Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): 17 Goals, India’s Progress
Gajendra Singh Godara
Oct 2, 2025
15
mins read
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are 17 global objectives adopted by the United Nations in 2015. They form a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet, and ensure peace and prosperity for all by 2030. The SDGs recognize that social, economic and environmental sustainability must advance together. This shared 2030 Agenda – adopted by all UN Member States at the UN Summit in September 2015 – provides a blueprint for balanced development, aiming to improve health, education and equity while tackling climate change and preserving forests and oceans.
The SDGs build on the earlier Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) of 2000–2015, which focused on reducing extreme poverty and improving health and education by 2015. Following the MDGs’ expiry, the 2012 Rio+20 Summit launched the process to create a new set of goals.
In January 2015 the UN General Assembly negotiated the 2030 Agenda, culminating in the adoption of 17 SDGs at the September 2015 Summit. In short, the SDGs expanded the MDGs’ vision – now covering a wider range of issues (climate, inequality, innovation, etc.) – to guide global development through 2030.
There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals in total, each with specific targets. These goals range from No Poverty and Zero Hunger to Climate Action and Partnerships for the Goals. Every country is expected to address all 17 SDGs, adapting them to local contexts.
Below is a quick list of the 17 SDGs (2015–2030) with their core focus:
Goal 1: No Poverty – End poverty in all its forms everywhere.
Goal 2: Zero Hunger – End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.
Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being – Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages.
Goal 4: Quality Education – Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.
Goal 5: Gender Equality – Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.
Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation – Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all.
Goal 7: Affordable and Clean Energy – Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all.
Goal 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth – Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.
Goal 9: Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure – Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation.
Goal 10: Reduced Inequalities – Reduce inequality within and among countries.
Goal 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities – Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.
Goal 12: Responsible Consumption and Production – Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.
Goal 13: Climate Action – Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.
Goal 14: Life Below Water – Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources.
Goal 15: Life on Land – Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, forests and biodiversity.
Goal 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions – Promote peaceful and inclusive societies, provide access to justice for all and build accountable institutions.
Goal 17: Partnerships for the Goals – Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize global partnerships for sustainable development.
The core idea of the SDGs is balanced development – ensuring that economic growth goes hand‑in‑hand with social inclusion and environmental protection. In other words, sustainable development aims to meet present needs (like ending poverty and hunger) without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It emphasizes an integrated approach: progress in one goal (say, education) supports progress in others (like gender equality and growth), reflecting the “people, planet, prosperity” triad.
The SDGs were formulated and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly. In 2015 all 193 UN member countries, along with UN agencies (notably UNDP), endorsed the 2030 Agenda. Thus the UN – through a global, intergovernmental process – created these goals to guide international development.
Global Framework for Humanity’s Biggest Challenges: The SDGs offer a universal blueprint to tackle major issues like poverty, hunger, health, education, inequality, and climate change, ensuring coordinated global action.
Promote Equity and Inclusion: “Leave No One Behind”: Central to the SDGs is the commitment to include vulnerable and marginalized groups, guaranteeing that progress benefits everyone, especially the poorest and most excluded.
Balance Social, Economic, and Environmental Sustainability: By recognizing the interconnected nature of development, the SDGs encourage policies that jointly improve human welfare, economic growth, and environmental protection.
Mobilize Innovation and Cooperation: The goals spur governments, businesses, and societies worldwide to innovate and collaborate, driving investments in clean energy, sustainable cities, and resilient infrastructure.
Monitor Progress with Concrete Targets: With clear, measurable targets to be achieved by 2030, the SDGs enable countries and stakeholders to track development advances scientifically and hold each other accountable.
Non-Binding Nature: The SDGs lack enforceable commitments, meaning countries are not legally obligated to meet the targets, resulting in weak accountability.
Chronic Underfunding: Developing nations face severe financial constraints, with an estimated $4 trillion annual funding gap, compounded by heavy debt burdens that hinder progress.
Slow and Uneven Progress: The 2024 SDG Report reveals only 17% of targets are on track globally; many goals have stalled or regressed, highlighting stagnation in critical areas.
Ambiguity in Goals: Some SDGs have broad, vague objectives—like “living in harmony with nature”—making it difficult to set clear, measurable actions.
Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic: The pandemic worsened inequalities and disrupted progress, especially impacting health, education, water and sanitation, and partnerships.
Excessive Number of Goals: With 17 goals and 169 targets, the SDGs can overwhelm countries, especially those with limited resources, impeding focused and effective efforts.
India has made steady progress on many SDGs, but gaps remain. Notably, NITI Aayog’s SDG India Index (2023–24) showed India’s composite score rising to 71/100 – up from 57 in 2018. All states improved their scores, reflecting broad-based gains. Strong performance was seen in Goal 1 (No Poverty), Goal 3 (Health), Goal 6 (Water & Sanitation), Goal 7 (Energy) and Goal 9 (Infrastructure). For example, large-scale schemes like Swachh Bharat (sanitation), Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala (free LPG connections for poor households) and the Jal Jeevan Mission (piped water to villages) have helped drive progress.
