India's 'Voluntary National Review Report on Implementation of Sustainable Development Goals' was presented by NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Arvind Panagariya yesterday at the United Nations high-level political forum on sustainable development in 2017.
'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam', an ancient Indian phrase meaning 'the world is one family', pithily captures the spirit of India's approach to all aspects of life including economic development.
"The Sustainable Development Goals are, thus, part and parcel of the country's longstanding tradition and heritage," Panagariya said in the report's opening statement.
The programmes highlighted in the report are the 'Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act', 'Beti Bachao Beti Padhao', 'Sagarmala', 'Clean India' campaign and the Aadhaar Act.
More From This Section
"As the fastest growing major economy of the world, today, India is uniquely placed to deliver on its commitments to inclusive and sustainable development. Externally, the country has played a key role in shaping the SDGs and ensuring the balance among its three pillars - economic, social and environmental. Internally, it has launched many programmes to make progress towards these goals," the report said.
"As such, India has been effectively committed to achieving the SDGs even before they were fully crystallised," the report said.
India said it will continue to pursue the implementation of the SDG agenda through close collaboration between the national and sub-national governments as well as active participation of all other relevant stakeholders.
Bi-annual reviews will be conducted with the state governments for identifying good practices as well as challenges and undertaking the appropriate course corrections.
"It will work towards ensuring a greater flow of finances and technology from developed countries - in alignment with their explicit commitment in the context of the 2030 Agenda - to developing and least developed nations," it said.
"India believes that with combined and sustained efforts at the national and global levels, it will indeed be possible to eradicate poverty and ensure a prosperous world for all," the report added.