The GGI is envisaged as a biannual exercise.
• Basis of the Ranking:
  • It is based on ten sectors and 58 indicators. The sectors are:
    • Agriculture and Allied Sectors
    • Commerce & Industries
    • Human Resource Development
    • Public Health
    • Public Infrastructure & Utilities
    • Economic Governance
    • Social Welfare & Development
    • Judicial & Public Security
    • Environment
    • Citizen-Centric Governance
• Ranking of the States: The Index categorises States and UTs into four categories, i.e.,
  • Other States – Group A:
    • Gujarat has topped the composite ranking in the Good Governance Index 2021 covering 10 sectors, followed by Maharashtra and Goa.
  • Other States – Group B:
    • Madhya Pradesh tops the list followed by Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
  • North-East and Hill States:
    • Himachal Pradesh topped the list followed by Mizoram and Uttarakhand.
  • Union Territories:
    • Delhi tops the composite rank registering a 14% increase over the GGI 2019 indicators.

World Press Freedom Index 2021

• Context:
  • The Centre does not agree with the conclusions drawn by Reporters Without Borders about press freedom in India for various reasons, including very low sample size and little or no weightage to the fundamentals of democracy, the Information and Broadcasting Ministry told the Lok Sabha.
• About World Press Freedom Index:
  • The index is Published by Reporters Sans Frontieres (RSF) or Reporters Without Borders since 2002.
  • The Index ranks 180 countries and regions according to the level of freedom available to journalists.
  • However, the index neither ranks public policies and nor is it an indicator of the quality of journalism in each country or region.
  • The index ranks 180 countries based on the following parameters, such as:
    • a) pluralism,
    • b) media independence
    • c) environment and self-censorship
    • d) legislative framework
    • e) Transparency
    • f) Infrastructure, and
    • g) Abuses.
• Key Findings Related to India:
  • India ranks 142nd on the World Press Freedom Index 2021. The rank is the same as in 2020 after it had consistently slid down from 133 in 2016.
  • India continues to be counted among the countries classified as “bad” for journalism.
  • Similarly, India is termed as one of the most dangerous countries for journalists trying to do their jobs properly.
• Other key Findings:
  • Norway tops the index, followed by Finland and Denmark.
  • China ranks 177 in the index. It is only above North Korea at 179 and Turkmenistan at 178.
  • India’s South Asian neighbourhood: Nepal is at 106, Sri Lanka at 127, Myanmar (before the coup) at 140, Pakistan at 145, and Bangladesh at 152.
  • The report shows that journalism is completely or partially blocked in 73% of all the countries on the index.

SDG Urban Index: NITI Aayog

• Context:
  • Recently, NITI Aayog under the Indo-German Cooperation released the inaugural Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Urban Index and Dashboard 2021–22.
  • Earlier in June 2021, the third edition of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) India Index and Dashboard 2020–21 was released by NITI Aayog.
• About:
  • The index and dashboard are a result of the NITI Aayog-Germany's International Cooperation Agency (GIZ) and BMZ collaboration focused on driving SDG localization in our cities, under the umbrella of Indo-German Development Cooperation.
  • It ranks 56 urban areas on 77 SDG indicators across 46 targets of the SDG framework.
  • It will further strengthen SDG localization and institute robust SDG monitoring at the city level.
• Key rankings:
  • Top Performers: Shimla, Coimbatore, Chandigarh, Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi.
  • Worst Performers: Dhanbad, Meerut, Itanagar, Guwahati and Patna.

Wage Rate Index (WRI)

• Context:
  • Recently, the government has revised the base year for Wage Rate Index (WRI) to 2016 which will replace the old series with a base of 1963-65.
  • The Wage Rate Index Number measures the relative changes in wage rates over a period of time, high or low Wage Rate Index in an industry does not necessarily indicate a high or low wage rate in that industry as compared to other industries.
  • A base year is the first of a series of years in an economic or financial index and is typically set to an arbitrary level of 100.
• About:
  • The Ministry of Labour & Employment has released a new series of Wage Rate Index (WRI) with the base year 2016, which is compiled and maintained by the Labour Bureau, an attached office of the ministry.
  • It is based on the recommendations of the International Labour Organization and the National Statistical Commission.
  • The new series on WRI has been compiled on a half-year basis (on the first of January and July every year) as against the annual in the existing series.
  • The new WRI basket (2016=100) has enhanced the scope and coverage in terms of occupations and industries as compared to the old WRI series (1963-65=100).
  • Of the 37 industries covered in the new series, 16 new ones – including textile garments, footwear and petroleum – have been added under the manufacturing sector.
  • In the new series, the oil mining industry has been introduced in the basket in place of the mica mines industry, to make the mining sector more representative of the three different kinds of mining namely coal, metal and oil.
  • Total 3 plantation industries namely tea, coffee and rubber have been retained in the new WRI basket with enhanced coverage.
  • The top five industries – motor vehicles, coal mines, textile garments, iron & steel and cotton textiles together account for 46% of the total weight.
• WRI 2020:
  • The All India Wage Rate Index Number for all the 37 industries stood at 119.7 in 2020 (half-yearly 2) which shows an increment of 1.6% over the index in 2020 (half-yearly 1).
  • At the sector level, the highest Wage Rate Index in 2020 (half-yearly 2) was reported in the Plantation Sector followed by the Manufacturing Sector and Mining Sector.
• Highest Wage Rate Index:
  • The highest Wage Rate Index was recorded in Drugs & Medicines, followed by Sugar, Motor Cycles, Jute Textiles and Tea Plantation.
• Lowest Wage Rate Index:
  • The lowest Wage Rate Index was recorded in Rubber Plantation, followed by Paper, Castings & Forgings , Woollen Textiles and Synthetic Textiles.

Climate Change Performance Index

• Context:
  • India ranked 10th in Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) 2021.
  • India, for the second time in a row, continued to remain in the top 10.
  • Last year, India had been ranked at the ninth position.
• About Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI):
  • Published by: Germanwatch, the New Climate Institute and the Climate Action Network annually since 2005.
  • Scope: It is an independent monitoring tool for tracking the climate protection performance of 57 countries and the European Union.
  • These countries together generate 90%+ of global greenhouse gas emissions.
  • Aim: It aims to enhance transparency in international climate politics and enables a comparison of climate protection efforts and progress made by individual countries.
  • Criteria: The CCPI looks at four categories, with 14 indicators: Greenhouse Gas Emissions (40% of the overall score), Renewable Energy (20%), Energy Use (20%), and Climate Policy (20%).
• CCPI 2021:
  • The top three ranks were empty as no country had met the criteria to get placed high enough on the index.
  • Only two G20 nations, the United Kingdom and India are among the high rankers in CCPI 2021, which covers the year 2020.
  • Six other G20 nations including the USA, Canada, South Korea, Russia, Australia and Saudi Arabia are ranked at the bottom of the index.
  • This is the second time in a row that the USA (ranked last), which is the largest historical polluter, is ranked at the bottom.
  • China, which is the biggest current emitter of greenhouse gases, is ranked at the 33rd position on the CCPI 2021 report.
• India’s Performance:
  • Overall Performance: India ranked 10th and scored 63.98 points out of 100.
  • Renewable Energy: India has been ranked 27th out of 57 countries under the category this time. Last year, the country was ranked 26th.
  • In September 2019, at the United Nations Climate Action Summit, India announced increasing the renewable energy target to 450 GW by 2030 from 175 GW by 2022.
  • In its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC), India has pledged to increase the share of non-fossil fuels-based electricity to 40% by 2030.

Global Food Security Index 2021

• Context:
  • India is ranked at 71st position in the Global Food Security (GFS) Index 2021 of 113 countries.
  • Earlier, India was ranked 101st position in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2021.
• About the Index:
  • Developed by:
    • The GFS Index was designed and constructed by London-based Economist Impact and is sponsored by Corteva Agriscience.
    • The 2021 GFSI is the tenth edition of the index. It is published every year.
  • Calculation:
    • It measures the underlying drivers of food security based on the following factors:
      • Affordability
      • Availability
      • Quality and Safety
      • Natural Resources and Resilience
    • It considers 58 unique food security indicators including income and economic inequality – calling attention to systemic gaps and actions needed to accelerate progress toward the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of Zero Hunger by 2030.
  • Findings of the Report (India and World):
    • Top Rankers:
      • Ireland, Austria, the UK, Finland, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Canada, Japan, France and the US shared the top rank with the overall GFS score in the range of 77.8 and 80 points on the index.
    • India’s Rank:
      • Overall Position: India held 71st position with an overall score of 57.2 points on the GFS Index 2021 of 113 countries.
      • In Comparison to Neighbouring Countries: It fared better than Pakistan (75th position), Sri Lanka (77th Position), Nepal (79th position) and Bangladesh (84th position). But the country was way behind China (34th position).
      • However, over the past 10 years, India’s incremental gains in overall food security score were lagging behind that of Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh.
      • India’s score improved only by 2.7 points to 57.2 in 2021 from 54.5 in 2012 when compared with Pakistan by 9 points (to 54.7 in 2021 from 45.7 in 2012).
      • Pakistan scored better than India in the food affordability category and Sri Lanka was even better. On the remaining 3 factors, India scored better than Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Climate Vulnerability Index

• Context:
  • Recently, a report titled “Mapping India’s Climate Vulnerability – A District-level Assessment” has been released by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) (not-for-profit policy research institution).
  • The report has also launched the first-of-its-kind Climate Vulnerability Index.
  • The index has analysed 640 districts in India and found that 463 of these are vulnerable to extreme floods, droughts and cyclones.
• Climate Vulnerability Index:
  • The Index takes into account certain indicators when assessing the preparedness of a state or district.
    • It considers:
      • Exposure (that is whether the district is prone to extreme weather events)
      • Sensitivity (the likelihood of an impact on the district by the weather event)
      • Adaptive capacity (what the response or coping mechanism of the district is)
• Key findings of the CVI:
  • According to CVI, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Bihar are most vulnerable to extreme climate events such as floods, droughts and cyclones in India.
  • 183 hotspot districts are highly vulnerable to more than one extreme climate event.
  • 60% of Indian districts have medium to low adaptive capacity in handling extreme weather events:
    • these districts don’t have robust plans in place to mitigate the impact.
    • North-eastern states are more vulnerable to floods.
    • South and central are most vulnerable to extreme droughts.
    • 59 and 41 per cent of the total districts in the eastern and western states, respectively, are highly vulnerable to extreme cyclones.
• https://samajho.com/upsc/climate-vulnerability-index/

Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2021

• Context:
  • Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2021 was recently released by “United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)” and “Oxford Poverty & Human Development Initiative (OPHI)”.
• Key findings of Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2021:
  • Worldwide, across 109 countries and 5.9 billion people:
    • 1.3 billion people are multidimensionally poor.
    • About half (644 million) are children under age 18.
    • Nearly 85 percent live in Sub-Saharan Africa (556 million) or South Asia (532 million).
    • More than 67 percent live in middle-income countries.
  • But what is the day-to-day reality of life for multidimensionally poor people? The data paint a grim picture:
    • 1 billion each are exposed to solid cooking fuels, inadequate sanitation and substandard housing.
    • 788 million live in a household with at least one undernourished person.
    • 568 million lack improved drinking water within a 30-minute roundtrip walk.
• Indian Scenario:
  • The Scheduled Tribe group in India, which accounts for 9.4 percent of the population, is the poorest. Out of 129 million people, 65 million are living in multidimensional poverty.
  • Out of 283 million scheduled caste group people, 94 million are living in multidimensional poverty.
  • In all, five out of six multidimensionally poor people live in households whose head is from a Scheduled Tribe, a Scheduled Caste or Other Backward Class (OBCs).