Despite progress, India faces challenges on some SDGs. Hunger and malnutrition (Goal 2), quality education (Goal 4) and gender equality (Goal 5) continue to lag in many regions. Environmental goals (life below water/land) also need more attention. The NITI Aayog Index highlights these gaps, noting that while India’s score is improving, achieving SDGs 2,4,5 and 15 will require faster action. The table below compares national targets and recent data for key SDG indicators:
SDG Goal | Indicator/Target | Recent Status (India) |
Goal 1 – No Poverty | Poverty rate, Social security | Poverty down (rural poverty <10%), expanded welfare schemes |
Goal 2 – Zero Hunger | Prevalence of undernourishment | High child malnutrition (over 30%), to reduce further |
Goal 3 – Health & Well-being | MMR, IMR, life expectancy | Steady fall in mortality, life expectancy ~70 yrs |
Goal 4 – Quality Education | Literacy rate, school enrolment | ~77% literacy; attendance improving, but quality issues |
Goal 5 – Gender Equality | Women’s labour force, sex ratio | Sex ratio improving; female labour ~18% (low) |
Goal 6 – Clean Water/San | Access to piped water, toilets | Over 14.9Cr homes with piped water; 100% rural sanitation |
Goal 7 – Clean Energy | Electricity access, renewables | ~100% villages electrified; 40% power from renewables |
Goal 13 – Climate Action | Emission intensity, policy | Committed to carbon neutrality by 2070; renewable push |
Achieving the SDGs requires concerted policy and action at all levels. Globally, this means reforming finance (e.g. green bonds, concessional loans, climate funds), strengthening multilateral cooperation (climate accords, technology transfer) and investing in innovation.
In India, the SDGs are being mainstreamed into national and state planning. Key measures include:
Policy interventions: Integrating SDGs into government schemes (like Swachh Bharat, PM Kisan, Ayushman Bharat) and using the SDG Index to guide federalism.
Grassroots participation: Engaging panchayats, NGOs and communities in local SDG implementation (e.g. community health workers, women’s self-help groups).
Finance and technology: Mobilizing domestic and international funding for sustainable infrastructure (roads, toilets, piped water), and leveraging tech (digital payments, satellite data for crop forecasts).
Cross-cutting reforms: Promoting gender equality, social inclusion, and responsible industry practices (corporate ESG norms, strict pollution controls).
Each year the UN and allied bodies report on SDG progress. The UN SDG Progress Report 2024 paints a sobering picture: it finds only about 17% of SDG targets on track globally, with roughly half showing minimal progress and many stalling or regressing.
The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2024 (was released by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network) similarly notes that climate change, the COVID-19 fallout and conflicts have slowed SDG advances. It highlights that Nordic countries lead in SDG performance, while parts of Africa and South Asia face significant challenges.
In India’s case, recent reports show improvement: the UNDP–NITI Aayog SDG India Index 2023–24 noted score gains, and the SDSN’s 2025 SDG Index ranks India around 99th out of 167 countries (score ~67).
Looking ahead, stakeholders emphasize that achieving the SDGs will require innovation and cooperation. Governments must align budgets and policies with SDG priorities (education, health, green infrastructure). Private sector involvement is key through sustainable business practices and impact investing. Civil society and academia can raise awareness and generate solutions (e.g. social entrepreneurship, technology for rural education).
Specific recommendations include:
Localizing SDGs: Empower states and districts with data and resources to tailor SDG programs, fostering healthy competition (as the NITI Aayog index encourages).
Green finance: Expand climate funds, green bonds and microfinance for renewable energy, sustainable farming and conservation projects.
Digital innovations: Use big data, mobile banking and remote sensing to improve service delivery (e.g. track malnutrition cases via an app).
Global partnerships: Strengthen South-South cooperation and official development assistance (ODA) focused on capacity-building and technology transfer.
In short, a multi-stakeholder approach – involving the Government, private sector, NGOs, and communities – is essential. As one global report notes, only systemic reforms (financing, governance, global cooperation) can “mobilize the trillions” needed. By learning from success stories and addressing gaps, India and the world can steer closer to the 2030 goals.
UPSC Previous Year Questions
Prelims
Q. With reference to ‘Agenda 21’, sometimes seen in the news, consider the following statements :(2016)
It is a global action plan for sustainable development
It originated in the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg in 2002
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Ans: (a)
Q. Consider the following statements: (2016)
The Sustainable Development Goals were first proposed in 1972 by a global think tank called the ‘Club of Rome’
The Sustainable Development Goals have to be achieved by 2030
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
Ans: (b)
Mains
Q. “Access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy is a sine qua non to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).” Comment on the progress made in India in this regard. (2018)
Frequently Asked Questions(FAQs)
Q. What are Sustainable Development Goals?
A. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are 17 global objectives adopted by the United Nations in 2015 to address poverty, inequality, climate change, and environmental sustainability by 2030.
Q. How many Sustainable Development Goals are there?
A. There are 17 Sustainable Development Goals in total. These goals – ranging from No Poverty and Zero Hunger to Climate Action and Global Partnerships – cover the full spectrum of sustainable development issues.
Q. Which organisation has made the Sustainable Development Goals?
A. The SDGs were formulated and adopted by the United Nations, through an intergovernmental process.
Q. Why are Sustainable Development Goals important?
A. The SDGs are important because they offer a global action plan to eradicate poverty, promote equality, protect the environment, and ensure prosperity. They serve as a blueprint for sustainable growth that “leaves no one behind.”
Q. How is India performing in achieving Sustainable Development Goals?
A. India has shown mixed progress on the SDGs. According to NITI Aayog’s SDG India Index, India’s composite score reached 71/100 in 2023–24, up from 57 in 2018.
Conclusion
The SDGs are a universal blueprint for transforming our world by 2030. Remember that the main goal of sustainable development is balanced growth – uplifting people while protecting the planet. India’s experience shows both promise (rapid index gains, large-scale welfare schemes) and obstacles (nutrition, gender, environment). As India and the global community push forward, aspirants should track latest reports, policy measures, and debates. Ultimately, strong governance, innovation and inclusive policies will shape whether the SDGs become a reality.
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