Life in India

What these numbers mean

A newborn in India can expect to live 72.2 years, below the dataset median of 74.7 years. Infant mortality runs at 23.3 deaths per 1,000 live births (2024), so roughly 23 in every thousand babies do not reach their first birthday. Output per person, adjusted for purchasing power, is $10,719 (2024) — which puts the country in the lower half of the dataset on purchasing power, and it is what sets the scale of every income the simulation can offer. The fertility rate is 1.96 births per woman (2024) — below replacement level, so the simulation's households tend to be small. Adult literacy is 78.2% (2024), and schooling in the simulation is the default path rather than the exception. 2.6% of the population lives below the national poverty line (2023), so the poorest tier in the simulation is a minority position here rather than the norm. Public spending on education is 4.1% of output (2022), which is the share of national resources the simulation's schooling decisions are competing for. 35.4% of people live in urban areas (2024), so most lives here begin in a village or a small town, and moving is one of the larger decisions available.

In the simulation, income is expressed as a share of what an average worker in India earns, so the same household choice buys very different amounts in different countries. Median output per person across this dataset is $21,026.

Background groups in India

These are the official classifications this country publishes. The simulation applies a difference between them only where a published statistic supports one — it never treats any group as better or worse than another.

• Other castes and communities
  Basis: Census of India caste classification (residual category) · 44% of the population

  India's largest category of castes. Household wealth and schooling vary widely inside this group, so it carries no modifier in the simulation.

  Source: Census of India; World Bank Poverty & Equity Brief

• Other Backward Classes
  Basis: Census of India social category; benefits under central reservation lists · 44% of the population

  A large group with legal entitlements to reserved places in education and public employment. Income and schooling gaps versus the highest castes are documented in Indian household surveys.

  Source: Census of India; World Bank Poverty & Equity Brief; NSS household surveys

• Scheduled Castes
  Basis: Constitutionally recognised caste category in India · 21% of the population

  A constitutionally recognised category with legal entitlements to reserved places in education and public employment, and protections against discrimination. Despite those entitlements, average household consumption remains lower and school completion slower than in the highest castes.

  Source: Census of India; World Bank Poverty & Equity Brief; NSS household surveys

• Scheduled Tribes
  Basis: Constitutionally recognised tribal category in India · 9% of the population

  A constitutionally recognised category covering indigenous communities, spread across many states with very different conditions. Out-of-school rates and child mortality remain among the highest recorded for any large Indian group.

  Source: Census of India; World Bank Poverty & Equity Brief; Ministry of Tribal Affairs

Where India sits within South Asia

Of the 6 countries in South Asia that report life expectancy, India sits below the regional median, at 72.2 years against a regional median of 74.1. 4 countries report a higher figure and 1 reports a lower one.

Ranges cover every country in the region that reports the indicator, in the year each country last reported it. Medians are unweighted, so a large country and a small one count the same.