Will the policy of freezing the increasing population in itself could fix the problems plaguing the Indian economy? Critically analyse.
Will the policy of freezing the increasing population in itself could fix the problems plaguing the Indian economy? Critically analyse.
It is a well known fact that the population of India is of course humongous. It is also true that a considerable number of the Indians couldn't meet even the basic needs of life like good food, shelter, education and the like.
It is apparent that India’s political and administrative machinery witness tremendous pressure year after year to address the ever growing demands of the ever growing Indian populace. India fare low when it comes to the reports and the rankings pertaining to the human development (Ex: Human Development Index)
It is also true that the escalating population growth puts a heavy burden on natural resources. Nevertheless, choking the population growth in itself cannot be an appealing solution to the problems. The controversial UP Population policy and its associated bill which intends to discredit parents to have more than 2 children has to be understood in this context.
China had enforced a one-child norm in the 1980s. However, it was forced to abandon the policy because of the skyrocketing aged dependents, insufficient people of working age, and a huge excess of aged people needing costly medical care. China now urges couples to have more children. Hence it resulted only in demographic distortion.
It is also clear that the two-child policy could have worrying impacts including sex-selective and unsafe abortions, worsening sex ration and will fuel economic disparity.
On the other hand, the Centre had listed a dozen schemes being implemented to achieve a replacement fertility rate of 2.1 by 2025.
Moreover, as per the Fifth National Family Health Survey (NFHS) the total fertility rate has decreased across the majority of the states.
Besides, as per NFHS -4, the fertility rate in Uttar Pradesh has declined from 4.1 to 2.7 during 1998 to 2016. The NFHS-4 data on birth order shows that the highest proportion of births was among women with no schooling.
Going by the international consensus in 1969, the United Nations General Assembly declared “parents have the exclusive right to determine freely and responsibly the number and spacing of their children. Therefore instead of suppressing population growth, it is reasonable for any government to strive for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) pertaining to poverty, food, educational and economic opportunities, gender equality and so on.
This will go a long way in harnessing the population growth for the maximum economic benefit of the society and country.
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