NEW DELHI, Oct 31 - Assam has been ranked 15th in terms of growth, while Kerala has emerged the best governed state in the large states category, according to the Public Affairs Index 2020 (PAI 2020) report released by the Public Affairs Centre (PAC) today.
But overall Assam has been ranked 13th, an improvement of one notch over last year�s ranking of 14. The three parameters used to categorise the State include equity, growth and sustainability based on which the overall rankings are evaluated.
However, the bottom rankings of growth are similar to 2019, with the states of Assam, Odisha, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh forming the bottom of the list, albeit with a shuffle in the positions as compared to the previous year, the report said.
In the growth column, Bihar, Assam and Odisha showed the highest improvement, while Kerala, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu feature at the bottom. Among small states, Mizoram and Meghalaya have the highest growth with Manipur at the bottom.
PAI 2020 is the annual ranking of the states on the assessment of adequacy and quality of governance for the year 2019-20. The states are ranked on governance performance based on a composite index.
Kerala has emerged the best governed state in the large states category, while Goa emerged the best in the small states category. Chandigarh emerged the best in the Union territory category.
Significantly Assam has slipped in the equity column to 10th from sixth in 2019. The pillar of equity examines the political economy of exclusion from the perspective of the states. It includes voice of people and accountability, governance and efficiency, rules of law and control of corruption.
In sustainability, Assam which was ranked 12th in 2019, has been ranked eighth. In this column, Andhra Pradesh ranks first among the large states, closely followed by Kerala.
This is the fifth consecutive annual edition of the ranking on governance performance of the states in India. �The states in India constitute the theatres of development praxis; and what the states do and how, or what they fail to do and why; are concerns that can scarcely be exaggerated. The PAI is an indispensable part of these concerns,� PAC chairman Dr K Kasturirangan said while releasing PAI 2020.