India moves to 'medium' category on human development index

Rise in life expectancy, schooling bright spots; regional disparities in education, health a concern

India ranks 131 out of 188 countries on the Human Development Index (HDI) prepared by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The country has jumped four positions over a five-year period, from 2010 to 2015. 

India is now classified in the category of “medium” human development, compared to the “low” category in the 1990s, because of factors such as an increase in life expectancy and mean years of schooling in the past 25 years.

Norway leads the latest ranking followed by Australia, Switzerland, Germany and Denmark. With an HDI value of 0.624, India is behind other Asian countries such as