Global Innovation Index (GII) 

Context: 

• The Global Innovation Index (GII) 2021 has been released.

About:

• Published by: the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in partnership with the Portulans Institute and with the support of corporate network partners.
• Objective: The index ranks 132 world economies according to their innovation capabilities.
• Indicators: The index ranks world economies according to their innovation capabilities and consists of roughly 80 indicators grouped into innovation inputs and outputs.
• Innovation inputs: Institutions; Human capital and research; Infrastructure; Market sophistication; Business sophistication.
• Innovation outputs: Knowledge and technology outputs; Creative outputs

Key findings:

Top Five:

• Switzerland, Sweden, U.S., and the U.K. continue to lead the innovation ranking and have all ranked in the top 5 in the past three years.
• The Republic of Korea joins the top 5 of the GII for the first time in 2021.

Related to India:

• India has been ranked 46th in the Global Innovation Index 2021 rankings. It was ranked 48th in 2020.
• India has been on a rising trajectory over the past several years in the Index, from a rank of 81 in 2015 to 46 in 2021.
• Graduates in science and engineering disciplines and global corporate research and development investors are India’s strengths.

Swachh Survekshan Grameen, 2021

Context:

• Swachh Survekshan Grameen, 2021 was launched recently under the Swachh Bharat Mission Phase- 2.
• It aims to support the acceleration of ODF plus interventions and results in the country.

About Swachh Survekshan Grameen (SSG), 2021

• An expert agency has been hired to conduct the Survekshan 2021.
• As part of the Survekshan, Villages, Districts and States would be ranked using key parameters.
• 17,475 villages in 698 Districts across the country will be covered where schools, anganwadis, public health centres, haat/bazaars/religious places will be visited for the survey.
• Also, citizens will be mobilised to provide feedback on sanitation-related issues online using an application developed for the purpose.

What is the Background of SSG?

• It was Commissioned by the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS) under the Ministry of Jal Shakti.
• It has been a vehicle for creating a Janandolan (people’s movement).
• Districts are ranked based on their performance on key quality and quantitative parameters.

The weights to different elements of the SSG 2021 are as below:

• Direct Observation of sanitation at public places – 30%
• Citizen’s Feedback – 35%
• Service Level Progress on sanitation-related parameters – 35%

What is Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) Phase-II?

• SBM (G) Phase-II was approved in February 2020 by the Ministry of Jal Shakti and will be implemented from 2020-21 to 2024-25 with a total outlay of Rs. 1,40,881 crores.
• It emphasizes the sustainability of achievements under phase I and to provide adequate facilities for Solid/Liquid & plastic Waste Management (SLWM) in rural India.
• The fund sharing pattern between Centre and States will be 90:10 for the North-Eastern States and the Himalayan States and UT of J&K; 60:40 for other States; and 100% for other Union Territories.
• About Open Defecation Free (ODF), ODF+, ODF++ Status (for Town and Cities)
  • ODF: At any point of the day, not even a single person is found defecating in the open.
  • ODF+: At any point of the day, not a single person is found defecating and/or urinating in the open, and all community and public toilets are functional and well maintained.
  • ODF++: If the area is already ODF+ and the faecal sludge/septage and sewage are safely managed and treated.

Doing Business report

Context:

• The World Bank would discontinue the practice of issuing a ‘Doing Business report’ following an investigation reported: “data irregularities” in its 2018 and 2020 editions (released in 2017 and 2019, respectively) and possible “ethical matters” involving bank staff.
• It will be working on a new approach to assessing the business and investment climate.

About Ease of Doing Business Report:

• The report was introduced in 2003 to provide an assessment of objective measures of business regulations and their enforcement across 190 economies on ten parameters affecting a business through its life cycle.
• Notably, in three reports, released in 2017, 2018 and 2019, India ranked among the top 10 economies showing “the most notable improvement”.

About World Bank:

• It was created in 1944, as the International Bank for Reconstruction and
• Development (IBRD) along with the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
• The IBRD later became the World Bank.
• It works for sustainable solutions that reduce poverty and build shared prosperity in developing countries.

Major reports:

• Ease of Doing Business.
• Human Capital Index.
• World Development Report.

Its Five development institutions:

• International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD): provides loans, credits, and grants.
• International Development Association (IDA): provides low- or no-interest loans to low-income countries.
• International Finance Corporation (IFC): provides investment, advice, and asset management to companies and governments.
• Multilateral Guarantee Agency (MIGA): insures lenders and investors against political risk such as war.
• International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID): settles investment disputes between investors and countries.

State Food Safety Index (SFSI)

• Context:
  • Recently, the Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare released the 3rd State Food Safety Index (SFSI).
• Highlights of the index:
  1. Among the larger states, Gujarat was the top-ranking state, followed by Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
  2. Among the smaller states, Goa stood first followed by Meghalaya and Manipur.
  3. Among UTs, Jammu & Kashmir, Andaman & Nicobar Islands and New Delhi secured top ranks.
• About the Index:
  • The Index is a dynamic quantitative and qualitative benchmarking model that provides an objective framework for evaluating food safety across all States/UTs.
  • The first State Food Safety Index for the year 2018-19 was announced on the first-ever World Food Safety Day on 7th June 2019.
  • The index is developed by FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) to measure the performance of states on five significant parameters of Food Safety.
  • The parameters include Human Resources and Institutional Data, Compliance, Food Testing – Infrastructure and Surveillance, Training & Capacity Building and Consumer Empowerment.

