Age of full democracy in India
India: Age of full democracy was 40 years in 2017. ◆ Volatile
Age of full democracy in India, 1950–2017
Source: Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in years.
Analysis
India recorded 40 years for age of full democracy in 2017. That is the highest value across all 65 years on record.
The figure is up 2.6% on the previous year and up 33.3% over ten years.
Over the whole period, age of full democracy in India peaked at 40 years in 2017 and was at its lowest, 1 years, in 1950.
That places India 43rd out of 89 countries with data for 2017, putting it in the middle of the range.
The series is highly variable year to year, so single readings are best treated with caution.
Age of full democracy in India, year by year
| Year | years | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1950 | 1 years | — |
| 1951 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1952 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1953 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1954 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1955 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1956 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1957 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1958 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1959 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1960 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1961 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1962 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1963 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1964 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1965 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1966 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1967 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1968 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1969 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1970 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1971 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 1972 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 1973 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 1974 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 1978 | 1 years | -96.0% |
| 1979 | 2 years | +100.0% |
| 1980 | 3 years | +50.0% |
| 1981 | 4 years | +33.3% |
| 1982 | 5 years | +25.0% |
| 1983 | 6 years | +20.0% |
| 1984 | 7 years | +16.7% |
| 1985 | 8 years | +14.3% |
| 1986 | 9 years | +12.5% |
| 1987 | 10 years | +11.1% |
| 1988 | 11 years | +10.0% |
| 1989 | 12 years | +9.1% |
| 1990 | 13 years | +8.3% |
| 1991 | 14 years | +7.7% |
| 1992 | 15 years | +7.1% |
| 1993 | 16 years | +6.7% |
| 1994 | 17 years | +6.2% |
| 1995 | 18 years | +5.9% |
| 1996 | 19 years | +5.6% |
| 1997 | 20 years | +5.3% |
| 1998 | 21 years | +5.0% |
| 1999 | 22 years | +4.8% |
| 2000 | 23 years | +4.5% |
| 2001 | 24 years | +4.3% |
| 2002 | 25 years | +4.2% |
| 2003 | 26 years | +4.0% |
| 2004 | 27 years | +3.8% |
| 2005 | 28 years | +3.7% |
| 2006 | 29 years | +3.6% |
| 2007 | 30 years | +3.4% |
| 2008 | 31 years | +3.3% |
| 2009 | 32 years | +3.2% |
| 2010 | 33 years | +3.1% |
| 2011 | 34 years | +3.0% |
| 2012 | 35 years | +2.9% |
| 2013 | 36 years | +2.9% |
| 2014 | 37 years | +2.8% |
| 2015 | 38 years | +2.7% |
| 2016 | 39 years | +2.6% |
| 2017 | 40 years | +2.6% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 40 years is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 27 years, 1.5× the median. (12 countries reporting)
Biggest year-on-year movements
Years where Age of full democracy in India changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.
| Year | Change | From | To |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | -96.0% | 25 years | 1 years |
| 1951 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1979 | +100.0% | 1 years | 2 years |
| 1952 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1980 | +50.0% | 2 years | 3 years |
| 1953 | +33.3% | 3 years | 4 years |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950s | 5.5 years | 1 years | 10 years | 10 |
| 1960s | 15.5 years | 11 years | 20 years | 10 |
| 1970s | 16.86 years | 1 years | 25 years | 7 |
| 1980s | 7.5 years | 3 years | 12 years | 10 |
| 1990s | 17.5 years | 13 years | 22 years | 10 |
| 2000s | 27.5 years | 23 years | 32 years | 10 |
| 2010s | 36.5 years | 33 years | 40 years | 8 |
Countries ranked near India
More social development data for India
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 238,643 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 42,610 (2025)
- Political Rights Rating 2 (2025)
- Electoral democracy 1 (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, annual growth rate 0 % change on previous year (2025)
- Political rights rating fh, gaps filled 2 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 42,610 (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0.0002 units per person (2025)
- Refugees under the mandate of the UNHCR by country or territory of 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is age of full democracy in India?
- Age of full democracy in India was 40 years in 2017, according to Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest age of full democracy recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 40 years in 2017.
- What is the lowest age of full democracy recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 1 years in 1950.
- How does India rank for age of full democracy?
- India ranks 43rd out of 89 countries with data for 2017.
- Is age of full democracy rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 33.3%. The long-run trend across the full record is volatile.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from Lexical Index (2026) – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Age of full democracy. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 65 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Number of consecutive years in a full democracy.