What the FAQ: India ranks 139 in the World Happiness Report 2021. What are the rankings about?

For the year 2021, the report considered the impact of COVID-19 on the overall happiness index of the citizens in any country
Pic: Edex Live
Pic: Edex Live

On Friday, the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network published its annual World Happiness Report. For the year 2021, the report considered the impact of COVID-19 on the overall happiness index of the citizens in any country. While Finland proved to be the happiest country in the world to live in for the fourth time in a row, India ranked 139 in a list containing 149 countries.

Here's all you need to know about the annual report and what parameters are the countries judged on.

What is the World Happiness Report?
It is a report that determines how happy citizens of a particular country think they are living there. The report is compiled through telephonic and in-person surveys of people, which is conducted by Gallup World Poll. While citizens are asked to rank their country based on their personal freedom, support from society and the prevalence of corruption in their nations, factors like the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and life expectancy are also considered while finalising a rank.

How is World Happiness Report 2021 different from the rest?
This time, the reports had two sets of rankings. Considering the havoc created by the COVID-19 pandemic, a separate list was published highlighting the impact of COVID on people's happiness. This was in addition to the usual list that gets compiled by combining three years (2018-2020) worth of data collected by Gallup. According to the authors of the report, countries that successfully combated the pandemic also had their people trusting their national institutions and government bodies. Trust proved to be an important factor in deciding the rankings in 2021.

Which countries are on the top and which ones are at the bottom?
After Finland, nine other European countries made it to the top 10. These include Denmark, Switzerland, Iceland, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Luxembourg and Austria. New Zealand became the only non-European country to make it to the top 10. Afghanistan ranks bottom of the list, making it the least happy country in the world. It is followed by Zimbabwe, Rwanda, Botswana and Lesotho.

Where does India stand?
India's 139th rank is just one step up from last year's 140. However, India ranks much lower than its immediate neighbours. Pakistan is at 105, Bangladesh is at 101 while China ranks 84th on the list. 

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