Overview

• IIAS marked the Indian presidency’s first 100 days by listing progress on an international governance index as a key achievement.
• IIAS president and DARPG secretary V Srinivas said the Research Advisory Committee discussed the index on September 25 as part of strengthening the institute’s scientific strategy and trend analysis.
• A dedicated working group will be established to develop the index, with the proposal slated for inclusion on the IIAS 2026 annual conference agenda.
• The study plan will leverage existing work by the World Bank and OECD and explore a partnership with UN DESA, according to Srinivas.
• India’s move follows years of official criticism of perception-based rankings and recent downgrades, including V-Dem’s 2025 score placing India 100th of 179 on its Liberal Democracy Index.