Odisha best performing state in terms of Human Development Index in eastern India: SBI report

New Delhi: Odisha is the best performing state in eastern India in terms of Human Development Index (HDI) improvement, according to a report published by the State Bank of India (SBI).

The eastern state is also among the top ten performing states in terms of HDI improvement in the country. Propelled by high economic growth, Odisha’s per capita income has improved significantly from 1990 to 2017, added the report.

Apart from Odisha, Rajasthan, UP and MP are among the 25 major states which have seen the largest jump in HDI value. Odisha secured third position in terms of compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of social expenditure at 15.1%.

Uttar Pradesh and Bihar continue to languish on the human development index (HDI) front, while others, including Haryana and Himachal, have shown an improvement in the past 27 years.

The industrially progressive Gujarat and Maharashtra have slipped in the HDI ranking between 1990 and 2017, while Haryana has improved the most.

Southern states continue to lead the pack on the crucial measure, where the country is ranked 130th globally, but are staring at a different trouble, the report stated. The population in the South is ageing fast and this can potentially result in imminent pressure on these states in terms of both social as well as physical inter-state migration, it said.

Interestingly, the report says one cannot establish a direct co-relation between social sector spends and HDI, which points to the presence of institutional bottlenecks, lack of awareness and implementation issues. From perspective of spending public funds, Nagaland is at the bottom with a growth of 12.7 percent per annum over the past 27 years, while Haryana witnessed the fastest growth at 15.7 percent.

Bengal had a 13.3 per cent growth in social sector spends ranking 19th, which is a slip of two notches since 1990, it said. Gujarat slipped to 14 in 2017 from 12 in 1990, while Maharashtra slipped by one notch to 9, it said. The list is topped by Kerala, followed by Goa.

The report expect Ayushman Bharat scheme, which seeks to provide health cover to the poor, can help improve HDI value both at the national and sub-national level in the coming years if rolled out "properly" and rolled out across the states.

[With PTI inputs]