India Life Expectancy by State: Gender & Urban-Rural Data
Author: Ian C. Langtree - Writer/Editor for Disabled World (DW)
Published: 2017/05/14 - Updated: 2026/01/17
Publication Type: Data & Statistical Analysis
Category Topic: Calculators - Charts - Related Publications
Page Content: Synopsis - Introduction - Main - Insights, Updates
Synopsis: This report presents statistical data on life expectancy across India's major states, broken down by gender and rural versus urban residence for the 2010-14 period. The information draws from authoritative sources including the United Nations Development Program India's Human Development Index Report and the Sample Registration Survey, making it particularly valuable for researchers, public health officials, and anyone examining demographic trends in South Asia. The data reveals important disparities - Kerala shows the highest life expectancy for both genders in rural areas while Madhya Pradesh and Assam lag behind, and urban residents consistently outlive their rural counterparts by several years. These statistics help seniors, healthcare planners, and disability advocates understand regional health inequalities that affect quality of life, access to medical care, and longevity outcomes across different Indian populations - Disabled World (DW).
Introduction
Life expectancy in India has increased by more than ten years in the past twenty years. However, life expectancy in India still falls short of most developed and developing nations; the infant mortality rate is three times higher than China's and seven times higher than the U.S.
Main Content
The World Health Organization (WHO), defines life expectancy as; "the average number of years a person is expected to live on the basis of the current mortality rates and prevalence distribution of health states in a population".
The supply of clean drinking water and better control of non-communicable diseases are playing major roles in the increasing average lifespan of people in India - it was only a century ago that the average lifespan in India and South Korea was as low as 23 years. Life-threatening diseases such as diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough have been eliminated completely, and India has also been recently declared a polio free nation. However, it is estimated that 20% of deaths among Indian males aged between 30 and 69 is attributable to the use of tobacco. As yet, India has found no remedy to some of the new issues that accompany civilization.
Almost all Indian States recorded a higher life expectancy for females in 2010-14 across both rural and urban areas.
- Kerala recorded the highest life expectancy at birth for both males and females in rural areas, Himachal Pradesh recorded the highest for males in urban areas, and Jammu and Kashmir for females in urban areas.
- The lowest life expectancy at birth was recorded in the State of Madhya Pradesh for rural males and Assam for rural females.
- In Urban, the lowest life expectancy at birth was recorded in Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh for males and females respectively.
Also see our Average Life Span Expectancy Chart - a list of male and female lifespan expectant averages by country and average age to death.
The chart below shows life expectancy at birth, sex, and residence, in the larger Indian states. The statistics include total population as well as male and female components.
| Life Expectancy in India and Larger States (2010-14) | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | Rural | Urban | |||||||
| Total | Male | Female | Total | Male | Female | Total | Male | Female | |
| India | 67.9 | 66.4 | 69.6 | 66.7 | 65.1 | 68.4 | 71.5 | 70.0 | 73.2 |
| Andhra Pradesh | 68.5 | 66.3 | 70.8 | 66.9 | 64.6 | 69.3 | 72.8 | 70.7 | 75.2 |
| Assam | 63.9 | 62.7 | 65.5 | 63.0 | 61.9 | 64.6 | 70.3 | 69.1 | 71.8 |
| Bihar | 68.1 | 67.8 | 68.4 | 67.8 | 67.5 | 68.1 | 70.7 | 70.2 | 71.3 |
| Chhattisgarh | 64.8 | 63.3 | 66.3 | 64.2 | 62.8 | 65.5 | 68.1 | 66.1 | 70.2 |
| Delhi | 73.2 | 72.0 | 74.7 | 71.2 | 69.5 | 72.9 | 73.5 | 72.3 | 75.0 |
| Gujarat | 68.7 | 66.6 | 71.0 | 67.1 | 64.6 | 70.0 | 71.3 | 69.9 | 72.9 |
| Haryana | 68.6 | 66.3 | 71.3 | 67.7 | 65.2 | 70.8 | 70.6 | 68.9 | 72.5 |
| Himachal Pradesh | 71.6 | 69.3 | 74.1 | 71.2 | 68.8 | 73.8 | 76.3 | 75.2 | 77.8 |
| Jammu & Kashmir | 72.6 | 70.9 | 74.9 | 71.6 | 70.2 | 73.6 | 76.2 | 73.6 | 79.6 |
| Jharkhand | 66.6 | 66.2 | 66.9 | 65.6 | 65.4 | 65.8 | 71.5 | 70.5 | 72.6 |
| Karnataka | 68.8 | 66.9 | 70.8 | 67.3 | 65.1 | 69.6 | 71.9 | 70.5 | 73.3 |
| Kerala | 74.9 | 72.0 | 77.8 | 74.9 | 71.7 | 78.1 | 75.0 | 72.7 | 77.1 |
| Madhya Pradesh | 64.2 | 62.5 | 66.0 | 63.0 | 61.3 | 65.0 | 68.9 | 67.4 | 70.6 |
| Maharashtra | 71.6 | 69.9 | 73.6 | 70.4 | 68.4 | 72.4 | 73.5 | 71.9 | 75.2 |
| Odisha | 65.8 | 64.7 | 67.1 | 65.2 | 64.1 | 66.5 | 69.8 | 68.7 | 71.0 |
| Punjab | 71.6 | 69.7 | 73.8 | 70.4 | 68.5 | 72.4 | 73.7 | 71.6 | 76.2 |
| Rajasthan | 67.7 | 65.5 | 70.2 | 67.0 | 64.6 | 69.7 | 70.5 | 69.0 | 72.2 |
| Tamil Nadu | 70.6 | 68.6 | 72.7 | 69.2 | 67.2 | 71.3 | 72.5 | 70.5 | 74.5 |
| Uttar Pradesh | 64.1 | 62.9 | 65.4 | 63.3 | 62.1 | 64.7 | 67.8 | 66.8 | 68.9 |
| Uttrakhand | 71.7 | 69.1 | 74.5 | 71.0 | 68.0 | 74.3 | 74.1 | 73.3 | 75.0 |
| West Bengal | 70.2 | 68.9 | 71.6 | 69.4 | 68.0 | 70.8 | 72.2 | 71.0 | 73.6 |
Data Sources: Human Development Index Report, United Nations Development Program (UNDP) India and Sample Registration Survey (SRS) based life table 2010-14.
Insights, Analysis, and Developments
Editorial Note: What stands out most in this data isn't just the numerical differences between states - it's what those numbers tell us about the lived reality of millions of people. A seven-year gap between Kerala and Madhya Pradesh represents entire childhoods, careers cut short, grandchildren never met. The urban-rural divide, particularly stark in states like Jammu & Kashmir where it reaches nearly six years for women, speaks to fundamental inequities in healthcare access, nutrition, and environmental conditions that policy alone has yet to bridge. As India continues modernizing at breakneck speed, these figures remind us that geography and gender still dictate not just how people live, but how long they get to live at all - Disabled World (DW).
Author Credentials: Ian is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Disabled World, a leading resource for news and information on disability issues. With a global perspective shaped by years of travel and lived experience, Ian is a committed proponent of the Social Model of Disability-a transformative framework developed by disabled activists in the 1970s that emphasizes dismantling societal barriers rather than focusing solely on individual impairments. His work reflects a deep commitment to disability rights, accessibility, and social inclusion. To learn more about Ian's background, expertise, and accomplishments, visit his full biography.