How Public Pension affects Elderly Labor Supply and Well-being: Evidence from India

We study the effect of a recent expansion in India's National Old Age Pension Scheme on elderly well-being. Estimates suggest that public pension has a modestly negative effect on the employment of elderly/near elderly men with a primary or lower education but no effect of the employment of similar women. Pension raised family expenditures, lowering poverty, and the effect was smaller on families headed by illiterate persons suggesting lower pension coverage of this most disadvantaged group. Further, households spent most of the pension income on medical care and education. We find some weak evidence that pension raised longevity.