Hi Deepak

Have a look at the great work done at the Centre for Well-Being at NEF (New Economics Foundation) - a think-and-do tank in London who developed the Happy Planet Index.

The HPI is a logical and superior alternative to GNP. It is based on

1. Longevity (Happy Life Years) - if people are happy they live 8-12 years longer

2. Sustainability (Ecological Footprint) - what resources do people use? If, as in the UK for example, they use three times more than their land can provide, you have a recipe for long-term unhappiness.

I would refer you to the work of Nic Marks who led the HPI development team. Watch his TED talk video at http://www.ted.com/talks/nic_marks_the_happy_planet_index.html and read his excellent TED book The Happiness Manifesto: How Nature and People Can Nurture Well-Being available http://www.ted.com/pages/tedbooks_library#NicMarks.

HPI is at http://www.happyplanetindex.org.

One of the best explanations of why GNP is such a bad flag to stand behind comes from Robert Kennedy: "The Gross National Product includes air pollution and advertising for cigarettes, and ambulance to clear our highways of carnage.

It counts special locks for our doors, and jails for the people who break them. GNP includes the destruction of the redwoods and the death of Lake Superior.

It grows with the production of napalm and missiles and nuclear warheads... And if GNP includes all this, there is much that it does not comprehend.

It does not allow for the health of our families, the quality of their education, or the joy of their play. It is indifferent to the decency of our factories and the safety of our streets alike.

It does not include the beauty of our poetry or the strength of our marriages, or the intelligence of our public debate or the integrity of our public officials...

GNP measures neither our wit nor our courage, neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our compassion nor our devotion to our country.

It measures everything, in short, except that which makes life worthwhile; and it can tell us everything about America - except whether we are proud to be Americans."