Bhubaneswar: Rich culture, vast resources and simple living are how one describes ‘scenic serene sublime’ Odisha, India’s best-kept secret. The state, however, has ranked very low in happiness quotient.
Odisha, Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh are at the bottom of the first-ever India Happiness Report 2020 released recently.
Professor Rajesh K Pillania, one of the leading management strategy experts of the country, included all 36 states and Union Territories in his survey conducted between March 2020 and July 2020 to draw up this list.
Mizoram has topped the list, followed by Punjab and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Punjab. Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh have also made it to the top 10 happiest states in India.
The survey was carried out on the basis of six parameters of happiness: work; relationships; health; philanthropy; religious, spiritual orientation and impact of COVID-19. Around 16950 people from all over the country participated.
One of the significant findings of the survey, contrary to popular belief, was that those married were happier than unmarried people.
While it found no significant correlation between gender and happiness, age group, marital status, income levels, and education were positively linked to it.
On work parameter, Assam, Punjab, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Mizoram, and Puducherry made it to the top 5. The five states that scored high on relationship parameter were Mizoram, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Punjab, Karnataka, and Sikkim.
Similarly, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Mizoram, Punjab, and Sikkim were among the top with regards to health-related issues.
Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Mizoram were the top 5 states in philanthropy.
Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Ladakh scored high on religious/spiritual orientation.
As per the survey, Maharashtra, Delhi and Haryana were the worst-affected due to COVID-19, whereas Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir were neutral.
The report further stated that Manipur, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Gujarat are likely to top the ranking index in the future, Money Control reported.
