Happiness is an indescribable feeling of pleasure, joy, and positive vibes and emotions shared by everyone. Newborns are born with an unlimited supply of this feeling. As we grow older, the life around us defines happiness for us – what is desirable, what is not, disturbing this energy of happiness inside us.
With more and more importance given to economic growth and development, the ultimate motive, community welfare, gets lost.
A drawback of the GDP indicator is that it neither measures development distribution across society nor the overall socio-emotional welfare. To restore the original motive of economic growth and development, the UN declared the 20th of March every year as the International Day of Happiness. The declaration aims to reduce poverty, eliminate all forms of discrimination, promote human well-being, and increase happiness levels. According to the UN, happiness is a fundamental human right.
The UN recognizes this day since 2013, and the theme for this year was Happy Heros. Followed by Reclaim Happiness (2014) and Relationships (2015), the theme for 2020 was Happier Together, an apt line, given the pandemic situation. With physical distancing norms in place, the year 2020 cried for human contact. The overall mental well-being of the global population has taken a turn for the worse. This turn makes the celebration of International Day of Happiness all the more important this year, as we continue to recover from the pandemic. The theme for the year 2021 is happiness for all, forever.
The World Happiness Report considers the GDP levels of a nation, life expectancy, generosity, social support, freedom, and corruption income. In the year 2020, it declared Finland to be the happiest country for the 3rd time in a row, closely followed by Denmark and Switzerland. India has a score of 3.573 points, winning the 144th rank, much to our dismay!
Every one of us can be a part of the annual celebration. While governments may strive to make their populations happy, only our actions bring on true happiness. Let’s take an oath to spread delight in every way possible.
Credits – Purva Sreekaanth, Vivian Chieh
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