Financial Inclusion Index

• Context:
  • Recently, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has unveiled the first composite Financial Inclusion Index (FI-Index).
  • The annual FI-Index for the financial year ended March 2021 crossed the halfway mark to 53.9, as compared to 43.4 for the year ended March 2017.
• About:
  • The index has been conceptualised as a comprehensive index incorporating details of banking, investments, insurance, postal as well as the pension sector in consultation with the government and respective sectoral regulators.
  • It will be published annually in July every year.
  • It has been constructed without any ‘base year’ and as such it reflects cumulative efforts of all stakeholders over the years towards financial inclusion.
• Aim:
  • To capture the extent of financial inclusion across the country.
• Parameters:
  • It captures information on various aspects of financial inclusion in a single value ranging between 0 and 100, where 0 represents complete financial exclusion and 100 indicates full financial inclusion.
  • It comprises three broad parameters (weights indicated in brackets) viz., Access (35%), Usage (45%), and Quality (20%) with each of these consisting of various dimensions, which are computed based on a number of indicators.
  • The index is responsive to ease of access, availability and usage of services, and quality of services for all 97 indicators.
• Importance of FI Index:
  • Measures Level of Inclusion: It provides information on the level of financial inclusion and measures financial services for use in internal policymaking.
  • Development Indicators: It can be used directly as a composite measure in development indicators.
  • Fulfil the G20 Indicators: It enables fulfilment of G20 Financial Inclusion Indicators requirements.
  • The G20 indicators assess the state of financial inclusion and digital financial services, nationally and globally.
  • Facilitate Researchers: It also facilitates researchers to study the impact of financial inclusion and other macroeconomic variables.

North Eastern Region District SDG Index

• Context:
  • Recently, NITI Aayog has released the North Eastern Region District SDG Index and Dashboard 2021–22.
• What is North Eastern Region District SDG Index?
  • It is the first edition of the SDG Index for the North East Region districts.
  • It is developed by NITI Aayog and the Ministry of Development of the North Eastern Region (MDoNER).
  • The technical support is provided by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
  • It is the first of its kind in the country as it focuses on the North Eastern Region, which is of critical significance to the country’s development trajectory.
  • It measures the performance of the districts of the eight states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura on the Sustainable Development Goals.
  • It is based on NITI Aayog’s SDG India Index i.e. the principal and official tool for monitoring progress on the SDGs at the national and State/ Union Territory levels.
  • It aims at delineating progress at the district level on a basket of indicators and enhancing analytical understanding of sectoral issues as well as data gaps.
• Districts have been classified based on their NER District SDG Index score:
  • Aspirant: 0–49
  • Performer: 50–64
  • Front-Runner: 65–99
  • Achiever: 100
• Significance of North Eastern Region District SDG Index:
  • It offers insights into the social, economic, and environmental status of the region and its districts in their march towards achieving the SDGs.
  • It is a unique policy tool that has immense potential to measure district-level progress, highlight critical gaps, and facilitate resource allocation.
  • It will be a handy tool for policymakers in the eight North Eastern States, the Ministry of DoNER and other Union Ministries.
  • It will help in evidence-based planning, resource allocation, both financial as well as others, and effective supervision and monitoring of the developmental efforts for focused and balanced regional development.
  • It will contribute immensely to providing reliable and high-quality data to design initiatives to address inter-State and intra-State disparities and accelerate SDG achievements in the region.
• Key Highlights of NER SDG Index:
  • Out of the 103 districts considered for the ranking, 64 districts belonged to the Front Runner category while 39 districts were in the Performer category in the composite score and ranking of districts.
  • All districts in Sikkim and Tripura fall in the Front Runner category and there are no districts in the Aspirant or Achiever categories.
  • East Sikkim (Score 75.87) ranks first in the region followed by districts Gomati and North Tripura (Score 75.73) in the second position.
  • The score for the 103 districts ranges from 53.00 in Kiphire (NL) to 75.87 in East Sikkim (SK).

Quality of Life for Elderly Index

• Context:
  • Recently, the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) released the Quality of Life for Elderly Index.
  • The share of elders, as a percentage of the total population in the country, is expected to increase from around 7.5% in 2001 to almost 12.5% by 2026, and surpass 19.5% by 2050.
  • EAC-PM is a non-constitutional, non-statutory, independent body constituted to give advice on economic and related issues to the Government of India, specifically to the Prime Minister.
• About:
  • The Index has been created by the Institute for Competitiveness at the request of EAC-PM and it sheds light on an issue often not mentioned- problems faced by the elderly.
  • Institute for Competitiveness, India is an international initiative centered in India, dedicated to enlarging and purposeful disseminating of the body of research and knowledge on competition and strategy.
  • It identifies the regional patterns of ageing across the Indian States and assesses the overall ageing situation in India. 
  • Ageing is a continuous, irreversible, universal process, which starts from conception till the death of an individual.
  • However, the age at which one’s productive contribution declines and one tends to be economically dependent can probably be treated as the onset of the aged stage of life.
  • National Elderly Policy defines people in the 60+ age group as elderly.
  • It will promote healthy competition among States through fair rankings and highlights the pillars and indicators they can improve.
• Pillars & Sub-Pillars of the Index: 
  • Four Pillars: 
    • Financial Well-being, Social Well-being, Health System and Income Security
  • Eight Sub-Pillars: 
    • Economic Empowerment, Educational Attainment & Employment, Social Status, Physical Security, Basic Health, Psychological Well being, Social Security and Enabling Environment.
  • Major Findings:
    • State-wise Rankings:
      • Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh are top-scoring regions in Aged and the Relatively Aged States, respectively. 
      • The Aged States refer to States with an elderly population of more than 5 million, whereas the Relatively Aged States refer to States with an Elderly population of less than 5 million.
      • Chandigarh and Mizoram are top-scoring regions in Union Territory and North-East States category. 
    • Pillar-wise Performance:
      • The Health System pillar observes the highest national average, 66.97 at an all-India level, followed by 62.34 in Social Well-being.
      • Financial Well-being observes a score of 44.7, which is lowered by the low performance of 21 States across the Education Attainment & Employment pillar, which showcases scope for improvement.
      • States have performed particularly worse in the Income Security pillar because over half of the States have a score below the national average in Income Security, which is the lowest across all pillars.

