Goa developing nation’s first Happiness Index: CM

Panaji: Chief minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday said that Goa is developing the country’s first state-level happiness index, measuring well-being across education, health, culture and community.

Union govt should extend centrally-sponsored scheme funding to Goa on a 90:10 basis, on the lines available to north eastern and Himalayan states, the CM said at the Niti Aayog meeting in Delhi.

Sawant said that Goa is a fully literate state and has one of the lowest infant mortality rates in the country.

He said that the Viksit Goa @2037 vision document is ready for release and charts a course to achieve Viksit status a full decade ahead of 2047. Goa can do more than achieve its own goals. “Goa can serve as a Human Capital Innovation Laboratory for India, where new models are tested and offered to the nation,” the CM said.

On education, Sawant said in school education, we asked a simple question: can a small state produce world-class learning outcomes? The answer came through CARES (Coding and Robotics Education in Schools). In three years, CARES reached 3 lakh students and delivered a result that speaks for itself: Goa surpassed the national average in middle-school mathematics in the PARAKH survey, for the first time.

“The result: Goa is a fully literate state under ULLAS. And our gross enrolment ratio of almost 50% in higher education tells us that Goans do not just complete school, they go on to build careers,” he said.

Sawant said that the Goa electronics manufacturing cluster at Tuem is purpose-built to absorb this talent directly into electronics and advanced manufacturing, therefore aligned by design.

On AI and data-driven governance, the CM said Goa’s Samarth Platform tracks every student’s academic journey from pre-primary to the university.

“The draft Goa AI Policy 2026 positions Goa as India’s Responsible AI and Applied Innovation Hub, with every technical graduate AI-certified by 2028, a dedicated Konkani Large Language Model through BHASHINI, and a risk-tiered regulatory framework among the most comprehensive issued by any state,” chief minister said.

Sawant said that over 60% of Goa’s land is under forests, eco-sensitive zones, coastal regulation zones and the Western Ghats. We host over one crore tourist visits annually, placing demands on our infrastructure far beyond what our population of 15 lakh would suggest. Yet Goa is assessed alongside states with populations of several crore under centrally sponsored schemes funding formula, resulting in lower per-capita expenditure allocations despite significantly higher per-capita service delivery costs.

“I request Centre to extend CSS funding to Goa on a 90:10 basis, on the lines available to north eastern and Himalayan states. And I request the continued support of the State Support Mission as Goa operationalises Viksit Goa @2037,” the CM said.

He said Goa is developing India’s first state-level Happiness Index because the ultimate test of Viksit Bharat is not a number on a GDP chart. “It is whether our people wake up each morning with opportunity, dignity and hope. That is the human capital we are building in Goa. And that is Goa’s contribution to the India that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is building for 2047.”