The News Minute| October 8, 2014| 10.30 am IST

India does not seem the best place to be in if one is old and alone, revealed the Census 2011 data on households. 

According to the Census 2011 data on households with people aged 60 years and above, it found that 72.83 per cent of the senior citizens who lived alone were women, said the Indian Express. Comparatively, that means 36.2 lakh old women as opposed to 13.5 lakh old men.

More alarmingly, the data also revealed that more than 49 lakh one-member households existed with the person being of 60 years of age and above. Basically the numbers mean that almost half, that is 47.57 per cent of the total 1.03 crore people living alone are old.

The main reason for this was given to be due to increasing urbanization and migration.

The numbers also showed that over half the households in India do not have anyone in their homes of the age of 60 and above.

The numbers have also brought forward societal issues surrounded changing culture in the country after the breakdown of the joint-family system, said the report.