CSE Transparency Index

• About:
  • In news, The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a Delhi-based non-profit, released the report ‘Transparency Index — Rating of Pollution Control Boards on Public Disclosure’. 
• About CSE Transparency Index:
  • There are 28 state pollution control boards (SPCB) and 6 pollution control committees (PCC) in the country that make pollution information public on websites.
  • CSE has released a report/index to assess the level of transparency maintained by these SPCBs and PCCs.
  • This report critically evaluates the information shared by SPCBs/PCCs during the last four-five years (2016–21) and uses several indicators that provide a broader indication of the type and amount of information shared. 
• Key findings:
  • Around 60% of the bodies scored less than 50% on the information disclosure parameters studied.
  • Only 14 boards scored above 50% in the index.
  • They are Odisha, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Goa, Karnataka, Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Kerala, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan.
  • The index’s analysis cited that most agencies are not transparent enough with information in the public domain.
  • Information on functioning, actions taken by boards against polluting industries, public hearing data on new projects etc are rarely disclosed or are not even available on public websites.
• TOP PERFORMERS:
  • Pollution control boards of Odisha and Telangana (67%).
  • Tamil Nadu ranked a close second with 65.5% transparency, 
  • Madhya Pradesh ranked third (64%)
  • West Bengal ranked fourth (62%) 
  • Goa ranked fifth (60.6%).
  • Only five boards including Haryana have shared minutes of their board meetings on their websites.
  • Only five SPCBs including Himachal Pradesh have shared information on inspections conducted by the boards.

Cyber Security Index (GCI) 2020

• Context:
  • The United Nations specialised agency for information and communication technologies — International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has released the Global Cyber Security Index (GCI) 2020.
• About the index:
  • The index is a trusted reference that measures the commitment of countries to cybersecurity at a global level.
  • Countries are measured along five pillars, namely, legal measures, technical measures, organisational measures, capacity development, and cooperation to generate an overall score.
  • The countries were asked 82 questions where 20 indicators were measured.
• Performance of India and its neighbours:
  • India is placed in the 10th spot. In 2018, it was ranked on the 47th spot. It was ranked rank 47 in 2019.
  • In the Asia-Pacific region, India secured the 4th spot.
  • Neighbours China and Pakistan were ranked at 33 and 79, respectively.
• Top 5 Countries:
  1. The US.
  2. The UK and Saudi Arabia.
  3. Estonia.
  4. South Korea, Singapore and Spain.
  5. Russia, United Arab Emirates and Malaysia.
• General challenges ahead for the countries worldwide:
  • Digital gaps amongst nations create an unsustainable environment in the cyber domain.
  • Growing digital reliance in the post-COVID era has exposed digital disparities which must be bridged through capacity building.
  • There's a sophisticated use of cyberspace by terrorists to broaden their propaganda and incite hatred.
• How is India tackling its cybersecurity threats?
  • India is working on its first Cyber Security Strategy.
  • Computer Emergency Response Teams or CERT is responsible for coordinating and supporting the response to computer security events or incidents on the national or government level.
  • An online cybercrime reporting portal has been launched to enable complainants to report complaints pertaining to Child Pornography/Child Sexual Abuse Material, rape/gang rape imageries or sexually explicit content.
  • A scheme for the establishment of the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) has been established to handle issues related to cybercrime in the country in a comprehensive and coordinated manner.
  • Establishment of National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) for protection of critical information infrastructure in the country.

SDG India Index

• Context:
  • The third edition of the SDG India Index and Dashboard 2020–21 was released by NITI Aayog.
• SDG India Index
  • The index measures the progress at the national and sub-national level in the country’s journey towards meeting the Global Goals and targets.
  • It has been successful as an advocacy tool to propagate the messages of sustainability, resilience, and partnerships, as well.
  • From covering 13 Goals, 39 targets, and 62 indicators in the first edition in 2018-19 to 17 Goals, 54 targets and 100 indicators in the second; this third edition of the index covers 17 Goals, 70 targets, and 115 indicators.
• States and Union Territories are classified as below based on their SDG India Index score:
  • Aspirant: 0–49
  • Performer: 50–64
  • Front-Runner: 65–99
  • Achiever: 100
• Read More:
  • https://samajho.com/upsc/sdg-india-index-and-dashboard-2020-21/

World Giving Index 2021

• Context:
  • The World Giving Index (WGI) is an annual report published by the Charities Aid Foundation. The report is the world's largest survey of charitable endeavours from around the world. The first edition was released in September 2010.
• About:
  • The report looks at three aspects of giving behaviour:
    1. Helped a stranger
    2. Donated money to a charity
    3. Volunteered time to an organization
  • Latest findings:
    • The most generous country in the world is Indonesia.
    • Australia and New Zealand the only high-income countries to remain in this year’s Top 10.
    • India is the 14th most charitable country.

Performance Grading Index (PGI)

• Context:
  • The Union Education Minister has approved the release of the Performance Grading Index (PGI) 2019-20 for States and Union Territories.
  • The PGI is a tool to provide insights on the status of school education in States and UTs including key levers that drive their performance and critical areas for improvement.
• About the Performance Grading Index (PGI):
  • The PGI for States and Union Territories was first published in 2019 with the reference year 2017-18.
  • The PGI: States/UTs for 2019-20 is the third publication in this series.

• Implementing Agency:
  • It is initiated by the Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL).
• Important Findings of the PGI 2019-20:
  • State-wise Performance:
    • This shows that 33 States and UTs have improved their PGI scores in 2019-20 compared to the previous year.
    • Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Puducherry, Punjab and Tamil Nadu have improved their overall PGI scores by 10%.
  • Inter-state Differential:
    • On a maximum possible of 1000 points, the range between the States and UTs with the highest and the lowest score is more than 380 points in the year 2019-20.
    • Domain-wise Performance:
      • Access: Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep and Punjab have shown improvement of 10% or more in the ‘Access’ domain.
      • Infrastructure and Facilities: Thirteen states and UTs have shown improvement by 10% or more in ‘Infrastructure and Facilities’ while Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Odisha have improved their scores in the domain by 20% or more.
  • Equity:
    • In ‘Equity, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Odisha have shown an improvement of more than 10%.
  • Governance Process:
    • 19 states have shown improvement by 10% or more.
    • Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Punjab, Rajasthan and West Bengal have shown improvement by at least 20%.

Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI)

• Context:
  • The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) was at 55.5 in April 2021, little changed from March’s reading of 55.4.
• About:
  • It is compiled by IHS Markit for more than 40 economies worldwide.
  • It is a survey-based measure that asks the respondents about changes in their perception of key business variables as compared with the previous month.
  • The purpose of the PMI is to provide information about current and future business conditions to company decision-makers, analysts, and investors.
  • It is calculated separately for the manufacturing and services sectors and then a composite index is also constructed.
• The PMI is a number from 0 to 100:
  • A print above 50 means expansion, while a score below that denotes contraction.
  • A reading at 50 indicates no change.
• If the PMI of the previous month is higher than the PMI of the current month, it represents that the economy is contracting.
• It is usually released at the start of every month. It is, therefore, considered a good leading indicator of economic activity.
• As the official data on industrial output, manufacturing and Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth comes much later, PMI helps to make informed decisions at an earlier stage.

World Food Price Index

• Context:
  • According to the index, world food prices have increased for the 11th consecutive month in April. Further, the prices also hit their highest level since May 2014.
• About:
  • It is Released by The Food and Agriculture Organization(FAO).
  • It was introduced in 1996 as a public good to help in monitoring developments in the global agricultural commodity markets.
  • The index is a measure of the monthly change in international prices of a basket of food commodities.
  • It consists of the average of five commodity group price indices. Such as cereal, vegetable, dairy, meat and sugar. Also, these five indices are given weightage based on the average export shares.
  • The Base Year for the index is 2014-16.

Inclusive Internet Index 2021

• Context:
  • Inclusive Internet Index 2021 has been released.
• About:
  • It is Released by The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), in partnership with Facebook.
  • It seeks to measure the extent of accessibility and affordability of the Internet. Also, the internet should be able to enable positive social and economic outcomes at the individual and group levels.
  • The index assesses the performance of 120 countries representing 98% of global GDP and 96% of the global population.
• Categories:
  • The Index score is based on the scores of 4 categories;
    • Availability
    • Affordability
    • Relevance
    • Readiness
• Key Findings:
  • It is Topped by Sweden ranks 1st in the index, followed by the US and Spain.
  • India’s Rank is 49th out of 120 countries in the Index.
  • India is set to reach one billion internet users by 2025. There were over 687.6 million internet users in India in 2020.

World Press Freedom Index

• Context:
  • The World Press Freedom Index 2021 has been released by the media watchdog group Reporters Without Borders.
  • Norway topped the index for the fifth year in a row.
  • The report labelled 132 countries as “very bad”, “bad” or “problematic”.
  • It stated that the pandemic was used as means to deny journalists this access and promote government-sponsored propaganda regarding the Covid-19 outbreak.
• Performance of India and neighbours:
  • India remained at the 142nd position among 180 countries.
  • India was ranked in the “bad” category, along with Brazil, Mexico, and Russia.
  • The report says India is one of the world’s most dangerous countries for journalists trying to do their job properly.
  • In 2016, India’s rank was 133, which has steadily climbed down to 142 in 2020.
  • India drew flak for “extremely violent social media hate campaigns” against journalists who “dare to criticise” the government.
• About World Press Freedom Index:
  • Published annually by Reporters Without Borders since 2002, the World Press Freedom Index measures the level of media freedom in 180 countries.
  • It is based on an evaluation of media freedom that measures pluralism, media independence, the quality of the legal framework, and the safety of journalists.
  • It also includes indicators of the level of media freedom violations in each region.
  • It is compiled by means of a questionnaire in 20 languages that are completed by experts all over the world. This qualitative analysis is combined with quantitative data on abuses and acts of violence against journalists during the period evaluated.

Chandler Good Government Index (CGGI)

• About the Index:
  • The Chandler Good Government Index is an annual Index, built by government practitioners, for government practitioners, measuring the capabilities and effectiveness of 104 governments around the world.
  • The Chandler Institute of Governance (CIG) is an international non-profit organisation, headquartered in Singapore.
• The index focuses on seven pillars:
  • leadership and foresight; robust laws and policies; strong institutions; financial stewardship; attractive marketplace; global influence and reputation; and helping people rise.
• Significance of the index:
  • Good government is a deciding factor in whether nations succeed. The Chandler Good Government Index (CGGI) shows why investing in strong government capabilities is vital to securing positive outcomes for citizens and businesses.
• Highlights of the 2021 index:
  1. Seven of the top ten countries are in Europe, but there are four continents represented in the top ten, with Singapore first in Asia, New Zealand leading Oceania, and Canada foremost in the Americas.
  2. All of the top ten countries are high-income, as defined by the World Bank.
• India's performance:
  1. India has been ranked 49th.

WEF’s global gender gap report

• Context:
  • World Economic Forum has released the Global Gender Gap Report 2021.
• India specific findings:
  1. Overall Ranking: India has fallen 28 places- it is now ranked 140 among 156 countries.
  2. Among Neighbours: It is now one of the worst performers in South Asia, trailing behind neighbours Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar.
  3. Political empowerment: India has declined on the political empowerment index as well by 13.5 percentage points.
  4. In the index of education attainment, India has been ranked at 114.
  5. India has fared the worst on “Health and Survival”, which includes the sex ratio, and economic participation of women.
  6. The estimated earned income of women in India is only one-fifth of men’s, which puts the country among the bottom 10 globally on this indicator.
• Global Scenario:
  • For the 12th time, Iceland is the most gender-equal country in the world.
  • The top 10 most gender-equal countries include Finland, Norway, New Zealand, Rwanda, Sweden, Ireland, and Switzerland.
  • Many countries have fared worse in this year’s rankings compared to last year’s, on account of economic performance.
  • The gender gap in political empowerment remains the largest: women represent only 26.1 percent of some 35,500 parliament seats and just 22.6 percent of over 3,400 ministers worldwide.
  • In 81 countries, there has never been a woman head of state, as of January 15, 2021.
  • Bangladesh is “the only country where more women have held head-of-state positions than men in the past 50 years.
  • The countries with the largest gender gaps in economic participation include Iran, India, Pakistan, Syria, Yemen, Iraq, and Afghanistan.
• About the Global Gender Gap Report:
  • First published in 2006.
  • It benchmarks 156 countries on their progress towards gender parity in four dimensions:
    1. Economic Participation and Opportunity,
    2. Educational Attainment,
    3. Health and Survival and
    4. Political Empowerment.
  • Over the Index, the highest possible score is 1 (equality) and the lowest possible score is 0 (inequality).

