According to the ‘Democracy Index 2020’ released by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), India with a score of 6.61 slipped two places to 53rd Rank (out of 167 countries) in the Index due to decline in Civil Liberties. Norway topped the index followed by Iceland & Sweden.
The handling of Coronavirus Pandemic has led to a further decline of civil liberties in 2020 in India, Asia and other regions of the world.
i.The Rankings are based on 5 Categories
- Electoral Process & Pluralism
- Functioning of Government
- Political Participation
- Political Culture
- Civil Liberties
ii.India along with the US, France, Belgium & Brazil have been classified under ‘Flawed Democracy’ Category. Based on scores on 60 Indicators, Countries have been classified into one of the four types of regime. They are
- Full Democracy – 23 Countries
- Flawed Democracy – 52 Countries, India has been classified under this category.
- Hybrid Regime – 35 Countries
- Authoritarian regimes – 57 regimes
Top 3 Countries:
| Rank | Country | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 53 | India | 6.61 |
| 1 | Norway | 9.81 |
| 2 | Iceland | 9.37 |
| 3 | Sweden | 9.26 |
Bottom 3 Countries:
| Rank | Country | Score |
| 165 | Central African Republic | 1.32 |
| 166 | Congo | 1.13 |
| 167 | North Korea | 1.08 |
Decline in India’s Ranking:
- India was ranked 51st in 2019 Democracy Index
- The index states the main reason behind India’s decline in rankings is due to Pressure on India’s democratic norms by the Current Ruling Government.
- India’s score fell from 7.92 in 2014 to 6.61 in 2020 & its ranking from 27th in 2014 to 53rd in 2020.
Ranking of India’s Neighbours:
- Flawed Democracy – Sri Lanka (68th Rank)
- Hybrid Regime – Bangladesh (76th Rank), Bhutan (84th Rank) & Pakistan (105th Rank)
- Authoritarian Regime – Afghanistan (139th Rank)
Global Rankings:
- Japan & South Korea marked improvements as they returned to ‘Full Democracy’ for the first time since 2014.
- Taiwan attained the status of ‘Full Democracy’ for the First Time.
- Asia has only 5 ‘Full Democracies’ compared to Western Europe’s 13.
Recent Related News:
i.December 19, 2020, According to the ‘Human Freedom Index 2020: A Global Measurement of Personal, Civil, and Economic Freedom’ – released by Cato Institute of United States & Fraser Institute in Canada, India ranked 111 in the list of 162 countries.
ii.On March 5, 2020, According to the ‘Freedom in the World 2020” report, released by the Freedom House, a U.S (United States) -based watchdog India was ranked 83rd in the report along with Timor-Leste and Senegal in ‘Free Category’.
About Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU):
Managing Director – Robin Bew
Headquarters – London, United Kingdom
