On Friday, the UN World Happiness Report of 2021 was released. Out of the 149 measured countries, India ranked 139. The score of the country is also the second-lowest among its immediate neighbors.
Main Focus of The Report
The report aims at measuring two things in a year – the lives of the people and the response of the government towards the global pandemic. The report said in a statement, “Our aim was two-fold, first to focus on the effects of Covid-19 on the structure and quality of people’s lives, and second to describe and evaluate how governments all over the world have dealt with the pandemic. In particular, we try to explain why some countries have done so much better than others”.
Also Read: Indians are hungrier than people of China, Nepal, and Pakistan as per the Global Hunger Index
Reasons Why India is Lagging in The Report?
The global pandemic has pushed India to such a state that the economy of the country has deteriorated to a huge scale. Even the public health of the country has worsened a lot. India has also failed in building a trustworthy social support system, helping people when they are in real trouble. Moreover, the political system and the business establishments of the country are unable to manage the big cash flows responsibly.
TPT Policy Advocacy & Recommendations
- Unemployment is the biggest problem in India. Due to Covid-19, several million have lost their jobs. The government must look into the matter well so that India revives back from the unemployment problem and ranks well in the Happiness Report.
- The rich are getting richer in India whereas the poor are getting poorer. Meanwhile, the poverty rates are higher in India than in Pakistan. In fact, from a major report, it is revealed that in the area of government spending Pakistan has fared better than India which matters a great deal when it comes to providing welfare programs.
