This paper points out that India has been passing through a "window of demographic opportunity" since the 1980s. In the country as a whole the share of the working age group (15-59) in the population has been increasing. The window will be open till 2035 and after that the relative share of the working age group in the population will start declining. The current bulge in labour supply in India cannot be attributed merely to the high population growth rates that prevail in some backward Indian states, but is also due to the change in age structure in favour of the more productive age groups in the relatively developed states. The latter phenomenon can be attributed to the steadily declining fertility rates in these states. However, the paper emphasises that such demographic changes are not sufficient to provide an upward push to rates of economic growth, but should be accompanied by generation of employment opportunities and human capital formation.
