GDP (Gross Domestic Product) along with GDH (Gross Domestic Happiness) would be the right indices for judging the well-being of a country.

WRITE IN

180 min

up to 2,500 words

☆ Save ✎ Write this essay

Join daily PYQ on Telegram ↗

Reading the topic

The topic proposes that GDP, which measures output, should be combined with a happiness measure to judge national well-being. The deeper question is whether income growth captures quality of life, equity, health, environment and social trust. The examiner expects the essay to evaluate GDP's strengths and blind spots, alternative indices, and how India could use them in policy.

ThesisGDP measures a nation's capacity but not its well-being, so pairing it with measures of happiness, equity and sustainability gives a truer picture, provided those measures are rigorous and policy-relevant.

Dimensions to cover

1Economics: GDP counts market activity but ignores unpaid care work, leisure, inequality and environmental depletion
2Development: India's growth has not translated evenly into health, nutrition and learning outcomes, showing GDP's limits
3Psychology: subjective well-being captures satisfaction, trust and meaning, which output data cannot reveal
4Environment: growth that depletes forests and groundwater raises GDP now while lowering future welfare
5Governance: multidimensional indices help target policy at districts and groups left behind
6Limits: happiness is hard to measure and can be manipulated, so it should complement rather than replace hard economic data

Counter-view

Critics say happiness is too subjective and culturally variable for policy, and that GDP growth is still the surest way to fund health and education. The essay should agree that growth matters, and argue that a dashboard of indicators guards against both GDP fetishism and vague happiness claims

Open and close

Open: Open with two neighbouring districts with similar incomes, one where mothers trust the local clinic and children attend school, and one where neither is true
Close: Conclude that a nation should measure what it values, keeping GDP as the engine gauge while well-being shows whether the journey is worth making

Where marks usually go

Writing 'GDH' as an established global index; the recognised terms are Gross National Happiness and subjective well-being measures
Rejecting GDP entirely, which ignores the role of growth in reducing poverty
Quoting happiness rankings without a year and source

Examples that fit

CaseBhutan's constitution directs the state to promote conditions that enable the pursuit of Gross National Happiness, making well-being an official goal.Constitution of the Kingdom of Bhutan (2008), Article 9; Centre for Bhutan and GNH Studies
ThinkerSimon Kuznets, who built the first US national income accounts, warned in 1934 that a nation's welfare can scarcely be inferred from national income.National Income, 1929-1932, report to the US Senate (1934), Simon Kuznets
CaseThe Stiglitz-Sen-Fitoussi Commission urged shifting from measuring production toward measuring well-being and sustainability.Report by the Commission on the Measurement of Economic Performance and Social Progress (2009)
CaseUNDP's Human Development Index, developed by Mahbub ul Haq with Amartya Sen, combines income with health and education to judge progress.UNDP Human Development Report (1990)
CaseNITI Aayog's SDG India Index ranks states on social, economic and environmental goals, offering a multi-indicator view beyond state GDP.NITI Aayog, SDG India Index