Gujarat falls steeply in human well-being index: Report

Gujarat has fallen precipitously on a countrywide index of human well-being according to a report on public policy published by a reputed private university.

"Gujarat is seen slipping from rank 10 out of 35 (states and union territories) in 1981 to 17 in 2001 and further to 24 in 2011," O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU) said Thursday presenting the Policy Effectiveness Index (PEI), measured in terms of outcomes and development impact of policy in their India Public Policy Report 2014 (IPPR).

"PEI is a multi-dimensional and a multi-indicator measure and comprises four component indices that reflect human well-being from being able to enjoy: livelihood opportunities; a socially meaningful life; security of life and rule of law; and amenities for a sustained improvement in living standards," JGU said in a statement.

The first IPPR, launched here Wednesday by Member Planning Commission Abhijit Sen, has been jointly published by the JGU and the Oxford University Press.

Along with Gujarat, Kerala was another surprise -- having slipped from 24 to 29 during the 1981-2011 period.

While states like Jammu and Kashmir and some other small states have improved their rank considerably, the top five and the bottom three states in the ranking have, by and large, remained the same over the three decades of the analysis presented in the report.

The top five states on the PEI in 2011 are Sikkim, Mizoram, Goa, Punjab and Delhi. At the bottom are Odisha, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Assam and West Bengal.

"The IPPR finds that at the all-India level there is a gradual, but only a marginal, improvement in the policy effectiveness index over the three decades," the university said.

"It is being compromised by a near stagnancy in expansion of livelihood opportunities and deterioration in law and order and justice dispensation environment in the country," it added.