New Delhi, March 31 -- By its own estimate, the Indian government expects the economy to close 2024-25 with an expansion of 6.4%. That would make India one of the fastest-growing economies, but it's still some way from maximising its unique demographic moment.

The perils of not being able to do this were highlighted in a recent research report by Saurabh Mukherjea of Marcellus Investment Managers, who pointing to growing indebtedness in the middle class amid flat incomes and the prospect of job losses due to automation.

India's unique demographics hold the prospect of a 'demographic dividend' -economic growth potential that can result from shifts in a population's age structure. This is measured as the dependency ratio-a country's depen...