Needed: A PM's council for human development

Leave no one behind with sustainable growth and well-being

Life expectancy, per capita income, completed and expected years of schooling are used for determining a country’s human development. Multi-dimensional poverty captures many other indicators from housing, sanitation, electricity, cooking gas, and so on. The prime minister declared on Independence Day that no deprived household should be left behind and that India must remain the fastest growing economy in the world to enable well-being of all. There is a strong case for a PM’s Human Development Council with representation from the chief ministers for the following reasons:

First, providing opportunities to every citizen of India to develop their fullest human potential is not only good for inclusive development; it is necessary for sustaining high rates of economic progress. Evidence from across the world substantiates this.

Second, outcomes in the indicators of health, education, nutrition, clean water, sanitation, livelihood diversification, pro-poor public welfare are all inter-related and depend on a simultaneous improvement in all related sectors with the gram panchayat or an urban local body as a unit.

Third, unfortunately, we in India neglected human development for decades even though a few IITs and IIMs provided global class human capital for leadership. The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan and the National Rural Health Mission increased the pace of improvement but it was not good enough to change India’s 130 rank in the human development index. The New National Education Policy 2020 and the National Health Policy 2017 and programmes thereunder are trying to make a difference. 

Fourth, the thrust on removing the asset deficits of deprived households, in the form of housing, toilets, electricity, cooking gas, roads, bank account, women’s collectives, immunisation, among others provides an opportunity for better outcomes in human development.   

Fifth, the role of the prime minister in providing leadership to the chief ministers of all states in the fight against Covid and in the Gram Swaraj Abhiyan to ensure seven services to every eligible household of 63,974 purposively selected villages with vulnerable groups shows how the partnership between the Centre, state, local governments and community organisations like self-help groups and frontline workers can achieve development outcomes.

Sixth, community connect with the use of technology as a means has the power to speed up infrastructure roll-out for higher growth.

Seventh, there is no getting away from partnerships between the federal government and the states and local governments for need-based implementation of development schemes. Funds, functions and functionaries need to be transferred to local governments with community accountability.
 

Illustration: Binay Sinha

India’s goal should be to be in the top 50 nations of the world by 2047 in human development and at least a rank below 100 by 2030. These need a prime minister-led human development council under the NITI Aayog. The governing council/ National Development Council itself can be that body with exclusive meetings on human development at least twice a year. All chief ministers, concerned Union ministers and a few experts from these sectors must be a part of this council. From the gram panchayat and urban local bodies to the prime minister’s council, the same indicators need to be monitored for outcomes, panchayat- and urban local body-wise with ranking of performance. An illustrative list of 12 key indicators is given below:

First, monitor stunting among infants. The Fifth National Family Health Survey 2019-21 (NFHS-5 2019-2021) reports 35.5 per cent children under five are stunted, 19.3 per cent wasted, and 32.1 per cent under-weight. Put simply, stunting (child too short for age) reflects chronic undernutrition during the most critical periods of growth and development in early life. It highlights the need for diverse food and timely health check-ups.

Second, wasting among infants (low weight for height) indicates recent and severe weight loss. It happens due to inadequate quantity and quality of food or frequent or prolonged illnesses. These irreversibly affect the learning abilities of a child. Education suffers and illnesses begin. 

Third, monitoring anaemia among women and children. Anaemia reflects poor food diversity, besides prevalence of diseases. Iron and folic acid tablets alone are inadequate without addressing the gender challenge. It also reflects the lack of timely access to primary health care. 

Fourth, monitoring foundational literacy and numeracy among all children under the Nipun Bharat programme. The New Education Policy 2020 has made a passionate plea for innovation. Getting the right teacher is the biggest challenge. The challenge of teacher development is equally important. The involvement of civil society organisations in teacher development is worth innovating. Digital learning providers could also link to teachers and students for learning outcomes at a mass level. These require flexibility of resources with panchayats.

Schools are great socialisation opportunities for breaking hierarchies. Sports and co-curricular activities bring out the best among children. It is the diverse opportunity for recognition of excellence that creates self-esteem. 

Fifth, monitoring the status of youth in schools and skills programmes. The management of skill programmes has to be decentralised at the district level. Periodic rozgar melas and opportunities for diversification of livelihoods with credit access and digital linkages will make investment more purposive.

Sixth, monitoring the linking of households to health facilities for holistic primary, secondary, and tertiary care with the Ayushman Digital Health Mission as a means. While we need more providers of services in need-based health care, linking households to health facilities will substantially raise the demand for health services. It will also bring down out-of-pocket expenses if doctors, drugs and diagnostics are available to all. 

Seventh, female work participation rate. We need to monitor female employment in every panchayat. Women need opportunities for paid work.

Eighth, percentage of girls from deprived households in high schools and higher education needs constant monitoring.

Ninth, funds, functions and functionaries with panchayats and urban local bodies need active involvement of social capital of community organisations.

Tenth, access to credit for all on the basis of individual micro credit plans.

Eleventh, monitoring the life of the urban poor to improve access to public services, education, health, nutrition, sanitation, housing and the like. Public campaigns to ensure access of services to urban poor are needed.

Twelfth, monitoring market wages and availability of work for men and women. It captures the essence of poverty of households and poverty of regions. The government will need to address inter-panchayat disparities by ranking them.

I am certain a PM’s human development council will be a game changer in India’s quest for well-being and economic growth. Naming and shaming alone does not work; hand–holding and constant monitoring of agreed targets at the highest level does. The NITI Aayog needs to lead this partnership for transformation.

The writer is a retired civil servant. The views are personal