India ranks 126th out of 143 nations on global happiness index
New York, Mar 20: India was ranked 126th out of 143 nations in a global happiness index released on Wednesday which noted that older age is associated with higher life satisfaction in the world's most populous country.
Finland emerged as the happiest country in the world, topping the World Happiness Report 2024, the seventh successive year that the country has occupied the top spot on the list.
The other of the top 10 countries are Denmark, Iceland, Sweden, Israel, Netherlands, Norway, Luxembourg, Switzerland and Australia.
India is ranked 126th on the list, behind countries such as Libya, Iraq, Palestine and Niger, according to the findings announced on Wednesday to mark the UN's International Day of Happiness.
The World Happiness Report is a partnership of Gallup, the Oxford Wellbeing Research Centre, the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, and the WHR's Editorial Board.
The young in India are the "happiest" while those in "lower middle" rung are the least happy.
The US (23rd) has fallen out of the top 20 for the first time since the World Happiness Report was first published in 2012, driven by a large drop in the well-being of Americans under 30.
Afghanistan remains bottom of the overall rankings as the world's unhappiest' nation. Pakistan is ranked 108th on the list.
The report said that older age is associated with higher life satisfaction in India, "refuting some claims that the positive association between age and life satisfaction only exists in high-income nations."
On average, older men in India are more satisfied with life than older women "but when taking all other measures into account, older women report higher life satisfaction than their male counterparts," it said.
In India, older adults with secondary or higher education and those of higher social castes report higher life satisfaction than counterparts without formal education and those from scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.
"India's older population is the second largest worldwide, with 140 million Indians aged 60 and over, second only to its 250 million Chinese counterparts. Additionally, the average growth rate for Indians aged 60 and above is three times higher than the overall population growth rate of the country," the report said.
Satisfaction with living arrangements, perceived discrimination, and self-rated health emerge as the top three predictors of life satisfaction for India in this study, the report said.
"We found that older men, those in the higher age groups, currently married, and those who were educated, report higher life satisfaction compared to their respective peers. Lower satisfaction with living arrangements, perceived discrimination, and poor self-rated health were important factors associated with low life satisfaction among older Indians," it said.
The findings of this study indicate that strengthening family networks to ensure a comfortable living arrangement for older adults, men, widowed, and those without formal education in particular, and bolstering social networks to reduce discrimination may enhance well-being in older age, it noted.
The report added that Serbia (37th) and Bulgaria (81st) have had the biggest increases in average life evaluation scores since they were first measured by the Gallup World Poll in 2013.
The next two countries showing the largest increases in life evaluations are Latvia (46th) and Congo (Brazzaville) (89th), with rank increases of 44 and 40 places, respectively, between 2013 and 2024.
For the first time, the report gives separate rankings by age group, in many cases varying widely from the overall rankings. Lithuania tops the list for children and young people under 30, while Denmark is the world's happiest nation for those 60 and older.
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Polling underway for 5 RS seats in Bihar
Patna (PTI): Voting is underway for five Rajya Sabha seats in Bihar on Monday, with five nominees from the ruling NDA and one from the opposition RJD contesting the biennial polls, an official said.
BJP national president Nitin Nabin, also the five-time MLA from Bankipur assembly seat, RJD's national working president Tejashwi Yadav, BJP MLA Maithili Thakur, and jailed JD(U) legislator Anant Singh, among others, cast their ballots.
The polling, which commenced at 9 am, will continue till 5 pm in the Bihar Assembly complex, where MLAs are casting their ballots, he said.
Counting will begin after 5 pm, and the results are expected to be declared the same day.
Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) supremo Nitish Kumar and Nabin are among the NDA candidates. The other three nominees from the ruling coalition are Union Minister Ram Nath Thakur, Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) chief Upendra Kushwaha, both sitting members of the Rajya Sabha, and BJP's Shivesh Kumar, who is seeking a berth in the Upper House of Parliament for the first time.
Yadav, after casting his vote, said, "Our candidate Amarendra Dhari Singh will win as we have got support from the five MLAs of AIMIM and one BSP legislator."
Talking to reporters on Monday, JD(U)'s national working president Sanjay Kumar Jha said, "NDA's all five candidates will win. We don't care what opposition parties are claiming."
The AIMIM announced on Sunday that all five of its MLAs would support the RJD candidate in the Rajya Sabha polls.
Talking to reporters after casting his vote, Singh said, "If Nitish Kumar does not remain the CM, I will not contest polls next time. My children will contest elections."
Singh, the Mokama MLA, was arrested ahead of the assembly polls last year in connection with the killing of Dular Chand Yadav, a rival gangster who was supporting the local candidate of Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj Party.
Singh, who has since been unable to secure bail, was allowed to cast his vote on parole.
With numbers comfortably in favour of the NDA for four seats and marginally short for the fifth, the opposition forced an election by fielding the RJD's candidate.
The state administration has made adequate security arrangements to ensure a smooth election, an official said.
The NDA aims to win all five seats but needs support from three legislators from the opposition bench to achieve that.
The Grand Alliance kept its MLAs at a hotel in the state capital to prevent alleged poaching by rivals.
However, the NDA organised meetings with its legislators at the residences of ministers and senior leaders in the state's capital on Sunday.
The NDA enjoys a brute majority in the assembly, though its tally of 202 in the 243-member House falls three short of the number needed to secure all five Rajya Sabha seats.
To win a Rajya Sabha berth, one needs the support of at least 41 MLAs in the Bihar assembly.
