Ease of Living Index: Know all about Assessment Tool and Parameters

By : Neha Dhyani

Updated : Jan 20, 2022, 11:55

The Ease of living index is an assessment tool used by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs to evaluate the quality of life and the impact of various initiatives for urban development in the city. This term is widely used in urban policy and programming. It includes the availability of physical amenities like solid waste management, water supply, availability of parks and green spaces, etc. 

It provides a comprehensive understanding of participating cities across India, based on various parameters like 

  • the quality of life, 
  • the economic ability of a city, and 
  • its sustainability and resilience.

These span over 13 categories like:

  • Education, 
  • Health, 
  • Housing and Shelter, 
  • WASH and SWM, 
  • Mobility, 
  • Safety and Security, 
  • Environment, 
  • Recreation, 
  • Level of Economic Development, 
  • Economic Opportunities, 
  • Green Spaces, and Buildings, 
  • Energy Consumption, and 
  • City Resilience

These account for 70% of the overall outcome. 

Additionally, it also incorporates views of the residents of the cities based on the services provided by the city administrative bodies through a poll or survey, known as the Citizen Perception Survey. This holds a weightage of 30% in the consolidation of the framework in the index. 

Ease of Living Index India Cities

The rankings under Ease of Living Index India cities are categorized under the following:

  • Cities with a population of more than a million, and
  • Towns with less than a million people. 

The last Ease of Living Index India was conducted in 2020, where 111 cities participated in the assessment exercise. The analysis categorized them into:

  • Million+ populated cities (those with a population of more than a million) and 
  • Less than a Million populated cities (those with a population of less than a million) and all the cities under the Smart Cities Program.

Ease of Index Living 2021

The Ease of Living Index 2021, released on 4th March 2021, showed the following results:

Bengaluru emerged as the top city on the Ease of Living Index released by the Housing and Urban Affairs minister. Pune ranked second while Ahmedabad bagged the third position out of the 111 cities under the Smart Cities Program. 

For the million + category, the list included the following cities in their respective positions: Bengaluru, Pune, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Surat, Navi Mumbai, Coimbatore Vadodara, Indore, and Greater Mumbai, respectively.

Shimla topped the list for less than a million categories, followed by Bhubaneshwar, Silvassa, Kakinada, Salem, Vellore, Gandhinagar, Gurugram Davangere, and Tiruchirappalli.

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FAQs about Ease of Living Index

  • Which ministry evaluates the Ease of Living Index India?

Ans: The Ease of Living Index India is evaluated by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. 

  • Last time, which city was tagged at the top of the Ease of Living Index list?

Ans: The city of Bengaluru has been tagged at the topmost position on the list of Ese of Living Index last. 

  • Which are the two categories in which the Ease of Living Index has tagged the cities in India?

Ans: The Ease of Living Index 2020 ranked cities in the following two categories:

  • Million+ populated cities – those with a population of more than a million.
  • Less than Million populated cities – those with a population of less than a million.