New Delhi, Oct 5: India’s life expectancy at birth rose to 71 years in 2023, recovering from the decline recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the latest Global Health Estimates released by the World Health Organization. The figures show a broad improvement in survival prospects, although the number of years people can expect to live in good health has recovered more slowly.
The WHO estimates, released on October 2 and reported widely over the weekend, examine changes in life expectancy, healthy life expectancy, causes of death and disease burden across countries between 2000 and 2023. The latest assessment provides a picture of how populations have been affected by the pandemic and how health outcomes have changed since then.
For India, life expectancy stood at 70.5 years in 2019, before the pandemic disrupted healthcare systems and increased mortality. It fell to 68.1 years in 2021, representing a decline of about 2.4 years. The figure returned to 70.5 years in 2022 and climbed further to 71 years in 2023.
The recovery means that India not only regained the life expectancy lost during the pandemic period but moved slightly above its 2019 level. The development marks an important improvement in a key indicator used to assess the overall health of a population.
However, the WHO data also highlights a significant distinction between living longer and spending more years in good health. India’s healthy life expectancy at birth was estimated at 60.6 years in 2023. That figure was only slightly above the 60.5 years recorded in 2019.
Healthy life expectancy, or HALE, measures the average number of years a person can expect to live in full health after accounting for periods affected by disease or injury. It therefore provides a different perspective from conventional life expectancy, which measures the expected length of life without assessing the health condition during those years.
India’s healthy life expectancy had dropped to 58.4 years in 2021. It improved to 60.2 years in 2022 and reached 60.6 years in 2023. While this represents a recovery of more than two years from the pandemic-era low, the improvement has been much smaller when compared with the increase in overall life expectancy.
The difference underlines a continuing challenge for India’s healthcare system. Extending lifespan is only one part of improving population health. Ensuring that people remain free from disabling diseases, chronic conditions and injuries for a greater share of their lives is equally important.
The WHO has pointed to the changing nature of the global disease burden, with non-communicable diseases accounting for an increasing proportion of deaths. Conditions including diabetes, dementia, mental health disorders and drug-use disorders are placing growing demands on health systems.
The global figures provide further context to India’s performance. Worldwide life expectancy reached 73.3 years in 2023, compared with 73.4 years in 2019, indicating that the global average had come close to its pre-pandemic level. Healthy life expectancy, however, stood at 62.8 years in 2023, still 0.4 years below the 2019 figure.
India’s 71-year life expectancy in 2023 was higher than the corresponding figure for Pakistan, which stood at 68.2 years. It remained below Bangladesh, where life expectancy was estimated at 72.7 years. The United States recorded 78.5 years, while Canada stood at 81.4 years.
The figures also draw attention to the importance of healthcare beyond treatment of acute illness. A longer lifespan can reflect improvements in medical care, disease prevention, nutrition, living conditions and access to health services. But gains in healthy life expectancy depend on the ability to prevent or control conditions that can cause long-term disability.
For India, this is particularly relevant as the country faces a combination of communicable diseases, non-communicable illnesses and health problems linked to injuries. The increasing burden of chronic diseases means that healthcare services must support patients not only during serious episodes but also over long periods of treatment and monitoring.
The WHO estimates are intended to provide comparable information across countries and are based on multiple sources, including national vital registration systems, WHO technical programmes, United Nations partners and scientific studies. The organisation uses established methods to produce time-series estimates covering mortality, morbidity, life expectancy and disease burden.
Such estimates are useful for governments and health agencies because they help identify where health gains have been achieved and where additional intervention may be required. They can also guide planning for hospitals, primary healthcare, preventive programmes and services for ageing populations.
The latest numbers suggest that India has made meaningful progress in restoring the overall life expectancy lost during the pandemic. Yet the relatively modest rise in healthy life expectancy compared with the pre-pandemic period indicates that the quality of additional years remains an important policy concern.
The distinction becomes increasingly important as people live longer and the population ages. More years of life can also mean greater demand for management of chronic illnesses, rehabilitation, elderly care and long-term support.
Improving healthy longevity will therefore require a combination of early detection, preventive healthcare, better management of chronic conditions, stronger primary care and measures that reduce avoidable injuries. Public awareness around physical activity, nutrition, tobacco and alcohol use, mental health and regular screening can also influence long-term health outcomes.
The latest WHO assessment ultimately presents a mixed but encouraging picture for India. The country has recovered the pandemic-era loss in overall life expectancy, but the smaller improvement in healthy life expectancy shows that the next stage of progress will depend increasingly on keeping people healthier for longer.
With health systems continuing to adjust after the disruption caused by COVID-19, the challenge is shifting from simply restoring lost years of life to ensuring that a larger proportion of those years are lived without significant disease or disability.