When innovation paves creative ideas: NITI Aayog’s Innovation Index crowns Karnataka as innovative state

New Delhi, October 18: When innovative minds clutter together, unique and pioneering ideas make way crafting a change. Paving same path by ground breaking ideas, NITI Aayog’s first ever India Innovation Index was out and Karnataka stood first among major states in the exercise that examines the innovation capabilities and performance of Indian states. Delhi topped the rankings amongst Union Territories and Sikkim topped the ranking amongst hilly states.

 

The aim of the index was to create a holistic tool which can be used by policymakers across the country to identify the challenges to be addressed and strengths to build on when designing the economic growth policies for their regions. The primary aim of this index lies mainly in the evaluation of the innovation environment of the nation’s states and union territories.

Giving impetus to their index score, recognition of opportunities and challenges, and assisting in tailoring governmental policies to foster innovation, the Indian Innovation Index ranks were ascertained. The subsequent positions among the major States were bagged by Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Telangana in a study which examined the innovation ecosystem of the States and Union Territories (UT).

NITI Aayog vice chairman Rajiv Kumar said the index will further drive a culture of innovation across Indian states and help create a conducive ecosystem for innovation to flourish across the country. “Such an index will not only help states to devise their own strategy for fostering an innovation climate, it will also enable them to benchmark their performance with other states,” he added.

NITI Aayog used five enabler parameters while making the index to evaluate innovation inputs and the output is used measuring two performance parameters. Human capital, investment, knowledge workers, business environment, safety and legal environment have been identified as enabler parameters. In order to judge the performance parameters are judged on the basis of knowledge output and knowledge diffusion.