But the drawback outweighs the advantage. Eliminating poverty, addressing hunger and malnutrition, and expanding access to health and education systems are all formidable tasks exacerbated by rapid population increase. It should come as no surprise that India does poorly on each of these important metrics.
Source: Tribune India
Even worse, the load is actually doubled because India’s massive population must simultaneously deal with the threat of climate change. The overwhelming number of people would make scarce resources like food and water, which are already under stress due to extreme weather occurrences (820 million Indians are believed to be water-stressed at now), even more so. More people are expected to be displaced as a result of climate change, and more areas will become parched and uninhabitable.
The population explosion in India is slowing down, and the average number of children born to each woman has decreased to 2.0, which is below the replacement level. India’s policies to improve family planning services and public access to healthcare are working; more money has to be put into them.
The National Family Health Survey-5 revealed that the Muslim fertility rate has decreased the most over the past 20 years in comparison to that of other religious groups. This fact refutes malicious political narratives that blame Muslims for India’s population burden. Similar excessive burdens of responsibility are placed on other groups.
Another of these population-induced illusions is India’s demographic dividend. Has India been able to profit from its youthful, working-age population? Data point to the contrary. The issue has become even more urgent as a result of the Narendra Modi government’s appalling track record in creating jobs. The older population is one additional area where India can benefit from what the Chinese have learned.
Source: WION
According to projections, there will be 194 million senior people in India by 2030, a 41% increase from today. In addition to taxing India’s health and social welfare systems, this would increase the likelihood that this population will experience abuse, abandonment, loneliness, and poverty.
The sheer size of India’s population will probably put the welfare promises of succeeding governments to the test before it stabilises. The breaking of these pledges might be harmful to democracy and social harmony.
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