Aging, Disability and Disease in India

Veena S. Kulkarni , Arkansas State University

Obtaining detailed evidence on disabilities and their covariates is important as India’s elderly population (= or > 60 years) is growing three times faster than the population as a whole. This study is the first of its kind to provide an analysis of disability and its covariates among the elderly in 2012, based on the India Human Development Survey 2015, a nationally representative panel survey across the years 2005 and 2012. Our analysis throws light on factors associated with (reported) disabilities in 2012 when accounting for covariates in 2005. Results indicate that vulnerability of the elderly is associated with low assets, non-communicable diseases (NCDs), disabilities, lack of school education, widowhood, aging, and lack of participation in social networks. Similar associations are found for variations in disabilities by type in 2012, using the covariates in 2005. Disabilities are therefore not just a medical or social problem but an outcome of their interplay.

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 Presented in Session 96. Triple Burden of Diseases in the Global South