Q.What are Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)?

SDGs are a set of 17 global goals adopted by the United Nations in 2015, covering poverty, health, education, and climate action, which India tracks through NITI Aayog's SDG India Index.

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a set of 17 interlinked global goals adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2015, intended to be achieved by countries around the world by 2030. They cover a wide range of development priorities, including ending poverty and hunger, ensuring good health and quality education, achieving gender equality, providing clean water and affordable clean energy, promoting decent work and economic growth, and taking urgent action on climate change.

As a signatory, India has committed to working toward these goals. NITI Aayog is the nodal agency coordinating India's SDG efforts, and it publishes the SDG India Index, which tracks the progress of states and union territories on SDG-related indicators, helping identify areas needing more policy attention.

Students sometimes confuse the SDGs with India's own domestic schemes (such as the Swachh Bharat Mission) — the SDGs are a global UN framework that Indian domestic programmes contribute toward, not a scheme by themselves.