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Indian Society no.17) shows the relative contribution to population growth from different regional groupings of States. 2.3 A ge Structure of the India n P opulation India has a very young population — that is, the majority of Indians tend to be young, and the average age is also less than that for most other countries. Table 2 shows that the share of the under 15 age group in the total population has come down from its highest level of 42% in 1971 to 29% in 2011. The share of the 15–59 age group has increased slightly from 53% to 63%, while the share of the 60+ age group is very small but it has begun to increase (from 5% to 7%) over the same period. But the age composition of the Indian population is expected to change significantly in the next two decades. Most of this change will be at the two ends of the age spectrum – as Table 2 shows, the 0 -14 age group will reduce its share by about 11% (from 34% in 2001 to 23% in 2026) while the 60 plus age group will increase its share by about 5% (from 7% in 2001 to about 12% in 2026.) Chart 3 shows a graphical picture of the ‘population pyramid’ from 1961 to its projected shape in 2026. Table 2: Age C omposition of the P opulation of India, 1961 – 2026 Year Age Group Total 0–14 Year 15–59 Year 60+ Years 1961 41 53 6 100 1971 42 53 5 100 1981 40 54 6 100 1991 38 56 7 100 2001 34 59 7 100 2011 29 63 8 100 2026 23 64 12 100 Age Group columns show percentage shares; rows may not add up to 100 because of rounding Source: Based on data from the Technical Group on Population Projections (1996 and 2006) of the National Commission on Population. Webpage for 1996 Report: http://populationcommission.nic.in/facts1.htm 18 Reprint 2026-27