This slide explores the strengths and limitations of MDGs, targets and indicators from a gender/social equality lens. It also explores performance of India on each of the 8 MDGs from a gender and social relations lens. It argues that economic growth in India has not translated into progress on MDGs, in particular for Dalits, Adivasis and women To examine ways forward in using MDGs and other tools to move towards furthering gender justice and other justice

1. India’s performance on MDGs:
An analysis from a gender and equity lens
Ranjani K.Murthy
Independent Researcher and Activist
Prepared for Conference on Human Rights and MDGs,
Madras Christian College, September 26, 2011

2. Objectives
• To understand the strengths and limitations of
MDGs, targets and indicators from a gender/social,
economic, political and environmental justice
• To examine, to the extent possible, performance of
India on each of the 8 MDGs from a gender and
social relations lens. Has robust growth rates
translated into progress on MDGs? For whom?
• To examine ways forward in using MDGs and other
tools to move towards furthering gender justice and
other justice

3. What are MDGs?
• At the Sept 2000 Millennium Summit MDGs were
evolved through of what would be achieved by
2015 by each country keeping 1990 as
benchmark
• At the 2005 World Summit world leaders
committed themselves to achieving four targets
additional to the ones that were agreed in 2000
• There are 8 MDGs, 21 targets and 60 indicators

4. MDGs1 to 4
Goal 1: Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
Goal 2: Achieve Universal primary education
Goal 3: Promote Gender equality and Empower women
Goal 4: Reduce child mortality

5. MDGs 5 to 8
MDG 5: Improve maternal health
MDG 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, Malaria and other diseases
MDG 7: Ensure Environmental Sustainability
MDG 8: Develop a global partnership for development

6. Strengths and limitations of MDGs from a
gender and other justice framework
• Does not question the neo liberal development paradigm which
marginalizes women- in particular Bahujans
• Means indicators like entitlement to land and common property resources
(other than forests) missing; human rights and justice marginalized
• Ghettoizes gender into mainly two goals (MDG 3 and 5) and does not look
at interlocking of gender with caste, ethnicity, religion, migrant status etc
• Indicators like absence of household decision making , locality after
marriage, violence against women, women’s land rights, gender parity in
wages, participation of women in local government, access to managerial
&professional positions, entry into religious places, positions in religious
institutions , participation in traditional councils, etc are missing in MDG 3
• Several indicators specific to India/Asia are missing like sex ratio at birth,
freedom to marry as per choice, absence of dowry, attitudes on daughter
aversion etc.

7. Goal 1 Eradicate poverty and extreme hunger- performance of India
general and gender lens
Target Indicator Performance
1a Halve the proportion
of people whose income
is less than one dollar a
day
1b Achieve full and
productive employment
and decent
work for all, including
women and young people
1.1 Proportion of population below $1 (PPP)
per day (Poverty head count ratio
1.3. Share of poorest quintile in national
consumption (Gini ratio per capita
consumption rural-NSSO)
1.5 Employment-to-population ratio
(unemployment rate-NSS)
1.6 Proportion of employed people living below
$1 (PPP) per day (UN statistics)
No clear trend-
SC/ST Not Ach.
WHH poorer
Not ach.
Not ach. –rural
feminisation dalit
Not ach.

8. Goal 1 Eradicate poverty and extreme hunger- performance of
India general and gender lens (contd)
Target Indicator Performance
1c Halve, the proportion
of people who suffer
from hunger
1.8 Prevalence of
underweight children
under-five years of age
(under three years NHFS
1-3 and anaemia)
Proportion 15-49 years
whose BMI is less than
18.5 kg/m2 (NHFS 2,3)
Not ach-SC/ST worst. No
gender diff
Not ach. SC/ST worst.
Gender gap

9. Goal 2: Achieve Universal primary education: general and gender/social performance
Target Performance Performance
2a: Ensure that, by 2015, children
everywhere,
boys and girls alike, will be able to
complete a full
course of primary schooling
2.1 Net enrolment ratio in
primary education (Drop out rate
SES)
2.2 Proportion who start grade 1
who reach grade 5 (Drop out
rate SES)
2.3. Literacy rate of 15-24 year-
olds, women and men**
Not
achievable.
SC/ST worse .
No gender ga
P
No data

10. Goal 3: Promote gender equality and empower women: Performance of India
Target Indicator Performance of
India
3a: Eliminate gender
disparity in primary and
secondary education,
preferably by 2005, and in
all levels of education no
later than 2015
3.1 Ratios of girls to boys in primary,
secondary and tertiary education
(Gender parity index SES)
3.2 Share of women in wage
employment in the
non-agricultural sector (WDI)
3.3 Proportion of seats held by women
in national Parliament (HDR, NRCW)
Primary –ach
(lower SC)
Secondary/terti
ary-Not ach
Not achievable
Not achievable

11. Goal 4: Reduce child mortality: General and gender/social performance
Target Indicator Performance of India
4a : Reduce by two thirds,
between 1990 and
2015, the under-five
mortality rate
4.1 Under-five mortality rate
(CMR NFHS)
4.2 Infant mortality rate (NFHS)
4.3 Proportion of 1 year-old
children immunized
against measles
Achievable, huge
female to male gap,
SC/ST and other gap
Male achievable
(SC/ST gap), female
not achievable
No data

12. Goal 5: Improve maternal health
Target Indicator Performance
5a: Reduce by three
quarters, between 1990
and 2015, the maternal
mortality ratio
5.1. Maternal mortality ratio (FWS,
SRS)
5.2 Proportion of births attended by
skilled health
Personnel (NFHS)
Achievable
national data
(internationally
no)
Not achievable
5b Achieve, by 2015,
universal access to
reproductive
health
5.3 contraceptive prevalence rate
5.4 (Eliminate) Adolescent birth rate
5.5 Antenatal care coverage (at least
one visit and at least
four visits) (NFHS)
5.6 Unmet need for family planning
Not achievable
Not achievable
Not achievable
Not achievable

13. Goal 6: Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases: General and gender/social
performance
Target Indicator Performanc
e
6a Have halted by 2015
and begun to reverse
spread of HIV/AIDS
6b Achieve by 2010,
universal access to
treatment for HIV/AIDS for
all those who need it
6.1 Prevalence of HIV population aged 15-
24 years – halted by 2015 (NACO- 15-48
years)
6.5 Proportion of population with
advanced HIV infection with access to
antiretroviral drugs
Achievable,
but
disputed –
women are
increasingly
more
vulnerable
No data-
gender gap
seen

14. Goal 7: Ensure environmental sustainability: General and gender/social
performance
Target Indicator performanc
e
Target 7a: Integrate the principles of
sustainable development into country
policies and programmes
and reverse the loss of environmental
resources
7.1. Proportion of land area
covered by forest
7.4 Proportion of fish stocks
within safe biological limits
7.5 Proportion of terrestrial and
marine areas protected
7.6 Proportion of total water
resources used
Not ach.
No data
Not ach.
No data
Not ach
No data
not ach
7b Reduce biodiversity loss,
achieving, by 2010, a
significant reduction in the rate of
loss
Target 11: By 2020, to have achieved
a significant improvement in the lives
of at least 100 million slum dwellers
7.8 Halve % households
without access to toilet
facilities (census NFHS 1,3)
7.9 Halve % households without
access to water facilities
Not ach-
huge SC/ST
and other
gap
Ach-
huge SC/ST
and other

15. Summary of progress
• MDGs are limited in nature, dilution of rights and much more justice
• Several caste and gender indicators missing; gender ghettoised
• India’s growth not translated into progress on most MDGs, indicators and
targets as per official data (exception male IMR, CMR, MMR, safe drinking
water, gender parity in primary education, drinking water?)
• Dalits, adivasis, women lag behind-religion mixed (BMI, govt prog.). 70-
75% of India will not achieve MDGs.
• On some non-MDG indicators situation is becoming worse general (rural
landlessness, per capita resources, atrocities on dalits and adivasis) and
gender specific (CSR, anaemia, female to male earnings, violence against
women, burden of contraception).
• Gendericide affects sexual violence, trafficking of girls and women, bride
trading, on food/nutrition security and on gender inequalities in
food/nutrition security.

16. What can be done
General Caste/Ethnicity
specific
Gender specific
Mother Earth law (Bolivia)
Strengthen public health,
education, ration and other
services. Or accredited ones. No
segregation
Strengthen agric. sector
Stop eviction of slum dwellers
Income and asset ceiling; land
reform
Labour intensive growth
Right to land and CPRs
Right to caste equity
act
Strengthen
implementation of
atrocities against
SC/ST Atrocities Act,
Right to Elementary
Education Act, 2009
Right to Gender equity Act
Strict implementation of PCPNDT ACT
1994/amended 2003 and MTP ACT, 1971,
amended 2002, Child Marriage Restraint Act,
1929, Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956,
Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, Equal
Remuneration Act, 1976 and Protection of
Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005
Pass sexual harassment Act
Child care/post school care till 7
Anemia and food in MNREGS
Program with men on gender
Women in traditional and religious institutions
Strict devolution of powers and budgets to local bodies with social relations sensitivity;
Gender, caste, ethnicity and value chain analysis; and reinterpret religious scriptures from justice .

17. Shifts in paradigms
• Human rights cannot be violated on the name of culture or freedom of speech;
but much broader paradigm of human justice is required.
• Reclaim socialist feminism from liberal feminist notions of ‘unfettered individual
rights’ and ‘unfettered choices’.
• Address the silent segregation – caste, ethnicity, class and gender-that exists in the
country in different forms, from household, community, markets, state to super
state level.
• Government and donors should focus more on changing institutions (household,
markets, community - traditional and local government, state) from an equity and
gender lens than focusing on particular sectors (micro credit, HIV/AIDS).
• Revisit is neo liberal paradigm working, or do we need to revisit Theory of
Development and underdevelopment and pedagogy of oppressed and come up
with a new paradigm of development