A review meeting on Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) India Index 4.0 and North Eastern Region (NER) District SDG Index 2.0 was held at the Conference Hall of the Deputy Commissioner, Dimapur on 14th May 2026.
Delivering the opening remarks, Dr. Diana Patton, NCS, Additional Deputy Commissioner, Dimapur, stated that the SDG India Index 2023-24 covered 17 goals, 70 targets, and 115 indicators. She said India was actively pursuing the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to be achieved by 2030.
Dr. Patton informed that Kerala and Uttarakhand were among the top-performing states in the SDG rankings. Referring to the Sustainable Development Report 2025, she stated that the global SDG Index measured performance across economic, social, environmental, and governance dimensions.
She highlighted that India had made progress in renewable energy, sanitation, and access to basic services, while challenges still remained in climate action, gender equality, and quality education.
Explaining the North Eastern Region (NER) District SDG Index, Dr. Patton stated that the initiative was jointly developed by NITI Aayog, the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (MDoNER), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to monitor the progress of districts in the eight northeastern states towards achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
Dr. Patton urged all Heads of Departments (HODs) to provide accurate and updated data and work collectively to improve the district’s overall SDG targets and rankings.
The meeting was chaired by Imtijungla Lemtur, EAC, Dimapur, who briefed the departments on the importance of accurate data submission and coordinated efforts for improving the district’s SDG performance indicators.
According to the district profile presented by Lemtur during the meeting, Dimapur recorded a composite score of 76.29 in the 2023-24 NER District SDG Index and secured Rank 10 out of 121 districts, showing significant improvement from the 2021-22 score of 63.67 and Rank 76 out of 103 districts.
The profile stated that the Index assessed SDG progress using 84 indicators mapped to 50 SDG targets and followed the SDG India Index methodology with equal weightage across all goals. Districts were classified as Aspirants, Performers, Front Runners, and Achievers based on their scores.
Goal-wise performance showed that Dimapur scored strongly in SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) with a score of 91, SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) with 97, SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) with 86, SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) with 87, and SDG 13 (Climate Action) with 88.
The report also highlighted improvements in several indicators, including 100 percent electrified villages, 100 percent mobile network coverage in villages, 100 percent households using improved water sources, and 100 percent GPS/villages verified ODF status.
In the education sector, the district recorded improvement in schools with computers, trained teachers at secondary level, and reduced secondary school dropout rates. In health-related indicators, institutional delivery and skilled birth attendance remained high, while further attention was needed in areas such as infant mortality rate and healthcare infrastructure.
The district profile further noted progress in sanitation, infrastructure, banking access, PMAY housing completion, and internet connectivity. However, areas requiring continued focus included reduced inequalities, healthcare services, forest cover, and municipal solid waste treatment.
The meeting was attended by Heads of Departments and officials from various departments under Dimapur district.
(I.Tiakumla.Ao, IA Dimapur)
