Knowledge Nugget: Sustainable Development Report (SDR) 2025 – Key insights for UPSC aspirants
What is the rank of India in the Sustainable Development Index? Take a look at the essential concepts, terms, quotes, or phenomena every day and brush up on your knowledge. Here's your knowledge nugget for today.
(Relevance: UPSC has asked questions on Sustainable Development Goals. This annual report of the United Nations is important in making a comparative analysis of countries in attaining these SDGs. Questions on SDGs and attempts made by India in achieving them have been asked in UPSC Mains, making this report essential for your exam.)
India, for the first time, breaks into the top 100 of the Sustainable Development Index with the rank of 99 and score of 67, according to the Sustainable Development Report (SDR) 2025 released by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. SDR reviews progress made each year on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) since their adoption by the 193 UN member states. This year's SDG index covers 167 of the 193 UN member states.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of the adoption of the SDGs. This 10th edition of SDR focuses on 'Financing the SDGs by 2030 and Mid-Century'.
1. According to the 2025 SDR, none of the 17 Global Goals are on track to be fully achieved by 2030, and only 17 per cent of the SDG targets are progressing as planned. Conflicts, structural vulnerabilities, and limited fiscal space impede SDG progress in many parts of the world.
2. This year, for the first time streamlined SDG Index (SDGi), which uses 17 headline indicators, one per SDG, to track overall SDG progress, was introduced. The purpose is to minimise the statistical biases related to missing time series data across countries.
3. According to SDR, 'a new indicator on 'Minimum dietary diversity among children aged 6 months to 23 months' has been incorporated into the dataset under SDG 2 (Zero Hunger).'
4. According to the report, 'at the global level, SDG 2 (Zero Hunger), SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG 14 (Life Below Water), SDG 15 (Life on Land) and SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) are particularly off track, facing major challenges (indicated in red on the dashboards) and showing no or very limited progress since 2015.'
5. The SDG Index score is presented on a scale of 0 to 100 and can be interpreted as a percentage towards optimal performance on the SDGs. The difference between 100 and the country's SDG index indicates the distance that must be overcome to reach the optimum SDG performance.
6. Finland is ranked first this time with a score of 87, and 19 of the top 20 countries in the index are in Europe. India is ranked 99th with a score of 67, achieving a significant milestone by entering the top 100 for the first time. India has improved steadily over the past four years, rising from 109th in 2024, 112th in 2023, 121st in 2022, and 120th in 2021.
7. In regional comparison, India still trails several of its neighbours. Bhutan is ranked 74th (70.5), Nepal 85th (68.6), and the Maldives 53rd. Sri Lanka stands at 93rd, while Bangladesh and Pakistan lag behind at 114th and 140th, respectively.
The United Nations defines sustainable development as 'development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs'. The SDGs build on the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which were adopted in 2000 and were to be achieved by 2015.
📍The Index for SDGs evaluates progress of states and Union Territories (UTs) on various parameters including health, education, gender, economic growth, institutions, climate change and environment. First launched in December 2018, the index has become the primary tool for monitoring progress on the SDGs in India.
📍The SDG India Index scores range between 0–100, higher the score of a State/UT, the greater the distance to target achieved. States and UTs are classified in four categories based on their SDG India Index score — aspirant: 0–49; performer: 50–64; front-runner: 65–99, achiever: 100. According to the NITI Aayog SDG index, India's score for 2023-24 was 71.
1. The UN member states reaffirmed their commitment to the SDGs and effective multilateralism at the UN Summit of the Future held in September 2024. The Pact for the Future, Global Digital Compact, and Declaration on Future Generations were adopted by consensus.
'UN can't build a future for our grandchildren with the institutions of our grandparents.' -UN Secretary-General
2. The Summit of the Future (SoTF) took place on September 22-23, before the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York. The theme of the Summit was 'multilateral solutions for a better tomorrow'.
3. UN Secretary General António Guterres has called the Summit a 'once-in-a-generation UN Summit'. It is being projected as an important milestone in the history of the UN as it has entered its 80th year of establishment this year.
4. In the 2025 Index of Countries' Support to UN-Based Multilateralism (UN-Mi), Barbados was ranked 1 with a score of 92, followed by Jamaica. India was ranked 113 with a score of 63.8. This index tracks countries' support for UN-based multilateralism. The efforts made in regional and bilateral fora, or within the BRICS, G20, G7, OECD and other groups, are not considered.
'Multilateralism describes international politics and diplomacy, where many countries with different views and goals work together. The United Nations system is the principal multilateral forum where countries come together to solve global problems.' – United Nations
5. According to SDR, 'The Pact calls for 56 actions related to SDG implementation, peace, and collective security, including the transformation of the multilateral system and reform of the international financial architecture (United Nations 2024).'
(1) Consider the following statements: (UPSC CSE 2016)
1. The Sustainable Development Goals were first proposed in 1972 by a global think tank called the 'Club of Rome'.
2. The Sustainable Development Goals have to be achieved by 2030.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
(2) Sustainable development is described as the development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. In this perspective, inherently the concept of sustainable development is intertwined with which of the following concepts? (UPSC CSE 2010)
(a) Social justice and empowerment
(b) Inclusive Growth
(c) Globalization
(d) Carrying capacity
(Source: Humanity's success lies in our collective strength, not in the battlefield: PM Modi at Summit of the Future at UN, UN Sustainable Development Goals Index 2025)
Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter. Stay updated with the latest UPSC articles by joining our Telegram channel – IndianExpress UPSC Hub, and follow us on Instagram and X.
🚨 Click Here to read the UPSC Essentials magazine for June 2025. Share your views and suggestions in the comment box or at manas.srivastava@indianexpress.com🚨
Khushboo Kumari is a Deputy Copy Editor with The Indian Express. She has done her graduation and post-graduation in History from the University of Delhi. At The Indian Express, she writes for the UPSC section. She holds experience in UPSC-related content development. You can contact her via email: khushboo.kumari@indianexpress.com ... Read More
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