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Indian EconomyEasyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2019, GK

What do you mean by 'Demographic Dividend'?

  1. A.A rise in the rate of economic growth due to a higher share of working age people in a population
  2. B.A rise in the rate of literacy due to development of educational institutions in different parts of the country
  3. C.A rise in the standard of living of the people due to the growth of alternative livelihood practices
  4. D.A rise in the gross employment ratio of a country due to government policies

Correct answer

A. A rise in the rate of economic growth due to a higher share of working age people in a population

Explanation

The correct answer is A, a rise in the rate of economic growth due to a higher share of working age people in a population. Demographic dividend is the growth bonus a country gets when its working age group grows larger than its dependent population.

As birth rates fall after death rates have already fallen, the share of children drops while the share of people aged roughly 15 to 64 rises. With fewer dependants per worker, households save more, more people join the labour force and output can grow faster. India's working age share is large and is expected to stay high for the next two decades or so, but the dividend is earned only if these people are healthy, skilled and employed; otherwise it can turn into a burden.

B is wrong because a rise in literacy is an outcome of education policy, not the meaning of the term. C is wrong because it describes livelihood diversification, not a change in age structure. D is wrong because the term is about population structure, not employment created by government policy.

Exam tip: demographic dividend = falling dependency ratio + rising working age share = faster growth.

Practice Questions

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Q1.Indian EconomyAsked in: CDS · CDS-II 2022, GKEasy

Which one of the following central features is not associated with Capitalist Economy?

  1. A.There is generalised commodity production - it has market value.
  2. B.Productive wealth is held predominantly in private hands.
  3. C.Economic life is organised according to market principles.
  4. D.Economic organisation is based on planning, a supposedly rational process of resource allocation.
Show answer
Correct answer: D. Economic organisation is based on planning, a supposedly rational process of resource allocation.

Allocation of resources through central planning is the mark of a socialist or command economy, not a capitalist one. In a capitalist economy, the means of production such as land, factories and capital are owned mainly by private individuals and firms.

Q2.Indian EconomyAsked in: NDA · NDA-I 2026, GATHard

Consider the following statements:

I. The Second Five-Year Plan sought to promote development which would establish socialistic pattern of society in India.

II. Between 1966 and 1969, three Annual Plans were formulated.

III. The Ninth Five-Year Plan could not take off at its stipulated time in the 60th year of India's Independence.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

  1. A.I and II only
  2. B.I and III only
  3. C.II and III only
  4. D.I, II and III
Show answer
Correct answer: A. I and II only

Statements I and II are true, but the Ninth Plan began in 1997, the fiftieth year of Independence, not the sixtieth.

Q3.Indian EconomyAsked in: CDS · CDS-I 2023, GKHard

According to the National Multi-dimensional Poverty Index (MPI) constructed by the NITI Aayog, a household is considered deprived if 1. a single member of the household is identified as under-nourished 2. the body mass index of a woman member, between 15 years and 49 years of age, is below 18.5 kg/m2 Select the correct answer using the code given below.

  1. A.1 only
  2. B.2 only
  3. C.Both 1 and 2
  4. D.Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer
Correct answer: C. Both 1 and 2

Under the nutrition indicator, a household is deprived if any one eligible member is undernourished, and a woman of 15 to 49 with a BMI below 18.5 counts as undernourished.