Freedom of Association Score in India
India: Freedom of Association Score was 5 in 2025. ▼ Falling
Freedom of Association Score in India, 2005–2025
Source: Bertelsmann Transformation Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
Analysis
In 2025, freedom of association score in India stood at 5. That is the lowest value across all 11 years on record.
That represents a change of down 44.4% over ten years.
Over the whole period, freedom of association score in India peaked at 10 in 2005 and was at its lowest, 5, in 2021.
India ranks 58th of 128 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 11 years of available data.
Freedom of Association Score in India, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 10 | — |
| 2007 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 10 | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 9 | -10.0% |
| 2017 | 7 | -22.2% |
| 2019 | 6 | -14.3% |
| 2021 | 5 | -16.7% |
| 2023 | 5 | +0.0% |
| 2025 | 5 | +0.0% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 5 is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 4, 1.2× the median. (38 countries reporting)
- India's 5 is below the median for South Asia, which is 6, 83% of the median. (5 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 10 | 10 | 10 | 3 |
| 2010s | 8.4 | 6 | 10 | 5 |
| 2020s | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 |
Countries ranked near India
More social development data for India
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 238,643 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 42,610 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 42,610 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0002 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is freedom of association score in India?
- Freedom of association score in India was 5 in 2025, according to Bertelsmann Transformation Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest freedom of association score recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 10 in 2005.
- What is the lowest freedom of association score recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 5 in 2021.
- How does India rank for freedom of association score?
- India ranks 58th out of 128 countries with data for 2025.
- Is freedom of association score rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is down 44.4%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from Bertelsmann Transformation Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Freedom of Association Score. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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CSV · JSON — 11 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Indicates the extent to which residents and civic groups are free from government interference to associate and assemble.