Good Governance Day: December 25

Good Governance Day: December 25

• Good Governance Day (December 25) commemorates the birth anniversary of the former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. It is celebrated to promote accountability, transparency and citizen-centric public service.
• The Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions publishes the Good Governance Index—a composite assessment of governance performance across states and union territories, translating policy intent into measurable, citizen-centric outcomes.
• Good governance is participatory, consensus oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive, and follows the rule of law, according to the United Nations.

• The Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG) introduced the Good Governance Index on December 25, 2019, to evaluate governance performance across states and union territories and encourage improvements.
• Good governance is crucial for the welfare of citizens, inclusive development and the country’s economic transformation.
• The Index identifies 10 key sectors.
• Governance performance across these sectors is measured in terms of 58 indicators designed keeping citizen-centricity in mind.

Here is an overview of national achievements on some of the 58 identified indices across these sectors:

1. Agriculture and Allied Sector

Progress in the Agriculture and Allied sector is reflected through the following key indices:

1. Growth of Agriculture and Allied Sector
2. Growth of Food Grains Production
3. Growth of Horticulture Produce
4. Growth of Milk Production
5. Growth of Meat Production
6. Growth of Egg/Poultry production
7. Crop Insurance
8. Agri. Mandis Enrolled in e-Market

2. Commerce and Industry

Progress in the Commerce and Industry sector is reflected through the following key indices:

1. Ease-of-Doing Business (EoDB)
2. Growth of Industries
3. Change in No. of MSME Units Registered under Online Udyog Aadhar Registration
4. Increase in No. of Establishments Registered under GST
5. Start-up Environment

3. Human Resource Development

Progress in the Human Resource Development sector is reflected through the following key indices:

1. Quality of Education
2. Retention Rate at Elementary School Level
3. Gender Parity
4. Enrolment Ratio of SC & ST
5. Schools with Access to Computers for Pedagogical Purposes / Working Computers
6. Skill Trainings Imparted
7. Placement Ratio Including Self-employment

4. Public Health

Progress in the Public Health sector is reflected through the following key indices:

1. Operationalisation of Health and Wellness Centres
2. Availability of Doctors at PHCs
3. Public Health
4. Maternal Mortality Rate (MMR)
5. Infant Mortality Rate (IMR)
6. Immunisation Achievement
7. No. of Hospital Beds per 1000 Population

5. Public Infrastructure and Utilities

Progress in the Public Infrastructure and Utilities sector is reflected through the following key indices:

1. Access to Potable Water
2. Connectivity to Rural Habitation
3. Increase in Access to Clean Cooking Fuel (LPG)
4. Energy Availability against the Requirement
5. Growth of Per Capita Power Consumption
6. Wards (Urban) covered by D-t-D waste Collection

6. Economic Governance

Progress in the Economic Governance sector is reflected through the following key indices:

1. Growth in Per capita GSDP
2. Fiscal Deficit as a Percentage of GSDP
3. State’s Own Tax Revenue Receipts to Total Revenue Receipts
4. Debt (Total Outstanding Liabilities) to GSDP

7. Social Welfare and Development

Progress in the Social Welfare and Development sector is reflected through the following key indices:

1. Sex Ratio at Birth
2. Health Insurance Coverage
3. Rural Employment Guarantee
4. Unemployment Rate
5. Housing for All
6. Economic Empowerment of Women
7. Empowerment of SCs, STs, OBCs and Minorities
8. Disposal of SC/ST Atrocity Cases by Courts
9. Banking outlets per 100,000 population
10. Aadhaar seeded Ration Cards

8. Judiciary and Public Safety

Progress in the Judiciary and Public Safety sector is reflected through the following key indices:

1. Conviction Rate
2. Availability of Police Personnel
3. Proportion of Women Police Personnel
4. Disposal of Court Cases
5. Disposal of Cases by Consumer Courts

9. Environment

Progress in the Environment sector is reflected through the following key indices:

1. Change in Forest Cover
2. Proportion of Waste Recycle v/s Waste Generated
3. Percentage of Degraded Land
4. Growth in Installed Capacity of Grid Interactive Renewable Power

10. Citizen-Centric Governance

Progress in the Citizen-Centric Governance sector is reflected through the following key indices:

1. Enactment of Right to Services Act by the States
2. Grievance Redressal Status
3. Government Services Provided Online to Citizen
4. Growth in Installed Capacity of Grid Interactive Renewable Power

Good Governance Day 2025 honours Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s vision of accountable, citizen-centric governance. The Good Governance Index serves as a robust benchmark to assess the performance of states and UTs across ten sectors, driving evidence-based reforms. India’s progress demonstrates that systematic measurement and focused governance yield results. As the nation advances towards Viksit Bharat 2047, strengthening good governance through innovation and inclusive policies remains key to achieving equitable, sustainable growth.