Elderly in India 2021

This report was published in August 2021 by the Social Statistics Division at the National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation. It is the fifth Elderly in India report, the first of which was brought out in the year 2000. The report uses the terms ‘senior citizen’ and ‘elderly’ for persons aged 60 or more – in keeping with the National Policy for Older Persons adopted by the government of India in 1999.The publication consolidates government data on various aspects of the lives of the elderly population in India. In doing so, the report aims to aid the formulation of welfare policies for the elderly, and help mitigate the ill-effects of an ageing population on labour force participation, and health and pension expenditures.The 118-page document is divided into five chapters: Introduction (chapter 1); Schemes and Programmes of Government of India for the Welfare of Elderly Persons (chapter 2); Population and Vital Statistics (chapter 3); Economic Status (chapter 4); Health and Social Status (chapter 5).