As many as 51% of urban Indians have not made any retirement plans, says survey

51 percent of urban Indians have not made retirement plans, while 49 percent have financial plans in place, according to a survey by PGIM India Mutual Fund.

The survey found that urban Indians are allocating nearly 59 percent of income to current expenses, with saving and investment taking a back-seat.

"Most Indians do not have a 'retirement fund' – either because they haven’t begun retirement planning yet, or they just have all-purpose funds and investments that may later be used for retirement, in case any of the other worst-case scenarios do not materialise," the report said.

Priorities such as security of spouse and children, fitness and lifestyle ranked higher than retirement.

The survey was conducted among 3,103 Indian adults aged between 26-60 years, across 15 cities.

Around one-third of the participants said they have an alternate source income, and only 1 in 5 take into account inflation while retirement planning.

"Indians tend to account for personal events but neglect external events when planning for retirement," the report said.

The survey also found that many urban Indians (48 percent) were not aware of the corpus required to support their life after retirement, while 52 percent were aware of the amount needed.

"On average, urban Indians aim to gather a corpus of about Rs 50 lakh," the survey said.

The report also mentioned the role employers play in retirement planning. 46 percent of private-sector employees said their employers motivate them to plan for retirement.