“Opportunity Index 2021” report

• Context:
  • It is a new report by LinkedIn.
  • The survey, conducted in January, saw participation from more than 10,000 respondents across the Asia Pacific (APAC) region. It covered 2,285 respondents in India.
• Key findings:
  1. 9 in 10 or 89 percent of women were negatively impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
  2. About 85% or four in five working women in India believe they have missed out on a raise, promotion, or work offer because of their gender. This average stands at 60% for the Asia Pacific (APAC) region.
  3. More women in India have experienced the impact of gender on career development when compared to the APAC region.
• Challenges for women:
  • Lack of time and discrimination for family care.
  • Gender is a barrier when it comes to attaining opportunities.
  • Lack of guidance through networks.
  • Workplace discrimination because of household responsibilities.

Municipal Performance Index 2020

• Context:
  • Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has released the Municipal Performance Index 2020
  • It seeks to simplify and evaluate the complexities in local governance practice and promote the ethos of transparency and accountability.
• Municipal Performance Index (MPI) 2020:
  • The MPI examined the sectoral performance of 111 municipalities (with Delhi being assessed separately for NDMC and the three Municipal Corporations) across five verticals which comprise 20 sectors and 100 indicators in all totality.
  • The five verticals under MPI are Services, Finance, Policy, Technology, and Governance.
• Ranking of cities:
  • The assessment framework under MPI 2020 has classified municipalities based on their populationMillion+ (municipalities having over a million population) and Less than Million Population.
    1. In the Million+ category: Indore has emerged as the highest-ranked municipality, followed by Surat and Bhopal.
    2. In the Less than Million category: New Delhi Municipal Council has emerged as the leader, followed by Tirupati and Gandhinagar.

The Index of Economic Freedom 2021

• Context:
  • The Heritage Foundation releases The Index of Economic Freedom 2021.
• About:
  • It is an annual index. This index created in 1995 by think-tank The Heritage Foundation and The Wall Street Journal.
  • It measures the degree of economic freedom in countries across the world.
  • The Index covered economic freedoms in 184 countries.
• Parameters:
  • The index measures 12 indicators grouped into four broad categories of economic freedom:
    • Rule of Law (property rights, government integrity, judicial effectiveness)
    • Government Size (government spending, tax burden, fiscal health)
    • Regulatory Efficiency (business freedom, labour freedom, monetary freedom)
    • Open Markets (trade freedom, investment freedom, financial freedom).
  • Each of these twelve economic freedoms within these categories is graded on a scale of 0 to 100. Score 0 is the least economic freedom and score 100 is the highest economic freedom.
• Key Findings:
  • Singapore tops the index followed by New Zealand, Australia, Switzerland, and Ireland.
  • India ranked 121st in the index with a score of 56.5 points under the category of ‘mostly unfree’.
  • In Asia-Pacific, India ranked 26th among the 40 countries.

World Happiness Report 2021

• Context:
  • The Sustainable Development Solutions Network for the United Nations released the World Happiness Report 2021, a day before the International Happiness Day.
• About:
  • The World Happiness Report is an annual report published by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network(SDSN).
  • The report ranks countries by how happy their citizens perceive themselves to be.
  • This year it focuses on the effects of Covid-19 and how people all over the world have fared.
• Parameters:
  • The rankings are based on polling (Gallup World Poll) which looks at six variables:
    1. Gross Domestic Product Per Capita (Purchasing Power Parity).
    2. Social Support.
    3. Healthy life expectancy at birth.
    4. Freedom to make life choices.
    5. Generosity.
    6. Perceptions of corruption.
  • Respondents are asked to rate their own current lives on a 0-10 scale.
• Key Findings:
  • Top Performers: Finland has been ranked as the happiest country in the world for the fourth consecutive year.
  • Worst Performers: Afghanistan (149) is the most unhappy country.
• Related to India:
  • India has been ranked 139 out of 149 countries in the World Happiness Report 2021.
  • In 2020, India was ranked 144 out of 156 countries.
• Sustainable Development Network Solution:
  • The SDSN, launched in 2012, mobilizes global scientific and technological expertise to promote practical problem solving for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Climate Agreement.
  • It was established under the auspices of the United Nations Secretary-General.
  • The SDSN and the Bertelsmann Stiftung have been publishing the annual SDG Index & Dashboards Global Report since 2016.

International Intellectual Property (IP) Index

• Context:
  • India ranked 40 among 53 global economies on the latest annual edition of the International Intellectual Property (IP) Index.
• About:
  • It is an annual report released by the US Chamber of Commerce Global Innovation Policy Centre(GIPC).
• Aim:
  • The index evaluates Intellectual Property rights in 53 global economies. These economies represent together over 90% of global GDP.
• Parameters:
  • It ranks countries based on 50 unique indicators. These indicators are divided across nine categories of protection: 1) Patents 2) copyrights 3) trademarks 4) design rights 5) trade secrets 6) commercialization of IP assets 7) enforcement 8) systemic efficiency and 9) membership and ratification of international treaties.
• Significance:
  • The IP Index serves as a roadmap for policymakers who look to support creativity, innovation, and economic growth through a more robust IP policy.
• Key Findings:
  • The US, the UK, Germany, France, and Japan are the top five economies on the IP Index in 2021.
• Related to India:
  • India has been ranked 40th in the 2021 index among the 53 global economies. In 2020 also, India was ranked 40th.
  • Among BRICS nations, India registered the second-highest growth with an overall improvement of over 13%.

