In view of the increasing elderly population in Andhra Pradesh, the Chandrababu Naidu government will introduce a new law. After this law comes into effect, only those with two or more children will be able to contest local body elections in Andhra Pradesh. At the same time, he also called for more children.
Chief Minister Naidu expressed concern over the increasing elderly population in southern India, especially in Andhra Pradesh. China, Japan and many European countries also have rapidly growing elderly populations, he said.
He also cited falling fertility rates in southern states. The country’s fertility rate is 2.1, while Andhra Pradesh’s is 1.6. He warned that if the situation continues, Andhra Pradesh will have a large elderly population by 2047, so we will have to work on this issue from now on.
But are CM Naidu’s concerns justified? The central government’s report titled “India Youth 2022” shows that India’s elderly population is increasing. It is estimated that by 2036, the proportion of young people in India’s population will decline to 22.7%. This means that 77 out of every 100 people will age.
How old is India now?
Last year, the United Nations released the “India Aging Report 2023”. The report said that by 2050, the elderly will account for 20.8% of India’s population. The elderly refer to people over the age of 60. This means that by 2050, India will have 21 older people per 100 people.
According to the report, the number of elderly people in India has grown rapidly since 2010. As a result, the share of the population under 15 years of age is decreasing, while the share of older people is increasing.
It is estimated that in the next few years, India’s elderly population will exceed the number of children under 14 years of age. In addition, the number of people in the 15 to 59 age group will also decrease.
By 2050, 350 million people will be elderly
The United Nations report points out that India’s elderly population has been declining since 1961. Until 2001, the growth rate of the elderly population was still slow. But it started to increase after that.
Between 2011 and 2021, India’s elderly population grew at a rate of 35.5%. But between 2021 and 2031, this proportion is expected to exceed 40%.
The report stated that as of July 1, 2022, the country’s elderly population was 149 million. At that time, the elderly population accounted for 10.5% of the total population. But by 2050, the number of elderly people in India is expected to reach 347 million. If this happens, 20.8% of India’s population will be elderly. However, by the end of this century, in 2100, more than 36% of India’s population will be elderly.
Kerala to have highest number of senior citizens
Not only that, the report shows that the elderly population will increase rapidly between 2021 and 2036. The elderly population in southern India will increase even more, with 1 in 5 people here being elderly by 2036.
The report states that by 2036, the proportion of India’s elderly population will reach 15%. In most of the southern states and states like Punjab-Himachal Pradesh, the number of elderly people is higher than the national average. This difference is expected to widen further by 2036.
Kerala and Tamil Nadu are states where the elderly population will increase rapidly in the coming years. By 2036, the proportion of elderly people in Kerala will reach 22.8%, and the proportion of elderly people in Tamil Nadu will reach 20.8%. In Andhra Pradesh, 19% of the population is elderly.
However, in states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, the proportion of senior citizens in the population will be lower than the national average. That’s because the fertility rate here is high.
This thing will increase anxiety!
This report reveals many of these things and raises concerns. India’s population will increase by 18% between 2022 and 2050. However, the elderly population is expected to increase by 134%. At the same time, the number of people over 80 years old can increase by 279%.
If the number of elderly people increases, the dependency ratio will also increase. By 2021, 16 out of every 100 working people will be dependent on the elderly. This is more the case in southern India.
The report states that in 1991, there were 930 elderly women for every 1,000 elderly men. But this trend has continued to change since then. By 2031, there are expected to be 1,078 older women for every 951 older men.
The reason for this is that the average age of women is higher than that of men. If a person lives to be 60 years old, he can live another 18.3 years. Meanwhile, if a woman is over 60, she can live another 19 years.
