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India Must Build Awareness on Population Control- The Hindu Editorial Analysis

Awareness on Population Control in News

  • Early in December, two Members of Parliament introduced in the Lok Sabha a private members’ Bill aimed at population control in India.
  • Stating that population rise is the most significant reason for India’s slow rate of development, the Bill argues for an immediate need for population control.

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Background of Population Control Debate in India

  • The debate and the discourse around India’s rising population is not recent, having begun since Independence.
  • India was among the first nations to address its population problem as early as 1951, raising awareness about the ills of overpopulation.
  • While there has been a significant rise in India’s population, there has also been a sharp decline in India’s total fertility rate (TFR).
  • In 1950, the TFR was at around 5.9%, and is now 2% (fifth round of the National Family Health Survey, or NFHS).
  • There was a steep decline after the 1970s, indicating an inversely proportional relationship between economic prosperity and the fertility rate.

National Population Policy 2000

UP Population Bill- A politicised debate

  • The debate around the need for population control has been greatly politicised in India.
    • The entirety of this discourse around such a sensitive issue is often reduced to a petty religious issue, and, ultimately, the subject of development suffers.
  • Nearly six months before the 2022 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections, the Yogi Adityanath government and the State Law Commission of Uttar Pradesh came up with a proposed draft Bill, i.e., the Uttar Pradesh Population (Control, Stabilisation and Welfare) Bill, 2021.
  • Population is a grave concern in the Hindi heartland, especially Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, but the suggestions were more political than practical.
  • The visible attempt was towards an affirmation of the majoritarian politics being played out.
  • For instance, the Bill said that no government job would be offered to couples with more than two children.
  • However, there was no clarification about what would happen to a person who had a third child after being in a government job or if, for some reason, a person with two children remarried and had a third child.
  • The Bill was seen to strengthen political polarisation and facilitate the politics of majority appeasement.

The Editorial Analysis- Moving Policy Away From Population Control

Is Population Growth Really an Issue?

  • NFHS data indicate that although the fertility rate of Muslims is higher than Hindus, the gap between the two has shrunk substantially.
  • In 1992-93, the gap between the Hindu and Muslim fertility rate was 1.1, which now has reduced to 0.35. A close comparison of Census data on average fertility rates is insightful.
  • For instance, in Uttar Pradesh, with around 20% Muslim population, the TFR declined from 5.8% in 1981 to 2.7% in 2011.
  • In Assam, where the Muslim population is about 33%, the TFR is 1.9%. Similarly, in Jammu and Kashmir, where the Muslim population is the majority, the TFR fell from 4.5% in 1981 to 1.4% in 2011.
  • Data also show that Muslims have adopted better family planning measures than Hindus.
  • India’s TFR, 2%, is even lower than the replacement level, signifying a remarkable step in the population control parameters.
  • It is clear that India does not need a law for forced population control.

UN Population Report 2022

Impact of Forced Population Control Measures- A Case Study of China  

  • External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar too has countered the need for such a law by saying, “forced population control can have very dangerous consequences, it can create a gender imbalance”.
  • Forced population control measures have not shown promising results in the countries that have implemented them, the most relevant example being India’s immediate neighbour, China.
  • The one-child policy has proved to be disastrous, causing a demographic imbalance.
  • The population of China is aging faster than in any other modern country, owing to the policies of forced population control.

Way Forward- Strengthen the health infrastructure

  • India needs to adopt population control measures. But the focus should be on strengthening public health infrastructure and raising awareness about the need for population control.
  • Any forced control method will impact the rate of aging. United Nations data show that there is a projected rise in the population of older people and a decline in the young population in many countries.
  • Although the trend started in rich countries such as Japan, the trend is now visible in developing countries as well, especially Southeast Asia.
    • Among these trends, implementing forced population control can only have negative consequences.

The Editorial Analysis: Does India Need a Population Policy?

The Editorial Analysis: Does India Need a Population Policy?

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