Corruption Perception Index

• Context:
  • India’s rank has slipped six places to 86th among 180 countries in Corruption Perception Index (CPI) released by Transparency International.
• About:
  • It is a composite index that draws from 12 surveys to rank nations around the globe.
  • It has become a benchmark gauge of perceptions of corruption and is used by analysts and investors.
  • The index is also based on expert opinions of public sector corruption and takes note of a range of factors like whether governmental leaders are held to account or go unpunished for corruption, the perceived prevalence of bribery, and whether public institutions respond to citizens needs.
• India’s performance:
  • India slipped six places to 86th position this year.
    • India was ranked 80th out of 180 countries in 2019.
  • India’s score is below the average score of the Asia-Pacific region (31 countries) and global average.
  • India’s overall score is also two points less than that of China, which docked at 78th position.
• Overall best and worst performers:
  • The list was topped by New Zealand and Denmark (88 each).
  • South Sudan and Somalia were at the bottom of the global ranking, with scores of 12 each.
• Corruption and COVID-19:
  • The latest edition of CPI highlighted the impact of corruption on government responses to COVID-19, comparing countries’ performance in the index to their investment in health care and the extent to which democratic norms and institutions have been weakened during the pandemic.

Bare Necessities Index (BNI)

• Context:
  • Economic Survey 2020-21 constructs a Bare Necessities Index (BNI) at the rural, urban, and all India levels.
• About:
  • This index is a means of assessing equity in economic development among states and regions in India. It uses the basic needs approach.
• Indicators:
  • This index uses 26 indicators on five dimensions of basic necessities— water, sanitation, housing, micro-environment, and other facilities.
• Data Collection:
  • The index has been created for all states based on data collected by the National Statistical Office(NSO) in 2012 and 2018.
• Range:
  • The index classifies areas on three levels of access — high, medium, low — to bare necessities. The index has a range of 0 to 1 where 1 represents the best access to the basic necessities
• Key takeaways:
  • Performance of States:
    • States such as Kerala, Punjab, Haryana, and Gujarat top the index. While eastern Indian States of Odisha, Jharkhand, West Bengal, and Tripura have occupied the lowest positions.
    • The inter-State disparity in access to the basic necessities has declined in 2018 when compared to 2012.
  • Richer vs Poorer States:
    • The Poorer States have reduced the gap with rich States in providing access to the basics of daily life — housing, water, power, sanitation, cooking gas.

Democracy Index 2020

• Context:
  • The latest edition of the “Democracy Index” was recently released by The Economist Intelligence Unit— the research and analysis division of The Economist Group, which is the sister company to The Economist newspaper.
• About:
  • It was started in 2006 by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The index provides a clear image of the status of democracy worldwide in 167 countries.
• Categories:
  • The index is based on five categories: Civil liberties, Electoral process, and pluralism; Functioning of government; Political participation; Political culture.
• Classification:
  • Each country will be provided with a score of 0 to 10. These scores are decided based on the 60 indicators within the five categories. Based on their scores, each country is then classified into any one of the four types of regime. Such as,
    • full democracy,
    • flawed democracy,
    • hybrid regime,
    • authoritarian regime.
• Key Findings:
  • Norway has topped the index followed by Iceland, Sweden, New Zealand, and Canada.
  • India has dropped two places and India’s score was 6.61. Currently, India was in the 53rd position in 2020.
  • India has been classified as a ‘flawed democracy’ along with countries such as the US, France, Belgium, and Brazil.

Covid-19 Performance Index

• Context:
  • India has been ranked 86th in a “Covid-19 Performance Index” comprising 98 countries.
• About:
  • Covid-19 Performance Index was compiled by the Sydney-based Lowy Institute, an Australian think tank, which sought to measure the response of countries to the Pandemic.
• Six Indicators:
  • Confirmed cases, confirmed deaths, cases per million people, deaths per million people, cases as a proportion of tests, and tests per thousand people.
• Assessing Method:
  • Assessed 98 countries in the 36 weeks that followed their hundredth case.
  • China was not included in the study because all of its testing rates are not publicly available.
  • An average across six indicators was calculated for individual countries in each period and normalised to produce a score from 0 (worst performing) to 100 (best performing).
• Key Finding:
  • Top Countries: New Zealand topped the rankings closely followed by Vietnam, Taiwan, Thailand, and Cyprus.
  • South Asian Countries: Sri Lanka was the best performing nation in South Asia, ranking 10, while the Maldives was at 25, Pakistan at 69, Nepal at 70, and Bangladesh at 84.
• Performance of India:
  • India ranked 86th in the Covid-19 Performance Index out of 98 countries.
  • At 24.3, India’s average was lower than the region it belongs to — Asia-Pacific — which scored 58.2 and ranked best in the region-wise evaluation.

Asia-Pacific Personalised Health Index

• Context:
  • Recently, the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) has released Asia-Pacific Personalised Health Index.
• About:
  • The index measures the progress of Asia Pacific countries in adopting personalised healthcare. It includes enabling the right care to be tailored for the right person at the right time.
  • Countries covered: The index ranks 11 countries of Asia Pacific namely Australia, China, Japan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and New Zealand.
• Indicators:
  • It measures performance against 27 different indicators of personalised health across four categories called ‘Vital Signs’.
  • It includes Policy Context, Health Information, Personalised Technologies, and Health Services.
• Key Takeaways:
  • Topped by: Singapore has topped the index followed by Taiwan (2nd), Japan (3rd), and Australia (4th).
  • At the bottom of the index: Indonesia was ranked 11th in the index.
    • India has been ranked 10th out of 11 Asia Pacific countries in the index.