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Financing young and elderly dependents: the case of Indian public policy

Author

Listed:
  • Laishram Ladusingh

    (Professor of Demography and Statistics, International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai- 400088, India)

Abstract

In this paper the author explores the monetary benefits of young and elderly dependents under the public policy that introduced age into the National Accounts of India, the framework of the National Transfer Accounts. The results of the study indicate that the net monetary gain of young dependents is more than seven times higher than that of elderly dependents. It is suggested that there is a need to reorient the country’s fiscal policy in order to meet the demand for sustainable social security in the face of impending population ageing in the decades ahead. A desirable policy strategy would be to convert all social assistance programmes into a single long-term national social security programme, the scope of which would encompass various aspects of intergenerational equity, raise the level of entitlement to match actual need and make national social security a universal programme.

Suggested Citation

  • Laishram Ladusingh, 2013. "Financing young and elderly dependents: the case of Indian public policy," Asia-Pacific Development Journal, United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), vol. 20(1), pages 121-143, June.
  • Handle: RePEc:unt:jnapdj:v:20:y:2013:i:1:p:121-143
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    File URL: http://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/chap-5-Ladusingh.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Acharya, Shankar, 2008. "Essays on Macroeconomic Policy and Growth in India," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780195695878, Decembrie.
    2. Panagariya, Arvind, 2011. "India: The Emerging Giant," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780199751563, Decembrie.
    3. Vincent P. Crawford & David M. Lilien, 1982. "Erratum: Social Security and the Retirement Decision," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 97(1), pages 191-191.
    4. Laishram Ladusingh & M. R. Narayana, 2011. "Demographic Dividends for India: Evidence and Implications Based on National Transfer Accounts," ADB Economics Working Paper Series 292, Asian Development Bank.
    5. Vincent P. Crawford & David M. Lilien, 1981. "Social Security and the Retirement Decision," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 96(3), pages 505-529.
    6. Andrew Mason & Ronald Lee & An-Chi Tung & Mun-Sim Lai & Tim Miller, 2009. "Population Aging and Intergenerational Transfers: Introducing Age into National Accounts," NBER Chapters, in: Developments in the Economics of Aging, pages 89-122, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    7. Joe Ruggeri & Yang Zou, 2007. "The fiscal burden of rising dependency ratios," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 26(2), pages 185-201, April.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Fiscal burden; life cycle deficit; public transfers; tax policy;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J11 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Demographic Trends, Macroeconomic Effects, and Forecasts
    • J14 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of the Elderly; Economics of the Handicapped; Non-Labor Market Discrimination
    • J18 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Public Policy

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