Assessment of Sustainability and Priorities for Development of Indian West Coast Region: An Application of Sustainable Livelihood Security Indicators

Viswanatha Reddy Krishna,Arjun Parab,Dendi Damodar Reddy,Venkatesh Paramesh,Vadivel Arunachalam,Hosam O Elansary,Bappa Das,Eman A Mahmoud,Mohamed A El-Sheikh,K S Shashidhar,Diaa O El-Ansary

doi:10.3390/su12208716

Abstract

The measurement of sustainability in terms of social, economic, and ecological indicators significantly influences the achievement of sustainable development goals. This paper presents a sustainable livelihood security index (SLSI) by selecting 20 indicators and positions them within the ecological, economic, and social dimensions of sustainable development for the Indian west coast. These indicators were first normalized and, using estimated weights, indices were computed. Important indicators were shortlisted by a two-step process, namely, principal component analysis and linear and nonlinear weighted scores. The results revealed that indicators such as forest cover, net sown area, milk availability, groundwater availability, land productivity, food grain availability, rural road connectivity, villages electrified, and land degradation were found to be important indicators. Kerala was found as the most developed state followed by Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Goa in linear and non-linear weighted scoring. The study identifies the Jamnagar, Junagadh, Kachchh, Ratnagiri, and Sindhudurg districts as the districts with the highest priority for development through investment and policy interventions. The study concludes that the west coast region, in terms of its sustainable development levels, improved significantly with a focus on low-SLSI districts by considering ecological, economic, and social dimensions in planning for technological development and dissemination.

Highlights

Improving the sustainability of a region is necessary to achieve sustainable development goals
In PC1, five variables were found to be best based on factor loadings, i.e., forest cover, net sown area, milk availability, groundwater availability, and land productivity as PC1 contributed maximum variability (31.906%)
The results indicated the coastal region of the Kerala state is the most developed region in the west coast of India

Summary

Introduction

Improving the sustainability of a region is necessary to achieve sustainable development goals. The sustainable livelihood security index is an effective tool for the evaluation of sustainability as it is simple, informative, and understandable [4]. It is beneficial for drafting policies and plans for the upliftment of livelihood security of the local farmers with new income-generating strategies and enhancement of knowledge. It provides a one-dimensional metric to evaluate country-specific information on multi-dimensions of sustainable development such as economic, environmental, and social conditions [5]. The sustainability of regions dependent on agriculture should better be assessed at the regional level

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion