Date: 23/12/2022

Relevance: GS-2: Issues Relating to Development and Management of Social Sector/Services relating to Education, Human Resources;

Key Phrases: Elderly in India 2021 report, First Longitudinal Ageing Study India (LASI), Korean Lesson In Education, Demographic shift towards older populations

Context:

• The world as a whole is getting older wherein around 34 countries in the world currently have a senior citizen population (aged 65 years or older) that is larger than their working-age population and that could increase to as much as 90 by 2050.
• By mid-century, one in six humans will be aged above 65 years, up from one in 11 in 2019.

Elderly in India 2021 report: Demographic status of Elderlies in India:

• The policy attention in India has been focused on the youth population i.e., how to educate, skill and find jobs for the millions joining the workforce every year. However, the problem of an ageing population despite India unveiling a policy for older persons as far back as 1999 — has fallen largely off the radar.
• According to the National Statistical Office (NSO)’s Elderly in India 2021 report India’s 60-plus population is projected to touch 194 million in 2031 from 138 million in 2021 which is a rise of 41 per cent.
• The old-age dependency ratio defined as the number of persons aged 60-plus per 100 persons relative to the age group 15-59 is projected to rise to over 20 per cent by 2031 which puts enormous economic pressure on the elderly.

First Longitudinal Ageing Study India (LASI):

• In the findings of the first wave which were made available last year, nearly 62 per cent of people aged 45-59 years and 35.7 per cent of aged 60 years and above are currently working.
• This does not mean that they are secure, since a bulk of these is engaged in the already overloaded agricultural sector.
• According to LASI, there are 4.4 per cent of people aged 45-59 years and 1.5 per cent of aged 60 years and above, who were, at the time of the survey, actively seeking jobs but simply seeking a job does not mean that they will get one as it depends on their educational qualifications, skills, and past experience.
• This is a tough task given the current status of employability in India among the youth — according to the World Economic Forum, only one in four management professionals, one in five engineers, and one in 10 graduates are employable.

The Need to Follow South Korean Education Model:

• South Korea, which witnessed rapid growth both in its economy and population post the Korean War, is one of the major Asian economies — along with Japan — which is already well ahead of the curve on this demographic shift towards older populations.
• Its population declined for the first time in 2020 and its fertility rate, at 0.84 births per woman, is the lowest in the world.
• Its demographic dividend i.e., when the maximum percentage of its population fell within the working age — peaked around 1990.
• The way South Korea deals with its ageing population while sustaining its economic prosperity and national security is interesting to follow for other countries including India, which has already squandered the peak years of its demographic dividend, and will soon have to deal with a greying population

South Korea’s Model of Education:

• The government would allocate an extra W11.2 trillion (about ₹75,400 crore) for higher and lifelong education.
• This sum will come from fresh budgetary allocations as well as W3.2 trillion which will be taken out from the budget for school education — early childhood, primary and secondary and allotted to education and reskilling of older adults.
• According to media reports, Korea’s school-age population is declining with falling birth rates.
• Fewer children need to be educated now, while the number of adults with re-skilling/upskilling needs is growing.
• Higher education in South Korea is relatively underfunded compared to Western economies with which it competes in technological prowess and the new redistribution is meant to address that.

The Indian Scenario of Education Funding:

• Given the nature of Indian electoral politics, resources have been targeted at building physical infrastructure — roads, bridges, airports and metros — which can be touted as “achievements” come election time.
• Similarly, there is the “revdi” culture of freebies across all parties targeted at the vote banks.
• Thus, education as a whole has always remained chronically underfunded where the government allots roughly 16 per cent of its expenditure to education.
• The Centre and States together spend about 4 per cent of GDP on education which is only a recent trend. The historical average is just around 3 per cent of GDP, about half of what experts recommend.
• India needs to learn from South Korea’s experience and mend its ways in order to prevent the turning of its demographic dividend into a demographic disaster.

Conclusion:

• Given that everybody is underfunded and that India will hit the demographic peak of having the maximum percentage of the population in working age only in a decade’s time, the need for resources for re-skilling and lifelong learning is growing more pressing by the year.
• India has already missed the bus on reaping the full benefit of its demographic dividend by not investing enough in education and skill-building when it should have, with the result that millions continue to enter the workforce with little apart from labour to offer.
• Unless the problem of greying population is looked upon now — when the numbers are still not unmanageable — India will be left with the situation of having grown old before growing rich, putting an intolerable burden on future generations.

Source: Hindu BL

Mains Question:

Q. India has missed the bus on reaping the full benefit of its demographic dividend by not investing enough in education and skill-building when it should have, with the result that millions continue to enter the workforce with little apart from labour to offer. Examine. (250 words).