Aspirational District Programme

Aspirational District Programme:

The Prime Minister has expressed his desire to extend the Aspirational District Programme to block and city levels.

• Aspirational Districts Programme was launched in 2018 which aims to transform districts that have shown relatively lesser progress in key social areas.
• Aspirational Districts are those districts in India, that are affected by poor socio-economic indicators.
• Broad Contours of the Programme:
  • Convergence (of Central & State Schemes)
  • Collaboration (of Central, State level ‘Prabhari’ Officers & District Collectors),
  • Competition among districts through monthly delta ranking.
• The delta ranking of the Aspirational Districts combines the innovative use of data with pragmatic administration, keeping the district at the locus of inclusive development.’
• Objectives:
  • It focuses on the strength of each district, identifying low-hanging fruits for immediate improvement and measuring progress by ranking districts on a monthly basis.
  • Districts are prodded and encouraged to first catch up with the best district within their state, and subsequently aspire to become one of the best in the country, by competing with, and learning from others in the spirit of competitive & cooperative federalism.
  • The Government is committed to raising the living standards of its citizens and ensuring inclusive growth for all – “Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas aur Sabka Vishwas”.
  • The ADP is essentially aimed at localizing Sustainable Development Goals, leading to the progress of the nation.
• Parameters for Ranking:
  • The ranking is based on the incremental progress made across 49 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) under 5 broad socio-economic themes –
    • Health & Nutrition (30%)
    • Education (30%)
    • Agriculture & Water Resources (20%)
    • Financial Inclusion & Skill Development (10%)
    • Infrastructure (10%)