Human Development

Human Development is the process of widening people’s choices as well as raising the level of well being achieved i-e it is the process of enlarging choices of people- whether economic, social, political or cultural. “People are the real wealth of a nation.” However the importance of GDP growth and economic stability can not be understated as both are essential for sustained human progress, as is clear in many countries that suffer from their absence. But the ultimate yardstick for measuring progress is people’s quality of life.

According to HDR (Human Development Report) 2013, India’s HDI value is 0.554 and India is in the medium human development category. India is positioned at a lowly 136 out of 187 countries. HDI is a summary measure of human development which takes into account three components- A long and healthy life, Knowledge and a decent standard of living. India’s HDI value is below the average of 0.630 of medium human development countries.

To improve human development efforts must be made in the following direction:

1. It is essential to extend basic public services such as health, education, clean drinking water, sanitation, etc., to those who are deprived of them.

2. It is time to bridge the large gaps in health status indicators which currently place India below some of the world’s poorest countries. Supply of safe drinking water and access to sanitation to all must be a top priority.

3. We must pay special attention to gender equity and help create an enabling environment for social, economic and political empowerment of women.

4. Focus must be on improving women’s socio-economic status by mainstreaming gender equity concerns in all sectoral policies and programmes.

To sum up, competing for human development is a healthy rivalry- more healthy it might be argued than competing on GDP. The two main challenges faced by India are to diminish the extreme inequalities and ensure that the rising tide of poverty brings opportunity for many and not just the select few.

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