Human Development Index & India’s Rank
HDI components, India’s rank (~134), comparison with neighbours, and what India needs to improve HDI.
📖 What is Human Development?
Human development is the process of enlarging people’s choices and improving their well-being. It goes beyond GDP — a country can be rich but have poor human development if wealth is not translated into better lives for people.
The concept was developed by Mahbub ul Haq (Pakistani economist) and Amartya Sen (Indian Nobel laureate) in 1990 for the UNDP.
Saudi Arabia has a high GDP per capita but lower HDI than expected because of restrictions on women’s education and work. Kerala has a lower per capita income than many Indian states but the highest HDI in India — because of high literacy, good healthcare, and social equity.
📊 Human Development Index (HDI)
The HDI is published annually by UNDP in the Human Development Report. It measures human development across three dimensions:
| Dimension | Indicator | Min-Max Values |
|---|---|---|
| Long & Healthy Life | Life Expectancy at Birth | 20–85 years |
| Knowledge | Mean Years of Schooling + Expected Years of Schooling | 0–18 years |
| Decent Standard of Living | GNI per capita (PPP $) | $100–$75,000 |
HDI score ranges from 0 to 1. Countries are classified as:
- Very High HDI: 0.800 and above (Norway, Switzerland, Australia)
- High HDI: 0.700–0.799 (China, Brazil, Mexico)
- Medium HDI: 0.550–0.699 (India, Bangladesh, Myanmar)
- Low HDI: Below 0.550 (Sub-Saharan Africa)
🇮🇳 India’s HDI Performance
| Year | India’s Rank | HDI Score | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | ~130 | 0.431 | Low HDI |
| 2000 | ~128 | 0.493 | Medium HDI |
| 2010 | ~119 | 0.581 | Medium HDI |
| 2021-22 | 132 | 0.633 | Medium HDI |
| 2023 (latest) | 134 | 0.644 | Medium HDI |
🌏 India vs Neighbours — HDI Comparison
| Country | HDI Rank (2023) | HDI Score | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sri Lanka | 78 | 0.780 | High HDI |
| China | 75 | 0.788 | High HDI |
| Bhutan | 125 | 0.681 | Medium HDI |
| India | 134 | 0.644 | Medium HDI |
| Bangladesh | 129 | 0.661 | Medium HDI |
| Nepal | 146 | 0.601 | Medium HDI |
| Pakistan | 164 | 0.540 | Medium HDI |
Bangladesh (HDI rank 129) has overtaken India (134) in HDI despite lower per capita income. Bangladesh’s success in women’s education, garment industry employment for women, and better health outcomes (especially maternal health) drove this improvement — a lesson for India.
📊 India’s HDI — State-wise Variation
| State | HDI Performance | Key Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Kerala | Highest in India | 100% literacy, best healthcare, women empowerment |
| Himachal Pradesh | 2nd highest | High literacy, good health infrastructure |
| Goa | 3rd highest | High income, good education |
| Bihar | Lowest | Low literacy, poor healthcare, high poverty |
| UP, MP, Rajasthan | Low | BIMARU states — low development indicators |
📈 Other Human Development Indices
- IHDI (Inequality-adjusted HDI): HDI adjusted for inequality — India’s IHDI is much lower than HDI
- GDI (Gender Development Index): HDI separately for men and women — India’s GDI shows gender gap
- GII (Gender Inequality Index): Measures gender inequality in health, empowerment, labour — India ranks 108/166
- MPI (Multidimensional Poverty Index): Covered in Topic 02