STATE OF STATES REPORT 2025: INDIA’S SDG PROGRESS AND CHALLENGES

GS2 GOVERNANCE: 

India’s SDG Performance

• India, as the world’s most populous nation, struggles with nine out of 16 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• The report evaluates the progress of all 36 states and Union Territories (UTs).

Key Achievements

• Only four SDGs have reached at least halfway completion across all states and UTs:
  • SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being
  • SDG 6: Clean Water and Sanitation
  • SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy
  • SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth
• SDG 14 (Life Below Water) was not assessed for non-coastal states.

Gaps in SDG Monitoring

• Key missing indicators hinder accurate assessment:
  • SDG 1 (No Poverty) lacks a measure for extreme poverty.
  • SDG 6 does not track water quality.
  • SDG 7 omits carbon emissions and renewable energy metrics.
  • SDG 11 lacks data on air quality and public transport.
  • SDG 12 does not include electronic waste management.

Challenges in Data Collection

• India tracks 108 indicators for coastal states and 106 for others, but data gaps persist.
• Coastal UTs like Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep lack SDG 14 data.
• SDG 15 (Life on Land) is missing afforestation data for 13 states.

Regional Disparities

• Uttarakhand and Tamil Nadu perform better but still lag in one out of every six indicators.
• Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat have achieved less than half the targets in 30-43% of SDG indicators.

Future Outlook

• The report, based on sources like the Sustainable Development Report 2024 and the SDG Index 2023-24, highlights both progress and gaps.
• With the 2030 deadline approaching, India must accelerate efforts to bridge data gaps and improve SDG implementation.