Assam improves position in SDG index Himanta

    Guwahati, Jul 15 (PTI) Assam has improved its position in the national index for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2023-24, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Monday.
    Addressing a press conference here, he said that the northeastern state has entered the 'Front Runner' category with a score of 65 as against the national SDG score of 71.
    "The NITI Aayog published the report and mentioned that Assam is one of the fastest-growing states in the country. Our target is to surpass the national score in the next two years," Sarma said.
    Assam had joined the SDG index in 2016 and it was in the 'Aspirant' category with a score of 49.
    The state improved its ranking and entered the 'Performer category' in 2019 with a score of 55 and 57 in 2020.

    "Earlier, Assam was a burden on India but now it is not. We have done well in poverty alleviation, clean water supply, green energy, economic growth, industry, innovation, infrastructure and sustainable cities," the CM said.
    He, however, said the higher education sector performed poorly with an individual score of 16.5 and it negatively impacted the state's position.
    "With new schemes, we hope that the gross enrolment ratio will increase substantially. We expect to clock 19 points in higher education within two years," Sarma added.
    Uttarakhand and Kerala have emerged as the top performing states in NITI Aayog's SDG India Index 2023-24, which evaluates the progress of states and union territories on social, economic and environmental parameters, while Bihar has been adjudged as the worst performer.
    According to the report, India's overall Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) score increased to 71 in 2023-24, compared to 66 in 2020-21, supported by significant progress on eliminating poverty, providing decent work, economic growth, climate action and life on land.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)