Odisha Budget 2021: State’s Human Development Spending Less Than Assam, Chhattisgarh

Bhubaneswar: Odisha has not been a big spender when it comes to human development, despite the State figuring in the bottom -10 in the Oxford Human Development Initiative’s Multi-Dimensional Poverty Index 2020, where the indices of ranking are health, education, water and sanitation.

As per an analysis by the Policy Research Studies (PRS), the average expenditure by Odisha on human development (education, health, water supply and sanitation) during the period of 2015-21 (2015-16 to 2020-21) had been around 25 per cent. The State is not among the top-10 spenders on human development in the country. (see the image)

ODISHA & OXFORD MPI

In the 2020 Oxford report of Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI), Odisha with a score of 0.16 figured in the bottom-10 states in the country. (see the image)

The poor human development states are: Bihar, Jharkhand, UP, MP, Odisha and Assam.

ODISHA VS ASSAM

When the MPI assigns a value of 0.16 to both Odisha and Assam, a look at the human development spending by the two states tells a different tale.

While Assam has been spending 31 per cent of its total budgetary expenditure on human development, Odisha, despite having the same amount of deprivation as per Oxford MPI, could spend around 25 per cent of total budgetary expenditure on human development.

ODISHA VS CHHATTISGARH

In the Oxford MPI, the value assigned to Chhattisgarh stood higher at 0.14. Significantly, the spending by the State on human development during the period of 2015-21 also stood higher at 26 per cent.

ODISHA VS BIHAR

Bihar had been placed at the bottom in the Oxford MPI with a value of 0.25, despite the State’s expenditure on human development having been around 27 per cent of the total expenditure during the period of 2015-21.

ODISHA VS DELHI

In the Oxford MPI, Delhi was assigned a value of mere 0.02 as against Odisha’s 0.16. But when it comes to opening the purse for human development, Delhi was seen spending a whopping 42 per cent of the total expenditure on human development during the period of 2015-21.

ODISHA VS MEGHALAYA   

In the indicator of higher spending on human development, the north-eastern hilly state stands above Odisha, as it spends around 30 per cent of its expenditure on human development.

WHERE ODISHA LIMPS?

In the human development sector of water supply and sanitation, the total spending  by Odisha during the period of 2015-21 stood at 4.7 per cent of the total expenditure, which is fourth highest in the country.

But the State limps in opening its purse for the sectors like education and health.

In education, the expenditure by Odisha during the period of 2015-21 has been estimated at around 15 per cent of the total expenditure, when the national average is higher at around 16 per cent.

In contrast, Assam had spent over 21 per cent on education during the period and Chhattisgarh spent around 19 per cent. Highest spending is by Delhi (26 per cent).

Health: Odisha spent only 5.3 per cent of total expenditure on this vital sector. In contrast, the spending by Assam and Chhattisgarh stood higher at 6.6 per cent and 5.7 per cent, respectively.

THE BIG TAKEAWAY

In fact, the spending on human development by Odisha has to remain on the higher side than Chhattisgarh and Assam. For, when the population of Odisha in 2020 stood at a massive 4.7 crore, the respective numbers for Assam and Chhattisgarh stood at 3.6 crore and 3.2 crore.

It is for this reason, Odisha was ranked lower in the indicators of per capita expenditure on education and health in the Economic survey 2021 tabled in parliament recently.