**Executive Summary**
This document presents the response to Unstarred Question No. 815 in the Lok Sabha, concerning the review of the Aspirational Districts/Blocks Programmes, to be answered on February 4, 2026. The Minister of Planning addresses questions about progress assessments, exit criteria, program expansion, and review mechanisms for these programs. The document states that there are currently no defined exit criteria or plans to revise/expand the list of Aspirational Districts and Blocks.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Progress Assessment:**
* Two independent assessments of the Aspirational Districts Programme (ADP) have been conducted.
* UNDP's comprehensive appraisal, submitted in December 2020, confirmed significant progress in sector-wise growth, governance, and development.
* The Institute for Competitiveness highlighted improvements in key development parameters in nearly all ADP districts.
* **Exit Criteria and Graduation:**
* Currently, there are no established criteria or parameters for districts/blocks to graduate or exit from the Aspirational Districts Programme (ADP) or Aspirational Blocks Programme (ABP).
* **Program Goals:**
* The ADP and ABP aim to saturate all Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) (49 in ADP & 40 in ABP) across all themes for overall socio-economic development.
* **Program Expansion:**
* There are no current proposals to revise or expand the existing list of Aspirational Districts and Blocks.
* **Review Mechanism:**
* The performance of Aspirational Districts/Blocks is regularly reviewed and ranked based on progress.
* There is no mechanism in place for periodic reclassification and rotation of districts and blocks within the programmes.
**Impact Analysis**
**Stakeholder: Government (Ministry of Planning)**
* **Impact:** Responding to inquiries regarding the review, progress, and future plans for the Aspirational Districts and Blocks Programmes.
* **Action Required:** Continue monitoring the progress of the program, consider developing exit criteria and review mechanisms, and prepare for future parliamentary inquiries.
**Stakeholder: Aspirational Districts/Blocks**
* **Impact:** Districts and Blocks are directly impacted by the lack of defined exit criteria.
* **Action Required:** Continue focusing on improving performance across identified KPIs to achieve socio-economic development goals, knowing that progress will be regularly reviewed.
Key Entities Referenced
Aspirational Districts Programme (ADP): A Government of India initiative to improve the socio-economic status of identified underdeveloped districts.
Aspirational Blocks Programme (ABP): A Government of India initiative aimed at improving socio-economic development at the block level.
Ministry of Planning: The primary ministry responsible for matters related to planning mentioned in the document.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF PLANNING
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 815
TO BE ANSWERED ON 04.02.2026
REVIEW OF ASPIRATIONAL DISTRICTS/BLOCKS PROGRAMMES
815 SHRI G M HARISH BALAYOGI:
Will the Minister of PLANNING be pleased to state:
(a) whether the Government has undertaken any review to assess
the progress made by districts and blocks identified under the
Aspirational Districts and Blocks Programmes since inception
and if so, the details thereof;
(b) the criteria and parameters adopted to determine whether a
district/block has achieved the developmental benchmarks
required for exit from the respective programme;
(c) whether any district/block has so far been declared as having
fulfilled the criteria for graduation/exit from the programme and if
so, the details thereof, State-wise;
(d) whether the Government plans to revise/expand the existing list
of Aspirational Districts and Blocks to include newly created
districts or other backward regions and if so, the details and the
proposed timeline thereof; and
(e) whether any mechanism has been put in place for periodic review,
reclassification and rotation of districts and blocks under the
programmes to ensure dynamic inclusion and exit based on
developmental outcomes and if so, the details thereof and if not,
the reasons therefor?
Page 1 of 3ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF
STATISTICS & PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION; MINISTER OF STATE
(INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF PLANNING AND
MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE
(RAO INDERJIT SINGH)
(a) There have been two independent assessments of the
functioning and impact of the Aspirational Districts Programme
(ADP)
(i) UNDP made a comprehensive appraisal of this programme
(ii) Institute for Competitiveness Assessment (a team of expert
led by Prof. Michael Porter of Harvard Business school) made a
detailed assessment of the programme
The UNDP report titled “Aspirational Districts Programme: An
Appraisal,” submitted in December 2020, confirmed that significant
progress has been made in various aspects such as sector-wise
growth, better governance through convergence, and accelerated
development through competitive federalism. This progress has been
driven by factors including strong leadership, real-time monitoring,
data-driven decision-making, and capacity building. Additionally, the
Institute for Competitiveness highlighted that nearly all districts in the
ADP have shown improvement on key development parameters
compared to the baseline, with the programme successfully advancing
social impact and justice by targeting the benefits towards the most
disadvantaged areas. The delta ranking system has played a crucial
role in fostering a competitive and dynamic culture, which has
Page 2 of 3motivated several low-performing districts to enhance their standings
over the past three years.
(b) & (c) The Aspirational Districts Programme (ADP) and Aspirational
Blocks Programme (ABP) aims to saturate all Key Performance
Indicators (KPIs) (49 in ADP & 40 in ABP) across all the themes under
the programme for achieving overall socio-economic development in
these districts and blocks.
As on date, there are no criteria and parameters for a district/
block to graduate or exit from the respective programme.
(d) At present there is no such proposal.
(e) The performance of Aspirational Districts/Blocks is reviewed
regularly, and they are ranked based on the progress made on the
defined indicators; however, there is no such mechanism in place for
periodic reclassification and rotation of districts and blocks under the
programmes.
*****
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