The post-World War period (i.e., post 1945) is often referred to as a population explosion in demographic terminology. It’s a time when the whole world population including population in India experienced unprecedented and rapid growth, thereby adding to the world population which includes India. Demographers refer to this as the baby boom. For many years, India has lagged behind other countries when it comes to population explosion. There was an immense population surge in several countries including India.
If we cross compare the per cent of total fertility rates and population coverage through various periods in history, we will find that this time period is much higher than the historical average. This is due to the impact of population explosion on per cent economic growth. There was an unprecedented boom in several countries including India, where per cent economic growth was much higher than the historical average.
India had one of the highest population growth rates after the World War II. However, since the early 1990s this has declined. Moreover, the fall in the growth rates was accompanied by an increase in the mortality rate, particularly in the urban population. It is due to all these factors that India’s population has been declining consistently since the early 1990s. This trend of decreasing population growth and increasing death rate can be correlated with the impact of population explosion on India’s economy.
The population explosion is also responsible for reducing India’s global population coverage rate. Rapid population growth has resulted in more people crossing international borders to have babies. To meet the growing population demand, more foreign countries are flooding into India. This influx of population is creating pressure on India to expand its population control processes. The impact on India’s demographics is drastic. Between 1990 and the year 2021, India’s population coverage rate dipped below 1% for the first time ever.
Rapid population growth led to a sharp reduction in the share of the female population over the age of 18-year-olds. This meant that for every 100 males, there were only four females which means that the ratio of male to female population was decreasing. The major cause for this is the increasing ratio of urban to rural areas.
Urban areas have a higher per cent of adult males compared to rural areas. As a result, the ratio of population would favor males over females if not for other reasons. For instance, the larger the population is in an urban area, the higher the infant mortality rate becomes. Infant mortality rate is one of the most important factors that reduce fertility. Thus, India’s population growth has been seriously affected by the changing demography of the country.
Demographers had also predicted that India’s fertility rate would remain low for the next few decades. The declining infertility rate would result in a smaller population. But since the last few years, the Indian government has invested heavily in improving the infrastructural development of the country, especially in the areas of education, health, and nutrition.
In spite of the setback in population growth, there are signs of increasing urbanization and connectivity in the country. There are several IT companies based in the major cities of India such as Bangalore, Chennai, and Delhi that have over 10 million people employed. With the opening up of India’s economy to more sectors, the opportunities for job growth in the country will become better. This is expected to witness more population increase in India’s cities in the coming years given that population will continue to grow despite the setbacks in population growth.
Given that the birth rates have been decreasing, the only way to counter this problem is to encourage more people to have more children. Couples who want to have more kids should be aware of their family size limits. While some couples can afford to have two or even three kids, having more family size may be a luxury that many people cannot afford. This is one reason why the government’s focus has been on family size limits especially in developing countries where family size is considered to be a social issue.
Population control is another way to curb the population explosion. Since the birth rate has been decreasing, the population would soon become too big and uncontrolled. To control population growth, India’s government has introduced many policies that restrict marriage and child bearing for a set number of years.
India’s focus on family size is not only for its population explosion issues. Many other aspects of health and nutrition are also being promoted to promote better health and nutrition among the Indian masses. With the limited space we have on this planet, the population needs to focus on being healthy and less reliant on state-controlled systems. India is trying to do this by promoting better eating habits through better nutrition standards, promoting healthy lifestyles and encouraging physical activity among its people.