The emerging changes in the age and sex structure of India’s population, particularly at old and
older ages will have a profound impact on the demographic landscape and are expected to
pose multifaceted developmental challenges. While the knowledge base with regard to the
elderly in terms of their demographic, social and economic conditions, health needs and their
living arrangements are fairly extensive in developed countries, it is woefully inadequate in
India. Several researchers have attempted to extract information on issues of the elderly from
various national surveys commissioned for different purposes. However, data bases at the macro
level focusing exclusively on the elderly are negligible in number. Hence, the United Nations
Population Fund (UNFPA), India in collaboration with the Population Research Centre (PRC),
Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC), Bangalore, the Institute of Economic Growth
(IEG), Delhi and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai launched a research project,
Building a Knowledge Base on Population Ageing in India (BKPAI) in the VII Cycle of Cooperation with
the Government of India (2008-12).
Go to the Report on the Status of Elderly in Select States of India, 2011
