Maarg Manthan · Topic 18.15

Human Development Index (UNDP)

Current Affairs & Government Schemes › Important Reports, Indices and Surveys · Topic 18.15

The Human Development Index (HDI) is a summary measure of average achievement in three basic dimensions of human development, a long and healthy life, knowledge and a decent standard of living, published by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in its annual Human Development Report, which began in 1990 with Mahbub ul Haq and Amartya Sen as key architects. It ranges from 0 to 1 and is the geometric mean of three dimension indices. In the Human Development Report 2025, released on 6 May 2025, India ranked 130th of 193 countries with an HDI value of 0.685, in the medium human development group, up from 133rd and 0.676.

5 min read · UPSC Prelims · Current Affairs & Government Schemes · Important Reports, Indices and Surveys

At a Glance

Publisher UNDP, Human Development Report
Since 1990
Dimensions Health, education, standard of living
Scale 0 to 1, geometric mean
India (HDR 2025) 130th of 193, value 0.685
Exam link UPSC Prelims, Current Affairs and Government Schemes: Important Reports, Indices and Surveys

Where Does It Fit?

This is the last topic of the macro. It closes the set of global and national indices, and the health, education and income dimensions link back to the NFHS, the poverty index and the SDG index. Previous topic: World Press Freedom Index (India Rank and Methodology). Next topic: Gati Shakti National Master Plan (Cross-Sectoral Infrastructure).

How Is the HDI Calculated?

Dimension	Indicator
Long and healthy life	Life expectancy at birth
Knowledge	Expected years of schooling for children and mean years of schooling for adults aged 25 and above
Decent standard of living	Gross national income per capita in purchasing power parity terms, with a logarithm applied
Aggregation	The geometric mean of the three dimension indices, which means a low score in one dimension cannot be fully offset by a high score in another
Very high	HDI of 0.800 and above
High, medium and low	High is 0.700 to 0.799, medium is 0.550 to 0.699 and low is below 0.550

What Is India’s Position?

HDR 2025: Titled A matter of choice: People and possibilities in the age of AI. India ranked 130th of 193 countries with an HDI of 0.685, as reported
Progress: India rose from 133rd with 0.676 the year before, and has moved from the low to the medium group over three decades, as reported
Group: India remains in the medium human development group, below the 0.700 threshold for high human development
Inequality: Inequality reduces India’s HDI by about 30.7 per cent, one of the larger losses in the region, as reported
Gender Inequality Index: India ranked 102nd of 166 countries in the Gender Inequality Index, as reported
Newer report: No Human Development Report after 2025 was verified as of November 2026, so the UNDP website should be checked
Neighbours: As reported, Bangladesh was at the same HDI of 0.685 and rank, while Sri Lanka and China ranked higher
Verification: Ranks are recalculated each year with revised data, so earlier ranks may differ in later reports

What Else Should You Remember?

Origin: The Human Development Report was first published in 1990, inspired by the capability approach of Amartya Sen and the work of Mahbub ul Haq
Other composite indices: The UNDP also publishes the Inequality-adjusted HDI, the Gender Development Index, the Gender Inequality Index and the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index, as in NITI Aayog Method Alkire-Foster, with UNDP and OPHI Indicators 12 across 3 dimensions Baseline (NFHS-4) 25.01 per cent…">Multidimensional Poverty Index (India-Specific, NITI Aayog)
Inequality-adjusted HDI: The HDI value discounted for inequality in each dimension. Where there is no inequality the two values are equal
Planetary pressures: Recent reports have also experimented with an HDI adjusted for planetary pressures, using carbon emissions and material footprint
Data sources: Life expectancy from the UN Population Division, schooling from UNESCO and national surveys, and income from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund
State HDIs: India has no official state ranking by UNDP, but some state human development reports and the Global Data Lab estimate subnational values, and Kerala ranks high
Link to health survey: Health and education outcomes are tracked by surveys, as in National Family Health Survey (NFHS)
Link to growth: Income gains alone do not raise the HDI if schooling and health lag, which is why India ranks below its income rank
Criticism: The index uses only three dimensions and a few indicators, and it ignores sustainability and political freedom
Common mistakes: Saying the World Bank publishes the HDI or that the HDI is a simple average

Why Does It Matter for the Exam?

Publisher: UNDP in the Human Development Report
Dimensions: Life expectancy, schooling and GNI per capita
India: 130th of 193, value 0.685, medium group
Method: Geometric mean
Common errors: Mixing the HDI with the Gender Inequality Index or Global MPI

As an analytical point, India’s income has grown faster than its health and education outcomes, so gains in human development need higher public spending on health and schools, and better results for women and the poor.

Why Is This Topic Important?

Dimensions One-liners
Rank Annual current affairs
Social sector GS Paper 2 theme

What Came Next?

This is the last topic of the macro. The next macro covers national missions and flagship programmes. Next topic: Gati Shakti National Master Plan (Cross-Sectoral Infrastructure).

Key People and Terms

HDI Human Development Index
GNI Gross national income
PPP Purchasing power parity
IHDI Inequality-adjusted HDI
GII Gender Inequality Index
Geometric mean Product root of the three indices

Exam Corner

Points to Remember

Publisher: UNDP, since 1990.
Dimensions: health, education, income.
India HDR 2025: 130th, 0.685.
Medium group: 0.550 to 0.699.
Aggregation: geometric mean.

Do Not Confuse With

HDI and IHDI Average versus inequality-adjusted
HDI and GII Overall development versus gender gaps
HDI and Global MPI Achievement index versus deprivation index

Memory Hook

Health, schooling, income: three roots, one geometric mean, India 130.

Mains Angle

Mains questions ask about India’s human development gaps. These points give a balanced frame.

Progress Gains since 1990
Gaps Inequality and gender
Way Health, education spend

A Question You May Face

An original practice question, not a past paper question.

“India ranks in the medium human development group despite high growth. Analyse the reasons and suggest measures.”

How to Answer

Position 130th with 0.685.
Reason Education and health lag.
Drag Inequality.
Way Public spending.

GS Relevance

Prelims: HDI dimensions, categories, publisher, India rank and value. GS Paper 2: social sector, human development. GS Paper 3: inclusive growth and measurement.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Human Development Index?

The Human Development Index is a summary measure of human development published by the United Nations Development Programme. It combines life expectancy, expected and mean years of schooling, and gross national income per capita into one value between 0 and 1 using a geometric mean, and it has been published since 1990.

Who publishes the Human Development Index?

The United Nations Development Programme publishes the Human Development Index in its annual Human Development Report. It is not published by the World Bank or the United Nations Statistics Division, although it draws on data from the UN Population Division, UNESCO, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

What is India's rank in the Human Development Index?

India ranked 130th out of 193 countries in the Human Development Report 2025, released on 6 May 2025, with an HDI value of 0.685, as reported. This is up from 133rd with 0.676, and it keeps India in the medium human development group.

What are the HDI categories?

Countries are grouped by HDI value into very high human development at 0.800 and above, high at 0.700 to 0.799, medium at 0.550 to 0.699 and low below 0.550. India falls in the medium group, just below the 0.700 threshold for the high group, as reported.

What is the latest status of the Human Development Report?

The latest edition verified is the Human Development Report 2025, titled A matter of choice: People and possibilities in the age of AI, published on 6 May 2025. No later edition was verified as of November 2026, so the UNDP website should be checked for the next report.

PYQ Practice — Statement Analysis

1 The HDI is published by the World Bank.

False

It is published by the UNDP.

2 The HDI is the geometric mean of three dimension indices.

True

Health, education and income.

3 India ranked 130th in the Human Development Report 2025.