Now Reading: India to have 347 million over 60 by 2050, study warns
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India to have 347 million over 60 by 2050, study warns
A Transform Rural India study warns that India is ageing before it grows rich, with 34.7 crore people projected to be over 60 by 2050, one in every five citizens. Nearly 70%…
The Story in Brief
A Transform Rural India study warns that India is ageing before it grows rich, with 34.7 crore people projected to be over 60 by 2050, one in every five citizens. Nearly 70% of these elderly will live in rural areas. The number of working-age adults per older person will fall from 8.4 in 2001 to 5.2 by 2026. Women spend 305 minutes daily on unpaid care versus 56 minutes for men.
The study says 94% of elder care is still within households, straining families as they shrink and younger generations migrate. Non-communicable diseases now cause two-thirds of deaths. The paper proposes a 'neighbourhood of care' model to connect Gram Panchayats, self-help groups, ASHAs, Anganwadis and Ayushman Arogya Mandirs into a unified network. It estimates that investing 2% of GDP in the care economy could generate 11 million jobs, mostly for rural women.
The Indian Opinion
The narrative that India's ageing population is a crisis ignores the study's own solution: a 'neighbourhood of care' network linking existing rural institutions. The claim that India is 'old before rich' is true, but the study also shows that investing 2% of GDP in care could create 11 million jobs, mostly for rural women. The real test is whether the government will treat care as an economic opportunity rather than a burden.
Sources (2): deccanherald.com, indiatoday.in
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
