BL Explainer: How innovative are Indian states?

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What is NITI Aayog Innovation Index?

NITI Aayog established the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) in 2016 to promote innovation and entrepreneurship in schools, colleges and society at large. But what was missing was an atmosphere of competitiveness between states. Thus, in 2019, the country’s first innovation index was released – promoting environmentally and socially sustainable economic development through innovation-based policy interventions for states and Union Territories. The India Innovation Index ranks states and Union Territories on various parameters related to innovation.

Which countries are leading and which countries are lagging behind in the 2021 ranking?

Karnataka, Telangana and Haryana are in the top three positions among the 17 major states, while Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Bihar are at the bottom in the 2021 index. Telangana and Haryana replaced Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu at the second and third positions respectively, while Bihar rose from 17th in 2020 to 15th in 2021. But Chhattisgarh were reduced to 17. ^th position 16 ^th and Odisha up to 16 ^th from the 14th ^th degree. In a separate category for 10 northeastern and hill states, Meghalaya was ranked third out of 10 in 2021. ^th in 2020. Manipur (ranked 3 in 2020) dropped Himachal Pradesh to the fifth position by reaching the top spot, while Uttarakhand retained the second position in 2021. Nagaland, Assam and Tripura are at the bottom of the index at 10. ^th9 ^th and 8 ^th position respectively.

What parameters does the index consider to arrive at the rating?

The index has seven columns — five “Enabler” pillars for measuring inputs (human capital, investment, knowledge workers, business environment, and security and legal environment) and 2 “Productivity” pillars for output (education and knowledge dissemination). From 36 indicators in 2020, indicators increased to 66 in 2021.

How did states perform under different parameters?

Haryana topped the enabling column but ranked 8th ^th performance related position. Similarly, Punjab is ranked 3rd in the switch and 7th in the performers list. Uttar Pradesh on the 7th ^th position in the overall ranking, but ranked 11th, even below Chhattisgarh, in the enabling column and fifth in the performing column. Chhattisgarh ranked last in the performance column with a very low score. Tamil Nadu is at 3 ^rd position in the performer column but in the 6th position in the initiator. Kerala (8th ^th) and Andhra Pradesh (in 9 ^th) scored low in the performer column and slipped in the overall ranking in 2020, losing 5th and 7th places respectively.

Is this index similar to the Global Innovation Index (GII) produced annually by the World Intellectual Property Organization?

According to Amitabh Kant, former CEO of Niti Aayog, the 2021 edition of the Index has followed the framework of the GII to produce a comprehensive and nuanced index to measure innovation performance. In general, the current edition adopted the GII framework. However, Niti Aayog believes that future editions of the index should be expanded by adding 19 more indicators across all sub-columns, especially knowledge absorption, to bring it up to the GII level.

How has India fared in GII in recent years?

From 81st place (out of 141 countries) in 2015, India has moved up to 46th place (out of 132 countries) in 2021, and is also ranked 1st and 2nd among Central and South Asian countries. ^n.d among lower middle income countries. India’s current growth trajectory points to further improvement, but competition will intensify. India should perform well in Gross Expenditure on R&D (GERD), a key parameter of the GII. India’s GERD is one of the lowest in the world at just $43 per capita. These costs need to increase to be on par with BRICS or ASEAN countries such as Russia ($285), Brazil ($173) and Malaysia ($293).