Well-being quotient in India: A report on the disparity & diversity in the quality of life across various districts of the country, by TATA Strategic Management Group

To reach a consensus on the well being of districts across the country, 2 indexes have been calculated using the per capita expenditure as a surrogate for incomes in this report that include:

Well Being Index (WBI)

Categories on which WBI is calculated

• Home amenities : Type of home (pucca / kaccha), primary source of energy for lighting, electricity units consumed, expense on domestic servant /cook and LPG, ownership of air cooler/ conditioner
• Kitchen facilities : Primary source of energy for cooking & ownership of appliances/white goods like stove, pressure cooker & refrigerator
• Education: Expense on education
• Entertainment : Expense on entertainment & ownership of radio, television, VCR/VCP/DVD player, tape recorder, CD player and personal computer
• Communication: Expense on landline telephone and mobile, ownership of telephone instrument and mobile handset
• Transportation : Expense on conveyance, ownership of personal transport vehicles like bicycle, motor cycle, scooter, motor car and jeep
• Healthcare : Institutional and Non-institutional medical expense

Salient features

• There is a wide disparity and diversity across districts within the same state
• Peninsular and the north Indian states rated as average or better and central and eastern states are average or worse off.
• Chennai, Mumbai, North Goa, Bangalore and Ernakulum districts take the top 5 positions.
• Goa, Delhi and Pondicherry are the 3 top tier states
• The eastern and north eastern states are in the bottom tier with Chattisgarh, Assam and Bihar trailing at the end
• A comparison between the WBI of 2010 & 2013 shows that the north eastern states of Nagaland, Mizoram & Assam and J&K show a huge decline, while most states from peninsular India, West Bengal and Orissa show improvement

Female Security Index (FSI)

Categories on which FSI is calculated

• Gender ratio in 0-6 years age group
• Incidences of Rape
• Dowry deaths

Salient features of the FSI

• The Nilgiris, Pondicherry, Kaikal, Sivaganga and Mahe districts take top 5 top positions
• Clear divide between North India & South India
• Uttaranchal and HP in North India are average or better
• Worst ratings for districts in Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, West UP and North Rajasthan
• Pondicherry, Nagaland and Kerala are the safest states for women
• Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Haryana are the worst in terms of women security
• Metros and mini- metros conspicuous by their absence in the top 20 safe districts
• Amongst the urban agglomerations, Chennai safest while Delhi NCR ranks at the bottom
• Delhi NCR earns the dubious distinction of highest rape cases and dowry deaths
• Comparison over 2010 shows that UP & Punjab show huge decline, while Rajasthan, Maharashtra & Jharkhand show slight deterioration

Features of WBI and FSI

• There is no apparent correlation between the Well Being Index and Female Security Index
• Southern states are the only ones faring well on both Wellbeing and Female security
• In-spite of a better WBI score, Delhi, Punjab & Haryana fare low on FSI

The following person can be contacted to obtain complete report:

Raman Kalyanakrishnan, Practice head, Tata Strategic Management Group
E-mail: raman.kalyanakrishnan@tsmg.com

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