Context:
Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) remains a major global challenge, especially for developing countries. In this direction, India has recorded a significant milestone. According to the recently released Sustainable Development Report 2025 by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (UN SDSN), India has secured the 99th rank in the SDG Index. This is India’s best performance so far, reflecting its commitment and consistent efforts towards sustainable development.

SDG Index and India’s Position:

• The SDG Index measures countries' progress on 17 Sustainable Development Goals on a scale of 0 to 100. India scored 67 in 2025, showing a steady improvement from previous years: 121st in 2022, 112th in 2023, and 109th in 2024.
• In this year’s report, Finland has secured the top position, followed by Sweden and Denmark. China is ranked 49th, while the United States, due to distancing itself from the global SDG agenda, has been placed at the last position (193rd). Among India’s neighboring countries, Bhutan is ranked 74th, Nepal 85th, Bangladesh 114th, and Pakistan 140th.
• Regional and Global Trends:
  The report highlights that East and South Asia have made the fastest progress on the SDGs since 2015. Countries like Nepal, Cambodia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, and Mongolia have shown significant improvement. This progress is attributed to rapid growth in economic and social indicators, improved technological access, and better basic infrastructure and services.

Challenges and Policy Constraints:
Despite progress in some regions, global advancement towards achieving the SDGs remains very slow. According to the report, only 17% of the SDG targets are likely to be achieved by 2030.

Key barriers identified include:

• Armed conflicts and wars
• Structural inequalities
• Limited financial resources for developing countries
• Environmental degradation

Specific areas of concern include:

• Obesity (SDG 2)
• Press freedom (SDG 16)
• Biodiversity conservation (SDG 15)
• Corruption and institutional reliability (SDG 16)

Need for Financial System Reform:

The report emphasizes that the current global financial system is structurally biased, favoring wealthy nations while failing to ensure adequate resource flows to developing and emerging economies. In this context, the upcoming International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) to be held in Seville, Spain, holds significant relevance.

Conclusion:
India’s rising position in the SDG Index not only reflects its policy-driven developmental approach but also highlights its emergence as a responsible and active participant in the global sustainable development discourse. However, further substantive improvements and investments are needed in critical areas such as health, environmental governance, institutional transparency, and social inclusion to achieve the SDGs comprehensively by 2030.