India slips 17 spots to 111th on Human Freedom Index-2020

India was ranked 111th out of 162 countries on the Human Freedom Index 2020 released by the Cato Institute, slipping 17 spots from its position in the last index.

Keeping in view the worst situation of the personal and economic freedom in the country, Cato Institute, an American libertarian think tank, placed India at 111th position on the index. India had been ranked 94 on the index in 2019.

According to the details, India registered a score of 6.43, which is lower than the average human freedom rating of 6.93 for the 162 countries which were rated by the index.

The index is calculated using 76 “distinct indicators of personal and economic freedom” in areas such as rule of law, security and safety, religion, legal system and property rights, and access to sound money.

Personal freedom in India was given a score of 6.30 in the report, while economic freedom was rated 6.56.

The countries that ranked in the top 10 included New Zealand, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Denmark, Australia, Canada, Ireland, Estonia, Germany and Sweden.

While Japan ranked 11th, the UK and the US were tied in the 17th place. At the other end of the spectrum, Syria was ranked the worst, followed by Sudan, Venezuela and Yemen.

“Comparing all the countries for which we have the same data available since 2008, the level of global freedom has decreased slightly (−0.04), with 70 countries in the index increasing their ratings and 70 decreasing,” read the report.

The gap in human freedom between the most free and the least free countries has widened since 2008, increasing by 6% when comparing the top and bottom 10% of nations in the HFI, The Wire reported.

“Out of 10 regions, the regions with the highest levels of freedom are North America (Canada and the United States), Western Europe, and East Asia. The lowest levels are in the Middle East and North Africa, sub-Saharan Africa, and South Asia,” the report added.

Women-specific freedoms are strongest in North America, Western Europe, and East Asia and are least protected in the Middle East and North Africa, sub-Saharan Africa, and South Asia.