By 2030, around 12.5% of the Indian population will be 60 years and older, and by 2050, one fifth of India's population will be in this age bracket, according to a new report from the UN Population Fund. This equates to about 300 million Indians in the aged population segment by mid of this century.
The projected growth proportion in the population of Indian aged compares with only 8% of the population in the aged segment in 2015. It is estimated that during 2000–2050, the overall population of India would have grown by 56% while the 60-plus population will grow by 326%.
Emphasising the need to start planning for demographic transition, the report, “Caring for Our Elders: Early Responses: India Ageing 2017”, discusses multiple vulnerabilities faced by the aged in India, especially in terms of health, income, as well as social and psychological aspects.
Mr Diego Palacios, UNFPA Country Representative India said at the launch of the report: “Everyone has a part to play for the well-being of elderly, including the government civil society, communities, and families.”
Feminisation and ruralisation of ageing
Another trend highlighted by the report is the feminisation of ageing. “The sex ratio of the elderly has increased from 938 women to 1,000 men in 1971 to 1,033 in 2011 and is projected to increase to 1,060 by 2026,” the report said. Across all Indian states, there higher life expectancies at old ages for women than for men.
The report also found that between 2000 and 2050, the population of 80-plus people would have grown 700% “with a predominance of widowed and highly dependent very old women”. Thus, the special needs of such oldest old women would need significant focus of policy and programmes.
Women tend to be more vulnerable at old age as they are poorly paid for work done over their lifetime and have few savings. They experience discrimination and neglect as they age, often exacerbated by widowhood and complete dependence on others. Loss of spouse in old age adds significant vulnerability in later years, and elderly women will be more vulnerable than men in terms of needs such as housing, safety and finance.
The rural population tends to be a particularly vulnerable lot too. An estimated 71% of all old people resided in rural India as per India’s 2011 Census. The problems of “income insecurity, lack of adequate access to quality health care and isolation are more acute for the rural elderly” as most areas lacked proper roads and transport access, said the report.
Retirement funding
In a separate report, IndiaSpend.org, a data-driven, non-profit, public interest journalism platform, says that around 200 million or over 61% of the elderly in India will lack income security by 2050, if pension arrangements continue to cover only 35% of senior citizens as they do today. By 2050, 324 million Indians, or 20% of the population, will be above 60 years of age.