Wake up call for Delhi: Capital 3rd worst in women safety, Goa tops index

Goa came out as the state where women and girls were the least vulnerable, followed by Kerala, according to the index

Delhi came in just two positions shy of being the worst state when it comes to safety of girls and women, faring better only than Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, while Goa topped the list, shows a newly-formed Gender Vulnerability Index by NGO Plan India. (Here is the link to the full report) 

The GVI attempts to "generate a normative consensus" on status of girls and women in India and takes into account four core dimensions: Education, health and survival, poverty, protection. 

For each dimension and GVI, state-wise ranking has been provided, with Goa coming in at rank one, followed by Kerala at rank two, Mizoram in the third position, Sikkim at fourth, and Manipur at rank five. At rank 28, Delhi fares among the bottom five, with Bihar faring the worst at rank 30, followed by Uttar Pradesh (29), Jharkhand (27), and Arunachal Pradesh (26). 

Photo: Gender Vulnerability Index
 

According to the index, with a GVI score of 0.436, Delhi fares so poorly because "education in Delhi is the poorest among the 30 states" and the "protection dimensions ranks poorly as well". Delhi came in at the last rank, at 30, in terms of education and at the third-last rank, at 28, when it comes to protection. Under the poverty and health dimensions, Delhi was said to have "unsatisfactory performance", according to the index. 

Photo: Gender Vulnerability Index
 

In Bihar, the index said, girls and women are "most vulnerable and their position is acute". With their state garnering the lowest GVI score of 0.410, they are the unhealthiest and poorest among their peers across the country. The index adds that in Bihar, education is also ranked among the lowest, and protection is unsatisfactory. "For instance, in Bihar, 39 per cent of the girls are getting married before the legal age. Furthermore, 12.2 per cent of girls aged 15-19, when surveyed, were either mothers or pregnant." 

Referring to the top-ranked states, the index shows that at rank one, Goa (GVI of 0.656) came in first in terms of protection, fifth for education, sixth for health and survival, and eighth for poverty. Kerala's second rank, with a GVI score of 0.634, "comes from excellent achievements in the health dimension", it added.

The GVI has analysed the situation of girls and women in the country on the four dimensions and developed a multidimensional composite index with over 170 indicators.

This index will be useful in understanding the situation in states, as it ranks each state in every dimension of gender vulnerability.