{"id":57772,"date":"2025-10-28T21:11:30","date_gmt":"2025-10-28T15:41:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=57772"},"modified":"2025-10-29T11:06:22","modified_gmt":"2025-10-29T05:36:22","slug":"rising-elderly-population-in-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/28-10-2025\/rising-elderly-population-in-india","title":{"rendered":"Rising Elderly Population in India"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS1\/ Society, GS2\/ Governance<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>India&#8217;s senior citizen population is projected to surge to around 230 million by 2036, making up about 15% of the total population.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Elderly Population in India<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The sex ratio among the elderly stands at<strong> 1,065 females per 1,000 males<\/strong>, with women accounting for<strong> 58% <\/strong>of the elderly population, out of which<strong> 54%<\/strong> are widows.&nbsp;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Furthermore, the overall <strong>dependency ratio is 62 dependents per 100 <\/strong>working-age individuals, highlighting the increasing socio-economic implications of population ageing in India.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Southern states<\/strong>, along with <strong>Himachal Pradesh and Punjab<\/strong>, have higher elderly populations, with regional disparities expected to widen by 2036.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Challenges Faced by Elderly Population<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Health: <\/strong>Stigmatised mental health conditions (dementia, Alzheimer&#8217;s), rising disabilities, inadequate geriatric infrastructure, Urban-rural divide in access to medical services.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Economic:<\/strong> Insufficient social security provisions, rise of living and medical expenses, limited financial resources.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Social:<\/strong> Weakening family support systems, social isolation, neglect, lack of companionship etc.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Digital divide: <\/strong>Technology adoption barriers, lack of training and accessible devices.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Infrastructure: <\/strong>Inadequate literacy, emergency response system overlooking elderly as vulnerable group.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Public spaces and transport in India is largely not elderly-friendly since ramps, handrails and accessible washrooms are missing in many areas.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Government Initiatives for Elderly in India<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Atal Pension Yojana (APY):<\/strong> Launched in 2015 to ensure old-age income security for unorganised sector workers. It provides a guaranteed monthly pension (\u20b91,000\u2013\u20b95,000) post-60 years.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/16-02-2022\/rashtriya-vayoshri-yojana\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/16-02-2022\/rashtriya-vayoshri-yojana\">Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana (RVY)<\/a>:<\/strong> Launched in 2017 to distribute assistive living devices (hearing aids, walking sticks, wheelchairs, etc.) to BPL senior citizens or those with income below \u20b915,000\/month.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Senior Care Ageing Growth Engine (SAGE) Portal:<\/strong> Promotes start-ups and innovation in elderly care services, encouraging the growth of the silver economy.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Ayushman Bharat \u2013 PMJAY: <\/strong>It Extends \u20b95 lakh annual health coverage to around 6 crore senior citizens aged 70 years and above, across 4.5 crore families.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act, 2007:<\/strong> Makes it a legal obligation for children and heirs to provide maintenance to their parents.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Mandates state governments to establish old-age homes and ensure senior welfare services.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-full\"><img data-dominant-color=\"5c9bd5\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #5c9bd5;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"310\" height=\"278\" src=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Rising-Elderly-Population-in-India.webp\" alt=\"Rising Elderly Population in India\" class=\"not-transparent wp-image-57799\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Rising-Elderly-Population-in-India.webp 310w, https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Rising-Elderly-Population-in-India-300x269.webp 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 310px) 100vw, 310px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Way Ahead<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Promote Digital Literacy for Seniors: <\/strong>Launch targeted training programmes through community centres, NGOs, and Panchayati Raj Institutions to familiarise elderly citizens with smartphones, telemedicine, and digital banking platforms.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Strengthen Tech Infrastructure in Rural Areas: <\/strong>Expand internet connectivity and affordable digital devices to bridge the rural-urban divide in accessing telehealth and online services.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Encourage Innovation in the Silver Economy:<\/strong> Support start-ups and enterprises developing assistive technologies, AI-based health monitoring tools, and user-friendly applications tailored for elderly needs.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Integrate Technology with Public Health Systems:<\/strong> Link wearable health devices and telemedicine services with existing government schemes such as Ayushman Bharat and NPHCE for continuous and preventive care.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Ensure Data Privacy and Cybersecurity:<\/strong> Develop elderly-specific data protection protocols to safeguard sensitive medical and financial information from cyber threats.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Source: <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pib.gov.in\/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=2183196\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>PIB<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Context<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">India&#8217;s senior citizen population is projected to surge to around 230 million by 2036, making up about 15% of the total population.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong>Elderly Population in India<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The sex ratio among the elderly stands at 1,065 females per 1,000 males, with women accounting for 58% of the elderly population, out of which 54% are widows.\u00a0<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Furthermore, the overall dependency ratio is 62 dependents per 100 working-age individuals, highlighting the increasing socio-economic implications of population ageing in India.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Southern states, along with Himachal Pradesh and Punjab, have higher elderly populations, with regional disparities expected to widen by 2036.<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/28-10-2025\/rising-elderly-population-in-india\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read\u00a0More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":57788,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-57772","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/10\/rising-elderly-population-india.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57772","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57772"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57772\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57812,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57772\/revisions\/57812"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57788"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57772"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57772"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57772"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}